He may have been the most under the radar signing of Everton’s summer transfer window but Gambian teenager Francis Gomez Tambadou has finally got his European career underway.
Little was made of Everton signing the midfielder from Nigerian side Sporting SFC and the 18-year-old had barely penned a contract when he was sent out on loan to French side Lyon. There he was added to the u19s squad for the upcoming season.
The youngster, who was given squad number 43 at Everton before moving to France, has had to wait until the 11th game of the French u19s side’s season before making his debut but he has made an instant impact, scoring Lyon’s first goal in a 4-3 victory.
However, he will have to impress a new coach after outgoing manager Jose Gonzalez quit the role to take on a management job at Versaille. Lyon u17 coach Samy Saci will now lead the u19 side and Tambadou was not included in the starting lineup for the defeat to Metz last weekend.
Tambadou is highly rated in his home country of Gambia, where he has impressed at youth level. While he is yet to make his international debut he has been called up to the u20 squad this year.
He was one of the stranger transfers of Everton’s summer. The club rarely recruits directly from Africa and the instant move to Lyon could have been made during discussions with Lyon owner Eagle Football Group, who launched a failed bid to buy Everton this summer.
Everton signed Jake O’Brien on a permanent deal and Oriel Mangala on loan from the side as talks with Eagle Football’s John Textor progressed over the summer and it seems Tambadou was also included in the cross-club talks.
Signed for a fee believed to be around £250,000, Tambadou does not have a buy clause in his loan deal and will return to Finch Farm next summer to continue the next step in his development.