Everton have opened contact with both Parma and representatives of Mandela Keita seeking a possible move this summer, with Sky Sport Italia reporting the club’s interest is more advanced than initially suggested.
Everton manager David Moyes has already made an approach for Middlesbrough’s Hayden Hackney as he reshapes the base of his midfield. Keita’s emergence as a target suggests Everton are casting their net beyond the Championship and into Serie A for a player with the defensive profile the manager wants.
From Antwerp’s title win to Parma
Born on 10 May 2002 in Leuven, Belgium, to parents of Guinean descent, Lamine Mandela Keita came through the youth ranks at Oud-Heverlee Leuven, making his senior debut for the club in the 2020-21 season, before a loan spell at Royal Antwerp turned his career around.
That loan, in the 2022-23 season, proved decisive. Antwerp won the Belgian Pro League title for the first time in 66 years with Keita featuring regularly, also lifting the Belgian Cup the same season to complete a domestic double. He scored his first professional league goal during that campaign. The Belgian professional returned to Oud-Heverlee Leuven for the 2023-24 season before Royal Antwerp signed him on a permanent deal that August.
His stay back at Antwerp was brief. In August 2024, Keita signed for Parma on a five-year contract until June 2029 for a reported €12m, with Antwerp retaining a 15% sell-on clause, a fee that already looks shrewd given his Transfermarkt valuation has since risen to €20m.
The young midfielder has also represented Belgium at under-21 level, including appearances at the 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, and has one senior cap, coming on as a substitute in October 2023.
Why Everton are interested
Everton’s midfield has lacked consistency in the holding role, and Keita’s game is built around exactly the qualities Moyes is searching for: shielding the back four, recovering possession, and dictating tempo from deep. He ranked in the upper percentiles for defensive contributions among Serie A midfielders during his debut season at Parma, averaging close to 2.5 tackles per 90 minutes.
Parma have set an asking price of between €20m and €25m, roughly in line with Keita’s current Transfermarkt valuation of €20m, reflecting two full seasons established as a regular starter in one of Europe’s most demanding leagues.
Competition from Italy
Everton will not have a clear run at Keita. Atalanta have also entered the race, with TransferFeed reporting the Europa League finalists as a concrete rival interest alongside Everton. Several other Serie A clubs are believed to be monitoring Keita’s situation, meaning Parma could field multiple offers this summer despite being under no pressing financial need to sell.
That competition could prove decisive. Staying in Serie A, a league where Keita has already won a title and established himself as a first-choice midfielder, may hold genuine appeal if a club playing in Europe enters the race. Convincing the Belgian to swap Italy for Merseyside instead may come down to project and playing time as much as the financial package Everton put on the table.
What happens next
Everton have moved beyond initial scouting, with contacts now opened on both fronts, the club and Mandela Keita’s camp, according to Sky Sport Italia. A bid from Parma’s €20-25m asking price range is the next step, with Atalanta’s entry into the race likely to accelerate the timeline for all parties.
