What are Everton’s Next Steps in the Transfer Window?

The acquisition of Tyler Dibling from Southampton on Monday solved one of Everton’s most blatant requirements heading into this transfer window – a dedicated right-winger.

In the opening outings this season, Carlos Alcaraz, Iliman Ndiaye and Dwight McNeil have been deployed there in an unfavoured position, with varying levels of success. But the right side of midfield was not Everton’s only area of concern for this summer and only some of the gaps have been plugged thus far.

Several faces departed the club upon the expiry of their contracts, including Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Abdoulaye Doucoure. Others were signed up to new short-term contracts, such as club captain Seamus Coleman and veteran midfielder Idrissa Gana Gueye.

While retention of numbers and leadership in the dressing room was vital, Everton were still desperately threadbare in a few key areas. We generally lacked the quality across the squad to offer the best chance of a push for a top-half finish, with the threat of relegation hopefully firmly behind us.

We achieved early momentum in the transfer window, securing Carlos Alcaraz on a permanent deal following a semi-successful loan deal in the second half of last season. Everton boss David Moyes will have been hoping he can realise his potential and prove to be a clever replacement for the departing Doucoure.

However, Alcaraz’s influence may now be seen from the bench and as a backup following the marquee loan signing of Jack Grealish. Left wing was not exactly an area of shortage or concern for the Toffees, but Grealish’s acquisition will allow last season’s top goalscorer Iliman Ndiaye to play in perhaps a more natural and involved position just behind the striker. We may see the best of Ndiaye and Grealish together in that configuration.

Everton’s Number 10 actually started off on the right in Sunday’s victory against Brighton, in the first Premier League matchday at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, and scored the historic first goal for good measure, assisted by Grealish. But, following the arrival of Tyler Dibling, it’d be wise to assume we won’t see much more of Ndiaye on that side.

The beauty of the lineup that Everton now have in their attacking midfield, though, is that you could interchange all three of the starting players freely to fulfil a different tactic. Add McNeil and Alcaraz into the equation and we now have strength in depth and adaptability in abundance.

Five players with obvious similarities but also possessing unique individual qualities, who will each be vying to knock each other out of the starting XI. The transfer window has gone very well in that area of the pitch and the possibilities are tantalising for Evertonians.

In front of them, the striker situation is quite divisive. Thierno Barry was brought in for around £27M – a relatively modest fee for a promising young striker and around the going rate for any player these days – but most will have appreciated the need for patience with him.

Earning minutes in the Premier League and settling into such a demanding environment was a critical step for Barry, who has been a nomad for the first few years of his professional career. We perhaps could’ve expected to have seen Beto deployed more frequently to allow Barry to establish himself under less pressure, but the Frenchman seems to have earned his starting place in training despite an obvious rawness being present in his game.

In an ideal world, we’d have liked at least one more recognised striker to provide competition and cover – going into a season with one established striker and another two unproven (once Youssef Chermiti is added to the mix) is less than optimal. Most Blues would probably like one more front man incoming to allow Chermiti to seek minutes on loan elsewhere.

Beto’s qualities are as obvious as his weaknesses and, while his mildly impressive goalscoring record in his 18 months at Everton suggests promise, a large section of supporters remain unconvinced of his long-term suitability to lead our line.

A loan of our own for an out-of-favour striker in the mould of Rasmus Højlund, Goncalo Ramos, or Folarin Balogun would be perfect for Everton, who could provide much-needed support and an opportunity for development for our permanent recruits. How likely that is, however, is another matter…

Deeper in midfield, the extension of Idrissa Gana Gueye’s contract was a big win for Everton. The 35-year-old won the club’s Player of the Season award last campaign and shows no signs of slowing down despite being one of the older players in the Premier League this season.

The versatile and technically gifted Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall joined from Club World Cup champions Chelsea this summer, but it has actually been the youngster Tim Iroegbunam who has started the season alongside Gueye with James Garner filling in at left-back and Dewsbury-Hall nudged into the number 10 role.

Although Iroegbunam played very well at the weekend, I think it is clear to most of us that a loan would be his best option. He needs sustained appearances and I don’t think he is likely to get that at Everton this season once the full squad is available.

Harrison Armstrong is in a very similar boat – both need temporary moves to other Premier League teams or one of the better Championship outfits who can guarantee them minutes. However, that would leave our midfield short of numbers, especially once Gueye heads off to Afcon with Senegal in December.

A move for Manchester United’s out-of-favour Kobbie Mainoo has been mooted and I for one would jump at that opportunity. It’s quite baffling how few opportunities the promising Englishman has had under Ruben Amorim and Everton should be looking to benefit from that, even just for one season. Josh Brownhill could also be a less ambitious option who Everton could acquire permanently as a free agent.

Everton’s back four, in particularly the centre-back area, have been one of our greater strengths for the last few seasons. Extending the contract of Jarrad Branthwaite was arguably Everton’s most important moment of the summer – along with James Tarkowski and Jordan Pickford, he is a key member of the Everton spine that must be retained at all costs.

The full back positions, however, are ones of concern. With Vitalii Mykolenko’s injury in pre-season leaving Adam Aznou as our only recognised first-team left-back, James Garner had to fill in when the young Moroccan picked up an injury of his own. Fortunately, ever the versatile professional that Garner is, he has fared very well and Aznou’s appearance on the bench should hopefully give Moyes some peace of mind in that position.

Right-back now becomes Everton’s main area of concern. While Jake O’Brien has deputised there since Moyes’s return as manager in January, the 6ft-6in Irishman is clearly limited in that position. Lacking the attacking threat and the agility that comes in handy as a full-back in today’s game, O’Brien was always going to be moved aside if a replacement could be found.

Attacking prowess and the ability to overlap is now important, given that the left-footed Dibling will prefer to cut in from the right. But as is often the case with Everton’s recruitment strategy, this obvious problem within the squad has been neglected for far too long.

Having missed out on Kenny Tete early in the window, our options are limited. 36-year-old Seamus Coleman extended his contract for 1 year in the summer, likely to be his last for Everton and in a bit-part role at that.

The injury-prone Nathan Patterson has never reached his potential and has attracted attention from Sevilla for a season-long loan. I believe that’s the best option for both parties once Everton source an alternative. 

Nobody really knows how much money is left in the pot, but I’d personally love to see Matty Cash on Merseyside. Alternatively, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Mattia De Sciglio are available on free transfers, but with injuries and age respectively working against them, Everton may prefer to steer clear. This will be the issue with the most intrigue for Everton to solve before the end of the transfer window.

It's undeniable that Everton’s individual transfers have been excellent so far this summer, but the work is not yet done. The decisions they make over the course of the next week will determine the outlook of the fans and associated experts, as to whether this transfer window has been successful on the whole or further work needs to be done.

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