Everton FC correspondent Joe Thomas has been present at every club friendly this summer. Here, he shares his thoughts on the squad and the challenges for the season ahead
Everton manager David Moyes and his side kick off their Premier League campaign this weekend
Everton manager David Moyes and his side kick off their Premier League campaign this weekend
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It has been a busy month and, for me, a privileged one. I have spent the past four weeks going back and forth to Scotland, Germany and a few other places in between to follow Everton through pre-season.
Dens Park, the Toughsheet, the bet365, Volksparkstadion, MHP Arena, Murrayfield and Hill Dickinson, all ticked off - though the trip to Edinburgh last week was almost scuppered by a breakdown on the Scottish borders. So, as the only journalist to have attended every Everton friendly, these are my thoughts on where the squad stands on the eve of the new season.
These thoughts come to you via press boxes, mixed zones, a plush resort in the Black Forest and countless airport breakfasts and service station lunches.
They are built on conversations with a solid number of the first-team squad. And they follow chats with all sorts of people occupying all sorts of places in the world of football - though not David Moyes, although his summer silence was finally broken on Monday night.
Here we go.
Winners of the summer
Thierno Barry
Barry has had a good summer and I think he has done enough to be the starting forward when Crystal Palace come to town. Three goals and an assist and plenty of nice link-up play point to a summer in which he has matured on and off the pitch. He is still raw and, at times, clumsy. After a summer of intense social media posts about locking in, he will now need to do his talking on the pitch. But he has given us reason to be hopeful he can build on his debut campaign.
Merlin Rohl
Right-back, wing-back, right wing and central midfield - Rohl has been Moyes’ utility player this summer. He has generally performed well throughout and I think the way he finished last season, combined with a summer built around his return to Germany, has allowed him to grow in stature. He doesn’t start in my first choice Everton XI but he is a very handy squad player who has shown he can be trusted in a range of positions.
Harrison Armstrong
I don’t know where Armstrong fits into Moyes’ plans this season, but the teenager has started six of the seven friendlies and not looked out of place. On Saturday, in the second half, he came up against Morocco wonderkid Ayyoub Bouaddi, who came to the attention of the world during the World Cup. Armstrong is yet to garner the same critical acclaim but I can see these two teenage central midfielders battling each other on the highest stages of world football in a few years.
Honourable mentions: Tyrique George and Tyler Dibling - confidence-boosting summers for both in which they have genuinely impacted games. George’s goal against Newcastle United capped a pre-season in which he has flourished while Dibling now appears to be emerging from his shell.
Has the squad improved *enough*
The *enough* is the important word here because this squad is definitely better than the one that ended last season.
That much should be obvious because, while Everton lost some big characters at the end of June, I don’t think they lost anyone essential to what they want to do on the pitch this season.
I don’t think that is controversial. Seamus Coleman is a massive loss in the dressing room and as an ally to Moyes, but his powers on the pitch had waned in recent years as injuries and age took their toll.
Idrissa Gueye fought successfully against both and was missed when injury took him out of the team at the end of last season. But I think Everton needed to be able to move on from him this year, they certainly couldn’t go into this campaign reliant on the veteran given he is about to turn 37.
I also think Gueye was a profile Everton needed to move away from. There was a temptation to see him as Everton’s defensive midfielder but he was not a #6. He was an offensive defensive player, if that makes sense, most effective when given the freedom to aggressively go in pursuit of the ball, trying to win it high up the pitch.
He was excellent at doing that but when it didn’t work it left Everton, without a holding midfielder, vulnerable in transition.
I would have liked to have seen the club be more ambitious in this area - like they were with Amadou Onana in 2022 - but the signing of Christian Norgaard makes sense, providing fitness does not become an issue (he currently has a small knock, I think we are perhaps looking at after Preston for his first appearance).
Norgaard might not be as much of a ball winner but he is positionally disciplined and offers an anchor in front of the defensive unit that should give them the protection they have not really had for some time. And while he is not Gueye, who meant an awful lot to quite a few Everton players, he is another experienced leader who will be an asset when things get tough.
To the other additions. It is fair to point out that Rohl and George were at Everton last season. I would say they represent a minor improvement on themselves because both have had good summers. But they are not new faces.
