Everton must avoid a dire swoop for Juventus midfielder Sami Khedira in the January window, with Carlo Ancelotti reportedly considering the has-been German for an important role at Goodison Park.

What’s the word?

According to Calciomercato.it, Khedira is preparing to leave Serie A heavyweight Juventus in the upcoming winter market, having failed to play a single minute under Andrea Pirlo this term.

Khedira has now come to terms with the Italy icon wanting to persist without his services in any competition, leading the 32-year-old to switch his focus to securing a mid-season move amid interest from the Premier League.

Everton and Tottenham Hotspur are both said to be open to a move for Khedira, with Ancelotti and Jose Mourinho holding high-regards of the midfielder they each managed at Real Madrid.

The chance to reunite with either Ancelotti or Mourinho and become an important asset of their midfields is understood to hand Everton and Tottenham a greater chance of striking a deal with the 2014 World Cup winner, who Juventus would like to sell in order to offload his mammoth £185,000-per-week contract.

Khedira recently spoke to Sky Germany on his appreciation of the Italian and Portuguese tacticians, noting how he would not rule out reuniting with either should the chance arise.

“I really enjoyed working with Jose Mourinho but there are many coaches who I would like to work with,” he said. “I would never say no again to Jose Mourinho, but it is not the only guy who I would say I would like to work with again.

“There are many coaches, even in the Premier League that I respect a lot. Ancelotti is doing a great job at the moment and is a great personality. He is one of the coaches who impressed me also.”

Walk away

Everton Director of Football Marcel Brands would be well advised to avoid stepping up the Goodison Park outfit’s interest in Khedira and reuniting Ancelotti with the German, as the Juventus outcast is far from the player he was when the pair lifted the 2013/14 Champions League trophy with Real Madrid.

As well as being shunned by Pirlo this term, Khedira started just nine of his 12 Serie A appearances under Maurizio Sarri last term before enduring lengthy spells on the sidelines after knee surgery and a tear in the abductor muscle.

Only twice in those nine starts did the Stuttgart-born midfielder feature for the full 90 minutes, as well, with Sarri substituting the German before the 70th-minute in seven of his outings.

Khedira’s decline from his golden age with Real Madrid stretches back even further, too, with Germany icon Oliver Kahn slamming the 32-year-old for his woeful efforts in their country’s tumultuous 2018 World Cup efforts that saw Joachim Low’s men finish bottom of Group F after a disappointing 2-0 defeat to South Korea.

“They deserved to go out. The players didn’t show enough commitment throughout the Group Stage,” he said, via quotes by talkSPORT. “They lacked togetherness, and their play was far too static. The main disappointments for me were Sami Khedira and Mesut Ozil.

“They were bypassed during the first game against Mexico, and were left on the bench against Sweden. They got another chance on Wednesday, but neither of them could take it. They are two of our most experienced players, yet they failed in too many areas.”

Khedira, who Shaka Hislop said of last year his "legs are gone", has done nothing in the two-years since to suggest his career has enjoyed a second wind, so it boggles the mind to suggest he would improve Everton’s midfield unit in January.

AND in other news, Everton are on course to repeat a Steve Walsh horror with swoop for a gem with “incredible speed”.