Chelsea have been linked with Brazilian defender Gabriel Magalhaes as the 22-year-old centre-back has enjoyed an impressive season for Lille and speculation has claimed that Chelsea, along with Premier League rivals Arsenal and Everton, are keen on a £30 million ($37m) summer deal.
Reports now claim that Chelsea might have missed out on signing the Brazilian defender, with many outlets claiming that he’s set for a move to the Toffees this summer.
According to the Daily Star, the 23-year-old has signed a lucrative five-year deal with Everton and now a fee will be thrashed out with Lille.
Football Insider further report that Everton’s director of football Marcel Brands has tabled a £30m bid for the defender. According to the report, Lille are reportedly likely to accept the offer, paving the way for Everton’s first signing of the forthcoming transfer window.
Meanwhile, the centre-back has recently acknowledged he was a fan of Chelsea manager Lampard during the former England international midfielder’s playing days.
“He was a great player without a doubt,” Gabriel told UOL when asked about the prospect of being coached by Lampard. “He is one of those players that I admired on the small screen.
“But we have to be calm with all this. It is early and I renewed my contract with Lille until 2023. “The focus now is to return to play and end the season at a high level, and qualifying Lille for the 2020-21 Champions League.”