(Photo by Tony McArdle/Everton FC via Getty Images)

Marco Silva has been effusive in his praise for Everton midfielder Idrissa Gueye for the way he maintained his form after being linked with a move away in January.

Marco Silva has praised Idrissa Gueye for the way he has maintained his focus after January rumours linking him with a move, as per the Liverpool Echo.

They report that Gueye was attracting interest from Paris Saint-Germain during the winter transfer window and his manager has been pleased with the way he has put that behind him.

Silva said: “I never had doubts about what his attitude would be. When you asked me what his commitment would be like, I told you I had no doubts.

“Gana has showed not just his quality but how professional he is, how he respects the club, how he respects everyone. He’s playing better now than before. Maybe in that moment he felt [the move] was a dream for him or whatever.”

Silva knows how important Gueye is to Everton’s plans and that’s why he was so desperate to keep him during January, at a time when his Goodison reign wasn’t going as swimmingly as it is now.

But Gueye’s professionalism is perhaps something that would beyond many modern players when they feel they have been denied what even Silva admitted could have been seen as a dream move, at a reasonably late stage of his career.

Whether Gueye will eventually leave this summer or if his chance to move to a Champions League side has gone remains to be seen – but Silva is right to be pleased with the role the energetic midfielder has played in pushing the Toffees up the league since the winter window closed.