Everton defender Niels Nkounkou has hinted he is likely to leave the club this summer as he looks to settle down after years of loan moves away from Goodison Park.
The full-back, who has recently been playing in a more advanced role, has been speaking to Ligue 2 about his career so far, with him currently on loan at AS Saint-Étienne and shining.
He joined the French side from Everton in the January transfer window after ending a similar, unsuccessful spell on loan at Cardiff City in the first half of the season.
After a slow start back in his homeland he has gone from strength to strength, establishing himself as a key player and bagging six goals and eight assists in 16 games in Ligue 2.
AS Saint-Étienne appear determined to keep him on a permanent basis, something they will be able to do as the loan deal with Everton includes an option to make the 22-year-old’s move a permanent one.
Indeed, a report yesterday made it clear that they will be taking that up and the player will be moving from Everton on a permanent basis in the coming weeks.
That is something he would be more than open to, it seems, as he admitted he wants to settle down somewhere after several loan spells away from Goodison Park in recent seasons.
“I would like to fix myself in a project, not to find myself in uncertainty every summer, without knowing where I will do the season,” he said.
“I would like to find stability somewhere. In recent years, I’ve moved a lot, I’ve scattered a bit, and now I want to settle down.
“When you know that at the end of the season, you will surely no longer be there, that you will return to a club where you do not know if you will be able to stay even if you fight, it makes you think.
“It’s not always easy to live with, whether for me or for my loved ones, who follow me every time.”
