El Ghazi signs for Everton on loan

Really hope that's hyperbole, or a complete fabrication of the truth.

Agents don't have friends; they have chumps.

El Ghazi, should fit in with the rest of the shite - Iwobi, Rondon etc Al. Welcome to the Championship.

I really despair at what is happening to our club, we seem to be going backwards at breakneck speed. I am beginning to wish that Moshiri ever got involved in our club. Most of his appointments have been disastrous and although having ploughed in £450 million we are further away from a trophy than when he joined.

Maybe he hasn’t got as much power as people automatically assume, or maybe he’s decided to take a chance on this player, to keep his boss happy?

Some are reporting that it will be a loan deal, whilst others are reporting it’ll be a permanent signing, and if this happens it’s likely got Kia Joorabchian, all over it.

My son and I have a running joke about El Ghazi. My son saw him score a worldie a few years ago and for ages maintained that he was class. I therefore paid close attention for months... he looks bang average to me, with occasional flashes of class but equally many of flashes of shite. Please let this be a no.

It’s worrying but who knows anymore. El Ghazi has never impressed me but my football knowledge is limited.

Maybe a loan to try him before selling Richarlison is the thought process, he’s a decent-ish player but surely there are other areas (like central midfield) where our needs are greater.

Sam, wanted to pick up on your comment. I repeat myself enough on the various threads on here, but in Dobbin, I see a number 10. He could / can play wide, but I like him being a nuisance through the middle supporting the striker with his energy from what I've seen so far.

Stick to accounting Farhad. These guys don't add up.

Interesting that allegedly Rafa, doesn’t want him, but who really knows who’s making the decision, in this possible deal?

Hopefully Digne is sold for his full going price, and this is more or less x2 new full backs for one player sold, and in budget, which is good business.

Tony@35, I’d be amazed (very disappointed) if we paid £15m for El Ghazi. A loan could make some sense but not sure bout that either. Neres has not been great for last year or so, think he’s off to Shahktar where he should go well.

Okay, El Ghazi. I said I wouldn't but here goes and it's just an opinion.

When I spoke to my Newcastle mate, I got Longstaff described as a lesser McCarthy.

My wife follows Villa, so out of duty I watch them. El Ghazi is a lesser Richarlison.

"Steer clear of that Joorabchian, Luke. He's dangerous."

Anyway, I may be the only one, but I'd take El Ghazi on loan without question. He scored ten goals in the Prem last season, and his gamewinner against us at Goodison in May was pure quality. Pickford couldn't even get near it.

This might be another situation like Gray and Townsend, a talented player with an attitude problem (or a manager problem) who simply needs a chance to restart his career somewhere. He wouldn't cost us anything except his salary, which ain't much (£31K/week per Spotrac, one of the lowest-paid at Villa), and could provide valuable depth. Seems like a no-risk gamble that could pay off bigtime. And if he flops, we just send him back.

As a fund manager, I'd love to apply what I know to investing in football players. It's far simpler than investing in global equity markets but you need the same discipline (philosophy) to get the best/desires outcome. We've just fancied players for years and it's been totally hit and miss….no strategy. It's such a shame.

Every time we are linked with someone, there is a chorus of 'He's crap' 'cast-off' etc. El Ghazi is not crap; he is a talented player who scores plenty of goals, some of them dramatic. Dean Smith played him, Gerard doesn't. Perhaps he's fallen out with Gerard in the same way that Digne has with Benitez.

Mike Gaynes [41] sums this situation up correctly. A loan with an option to purchase would be a sound idea.

Good forward planning to have Richarlison's replacement lined up already.

He's never looked like a team player so a strange one for me. £15M is a sensible price, just not for us.

There are also rumours of David Neres flying around. To me it sounds like we are preparing for life without Richarllson.

We have needed goalscoring players for years and even if this guy is a lesser Richy that will do for me especially as a low cost loan and as long as Delph and Iwobi go.

How often have we bemoaned Richy being out and we are tothless. Well this is a solution to that one.

I feel we need a CB reshuffle, with out's and in's, a midfield general, and a striker, but that shopping list is very unlikely to be met, after getting two FB's in surprisingly, and historically January Windows generally are limited to essentials.

It looks like Benitez, didn’t really like the look of Luca Digne, so bringing in players that our manager has allegedly turned down a couple of times before, just doesn’t make a lot of sense imo.

Unless of course Richarlison's injury is more serious than we have been told and he is going to be out for months rather than weeks.

For me as others have said, a CB would be where I’d start, with Holgate shown the door and Mina unfortunately looking like he will leave in the Summer, with one year left.

a href="https://www.facebook.com/avfcofficial/videos/480740149933404/?vh=e&extid=0">Goal | Anwar El Ghazi v Everton

If we're both accurate, still there is interference and a scattergun transfer policy. I use the word policy loosely.

Just when I thought we'd done good business with the fullbacks.

As for Neres, he's really dropped off due to Anthony's good form at Ajax and injury. Has looked outstanding previously. Might have already peaked despite his relative youth. Or might need a new challenge. Might be a good buy at relatively low cost (his contract expires June 23). Alternatively if he's off to Shakhtar that might mean their own (younger) Brazilian winger Tete will become available - especially since his contract is up in December 23. Tete is the one on an upward trajectory with a good goal output now to combine with the dribbling skills he's always had.

A sport like football - or rugby - or hockey - or basketball - has a much greater level of in-play interaction, where the on-field chemistry and complexity of tactical organisation in a team is much more likely to affect performance.

Statistics have always ruled baseball in a way that football is only starting to really to be able to manage via the rise of Opta and other statistics systems. But while the idea of assembling a playing squad is a definite jigsaw puzzle of sorts, if you are primarily looking for pieces that are undervalued in the market-place then it will really limit what sort of picture you can make. I always think that Moneyball is a bit like arbitrage - it sort of takes the fun and romance out of the process.

How many times do you see a team in their own half, let’s say City for example, no opposition near, then you get two players within two feet of each other knocking it to each other around 4 or 5 times, putting their pass rate and accuracy right up.

RB Leipzig have very obviously looked at football transfers and seen huge outlays made at very high risk - with very limited return. They approach transfers like other forms of investment / business supply chain / development of talented staff.

