According to L'Equipe (via Sport Witness), Everton are interested in bringing Chelsea defender Kurt Zouma back to Goodison Park.

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Zouma of course will be very familiar to fans of the Merseyside club after spending last season on loan there, with there also being suggestions that the Toffees were keen on making his stay permanent.

But now, French publication L'Equipe claim that Zouma is interested in a departure from Stamford Bridge, as he is keen on continuing his development and staking his claim for the senior side at international level.

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The report claims that along with Everton, who are "staying attentive" to the defender's situation, fellow Premier League side Tottenham are also interested in securing his signature, with Jose Mourinho having managed the Frenchman during his time at Chelsea.

Statement

After appointing Carlo Ancelotti as the club's new boss, it was clear Everton's owners were keen to try and take that next step to compete. The Italian has been a serial winner throughout his managerial career, and the Toffees surely didn't bring him in with the intention of just coasting by.

And one way in which Marcel Brands can deliver the kind of statement to his manager that Everton mean business, is by beating Spurs to Zouma's signing. The Frenchman played 32 times in the Premier League alone last season at Goodison Park, and Ancelotti's predecessor, Marco Silva, waxed lyrical about the 6 foot 3 powerhouse.

Speaking back in February of last year, Silva lauded what the defender brought to the table, and insisted there was also a lot more to come. He said: "I am really pleased, to be really honest with you. I am pleased because he is helping our team, he fits well in our squad, he is a little bit different in terms of profile to our other central defenders – he is a little bit faster when we lose the ball – he is different to Jags, Mina and Michael.

"He is improving, trying, he is a good professional, he is happy in our club, he is a good team-mate and a really important player. Let's see what we can do or not in the future."

More than a year later, Brands has the perfect chance to show Ancelotti that Everton are ready to compete with the Premier League's big boys for new signings, by landing a player who Silva hailed.