Everton could take £15m transfer chance on James Rodriguez team-mate who plays like Anthony Gordon

Yaser Asprilla has been linked with a move to Everton but what might the Watford and Colombia winger potentially offer them?

Yaser Asprilla has been linked to Everton, but what could the player possibly offer the Blues?

The Sunday People, cited by Goodison News, reports that Everton has expressed interest in the £15 million-rated 3Watford winger this summer and may make a bid. The story also mentions that the Blues have long been interested in the 20-year-old, having tried to sign him towards the end of the January transfer window. However, with only a year remaining on his Vicarage Road contract, it is believed that signing the player will be easier now that Sean Dyche’s team may be able to get him for “cheap.”

The young player, who is also capable of playing in central midfield, is not related to his fellow countryman Faustino Asprilla, who played 61 games and scored 18 goals for Newcastle United from 1996 to 1998. However, he is a Colombian international and has scored twice in his team’s first six games. Asprilla began his career with Envigado in his native Bajo Baudo, on the coast of the Pacific Ocean, before relocating to England in 2022. In his 86 Hornets appearances, he has scored seven goals, including six in 44 Championship games the previous campaign.

Asprilla is a member of the Colombian team currently playing in the Copa America in the United States. On Saturday, the team defeated Panama 5-0 in the quarterfinals at Phoenix’s State Farm Stadium thanks to a penalty kick and two assists from Everton old boy James Rodriguez. The Watford player’s only other run-out to date was an 18-minute cameo off the bench in the team’s 3-0 group win over Costa Rica at the same stadium, where he replaced captain James.

Comparator’s Similarity Comparison tool determines that Scouser Anthony Gordon—who was formerly of Everton and is currently with Newcastle—is the closest match in terms of style when compared to Asprilla, scoring 84%. Raheem Sterling of Chelsea (77%) is next, followed by Alejandro Garnacho of Manchester United (65%). According to reports, the South American prospect is “explosive,” “skilful,” and has the ability to create opportunities out of nothing.

Additionally, we can compare Asprilla’s statistics from the previous season to players who are currently playing in his position in the Premier League by using Comparisonator’s Virtual Transfer tool. Even out on the wings, James Garner leads the A.I. Defensive Index with a score of 103, a category in which the Watford player would finish sixth with a score of 24.99. This shows that Sean Dyche expects all of his players to put in a lot of work.

Asprilla’s style of play is more forward-oriented, and he ranks third in terms of successful final-third passes made per ninety minutes, behind only Chelsea’s Cole Palmer (4.17) and Aston Villa’s John McGinn (4.4), but ahead of Garner (2.91). Along with Miguel Almiron of Newcastle, he would also rank third in terms of successful progressive passes (84%), trailing only Palmer and Mohamed Salah of Liverpool (both 86%).