The point is to dampen risk, reduce cost and maximise return. It's allowed them to build a Champions League quality squad from nothing in a very short space of time and relatively low cost.

Funnily enough these sorts of techniques are what Moyes did for many years with the profile and demographic he used to build probably our best sides in the past 30 years. Martinez similarly before he went mad, departed from his successful recruitment principles and bought Niasse.

In other walks of life that is not rocket science. In football there is a lot of vanity, short termism and inertia (maybe even borderline corruption) wrapped up in the transfer market.

The analysis, statistics and risk reduction measures don't replace human judgement - they just make the application of human judgement better.

Jesse Lingard and Dele Alli are available for buttons (bar wages, I'm guessing) and, despite Alli's poor form would still add something to our midfield.

Richarlison has ambition, so he'll be off. Can't say I blame him

No point belong left high & dry – plus El Ghazi scores goals. It's not my ideal signing but we are where we are: fighting for mid-table mediocrity

It's sad but he's a better player than for the like of Norwich, Burnley, Watford etc and he's not good enough for Man City, Liverpool or Arsenal. So he's perfect for us. What's the big fuss about?

We need, a commanding centre-back, a boss midfield player and, pushing my luck here, a backup centre-forward not poor imitations like Tosun and Rondon.

All things being equal we ought not to need him. But (again) let's look at the bigger picture... fixtures are piling up. There will probably be one or two more postponed. We could get into two matches every week soon at this rate. So whilst we ought not to need him, we're going to pick up more injuries and we're going to have a knackered squad that's left.

So yes, a few more options on loan sounds sensible. Just not convinced he's the man. Neres on loan (but not loan-to-buy) might be worth a punt. Then let's see if they fit in and go for them if they do.

That will take a bit of wheeler dealing. Unfortunately the market and our limited bargaining position determine prices.

Digne may be about £5m less than we might have got or at least wanted. But then it might also allow us to invest in improving the squad overall.

We'll only really know whether it's a bad deal or good deal when we can see the way the squad has shaped up at the end of January and beyond.

I can think of 5-6 we could command a fee for in the current market.

I think the days of signing players over the age of 26 on permanent contracts, may be gone.

Even the biggest clubs in Europe are proposing loans now, I can see a future where no player's registration is owned by a club.

With this future in mind, my view is Everton should sell up as much as is possible – it seems Rafa is willing to listen to offers for anyone – when we are no longer carrying the wage bill millstone around our proverbial neck, we can be agile to respond to our ever-changing manager's requirements!!

Now the Digne money is nearly in the bank, it could well be heading straight out again for this attacking midfielder.

£25M for Golovin and a few £M for Longstaff could be the midfield business this window.

With Mina still unfit, I'd like to see a loan deal for a centre-back too.

Julian #73, when we got Gray and Townsend, did you point out that they couldn't get into anybody's first team at the time?

David #86, he doesn't have to be an improvement. He's depth and a possible replacement. And on loan he's a freebie, and on a very low (for the Prem) salary.

Trevor #79, El Ghazi beating us at Goodison with an 80th minute top-corner bullet just eight months ago didn't leave an impression on your memory?

The only objection that makes sense to me is that Benitez reportedly doesn't want him, and owners shouldn't foist unwanted players on managers. But other than that, this loan would appear to be a low-cost, no-risk transaction that could bring us a few valuable goals. What's the problem?

Generally in terms of strategy I guess it depends if you are a glass half full or glass half empty kinda guy.

Glass half empty:
We are selling out better players, and if you pay peanuts you get monkeys. The players wont be as good and you have to take punts on players that have not proven themselves or careers have taken a backward step. We are going backwords.

Glass half full
Younger players, players who know that there is more money to be earnt though hard work by either an improved contract or a move, players who have a point to prove are more likey to work harder to prove a point.

Personally I'm a glass half full kinda guy, many posters have wondered why we don't follow the, for example, RB Leipzig model (ish). and lets be honest the buying established stars route has not served us well.

Back to the actual subject at hand I think a replacement is being sourced as a replacement for Richie.

There seems to be some discussion between Neves at Ajaz or El Ghazi. While my preference would be to keep Richie, if I had a choice, and had to make a choice between the two id go with El Ghazi, he has done the premier league and has done well if not brilliant, but we cant buy brilliant PL players. Neves has gone of the boil since his illustrious team mates from that great Ajaz team have been picked off one by one, and there is a reason he is the last of the bunch. Plus just don't trust the Dutch league.

How much has been wasted on Iwobi? £40M (just a guess) on fee and salary? Then along comes El Ghazi into the picture. Apparently not Rafa's choice. It's up to Rafa to say no if he's doesn't want him. Otherwise who's the manager.

And if he doesn't want him, would he have to play him if he's signed? Who would he replace in the team? Maybe Farhad will decide. No wonder Brands left.

We can't get a top player to sign for us or even keep one, that's where we are at. Who can blame Digne wanting to leave? We're stumbling from one season to the next, it's tragic.

Richarlison will want out next – I think thats a given… Calvert-Lewin also might be eyeing his options. It's no wonder our manager's job is a poisioned chalice.

Calvert-Lewin, on the other hand, was very non-committal when asked about Arsenal's interest.

Not sure what the problem is here.

Just don’t see the need to sign him when we are crying out for midfielder(s), number 10, centre back, striker cover. Also may hinder Gordon who’s coming along nicely!

Happy to be proved wrong but just see the need for him?!

That's a really big shake up of the squad. Especially in January with no pre-season to bed people into new surroundings.

We do need a shake up but I was expecting that in summer rather than now.

We don't need another winger, and Dobbin even looked impressive on the wing against Hull. Other areas, especially midfield, should be a priority. The link to Dele Alli would be a lot more attractive.

Far more pressing needs in this team, it reeks of Moshiri (once again) being influenced by those who may not have this club's best interests at heart.

On the plus side, he's relatively low cost for a (last season) 10 goals in 28 games player and still only 26. He'll blow hot and cold but can do great things too.

And if we get £65m for Richarlison and already have his position covered then we invest the money in a CF, Midfield and CB where we're so light.

I have to say, I am not comfortable with too many ins and outs in this window if that is going to be the case. We are in a precarious position and now is not the time to be bedding in half a new team.

I think we had just enough with what we had to stay in the Premier League and, other than Digne and his replacement, we should've waited until the summer.

