Some transfer pursuits run long before they reach a conclusion.
Everton have been trying to sign Gabriel Jesus for over a year.
The links surfaced last summer.
January came and went.
Yet now, with Arsenal finally ready to move him on, the situation is alive again.
But it isn’t simple.
And it might not happen.
For reasons that have nothing to do with whether Jesus wants to join or whether Arsenal want to sell.
Everton plot cut-price Gabriel Jesus swoop but wages remain an “issue”
According to Football Insider, Everton are interested in signing Jesus this summer but are not prepared to meet Arsenal’s £20 million asking price, with the club mindful of his injury record and looking only to do business at a significantly reduced figure.
His wages are the second obstacle.
Jesus currently commands a “big deal” at the Emirates.
A salary that Everton would need the player to substantially reduce if any move were to happen.
That creates a situation with two separate hurdles.
Get the fee down.
Get the wages down.
Both need to happen simultaneously for this to work.
Arsenal’s willingness to sell changes everything in principle.
The Gunners are looking to offload Jesus as part of a wider summer clear-out.
Funding the kind of ambitious rebuild that Mikel Arteta has demanded after their Champions League final heartbreak against PSG.
Jesus has made 14 Premier League appearances this season.
Three starts, three goals.
The injuries have limited him again, as they have done throughout his time in north London.
That injury record is precisely why Everton won’t stretch to the asking price.
Paying £20 million for a 29-year-old with a consistent injury history, however talented, is a risk that David Moyes and the recruitment team don’t consider proportionate.
And for Jesus himself, there may be more attractive destinations than Everton if he’s not willing to take a wage cut.
A return to Brazil to his former club, Palmeiras.
A move to Serie A where his reputation remains strong.
Both remain viable alternatives.
Moyes has grown frustrated with the lack of consistency from Beto and Thierno Barry at the top of the pitch.
He wants a proven Premier League striker.
Jesus is experienced, technically excellent and knows the division inside out from his years at Manchester City and Arsenal.
The fit is obvious.
However, the financials are the problem.
If the wages can be resolved and Arsenal reach an agreement on his fee, this gets done.
If they can’t, Everton will look elsewhere.
Either way, the Toffees’ striker search this summer is shaping up to be one of the most complicated pieces of business they’ll attempt.
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