Everton have had a bid rejected for Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Leander Dendoncker as they aim to replenish their squad with reinforcements ahead of the transfer deadline on Thursday.
Dendoncker signed for Wolves from Anderlecht in 2018, and was billed as one of the newer ‘Golden Generation’ group to have come from Belgium alongside the likes of Youri Tielemans, Romelu Lukaku and Yannick Carrasco who have all created successful careers for themselves.
Dendoncker has largely impressed at Molineux, although the excellence of Ruben Neves and Joao Moutinho saw him start just 22 league games last season; an amount that he may want to improve upon come the end of the window.
With the World Cup nigh, Dendoncker will want as much game time as possible in order to impress Roberto Martinez for a space in the squad for Qatar. And that could be realised at Everton, who have bid £8m for his services according to The Athletic.
The former Anderlecht start has seen the bid turned down with the Toffees wishing to improve their admittedly light ranks in midfield.
Amadou Onana, Tom Davies, Allan and Abdoulaye Doucoure are seen as their current contingent, but poor form has beset the squad over the last year with Onana being brought in over the summer.
That could pave the way for a space for Dendoncker considering Dele Alli and Jean-Philippe Gbamin have been allowed to depart temporarily, although a move could still be considered for Idrissa Gana Gueye.
£8m would have represented a coup for a player who has racked up over 150 appearances under Nuno Espirito Santo and Bruno Lage over the past four years, though it remains to be seen just how much Wolves would ask for to part ways with the stalwart.
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