Personally, if what you say is true, then I can see us spend only on a central midfielder and the rest to help out with FFP. If we sell either Holgate or Mina (or perhaps both?) then we will buy another centre-back.

My own view is we don't have to buy another centre-back due to the emergence of Branthwaite. If we do sign a central midfielder, then I pray it's in the Golovin or Van de Beek mould, or my dream signing, Pape Matar Sarr from Metz.

He is right to, by the looks of it. We still need to get rid of Benitez though. He is dragging us down.

At the start of the window I wanted a an experienced CB possibly on loan to steady our disorganised defence and tenacious tough midfielder as priority. I’m waiting/hoping for some news on that score.

I expected a right back so I’m glad that’s done.

If he chips in with some goals and creates a few to get some wins chalked up it will have been worth the punt, we don't exactly have an abundance of goalscorers in the squad at present so bringing someone in who knows where the onion bag is makes sense to me.

He's 26 so should be at his prime, but could also surprise us. Nobody expected anything of Grey when he arrived and now he's one of our best players.

Maybe a Pienaar esque resurgence.

Our best period in recent times was based on signing players who hadn't quite reached their expected potential (Pienaar and Arteta being the stand out 2).

On loan no real issue I don't think we need numbers all over, Iwobi is useless and despite Townsend's goal against Hull, he'd been poor since September.

Richarlison is most probably off in the summer to fund our next season.

It's not an inspiring signing, but he's not Iwobi for 35 million so could be worse.

Please explain how borrowing El Ghazi hinders Dobbin... a completely unproven teenager.

If Benitez doesn't want El Ghazi and thinks Dobbin is better, he'll play Dobbin.

If El Ghazi proves good enough to play ahead of Dobbin, that makes us better.

Certainly his arrival improves the chances of never seeing Iwobi again, and that DEFINITELY makes us better.

And all of this is temporary, a six-month loan costing nothing.

What damage does this cause?

El Ghazi was one of those I thought we should have tried to sign instead.

This signing, albeit on loan, should result in Iwobi never playing again this season. For that alone, I'm pleased.

It probably also means that Ballon D'Iwobi won't darken our door again. But sad (albeit I'll cope) if we don't take this opportunity to develop a v promising academy player.

On balance I can see the logic of this deal and I expect loads of Villa fans are saying why are we getting a 29 year old Everton reject when we've got Matt Targett and shouldn't Everton be paying Digne + £10m for a winger with a 10 league goal record last year.

The big issue is still centre mid and centre back but this helps remedy the lack of depth.

I would not mind this if he was significantly better than the players we have. But personally I’m not sure he is. And I’m fairly sure I wouldn’t want us to spend £15m making him a permanent player of ours.

It’s certainly not the worse move we’ve made and he’s an ok player but given that I want to see more of Gordon and Dobbin it’s not a move that makes a great deal of sense to me when weighing up the short and long term.

Voices of reason. We (I) complain about depth of squad. Despite seeming an underwhelming move, this might give us a bit more of that.

Unpredictable and inconsistent player, so he should fit in well. But he is a player that can turn a game on occasion.

I guess we have to be positive about it. Certain players can perform differently under different managers / coaches and different settings.

I was giving Rafa the benefit of the doubt but, if he signs, then I'm done with him.

With Richarlison, Townsend and DCL all now returning and both Gordon and Gray playing so well, it's hard for me to see how Dobbin would get minutes the rest of the season anyway, with or without El Ghazi.

Dobbin's simply gonna have to be patient, like Gordon... and step up when he gets his chance, like Gordon.

I agree with your post #104.

Bad scandal that.

Found it now Mike. What can I say? 😁

Benitez is allegedly trying to wheel and deal to save money and help with our FFP issues, but the owner must have a bit of a strange relationship with the super agent, if he’s taking players that his manager doesn’t really want, at such a time.

I’m hearing the club is like no other, with regards the saying about to many cooks, and that’s why I was disgusted when Unsworth called Brands, a proper Evertonian, because from the outside, it looked like he was just taking the money, knowing he wasn’t being allowed to do his job properly, but maybe that’s the true meaning of being successful at Everton nowadays, just looking after number one.

https://paul3bf.substack.com/p/sometimes-friends-give-bad-advice?r=71if&fbclid=IwAR220sIdoIrtHmPylIzack3ENis5swsyLDg1L3K4qtSlvAM131RO_UZGqaY

And now spurs have a goal ruled out by VAR. 😁😁😁

3-2 now for RM in the first period of extra time.

I knew you secretly loved VAR, Rob!

Fuck me. Seriously?!

Fuming right now. We manage a profit from Digne, sending a quality LB to Stevie La (shouldn't have Rafa!), then we simply piss away the margin on that transaction to buy a soon to be 27 year old that won't help the squad in the least, and a player who's at best bang average.

Somebody, anybody, please get Rafa the Red the fuck out of Everton!!!

Fuming.

We're not buying said player. It's a loan. Loan, as in no, we're not spending that profit.

Still won't help us, bang average.

Appreciate you righting the Good Ship Crowley, Dale and Mike!

Rafa's cousin no doubt. Or one of Stevie La's buddies.

You say, "What damage does this cause?"

Through a 180 degree lens:

How does this help us??!! If the only answer is Iwobe doesn't play, should we raise the bar a tiny bit?

Meh.

You're actually supporting Rafa the Red on this one.

Per multiple news accounts, he doesn't want El Ghazi. Moshiri does.

If you need a minute...

Anyway, my comment at #42 pretty much sums up my feelings about this loan. No downside, possible upside, and if we get really lucky, another possible Gray scenario.

If it was Zaha or some overpriced player that has that new car smell, I might be more inclined to believe that.

But why in the world would Mosh want El Ghazi??? Like, what's the motivation?

Jorginho, Kovacic, Ngolo Kante

All workaholic midfielders who get control over games. We need an engine room.

At the moment we have Allan, ( Doucoure not quite included in this bracket,needs to have licence to get forward).

This window we need some support to our engine room. We need to be fighting for supremacy in the early stages of matches but we can’t do it at the moment. We just don’t have the fighter in midfield to come out on top in the early stage battles that often decide how matches play out. We too often lose control of the proceedings and descend into crisis management. It’s got to be addressed.

