Everton chief executive Angus Kinnear has confirmed the club will not have a new right-back in place for the Premier League game against Crystal Palace, but insists they are prepared to wait for their preferred target.
The position has been one of Everton’s main priorities during the summer transfer window, with a succession of players linked with a move to the Hill Dickinson.
However, Kinnear has now confirmed David Moyes will have to begin the campaign without the specialist addition he has been seeking.
Speaking to BBC Radio Merseyside, Kinnear said: “We won’t have a right-back for Palace but it’s important we have the number one right-back we wanted when the window closes.”
It is a revealing comment on Everton’s approach to the closing stages of the window.
Everton prepared to wait for right-back
Everton have considered many options at right-back this summer without completing a deal, and Kinnear’s comments suggest the club would rather wait than move down their list simply to have somebody through the door.
That has an obvious short-term cost.
Moyes will need to find a solution against Palace, with Jake O’Brien capable of playing on the right of the defence and James Garner another who has previously filled the position.
Neither represents an ideal long-term answer. O’Brien is primarily a centre-back, while Garner’s importance in midfield makes using him at full-back a compromise elsewhere.
The intriguing part of Kinnear’s answer is the reference to Everton’s “number one” target.
He did not name the player, and the club have been linked with numerous right-backs during a long-running search.
For now, his identity remains unknown.
What Kinnear has made clear is that Everton believe waiting for the right player is preferable to completing a deal for the sake of it.
That approach will ultimately be judged on who arrives before the window closes.
If Everton land their first-choice target, the patience will look justified. If they do not, right-back will remain one of the more obvious pieces of unfinished business from the summer.
For news on the right-back search and other Everton-related deals, follow our live transfer tracker.
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