The Toffees are scouting the Canadian international to solve their defensive woes, but questions remain over whether the Celtic standout can bridge the gap from Glasgow to Merseyside.
Everton have been linked with a move to sign Celtic right-back Alistair Johnston.
The Canadian international endured a difficult 2025/2026 season with Celtic, suffering two hamstring injuries which kept him out for the majority of the campaign.
That didn't stop Johnston from being called up to the World Cup with Canada, playing in all five of their games at the tournament.
The Toffees are in the market for a new right-back this summer, with a huge number of names being linked with a move to the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
The latest is Celtic's Johnston.
When I saw this pop up, I was slightly underwhelmed. After years of needing a new right-back, seeing we've potentially landed on a 27-year-old still playing in Scotland is disappointing.
That's not to say Johnston is a bad player, but if we're wanting to progress and reach the next level, I certainly don't think he's the answer.
Would I have any issue with Johnston coming in as a second-choice right-back, or alongside a project right-back? Probably not at the right price.
Scouting StatsScouting Stats
Johnston's data does look pretty favourable, but there is the obvious caveat of the opposition he regularly comes up against. The Canadian international's data going forward is pretty strong, but he also touches the ball more than most right-backs in Europe due to Celtic's dominance.
Law of averages says he's going to have high creative numbers when he's playing in such a dominant side against weak opposition when he's allowed plenty of freedom to go forward, with little consequences if he's caught high up the pitch.
Looking at Johnston's numbers in the Champions League might give you a better picture of what he's like against stronger opposition (below).
His data almost looks the complete opposite. Attacking numbers fall, but his defensive numbers shoot up.
Overall, as mentioned, I don't think Johnston is a bad right-back by any stretch. I simply refuse to believe there isn't a better one out there for us to come in and be our starting right-back.
If Everton are able to sign Johnston for a fee in the region of £10m, and also bring in a project right-back addition, I think it could make sense.
This would allow the project signing to have time to settle in, but hopefully not be held back in his development. If the project right-back signing is good enough, I'm thinking someone like Givairo Read, then they should get plenty of game time ahead of Johnston, but not have too much pressure on them to succeed.
I've seen Celtic fans suggesting he will cost north of £20m. That should be a deal we're actively looking to avoid if them figures are correct.
As mentioned, at the right price, it could make sense, as long as we bring in that project right-back signing in order to show we're actually trying to build for the future.
If Johnston is being targeted as our only right-back signing of the summer window, it would be a bit of a disappointment.