The ECHO takes a look at some key issues for the coming weeks at Finch Farm
David Moyes looks on prior to the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Everton at Selhurst Park. Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images
David Moyes looks on prior to the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Everton at Selhurst Park. Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images
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Everton’s first pre-season game is just a fortnight away and their first new arrival of the summer is through the door.
As Finch Farm prepares for pre-season testing to begin, the club stands on the edge of the upcoming season.
Momentum will quickly gather pace once the players are back so, ahead of that, the ECHO took a lot at some of the club’s priorities heading into the depths of July and the countdown to the summer opener in Dundee.
The search for a new right back
Hayden Hackney was a welcome addition as the club secured the first new player to arrive this summer. The midfielder was the second signing, with the avoidance of relegation ensuring Merlin Rohl’s loan move from Freiburg became permanent, but confirmation of an early deal was a boost to the squad before it returns to Halewood.
Club chiefs are well aware there is further work to be done this summer, beyond the talks designed to explore whether they can bring winger Tyrique George in from Chelsea after his loan spell in the second half of last season. The ECHO understands they were continuing to progress as the week ended.
They - as David Moyes has repeatedly made clear - are on the hunt for a new right back but until one has been signed there will be a nagging fear at the back of all Blues’ minds over the prospect of the club beginning another season without having solved a longstanding problem. Aaron Wan-Bissaka of West Ham and Raoul Bellanova of Atalanta have been looked at along with Strasbourg’s Guela Doue, who may prove too expensive following the World Cup.
Resolving Idrissa Gueye’s situation
Idrissa Gueye is no longer a Blue after his contract expired this week. There remains potential for another season of the veteran at Everton - talks between his representatives and the club did take place before the World Cup.
Once he left for North America his focus was on the tournament and representing Senegal but their defeat to Belgium this week in the last 32 means his future is now set to be addressed. Resolving this is important as Everton look to build for the new season. The 36-year-old can still play a serious role but, given he will turn 37 weeks into the new campaign, there is a desire to reduce the team’s reliance upon him. What that prospect means to him will be crucial to where his future lies.
Rebuilding the dressing room leadership team
The loss of club captain Seamus Coleman after 17 years with the Blues will no doubt be a blow to the dressing room. Should Gueye also depart then the pair will leave a significant power vacuum given their influence.
Important figures still remain, including James Tarkowski, Jordan Pickford and the increasingly influential James Garner. But the dynamic of the dressing room will have changed and that will require some adjusting to.
Ensuring Jarrad Branthwaite is managed correctly
It is looking positive for Jarrad Branthwaite, who is understood to be in a good position ahead of pre-season following the hamstring injury that saw him stretchered off against Liverpool. In hindsight, it was a moment Everton did not recover from and his influence was missed in the run-in, as it was for the first half of the season.
The hope at Everton is that his run of hamstring problems is not indicative of any serious issues and that he will be able to return stronger and more resilient. That would be a huge boost for Moyes but helping him build towards the new season in a way that does not put too much pressure on him, too soon, is crucial.
Deciding the plans for the out of contract players
Finally, seven first team players are out of contract next summer and their situations will require consideration over the coming weeks. Everton will have to decide whether to offer any of Beto, Dwight McNeil, Tim Iroegbunam, Carlos Alcaraz, Nathan Patterson, Michael Keane and Tom King new deals or risk losing them on a free in 12 months. Alcaraz’s situation is less pressing given the club have an option to extend that contract, while Keane’s future has been left late in the past two years. But if Everton are seeking to raise funds this summer then knowing where they stand on those players is key.
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