I’m praying we sign a tough no nonsense midfielder to play with Allan and Doucoure in a midfield three. This is the nuts and bolts business we should be prioritising.

Unsworth the blue must have surely known Brands wasn’t being allowed to do his job properly, and saw him taking the money whilst living on easy st, and yet told us Marcel was a proper Evertonian, whilst Kenwright said, he only needed to listen to a couple of spins of Z-Cars, before he signed his new deal.

It’s Rafa the Reds fuckn fault though, coming to Everton, having to reduce the wage bill, whilst also having to sell to buy, which has got him loads of stick, - people fuming because they think he’s got to much power, - and then the owner bringing players in that the manager doesn’t even want, and probably because of how well he’s done at actually reducing the wage bill in the first place (except for Rondon?)

You seriously couldn’t make it up, and this is why the 27 year’s campaign is so important.. I honestly just hope that Rafa The Red, hasn’t lost all his belligerence

Everton are desperate to to get in the transfer fee from Digne so to expedite the transfer say ‘who do you not need’. El Ghazi is a player that could have some use so we agree to pay his (fairly minimal) wages for 6months in order to help facilitate Villa having room for Digne.

May or may not be true but at least makes sense of why we would loan him when we are already have 5 first team wingers.

Tony #169, any idea what we're paying Rondon?

There's always hope somewhere.

I sincerely hope it something round with holes in it, either, yen coins, buttons or washers ! :-)

Baby steps, LOL

Thankfully it's only a loan and Villa are supposedly paying half his wages.

He's a decent enough player, but no what we need. There's a rumour that Iwobi is going to Nice on loan. If so, it would suddenly be a much better deal, so lets keep our fingers crossed Iwobi is going to France.

That makes the small downside for us even smaller... 15K/week.

Quite a few Villans citing the transfers of Walcott and Iwobi as evidence that we simply don't know what we're doing. That's been tempered by the confirmation it's merely a loan, but didn't see a single voice arguing he should stay. The lad has played 33 minutes in 3 months and missed the Egypt AFCON squad after all.

Maybe the most telling comment was a description of him as a "Norwich level player" i.e great in the Championship and not really useable in the Premier League.

Another odd one for Evertonians, but we've seen more than our share. Lacina Traore loan anyone? Lucas Neill?
We seem to specialize in these sorts of "do a favour" type deals, so surely it's got to come back to us at some stage.

Btw, El Ghazi is a Dutch international and made the provisional Euro squad last summer.

Can’t see him setting the world alight but might mean Iwobi can find a new club now, have a feeling he could end up at palace on loan under viera.

Absolute joke of a signing ….. fuming

That said, I remember once eating a tasty B&M mince pie a few years back, before they went trying to be big-time of course.

To me it was their finest hour, and no doubt our owner-s/boardroom are expecting the same level of acclaim for their esteemed recruitment of the "legendary" (as their publicity will no doubt say if he scores or assists in his first three games) El Ghazi.

Jesus wept.

So if he never plays, what's the point, unless of course, Moshiri gets involved in selection, also to show who is boss. Not a very palatable scenario.

Unless it's because we are that woeful and his addition confirms he's better than what we have?

I'm of the opinion that loaning a player before buying them is sensible any should be done more often.

I don't believe he plays in a position that we don't already have enough cover for but, as long as he's not the last player we bring in ie a quality central midfielder, then all we can do is show our support.

If, as some are suggesting, this is all down to Moshiri my question is why is he so interested in a man who's career has never really been spectacular and earned a couple of international caps 6 years ago.

Role back the years, he has PL experience and height. He moves well for a biggish winger and knows where the goal is. I pray (as previously mentioned) to the football Gods that if this is a cover signing and Richy is on his way, then Rafa the Gaffer is hoping to play 433 and we sign a diamond in midfield (Sarr please!) to compliment the Duke and Allan. Gordon and Gray are showing they can really play for the shirt.

Let's get behind him lads, its happening like it or not. I have a fear if we do too much business now the team will take even longer to gel, we are already in a dog fight with no guts.

Tosun, is allegedly on £69,000 every week, and obviously doesn’t want to rush to another club, to start playing football just yet. Why risk getting injured again whilst he’s got another six months left on those wages? Surely the football can wait!

Don't know about El Gzhazi, he is definitely not a hidden gem. Don't like the Moshiri / agent connection.

Get the distinct feeling of role reversal with Villa, unfortunately.

Why d'you think slippy Gerrard won't use him and will sell him to Everton? Yeah, no need to send a postcard.

Who makes these decisions? We already have 5/6 players in this position and desperately need cover/improvements elsewhere!? I hope I’m wrong but just seems so muddled and lacking in a plan.

Please can Mina, Doucoure, RIchy and DCL just stay fit and see us over the 15 point mark. It’s actually making me ill. It’s all I think about, I fear relegation.

This time last year Ancellotti and top 4, now I’m cheering Norwich losing to West Ham and Googling Burnley’s upcoming fixtures. So depressing and El Ghazi does not help.

Sorry to be so negative

Left unchecked, this team will be transformed into the Newcastle of recent years. With commensurate results.

Typical Everton that!

Let's hope the rest of the footballing world is wrong and Rafa is onto something. I doubt it.

Come on Rafa this is not moving forward. We have spent big money on two new full-backs and nothing to get a grip where it is vitally necessary.

We obviously need centre forward options of course but so does everyone and it's a REALLY hard position to fill well, especially on a budget. See Tosun, Rondon and even Kean - all of whom had some sort of case, none of whom are proving up to the task. I'm assuming no-one here was hoping we'd be competing with Newcastle for Chris Wood or would want to splash the wages on an ageing Aubameyang, so I'm genuinely interested to see wha realistic options are suggested.

You would think that centre-back is an easier role to recruit for though and we do need someone commanding in there with Mina looking unable to stay fit for long. So I'm hopeful we can add someone there and maybe a centre-mid option in the window too, although Longstaff doesn't do it for me.

I can't see us spending a lot on a back up striker - given we really need central midfield players and probably a CB.

"The Aston Villa winger is set to be a makeweight in this deal, but it has also been suggested that there is a significant catch; that this part of the deal is being brokered by Moshiri through the agent Kia Joorabchian, against the wishes of Benitez.

