Everton FC correspondent Joe Thomas answers reader questions in the latest Blues Q&A
Everton supporters are questioning The Friedkin Group's long-term ambitions for the club
Everton supporters are questioning The Friedkin Group's long-term ambitions for the club
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The international break is upon us and, naturally, that allows some time for reflection.
It has been a good start for Everton. The Blues are unbeaten after five Premier League games - including two at typically miserable destinations for them - and through to the last 16 of the Carabao Cup.
That success has been particularly impressive given the context it has unfolded within after a dreadful end to the transfer window left David Moyes with just 18 senior outfield players and one recognised striker. That is where we start this latest Q&A.
Has anything changed with the Friedkin Group? Trying to sell Harrison Armstrong and now talk of them looking for investment. Are they looking to move on? Ste
The precise intentions of the Friedkin Group remain unclear but it certainly appears they are open to outside investment. That is not necessarily unusual, and given how much Liverpool’s owners FSG have just been able to raise through the sale of a minority stake to a consortium involving Amit Bhatia and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, it is not hard to see why other owners of Premier League clubs might want to follow suit.
With Hill Dickinson Stadium nearing completion, it is clear TFG spotted an opportunity with Everton and they now own a club which, all things considered, is worth significantly more than the roughly £330m they paid for it. Even if they are just seeking to recoup some or all of that money, being open to investment often includes an awareness that interested groups may be seeking more than a minority stake - that deal across the city included an option for the new party to become a majority shareholder, for instance.
It does seem that something changed towards the end of the window. CEO Angus Kinnear may split opinion but it is tough to explain why he would have spoken with such confidence about the final weeks of the window had he known what was to follow. At the very least, it could be construed as a desire to make Everton sustain their own spending - something that does not chime with the ambition set out at the end of last season, when this summer was pitched as part two of a two-stage squad rebuild.
So I do think something changed - though given Dan Friedkin has not attended an Everton game but has been involved heavily at Roma, it feels as though TFG’s commitment to the Blues has always been open to question, at least in comparison. What they have planned remains to be seen but I can understand the frustration and concern of supporters.
Do you believe there will be a review of the recruitment structure following the debacle of the last day of the window? Do you think it was always known that there was going to be a financial issue (significant sale to buy)? Andrew Chamberlain
I have heard nothing to suggest there will be any sort of deep dive into the transfer activity of the summer, Andrew, and think it is unlikely. There is a view within parts of the club that the window went well before being derailed by a combination of the late switch in direction (to operate on a sell-to-buy basis) and bad luck in the case of the collapse of the Falorin Balogun deal.
While there is a global acceptance David Moyes has been left short, there is a bit of debate behind the scenes over how many more players he actually needed. And there is some pride in the deals that saw the likes of Hayden Hackney and Tyrique George arrive early in the summer.
I can appreciate that recruitment is not easy and a lot of clubs do business late. I also think the change in approach from above hurt some plans and there is a belief, a legitimate one, that the club did well to avoid getting dragged into the expensive, messy business that clubs like Spurs and others did.
I do think there are a number of issues that deserve scrutiny, though, even if those involved faced some issues outside of their control in the final week of business.
Very best of luck for the future Joe. What's been your best memory covering Everton? Ray
Thanks Ray, that is very kind - I am really grateful for the lovely words I have received since I announced my departure, thank you for yours.
There are three that jump to mind, and I doubt you will be able to guess two of them. One is Crystal Palace at home under Frank Lampard - and not THAT game. The survival-clinching 3-2 win was incredible on so many levels, but that night was an awful lot to live through and some of the joy at the end was tempered by the frustration that Everton were in that position.
I would count the 1-0 win over Chelsea - Myra the dog, the first coach welcome, Richarlison with the flare, Jordan Pickford’s wondersave - up there. That day was special and showed what this amazing fanbase is capable of, while also marking the beginning of the late push that ended in safety.
But back to that Palace game - this was the one a few months into the following season, when goals from Alex Iwobi, Dwight McNeil and Anthony Gordon secured a 3-0 win under Lampard.
I think, if my memory has not deserted me, the weather was nice that afternoon. Everton played really well and Vitalii Mykolenko had been involved in one of the goals after I had written what then looked like a prescient piece that morning saying Lampard was trying to work on his attacking play. It felt like the highpoint of Lampard’s reign - like he had got the team to play to a style he wanted and they had executed it. I remember thinking, naively of course, that maybe - just maybe - after the chaos of the season before, things might just be starting to come together at Everton. I could not have been more wrong in the end - that was the last time Lampard won with Everton and things went downhill very quickly after that.
Another great memory was the win at Brighton after David Moyes returned in January 2025. The situation was so bleak as Sean Dyche left and I genuinely feared another nightmare of a relegation fight. Moyes’ return did create a bounce though, starting with the win at home to Spurs. But then Everton went to Brighton and ground out a really important win in horrible conditions and earned three points that took them a long way to escaping those relegation concerns.
I remember Moyes going over to the away end on the final whistle - as the players were scrapping on the pitch - and the supporters and him just engaging in what felt like a really visceral celebration. It felt like an ‘Everton are back’ moment - like the fans finally had their club back.
What's the latest on Merlin Rohl and Christian Norgaard? Will they be back for Hull? DanT
Thanks Dan. Merlin Rohl was close to a return before the break so, barring any setbacks, he is expected to be fit when domestic football returns. I think there is less certainty on Christian Norgaard. The Hull City game has been the target for some time but he passed his medical and this problem, and the extent of it, has caught those at the club by surprise.
The hope is he can use this period to build fitness but this issue has already been tough to judge and it may be that Hull was the target less because he was expected to be back specifically for that game and more because it was the most tangible way of representing a generic period after the international break, which felt some distance away when questions first started to be asked over his condition. It would be great to have him back for Hull, so fingers crossed.