£45m SIGGY SIGNS
Koeman’s joy at finally landing his £45m man
RONALD KOEMAN had been desperate to sign Gylfi Sigurdsson ever since he was in charge at Southampton.
And the Everton boss finally got his wish last night as the Toffees confirmed the club record £45m signing of the Iceland ace from Swansea on a five-year deal.
Now the pressure will be on Koeman for Sigurdsson to deliver after Everton took their summer spending to £150m.
Sigurdsson, 27, passed a medical yesterday morning and was “in the blue” of the Merseysiders, according to his new coach.
Former Saints boss Koeman had been craving to work with Sigurdsson as he believes the midfielder’s creativity can unlock the best of Premier League defences.
It is why last summer, when Farhad Moshiri’s ambition lured the Dutchman to become manager at Goodison Park, Sigurdsson was one of the top names on his wanted list.
He tried and failed to sign him in January as Swansea were not ready to part with him until this summer, though even then it has been a saga.
Koeman has never wavered in his belief that Sigurdsson is the man to create and score goals for a side who heavily relied on the now departed Romelu Lukaku last season, the Belgian hitman scoring 25 times.
And he requested chairman Bill Kenwright and major investor Moshiri dig deep to get the deal over the line.
“Of course it’s always about signings and spending money and with that comes more pressure,” said Koeman.
“We tried when I was at Southampton to sign Sigurdsson but we did not have that finance possibility that we have now in Everton.
“I’m really happy because the board and especially our chairman, Bill Kenwright, did everything to get him. It took some time but finally we have signed the player.
Productive
“In my opinion, in his position, he is one of the best in the Premier League. We have the player here and that’s really good for the team.
“From the beginning, he was one of the key players we wanted to bring to Everton. That’s because of his quality, first and foremost, and his experience in the Premier League.
“We need more productivity. We don’t sign one player who will score 25 goals but we need several players around our striker to get that number. He is one of those productive players, which he has shown at Swansea and also in the past. “He can play in different positions. He can play in midfield, he can play as a No.10 and he can also play in a free role on the side. They are the positions where we will use him.” Sigurdsson scored goals 11 goals last season and created 10 more. He will not be ready to make his debut in tonight’s Europa League playoff first leg against Croatian outfit Hajduk Split, while Sandro Ramirez is also a doubt through injury. The former Tottenham star has more chance of featuring against Manchester City on Monday night. “Hopefully I will continue to create goals and score goals and contribute to the kind of success we’re seeking at the club,” said Sigurdsson “For myself, I would like to score as many goals as possible and create as many goals for my team-mates as I can. These are my targets.” Sigurdsson’s arrival shines the spotlight on Ross Barkley, with Everton ready to sell the England midfielder, although he is out with a hamstring injury. Koeman still wants another striker and a left-footed centreback. Signing a No.9, though, is proving difficult after the Toffees admitted defeat in trying to lure Olivier Giroud from Arsenal. Koeman is open to bringing in a loan recruit as he expects his striker hunt to go on until deadline day and does not believe Sandro and Dominic CalvertLewin give them enough options in a busy campaign.