"But it has also been strongly suggested that Benitez has rejected this player on three occasions already, which threatens to conflagrate the relationship between the owner and the manager once and for all.

"As the business end of the season starts to hone into view, Everton are finding that the dysfunctional transfer decisions made since Farhad Moshiri took control of the club are starting to catch up with them."

Benitez will not play him if he doesn't rate him.

With Richarlison, Gordon, Townsend and Gray, why do we need him? (Oh sorry, am I not the first to spot this?)

In terms of constraining the development of youngsters, I don't think it will affect Gordon much. He has been reliable and established himself over the past couple of months, but Dobbin is a different story. He is just getting his first minutes and is more vulnerable. This is more significant specifically due to his contract situation. No minutes and he'll be checking out the job pages at other clubs.

We only want players here who want to be here so get rid of those who are not going to fight for their place and the shirt and get players in who will give us more options.

COYB

COYB

No idea what some of y'all are thinking.

How does everyone fit in then? Two up front (DCL and Richie), with Gray and Gordon either side, a two in midfield and a flat four at the back? So Townsend and El Ghazi both on the bench and Iwobi making the tea? Or DCL up front, Grey and Richie wide, five at the back and a two man midfield? So Gordon and El Ghazi on the bench, Townsend making the tea, and Iwobi serving the bovril in the Dixie Dean Suite?

okdpearl@gmail.com

Lot of praise being given to Gordon, who's shot is still poor - frequently mishit, and lacking power.

I'm not against having him in the squad, but surely if we have limited funds, he's a massive luxury? Defenders? Central midfield?

And he's certainly not a "massive" one, since he's costing us nothing in transfer fees and only £15,000 a week in salary. (Villa is paying half his paycheck.) Heck, if he scores three goals the rest of the way and wins us even one game, he's worth that much.

And again, there's nothing in this deal that remotely interferes with our efforts to reinforce the spine. Almost three more weeks left in the window and every penny is still available.

However blues please bring in a decent mf and cd before the window suts - cheers.

https://www.evertonfc.com/news/2446641/el-ghazi-joins-everton.

Pretty good quotes:

“I will work hard and give everything I have. That is the least you can expect from a player.

“That is what I will start with and from there hopefully I will be able to score goals and give assists."

“I feel can be a lot of value with my pace and technique going forward. I can hold the ball and I am decent in one-on-ones. I can always score a goal in an important moment."

“I have already met a few fans and it’s great to see how people live for the Club and it’s basically their religion."

“I think the wingers we have got are real quality and I hope I can compete with them."

Personally, I expect him to make a decent contribution - frustrating at times with the odd flash of genius.

Every single goal counts.

If we can add to the central midfield without losing any existing quality that would be good.

Notice that Villar who we were strongly linked with has left Roma on loan today so that one is off the table.

This window is getting more bizarre by the day.

Have we actually strengthened in this window or weakened the team?

Unless we start bringing in 1st team ready players I am afraid we have weakened an already average squad.

Look at Demarai Gray, obviously most Clubs had written him off and didn't show any interest, and he ended up coming to us for a paltry (£1.7 M, in today's crazy Market that is) and arguably the success story of our poor season, with Townsend (free) not far behind him ! So come on give him a bit of slack TW.

Furthermore, every time he has played against us, he has had a decent game and invariably scored a cracking goal, so who knows ?

Trying to be optimistic this might be a good loan if he's played centrally behind Dom. I read that he can even play centre forward. In which case he could be an alternative to the hopeless Rondon, and a lot more direct with his pace.

Welcome to Anwar anyway. Show us what you've got.

Been reading some interesting suggestions for central midfield players here - Golovin sounds exciting, Dele Alli is definitely an interesting shout, and what about Lingard or Van de Beek? Both are surplus to requirements at United and appear likely to move (the latter maybe on loan) this window.

Agree with above comment that he sounds up for it, says all the right things and I hope above conjecture about him being a Moshiri signing is off the mark and that Rafa wanted him here. Surely Mosh has learned his lesson??

More conjecture but I predict an Iwobi loan to build his confidence, maybe abroad? Longstaff will be our only other signing. I want better quality but it is what it is, we are a mess and this could be the weirdest window of all time.

are you asking for a personally-taken photo as opposed to something downloaded, due to copyright?

I like the stats ideas. Also I think having 3 excellent centre backs available at all times would have covariance to higher league positions too. So let's hope we get at least one more top centre back in. Or is that more predictive analytics?

I think Rafa will sometimes move Gray or Gordon to the number 10 role as Richarlison does have a few injuries or needs resting after playing for Brazil.

Anyway, players that can provide more goals and quality balls in the box always welcome. No-one was expecting the next Ryan Giggs or Robert Pires to walk through the door, but at least it's someone ready made with goals in him.

Finally, this makes Iwobi even less likely to play so we can't complain too much!

How far our expectations have fallen!!!

If Moshiri is interfering to that extent we are finished

As already stated, the two defenders cost less than the Digne money and are on half his wages.

Whilst not a Rafa lover he is curbing our salaries whilst long term strengthening and so don't see an issue with that.

As already stated, the two defenders cost less than the Digne money and are on half his wages.

Whilst not a Rafa lover he is curbing our salaries whilst long term strengthening and so don't see an issue with that.

As already stated, the two defenders cost less than the Digne money and are on half his wages.

Whilst not a Rafa lover he is curbing our salaries whilst long term strengthening and so don't see an issue with that.

As already stated, the two defenders cost less than the Digne money and are on half his wages.

Whilst not a Rafa lover he is curbing our salaries whilst long term strengthening and so don't see an issue with that.

Bit of a surprise though. Wide positions are arguably one place we don't need to strengthen so much.

There will some game congestion soon after all the postponements, there will be niggles, injuries, fatigue.

This lad on loan costs us peanuts so it’s a no lose situation to help keep us strong. Also, it lets us have a good look at him and how he fits in, before we spend any money.

Good luck, Anwar.

Ralph, you would have no issue with Benitez engineering a public falling-out with better players to save wages (Whilst actually weakening our squad)?

The widely perceived understanding is that Digne has left due disagreement, not cutting costs, Benitez having tried to paint it as Digne wanting to leave.

