The situation surrounding Léo Lacroix at Basel is a bit weird, especially taking into account how well he’s done since arriving on loan from Saint-Etienne.
The centre-back has, over the past few months, been linked with a move to Everton, a rumour confirmed to Sport Witness by someone close to the player.
Down their end, Basel have the option to sign the 26-year-old permanently thanks to a clause in the deal they struck with the Ligue 1 side who own him.
Now, if the Toffees’ interest is strong, the logical business move here would be to trigger said clause, sign Lacroix permanently and then sell him to Everton, who have a lot more money, for a profit.
However, according to Le Matin, Basel are already looking to replace Lacroix with a new young defender, and ‘there’s no guarantee’ they will make an attempt to keep the potential Switzerland international, giving Sam Allardyce’s interest in his services as a reason.
That means the Premier League side are most likely still knocking on the centre-back’s agent door these days, and the Swiss club will use their money to get a replacement.
We suppose there’s always the risk of signing Lacroix and Everton pulling out because they’ve found someone better for cheaper.