So that brings me to Hayden Hackney and Brennan Johnson. Hackney is a player I like but I don’t know that he gives this Everton side anything new. I have written already that the squad has a lot of #8s and he adds depth, youth and some line-breaking vision, but would I have him ahead of Dewsbury-Hall and James Garner, the two players I would like either side of Norgaard? Not yet.
Would I have him ahead of Rohl and Harrison Armstrong? Possibly, and depth in this area allows Moyes to utilise Rohl’s versatility, but I do not want to hinder Armstrong’s development and I am worried Hackney’s arrival could do that.
I still think Tim Iroegbunam is likely to go this summer (I don’t think his injury is bad enough to stop a deal, even if Hull City currently say they have reservations).
Should Tim depart, this is still a congested area. Hackney is a good player who I think will make light work of settling in the Premier League, but while I think his addition improves the squad’s ability to deal with injury and suspension, a valid aim, I don’t think it moves the dial in terms of what it can achieve this season.
I do think the Johnson deal is a substantial improvement, though. As I wrote last week, Dwight McNeil deserves credit for the role he played in saving Everton when they were at their worst but this was the right time for him to move on.
He had become a bit-part player who, when used, was played out of position. His left foot is a wand but he is not a right-sided midfielder. Johnson, on the other hand, is. I think this was a deal that worked well for Everton, who get a player who can hopefully dovetail with an emerging Dibling to improve the right side.
My hope is that Johnson can do enough of the heavy-lifting to reduce the pressure on Dibling to have an immediate impact for goals and assists, so if they don’t come immediately, there is room to persevere, which didn’t seem to be the case last season, when Moyes appeared to quickly lose patience in Dibling.
I also hope Johnson and Dibling can do well enough to keep Iliman Ndiaye on the left, his best position.
So, I like the move towards a centre midfield anchored around a defensive midfielder - provided Norgaard gets fit and stays fit, that is progress for me. Johnson over McNeil is, too.
Everton’s weak spots
To the problems. Well, there is still no right-back. There is no position with a bigger potential upside than right back and given how long this problem has existed and the extent to which a specialist would improve this team, it is remarkable it has not been resolved yet.
It remains unthinkable that it will not be addressed this summer, though even if a signing can be made before Saturday, it is almost certain Rohl or Jake O’Brien will start there against Palace.
Then there remains questions over left-back and the strikers. Vitalii Mykolenko’s attacking limitations hurt Everton last season. Unless Moyes is now willing to use Adam Aznou when he needs more going forward, then left back represents a missed opportunity for improvement.
Up front, Barry has had a good summer but will need a hot start, or for Beto (if he is still here) to step up to alleviate doubts over whether Everton have a reliable source of firepower.
So where does this leave Everton? At the end of last season, the priorities for me would have been, in this order, right-back, defensive midfield, right wing, left-back, striker.
I think those were the areas where there was the most room for improvement. Of those, Norgaard deals with the defensive midfield question and Johnson improves the right-wing situation. But there is no new right-back, no real change at left-back and, up front, the hope is that players who were up and down last season can be more consistent this season.
What worries me?
The result of the above is that I think Everton may be stronger than last season but an improvement beyond marginal gains and relies on some players having breakout years, and a little bit of fortune.
If Dibling, George and Barry can build on the promising signs of the summer and carry that form into the season, then the Blues will be much stronger.
If Jarrad Branthwaite can stay fit then he will make Everton substantially better. If Norgaard can play most of the season, the side should have a better structure.
But while I am sure a right-back will be found, improvement elsewhere is reliant on emerging players breaking out of their shells and Branthwaite and Norgaard staying fit (I do think O’Brien is the perfect back-up to Branthwaite, but am not convinced Moyes would automatically turn to him).
I don’t think it is unrealistic to place heavy expectations on some of the above situations working out. It would only take Barry to improve slightly for Everton to make a big gain and if Johnson can prove a solid acquisition then he and Ndiaye should allow George and Dibling to grow in strength without the team's success being reliant on it. Norgaard has a good fitness record and Branthwaite’s recovery has been handled carefully.
My frustration is the areas where the Blues could have made real, tangible improvement, quickly, are yet to be addressed - that is at right-back, left-back and up front. I think right back will be sorted soon and I do not think it is out of the question that Beto ends up on the move and faith is placed in a new forward to work with Barry. But I can only assess what has happened so far.
Improvements have been made, through transfers and in the confidence gained by promising individual performances.
Whether that can take Everton into the top half of the table is probably dependent on how much improvement can be eked out of players who were already there last season, though.