However this defensive mastermind of a manager seems to have neglected the fact that his team
A) cannot stop giving away a lead in a game
B) cannot defend set pieces
C) cannot defend well for large parts of most games

His answer to this is to sign 2 completely untested and inexperienced defenders. One of whom is arriving from an entirely different culture

There will some game congestion soon after all the postponements, there will be niggles, injuries, fatigue.

This lad on loan costs us peanuts so it’s a no lose situation to help keep us strong. Also, it lets us have a good look at him and how he fits in, before we spend any money.

Good luck, Anwar.

I didn't have a clue who the player was and even at a young age was bemused we signed a Liverpool reserve. Underwhelming. Kevin Sheedy; my favourite Everton player of all time.

We signed a crocked 26 year old from Bolton on the cheap because of injuries. Underwhelming. Peter Reid.

We signed a player who had moved from Stoke and was surplus to requirements at Sunderland as he was not deemed good enough. Underwhelming. Paul (who?) Bracewell.

We signed a player for a struggling team who was arguably past his best and openly admitted he hid some of his medical records before his medical with Everton. Underwhelming. Andy Gray.

Okay, I'll take the counter challenge that it was a different era.

We signed a Championship player from Millwall who many clubs, including the mighty Crystal Palace were swerving due to knee injury history, so we got him relatively cheap as Rooney departed. Underwhelming. Tim Cahill.

We signed a Leicester reject on the cheap who didn't sparkle at Leverkusen and who no-one else wanted as Rodriguez left for the desert. Underwhelming. Demarai Gray.

Now I know this could be countered 10 times over with some of the shit signings we've embarked on over the decades that we thought would come good, myself included.

That's the point. You just never know, so I'm going to give him a chance. At 26 and with an eye for goal, we should do rather than have him judged before he's pulled on a Royal Blue Shirt because of what he has or hasn't done at Villa.

Positivity. Sorry, that's all I've got left to offer. The dogs dreading tomorrow morning.

I would have given him the number 17 shirt.

Welcome El Ghazi, may you score many goals in front of the Goodison faithful, with us singing "EL GHAZI OH OH" to the tune of Volare.

Michael @268. I know. How can we judge a 22 year old who landed in a foreign country, not speaking the language days before his debut in a dysfunctional team?

I guess if Patterson doesn't make a Tony Hibbert tackle, score a Gary Stevens style pile driver and deliver a peach of a cross for Calvert-Lewin on Saturday, he's a dud?

And, that's just for a Minor Parking Offence, that was also mistaken identity ! :-)

Really? How do you know? If Digne was worth more money than there would have been some sort of bidding war with more teams involved. If Digne is worth so much - he must be that good right? - then why didn't some Champions League or "big six" team come calling? You know why they didn't? Because they don't want him.

The whole world knew Digne was available - every club in the world had a chance to scoop him up. Every football team in the world had a chance to decide if he could help them achieve their goals and out of every football club in the world it was Villa that wanted him most.

If more teams wanted Digne we could have gotten more money. That is how it works (when a player does not have a release clause).

Debut goal it is then.

Micheal 300. Fair comment. I think Digne discovered he wasn't as coveted as he thought.

Total basket case of a club, learn nothing, destined to make the same mistakes over and over. Moyes never had any money but at least he scoured the lower leagues looking for good young talent. Now we're just doing what Walter etc did taking journeymen who have been there seen it and never done it.

The club make it very hard to support it. Last 6 years have been the worst supporting Everton and I've followed them since the early 70s. Piss poor recruitment, no attention to making sure there was a good spirit in the dressing room and players just taking the piss as to whether they turn up to play or not. Absolute shambles of a club, embarrassing even. People should be held to account for this debacle but they won't.

I was against the movement against arsenal at leaving the game early but now. well id probably back it now, the only thing these clowns seem to respond to is bad press. I hate what Moshiri and Co have done to my club. We are just a laughing stock, just throw the name Everton into any punch line. Half a billion quid and we end up in a far worse state than when we had no cash. Makes Moyes look like a football genius. One thing is for sure, I've never seen it this toxic at the ground for such a sustained amount of time, and for good reason. We, the punters can see the club being crushed into the ground while Moshiri/Kenwright etc just sit there like bumbling idiots wondering who they can throw under the bus next.
Fucking shameful the way this club is run

If it's anything other than a win on Saturday then Benitez simply has to go. Although it might already be too late.

On loan and prove + gets goals

I don’t understand the negativity surrounding this deal. It’s like we’re miserable about everything. It’s our default

This has to stop! The negativity! Everton are not in the championship!

Rafa is not coming to a club with the trophy cabinet over flowing! We have spent the money and big money buys are over!! Many managers have come and gone. It's time to support the players, they will save us from relegation. Unless anyone has a billion pounds or two to buy the club, we can only give our support!

Pointless complaining about the manager. Absolutely pointless!!!! I couldn't care who the manager is. Players get results and by working harder with our support and being positive changes results.

My family will always come first but Everton football club are second. Not matter how draining, frustrating, and probably cause my ending we must stay positive!! We are Everton!!

We are a joke of a club ….. anyone who tries to see an ounce of optimism in this signing knows fuck all about football

I call BS.

I've just been on VillaTalk.com. I saw some who were pleased, some sad, but absolutely fucking nobody "pissing themselves and laughing at us." (Not sure what they'd be laughing about, John, since we're not paying a dime for him and Villa's covering half his salary.) At worst they're hoping he plays well, earns a permanent transfer and generates them a nice fee. Here's a sampling of recent comments (look it up for yourselves if you don't believe me):

"I genuinely hope AEG is fondly remembered by the fans. We have some absolute plums in the fanbase who refuse to acknowledge the excellent work he's done for us in the time he's been here."

"thanks AEG! Some great memories."

"Very best of luck to the bloke. True professional."

"He scored in the playoff final. He is permanently in Villa history as one of our heros, nobody can rewrite history!"

"He made a pretty big sacrifice by breaking his fast, then turned into prime Ronaldo for our biggest game in the last 5 years at least. Definitely one who should be talked about for years to come, for that alone."

