EXCLUSIVE: Thoughts on Everton's ownership and David Moyes' full-back experiments from former Premier League star Danny Mills
Everton owner Dan Friedkin still hasn't attended a game at Hill Dickinson Stadium
Everton owner Dan Friedkin still hasn't attended a game at Hill Dickinson Stadium
View Image
Former Premier League star Danny Mills reckons that it was concerning to see Everton's owners trying to cash in on the club's brightest stars at the end of the transfer window. But he claims to be unconcerned by the fact chairman Dan Friedkin has never attended a match.
After U-turning on their decision to give Nottingham Forest the green light to launch a £40m bid for Harrison Armstrong, The Friedkin Group did sanction the sale of Iliman Ndiaye to Manchester City. With Beto, Tim Iroegbunam and Nathan Patterson also sold, that ensured the Blues brought in more than £100m on deadline day.
But after Folarin Balogun's £40m move from Monaco collapsed, it meant Everton's outgoings on the last day of the window was restricted to the £4m they paid to sign Ainsley Maitland-Niles from Lyon, although the club is once more paying a significant chunk of Jack Grealish's wages following his return on loan from Man City.
And Mills, whose son Stanley, now a Preston North End player, spent seven years with the Blues, making a brace of Carabao Cup appearances before joining Oxford United in 2025, told the ECHO: “I think selling your biggest assets is a worry. It’s never easy.
“Obviously, big money came in for Iliman Ndiaye, who’s done really, really well, he’s been very, very impressive. But when a team comes knocking for a player, it's very, very difficult.
“The player’s head is clearly turned. What do you do in that situation?
“Do you keep a player that doesn’t really want to be there? Do you get the best out of him? Or do you allow him to go, although it was very, very last minute, and then try and get through to January and rebuild then?
“The transfer market is never easy. Player power is huge, we know that in this day and age.”
Owner Dan Friedkin has never attended an Everton game at either Goodison Park or Hill Dickinson Stadium - and after the window closed, manager David Moyes revealed he’d never even spoken to him.
But Mills insists the hands off approach, in stark contrast to the billionaire’s dealings at Roma, another club he owns, where he has been photographed with coaching staff and players on training ground visits, does not bother him.
He said: “The owner not going to the game, I don’t really think, is that relevant. I could go around the Premier League and, apart from one or two that are quite media-friendly and front-facing, I couldn’t tell you if the owner was at the game or not, if I’m honest.
“I don’t think it really makes much difference. Sometimes if the team is doing well, no one cares, no one’s bothered whether the owner is there or not.
“If the team aren’t doing so well and the owner turns up, then they become the object of the fans’ frustration, don’t they? But for me, the owner not going to a game is pretty irrelevant.”
As someone who played as a right-back himself, Mills takes a keen interest in Moyes having used both centre-back Jake O’Brien and midfielder Merlin Rohl in the position.
Former Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola, the most successful Premier League manager of the past decade, converted various players from other positions into full-backs such as Matheus Nunes, Nico O’Reilly, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Fabian Delph,who left the Etihad Stadium for Everton.
After over 18 months of searching, the Blues finally recruited a right-back specialist in Maitland-Niles on transfer deadline day and while Mills reckons that certain players who favour other positions can fill in to get you out of a jam, over lengthier periods it can be more difficult.
The former England international, speaking courtesy of BestBettingBonuses.co.uk, said: “The full-back role has changed, definitely. It’s a lot different to how it used to be.
“It’s not easy to change position. I still think in high-pressure situations you tend to revert to type.
“The best teams tend to have specialists in the best positions. Look at what Arsenal have done.
“Okay, Ben White was converted from centre-back, but he often played in a three at Leeds anyhow and got out to right back. But they have specialists in every position.
“It’s very difficult to get away with long-term with players that are out of position. So, top clubs, especially, should surely be able to recruit top players in those positions and persuade them to come and play for them.
“I think you can get away with it on a short-term basis, but long-term it makes it very, very difficult to be consistent and be competitive.”