Everton boss Sam Allardyce admits £27million signing Cenk Tosun may be a big-money flop in the Premier League
Toffees boss claims it may take a while for the Turkish forward to settle down to life in England following his Besiktas switch
EVERTON boss Sam Allardyce has admitted £27million signing Cenk Tosun may flop in the Premier League.
The Toffees boss has claimed it may take a while for the Turkey international to settle down to life in England following his Besiktas switch.
Big Sam added it was a huge nod to the lure of Everton for Tosun to give up the Champions League for his club, with the Super Lig side in the last-16 of Europe's elite competition.
On the prospect of an immediate impact from Tosun, Allardyce said: “It’s not easy at all. It might not work, it might not happen.
"The fact is it’s a massive problem in terms of you’re hoping rather than being guaranteed he can hit the ground running.
“We can only hope he hits they ground running. All his key performance indicators suggest the can.
“But that said, when you look at the number of players brought into this country from abroad, even in the summer, and not worked, so it’s a risk.
“But it’s a good deal for the club. A quality player in all key indicators, desperate to come here, desperate to come to the Premier League.
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"He left a Champions League team that qualified for the last-16 to play in the Premier League.
“That says it all about the commitment of the player and hopefully that commitment will get on to the field as quickly as possible and show us what he’s shown everywhere else he’s been, particularly at Besiktas and in the Champions League.”
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25-cap Turkey international Tosun was born and raised in Germany, spending 14 years at Eintracht Frankfurt - mostly in their youth team.
However, after just one league appearance, Tosun headed to Turkey to spend three seasons at Gaziantepspor.
The Everton man went on to spend four years at Besiktas, scoring 41 Super Lig goals in just 96 appearances.