"I think I’ve made my views clear on here previously. In terms of consistent performance I think Anwar doesn’t fit where we hope to be so I'm not disappointed he has left from a playing perspective. But as I’ve said previously, the moment at Wembley was the greatest sporting moment in my life, and the fact he’s a religious man and he stopped fasting for the play offs is something we should all be grateful of. So Anwar, thanks for the memories mate, hope you smash it Everton"

"Just watched his interview at Everton and I forgot how much I love the bloke!"

"Hope he smashes it, be great to see him start off with a goal on Saturday and change a few of the Everton fans minds."

"Anwar El Ghazi will wear 34 for Everton in tribute to former friend and teammate Abdelhak Nouri 💙"

From VitalFootball.com, again mixed reviews but nobody laughing:

"Not the biggest fan of Anwar. I always get frustrated with players who clearly have good technical ability but seem to lack the desire and fight to be successful. Think a few of us on here have said previously if you mixed El Ghazi's technique with Trezeguets energy and combativeness we'd have a top player on our hands. Hopefully he'll perform well for Everton and earn himself a Summer move somewhere."

"Like Trez (but more) he has played his part in Villa's history by scoring some priceless and important goals, but it's time to move on for the sake of his career and I wish him all the best."

OK, John and Phil, over to you.

I have been close to Villa since 2019 (for personal reasons) I’ve watched this guy come in and followed him regularly, have a look at his stats ? Most players now are judged on their stats … he’s got splinters in arse he’s spent that much time on the Villa bench. He’s lazy, he slow and he will never be a top player … like I said I’d rather have Iwobi. I used to be like you Mike ever the optimist when we sign a new player, believing the move and change of club could reignite a career. Let me tell you again, he is not the quality we should be signing, not in a million years. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but I reckon I know more than you ever will on this guy, and spouting off sentimental shite from Villa fans on Twitter just doesn’t help us, he’s not even good enough for Norwich ! Don’t you think Dean Smith the former Villa manager who signed him in 2019 would have maybe tried to get him at Norwich ? Like I said I have pretty good insight ! Trust me

Not that we have necessarily always had the choice but there seems a lot of times where we have been looking for a certain type of player and picked the wrong one. We signed Ramiro Funes Mori when we might have got Van Dijk. We signed Bolasie when we could have got Zaha. We signed Sigurdsson when we might have got Maddison. Signed Klaassen when we might have got Grealish. Signed Josh Bowler when we might have signed Erling Haaland!

Of course all clubs will have such stories but I wonder if we have got it wrong more than most recently?

Without wanting to write too much about Iwobi, he seems very unsure of his role, his position, the tactics, what to do and when to do it. He plays better coming from deep so he can see options develop rather than having instinct, or much awareness or creativity.

El Ghazi often chooses the wrong option but his general ability, creativity and goalscoring threat is far greater imo.

In a strong, North East accent, "El Ghazi more options like".

But was there a - if you take him on loan and so cover some of his wages for the next 6 months, then we will pay £23m not £20m for Digne?
The guy is out of contract at the end of the season so it is a bit like someone taking Tosun or Delph from us.
Maybe it was a sweetener.
Or has that been mentioned?

You think he's not the quality we should be signing, which works out fine because this is a free loan, and we're not signing him unless he shows quality. I've never said I believe he'll reignite his career here, but I didn't expect Gray or Townsend would do so either, and here we are.

Just for the record, El Ghazi was very much on my radar in 2017 when he was at Ajax, because I'd watched a bunch of their games that season. In fact I called for us to go after Dolberg, Ziyech or El Ghazi (correctly assuming Sanchez was out of reach) instead of Davy Klaassen. We all know how that turned out.

Bottom line is if El Ghazi wins us even one game with a late goal off the bench, this deal will be worth it. But he will have to be better than Townsend and/or Gordon, or he won't play and we lose nothing.

John #341, we may never know unless the injuries keep coming. With Rich and Townsend back, and Gordon emerging as a new star, the guy may just be a body on the bench.

Don't know much about the lad because my football viewing is pretty much confined to Everton and I don't take much notice of the opposition.

Me? Gylfi Sigurdsson was my nadir. Pound for pound the worst signing in our history IMO. A few more are giving him a run for his money mind. Most of them in the Moshiri era.

Why the spit-fest and fuming?

My guess is they expect Richarlison to leave in the summer and are road-testing this guy as cheap replacement.

Ok I hear a few try to make the point he’s on loan, that it’s low risk etc, fair point ….. however if we are looking to improve the squad and progress then we should not be signing players like him, for a position we are ALL in agreement is actually not necessary. Very worrying indeed

Villa fans think that they're improving their quality, and AEG has played very little of late anyway. It'd be perhaps analogous to a hypothetical Tom Davies transfer for our own fan base?

They don't think he's shit, they just think they'll need better moving forward.

Tony A, can you help me out here mate?

343 Chris totally disagree. Sigurdsson has done well for us in every season he has played, rarely gets injured, always contributed with goal and assists. Your hang up is we paid 45m for him. £45m is nothing compared to what the big boys pay.

He’s a Dutch international, has played for Ajax and Lille, has experience of the Premier League, and is signing until the end of the season on very reasonable wages. There is not a huge amount of downside, even if he spends most of the next 5 and a half months on the bench. He improves our squad. He gives us better options if we pick up injuries, or face a condensed schedule. And, who knows, he might even click and become someone who we might want to become a part of our squad for next season. And then we’d be signing a 27-year-old first team player - who we actively want - for around £8 million. And if it doesn’t work, and we want rid of him, then off he goes.

If the naysayers are to be believed Nicolas, there's a bench full of splinters in his arse already. Perhaps he could make a bench from them?

I'll fetch me coat.

We can all pick the bits that suit us.

Now the only down side I see to all this, is possibly limiting the chances of Dobbin and Simms, and possibly Gordon,and in the case of Dobbin, I would hate to see the kid leave us, as I think he is a star of the future. Mind you, neither is getting many chances as it is, but that is more down to Rafa than the pair's abilities.

However being the Devil's Advocate, does it also not make players try harder to be selected, rather than become complacent and believe they are a 'shoe in' if fit, breathing and have a pulse ?

The amount of dummies flying out of prams, with such ferocity, bile and vitriol have made these pacifier projectiles, like a War Zone outside Mothercare in Beirut !

There are probably at least 10 Everton fans on this forum alone who could be texting their Villa mates taking the piss out of them for paying £25M on a 3rd choice France left back who hasn't played well for 18 months and they're not bothered he's gone.