I do worry about Mykolenko, who had his best game of the summer against Lille but has not looked as solid over the past few months as he did in previous years. I also worry about whether Armstrong and O’Brien will get the opportunities they deserve and probably need in order to stay happy.
Finally, Moyes’ contractual situation is problematic for everyone and that will emerge as an issue whenever there is a dip in form. It is far from ideal for him to have less than a year on his deal, with the club providing no indication of what the longer-term vision is.
The combination of the bad ending to last season and the newfound availability of Everton supporter Eddie Howe provides fertile ground for some mischief-making should the Blues endure a tough start.
The rest of the transfer window
As alluded to above, I suspect Iroegbunam will leave - I think Everton would find a sale useful and I think the player has shown enough to be able to a) argue he deserves greater importance than he will hold in this midfield unit and b) for clubs to think he is worth investing in.
Will it be Hull? They like him a lot and I wonder if their insistence the deal was off last week was an effort to bring the price down. Iroegbunam is due further assessment this week and those around him believe it will provide reassurance to his suitors that he is worth moving for this summer.
I find it hard to believe that Nathan Patterson will still be at the club come September and I cannot entertain the possibility Everton will not have signed a replacement when the window shuts.
Beyond that, I think Beto is one to watch. At Murrayfield, he made a great play of giving his shirt to a supporter and high-fiving everyone who wanted one after the game. I don’t know that it was a goodbye but, with one year left on his deal and with Barry having overtaken him this summer, I can see a scenario where the club entertains offers for him and then looks to bring in another forward, probably on loan. Liam Delap is still available. Moyes does like him.
Jack Grealish? I can still see this happening but given he played for Manchester City in the Community Shield and that, in Ndiaye, George, Dibling and Johnson, Everton suddenly have options out wide, maybe the chances of a reunion have slightly diminished.
Finally, I don’t think this should happen but I am on alert for loan interest in Aznou and Armstrong. I wouldn’t accept offers because I want them available for the first team. But would you be surprised if they ended up being allowed to go somewhere where minutes were more or less guaranteed?
The aims for this season
It has to be to finish in the top half and to genuinely compete in the cups. It has to be. There is a case to be made that Everton made progress last season despite finishing 13th, the same as the year before (and as the year before that, without the deductions).
But they cannot come out of this season and argue progress has been made without a better finish.
I think the Blues have a solid core and that if Branthwaite can stay fit, a right-back can be signed and Barry can kick on from last season, should be able to push for the top half and potentially Europe.
I don’t think Tottenham Hotspur or Chelsea will be as bad this season and I think Leeds United have done some good business. But I think Newcastle United look a mess, that Brentford are reliant on the goals of Igor Thiago and that Brighton, Sunderland, Palace and a much-changed Bournemouth could buckle under the stress of Europe.
The intention for me should be to exploit the stability Everton have - stability almost half the Premier League does not have given their managerial turnover - and the reduced fixture list - nine sides are again in Europe - to their advantage in the league and cups.
There can be no excuse for not taking the cups seriously. Both represent great opportunities - particularly given the recent success of most of the other Premier League clubs that are a threat to the Blues. Newcastle, Aston Villa, Palace and the ‘big six’ have all won silverware in recent years. It simply matters more to Everton.
One final point on ambition - I think the Blues have a solid core for now but the foundation of a really exciting team for years to come. Getting this group to grow in the right direction will depend on whether an identity they can build around can emerge. The team at Finch Farm need to ensure that, just because Moyes has only one year left, this does not become a wasted year for the development of a young, exciting squad.
Time for a late surprise?
I think the jury is still out on the Friedkin Group’s ownership. They have done much to improve the financial standing of the club but their competitive ambition remains unclear and the failure thus far to land a right-back is worrying. Dan Friedkin is also yet to visit the club he has now owned for approaching two years (though don’t be too surprised if that changes).
BUT. And I say this with all seriousness, they do seem to understand the value of transfer window PR.
TFG took over Roma in August 2020. Each of the summers since has been marked by a big arrival - not always for a big fee - but a statement has been made in the transfer market that has boosted fan morale. Tammy Abraham, Paulo Dybala, Romelu Lukaku, Artem Dovbyk, Wesley, Castro… and at Everton - Jack Grealish.
I do, therefore, think it would be foolish to rule out a late foray designed to try and raise excitement levels - they do have a track record for it.