Everton have confirmed the signing of winger Yannick Bolasie from Crystal Palace on a five-year deal as Ronald Koeman continues his Goodison rebuilding.

The 27-year-old DR Congo international has been one of the Eagles' most impressive players over recent seasons and moves to Merseyside for a fee believed to be in the region of £25million.

Bolasie is the fourth signing by Ronald Koeman this summer following deals for Maarten Stekelenburg, Idrissa Gueye and Ashley Williams.

Koeman gets his man

A summer of change was always going to follow after Farhad Moshiri acquired an initial 49.9% stake in the club in February and the appointment of Ronald Koeman as manager. The summer started slowly with the signing of goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg from Fulham, but Koeman stepped up his recruitment drive last week with the £7.1million signing of defensive midfielder Idrissa Gueye from Aston Villa and the signing of Swansea City captain Ashley Williams.

Koeman used the club's greater financial clout to draw Bolasie away from Selhurst Park in a deal that could eventually equal Everton's most expensive ever signing, matching the £28million paid to Chelsea for Romelu Lukaku. The Blues had an £18million bid rejected last week but they were determined to make Bolasie an Everton player and returned with an improved offer.

Bolasie made his final appearance for Palace in their 1-0 home defeat to West Brom on Saturday. | Photo: Everton
Bolasie made his final appearance for Palace in their 1-0 home defeat to West Brom on Saturday. | Photo: Everton

Bolasie is a player that Koeman values highly and a player that has been a "long time on my [Koeman's] radar".  The Everton boss said that he was "very pleased" to have signed Bolasie and believes the winger will add much needed power, pace and versatility to the Blues' forward line.

During his four-year spell with Palace, he emerged as one of the most feared wingers in the Premier League on his day despite only scoring nine goals in 89 appearances for the Eagles in the top-flight. However, the Congo international will add another dimension to the Blues attack through his pace, power and his technical ability, which makes him a feared opponent.

Move to Everton a 'no-brainer' for Bolasie

Bolasie described his move to Everton as a "no-brainer" and said that the ambition of the Merseyside club made him "want to be part of it" and he is "looking forward to putting on the Everton shirt". He could wear the Everton shirt for the first time on Saturday against West Bromwich Albion, the team that he made his last Palace appearance against last Saturday.

The 27-year-old scored his first Premier League goal at Goodison Park two seasons ago and he said that he is "ready and up for the challenge". He is particularly looking forward to working with Ronald Koeman, who he said was a "top player" and played with some of the "best players in the world".

He added that Everton were a "big club" who has "lots of quality players" and have already made "good signings" this summer.

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About the author
Adam Bailey
Everton editor, who also covers cycling and athletics.