Generalistic summary and their words, not mine. I rate him.

Wife supports Villa and the extended family are West Midlands based, so by default I loosely follow them.

I thought he was more regular under Dean Smith, so it's a manager thing in my opinion.

Inconsistent, frustrating, moments of magic, pops up with goals - often spectacular ones. We, well I, have bemoaned our wafer thin squad. Even if just for 6 months, he could offer an alternative in certain matches.

Let's see what he does for Everton, not what he didn't do for Villa.

We can all hope he's the second messiah, and delivers more than Arteta and Pienaar who's careers turned around with us.

However, he's failed at Aston Villa. So why will it be different with us? Why do we continue to invest wages, loan fees and transfer fees into shite - and then wonder we've no money, no trophies, no team and no stability.

Why do we continue to buy from rival clubs players that haven't been good enough for Spurs, Arsenal etc - and when has it ever worked out? For every Howard or Neville - we can point to Stephen Hughes, Iwobi, Aaron Lennon, Samways, Simon Davies, Walcott that proves its a poor strategy.

For me, if you want to buy players from top clubs you look at a Lukuku or Milner deal. Good pros on Frees or young hungry players not really given a chance at an elite club. Or you look at hungry players looking for a step up to the big time from a lower equivalent league - Baines, Jagielka, Lescott, Cahill.

It's interesting that Moyes signed Bowen using his old formula, and even Klopp signing Jota has a shade about it.

Like much of this club, it isn't Nil Satis, it's that'll do. And those who like this signing, should remember their approval when they wonder why its such a mess of a club. A club on the up like a Leipzeg don't fritter money away on 'filler' signings.

I won't bother comparing him to Iwobi because he's poor as well.

On the subject of fan opinion, you will find everyone is divided everywhere. Plenty praise El Ghazi for the memories he gave them. Target is now not very good cos Digne is coming in to some Others say those views are disrespectful.

Same with Digne. Trevor Sinclair, who has played at the highest level doesn't rate him. Plenty do. It is what it is.

I think this is all decent business for Everton. Certainly better than what's gone before it with the likes of players aforementioned in this post.

His goal helped get them out the championship, I read somewhere that he scored ten in the EPL last season, but Villa have signed quite a few players since the summer, and now the fans see Gerard bringing players like Coutinho into the club, then you’d expect this type of thing from a few?

The only worrying thing about this transfer is that the manager allegedly didn’t want him, so nothing is really changing at Everton, and although he’s building us a new ground, I’m not sure Moshiri is the type of owner Everton have ever needed.

If he wants to do a thorough professional job, he should stop meddling in the playing side of things and go and sort the other side of this old boys club out, but even though he’s spent a fortune, that just seems like a pipe-dream, something he’s just not prepared to do, and this just shows incredibly poor leadership.

Also, as Danny says, we can laugh and take the piss out of them for “Actually Spending” £25M on a soon to be 29 year old, who has been shit for the past 18 months (words of people on here, not mine), who’s corner kicks, free kicks, defending and tackling have all been shit.

Who’s laughing and taking the piss now?

Let's hope it's that and not Iwobi, Blomqvist and Van der Meyde!

Agree that - big picture - we should be setting our sights higher, but the squad's in a state of transition. If we bring in someone in the short term who can chip in a few goals and maybe more, I can live with that.

Both have good histories. They have won more than us including a European Cup, when it was for champions only. Traditional stadium. Fans expectations based on historical achievements.

They've also had major ownership and divisive managerial appointments (Mcleish/Bruce) issues over the years resulting in major fan unrest until relatively recently.

Even Keith Wyness called their ownership out when CEO and he was universally reviled by blues when he was CEO, as another Kenwright enabler.

You could also argue that their current recruitment strategy is not a million miles away from ours. Bailey has hardly played, Ings hasn't set the world alight, Coutinho underwhelmed at big Euro clubs, Digne with wages will not be a saleable asset (unless a CL club flutters their lashes and he will probably be off in a flash) etc, etc.

Obviously they have a young manager who may have the juice to progress them. However they still find themselves out of both cup competitions.

Crucially, they are only a couple of places and three points (game in hand) ahead of us.

Football is a fickle mistress and with a couple of wins we could quite easily be above them yet they are a progressive club (?)

Interesting times. IMO, if it was not for Benitez being in charge, I would suggest that would be the view of the majority.

I also believe our issues lie right at the top with Moshiri/Usmanov combination. Sadly without that we are utterly screwed.

He works hard, gets the odd goal and has prem experience. Really good temporary addition to the squad who’ll be motivated to play well to get a permanent move away in the summer.

Can’t understand the negativity given it’s only a loan.

I can not believe Moshiri has been scouting this player or is doing Villa a favour. He's not stupid.

El Ghazi may not be Rafas number 1 target or in his top 10, but I'm sure he's agreed to it.

We needed money back for the outlay on 2 full backs. Sell Digne, Job done.

We needed more cheap attacking options because without them, we may struggle, injuries, covid etc. Tick.

Simms and Dobbin may play their part but both are a long way from being reliable first team selections. Neither is better than El Ghazi.

I'm expecting further loans away. Dobbin won't sign a contract, so until he does why include him in any future plans beyond this season.

I'm still hopefull of bringing in a quality midfielder, maybe also on loan. It may end up being Longstaff. Whilst not who I wish, he's better than other alternatives and presumably fits into Rafas way of playing.

That's the reality we are in.

What’s the state of play/your knowledge re Dobbin not signing a contract?

Anyone else got info re Dobbin?

Surely we can’t let another potential academy product leave without a fight, only to come back and haunt us?

Overall, I think the 'realistic' approach Benitez has taken makes sense...low-cost recruits who have a chance and could come good at a club like ours that embrace triers...which this new guy could be.

The problem, for now, is he's going to find the one (or maybe two?) dominant centre halves we need in this window. Probably not. And, perhaps more worrying, how will the two new full backs bed-in?

Which you posted.

If moshiri wants to do a thorough professional job, he should stop meddling in the playing side of things and go and sort the other side of this old boys club out.

Not the type of player we need at present,we need a standout midfielder who creates and can bag us a few goals too... sigh

I take it all back

I'm all for rewarding those who deserve it but..?