Santos president Jose Carlos Peres admits Everton are in talks for young pair Yeferson Soteldo and Lucas Verissimo.

Peres says Everton are competing with Inter Milan and Torino for the Santos duo.

He told calciomercato.com: "I will confirm Inter asked me for Soteldo, specifically (director of sport Piero) Ausilio in person, but he stopped when I requested €35m.

“Soteldo is a young player with sensational skills, a player who can decide games. I've received requests from all the big clubs in Brazil, he is wanted by Premier League sides like Everton, as well as many offers from Spain.

“Despite the disappointment we had with Gabigol, we still wanted to give Ausilio and Inter preferential treatment. We were ready to sit down at the table and negotiate for €20-25m, but Ausilio never got back to us.

“As for Lucas Verissimo, the defender had practically been sold to Torino for €10m, a very low sum considering we wanted at least €12m. Then our coach begged us not to sell him, so we had to slow that deal down.

“Verissimo still has a lot of offers, but the problem is that despite his name, he doesn't have Italian citizenship.

“Everton and Carlo Ancelotti also tried to take him on loan in January, but we were clear, he is only available on a permanent transfer."