Morgan Schneiderlin was linked with several moves over the past couple of months or so, with his Manchester United career clearly coming to an end. Perhaps the most interested club, along with Everton, had been West Brom.
Tony Pulis has been looking for a midfield safety net for a while and West Brom have made offers for several , struggling particularly at the end of the last transfer window. Pulis interest in Schneiderlin would be no surprise, but it equally wasn’t surprising that the player himself preferred Everton and a reunion with Ronald Koeman.
Snubbing West Brom and others, Schneiderlin has told French newspaper L’Equipe that switching to Everton seemed clearly the right thing to do: “From the moment I decided to leave, it was, of course, about making make the right choice.
The Koeman factor was of course important for Schneiderlin, with the pair having worked together at Southampton, and the midfielder said: “The coach, I know how he works, what are the expectations, how he intends to play me, what he likes from me… I spoke with him from the time he wanted me at Everton.
“It’s a big Premier League club and the coach has great ambitions to bring them to the top 6 or even in the top 5 of the championship. It is interesting to me.”
It wasn’t just West Brom who had also been interest in Schneiderlin, French club Marseille were also keen, and also snubbed:”It’s true that a lot of teams have expressed interest abroad, but the Premier League is a championship that has always attracted me. I feel good. I wanted to stay a little longer to enjoy this beautiful football.
“This is a big French club with big goals for the coming seasons. I have respect for OM, but I made the choice to stay in the Premier League, which prompted me to put aside the offers from abroad.”
If it hadn’t been for Everton, Tony Pulis and West Brom may have got their man, but as Schneiderlin points out, when Koeman came in for him it was an ‘obvious’ choice.
