OUTCAST Yannick Bolasie is set to be offered an escape route from his Everton misery by Middlesbrough.
The 31-year-old winger has not played a single minute for the Toffees this term after Carlo Ancelotti left him out of his 25-man Premier League squad.
Yannick Bolasie is set to be offered an escape route from his Everton misery by MiddlesbroughCredit: Getty Images – Getty
He looked to be on his way to the Riverside on October’s transfer deadline day only for the move to break down at the last minute – leaving both the player and Boro boss Neil Warnock frustrated.
Now the veteran manager, who was in charge of the speedster at Crystal Palace, is readying a second attempt to get the DR Congo international next month when the window re-opens.
Despite having one of the smallest squads in the league, he has managed to drag Boro into play-off contention after saving them from the drop on the final day of last term.
And he hopes the addition of Bolasie plus several more new faces can help bolster their promotion dream.
Warnock admitted recently: “Steve [Gibson] knows we need help in those wide positions. If you look at the teams we play against they’ve got good players in those wide areas.
“We need a little bit more help in that respect and hopefully we can come up with that.”
And ahead of tonight’s clash with Luton, Warnock admitted he is already talking to his top targets in order to try and get them in early.
If you look at the teams we play against they’ve got good players in those wide areas. We need a little bit more help in that respect
Yannick Bolasie
He said: “We’re going through that process already because I want to try and get some players in as early as we can, not at the last minute again.
“We’ve talked to two or three already. I had a chat with one lad yesterday.
“I think things will look up in January. We’ll get two or three players in and it’ll look a lot better then for the run-in.”
Bolasie joined Everton for £25m in 2016 but his time at Goodison has been hampered by injury.
He has headed out to Aston Villa, Anderlecht and Sporting Lisbon but has failed to convince Carlo Ancelotti to make him part of his plans on Merseyside.
Patrick Roberts is growing increasingly frustrated over his lack of action at BoroCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Meanwhile, one man who could be on his way out of Middlesbrough next month is Manchester City loanee Patrick Roberts.
The former Celtic starlet is growing increasingly frustrated over his lack of action at Boro this term and Warnock admitted he will hold talks with the forward over his future.
But he stressed he will not be pushed to let the 23-year-old head back to the Etihad and find another club for more regular game-time unless he brings in adequate replacements.
Warnock said: “I’ve got to have a talk (with Roberts). There’s two or three lads that have not really had an opportunity, and everybody wants to play.
“They all want to be involved, and I have to manage that as I see fit.
“I’ve got to speak to the players and see how they feel, but first and foremost, I’ve learned my lesson over the years, I’ve got to look after the club.
“I can’t be swayed just because an agent rings me up or a dad of one of the players says, ‘He’s got to leave or go out on loan’ – I can’t be working on that.
“I’ve got to look after the club first at this moment in time because it’s a difficult period.”
On-loan Everton star Yannick Bolasie is sent-off after opponent’s ‘Hollywood’ dive in Sporting Lisbon win
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
