When it was announced that AS Saint-Etienne were going to trigger the option to buy in Niels Nkounkou’s loan from Everton, everyone thought that was a good deal.
The left-back had impressed hugely during his short stint there and the deal made sense, even if the Toffees might have felt they could have received more if they had known how well he was going to play there.
Still, it appeared to all happen in good faith, but the player has since made it very clear in an interview with L’Equipe on Friday that he isn’t happy with how his permanent exit from Everton took place.
This has been caused by Saint-Etienne’s decision to turn down a transfer offer from Eintracht Frankfurt for him, which the player had immediately made clear he wanted to take advantage of.
Now, he’s publicly stated he wants to leave the Ligue 2 side, and wants to sort out his situation with the club, which he describes as ‘very complicated’.
Asked to elaborate, he said: “When I arrived at Saint-Etienne over the winter, things were very clear with the leaders. I was coming for six months on loan. Everton wanted to impose the option to buy, but Saint-Etienne weren’t asking for it at first, especially when staying in Ligue 2 wasn’t a guarantee.
“In the end, Everton insisted and the option to buy was included, but we decided not to talk about it. One day, in April, the leaders came to tell me they were going to trigger it. I was surprised and not overly pleased, but because the season was ongoing, I decided to play along until the end. We’ll say I was a good Stéphanois (the name given to the fans).”
Nkounkou then made it clear he isn’t ‘very convinced’ about staying at the side, because he gave everything to help them avoid relegation, and he was only meant to stay away from Everton for six months before returning.The defender was then asked if Saint-Etienne knew how he felt, to which he replied: “They know very well what I’m thinking. I already said it on the last day of the season and many times since. I have the ambition to play in a top league. I think it’s normal for any player to want that. Since I’ve returned I’ve only seen the manager.
“I made him aware of my situation, and he obviously wasn’t. He now is. I would have understood if I was blocked if I had committed long-term and I was trying to leave after six months. That isn’t the case and it changes everything.”
Nkounkou also added that he’s prepared to tell Saint-Etienne every day that he wants to leave to get what he wants, and he doesn’t think that being kept there against his will will help anybody.
