David Moyes’ had been previously been linked with the former Premier League starlet
For all of David Moyes’ earnest defence of his Everton side and a questionable refereeing decision condemning the Toffees to defeat at Elland Road, it was impossible to overlook what pre-season had already hinted - new recruits are needed at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
If Leeds’ winning moment earned Moyes’ ire, the Whites’ dominance for the rest of the game was of even bigger concern for the Scottish statesman as Everton were outshot 21-7, only managed one shot on target, had 10% less possession than the hosts and lost the corner count 7-2.
This latest blow that means Everton still haven’t won a final game since the final day of the 2024/25 Premier League following friendly defeats to Blackburn, Bournemouth, West Ham and Roma and draws to Accrington Stanley and Manchester United, and when asked by Sky Sports about potential reinforcements, Moyes said: “We talk about it all the time, we know more than anybody and we will do when we can. I’m confident we’ll get something.”
A new signing is expected on the right flank, and at Elland Road Carlos Alcaraz had one of his worst games in royal blue at one of the worst possible moments as the Toffees struggled to build any sustained pressure.
However, having had a Newcastle-esque transfer window following Moyes’ announcement that Everton need up to 10 new arrivals, the hunt for a right-winger looks set to continue following the news that Tyler Dibling has been re-integrated into the Southampton first-team squad following three separate Toffee bids, the last reaching £37 million.
And with previous targets including Omari Hutchinson and Ben Doak also having signed elsewhere and Malick Fofana’s heart set on Champions League football, it could be time to circle back to a destructive 21-year-old winger who would light up Everton’s new home: Leicester’s Abdul Fatawu.
Abdul Fatawu force of nature deserves Premier League stage
If Everton fans were uncomfortable with spending so much on a player as inexperienced as Dibling, the prospect of signing Fatawu won’t fill them with confidence. And to be clear, we believe Fofana is the better option if available to Everton, but that’s a prospect that looks unrealistic at this stage - Fatawu is the best of what’s left and believable.
Fatawu played less than 600 minutes of Premier League football before a knee ligament injury ended his campaign and played a major role in dooming the Foxes to the drop.
He’s started both of Leicester’s Championship games this season and contributed to one of a goal against Sheffield Wednesday, but was pocketed by Thierry Small at Deepdale recording a dribble success rate of just 22% against Preston North End. But this isn’t unexpected given the extreme injury he suffered last season and he more than showed what he could do in that short spell.
Very few attackers in Europe bettered his Premier League average of 4.5 successful take-ons per match - Mohamed Salah, Vinicius Junior, Nico Williams, Kvicha Kvaratskhelia, Bukayo Saka, you name an elite winger and chances are Fatawu was ahead of them according to Opta via FBRef.com.
Indeed, often the only way to stop the Ghanaian was illegally - only three players who played more than two games in the Premier League last season were fouled more per 90 minutes than Fatawu. He obviously didn’t blow up the scoring charts given his limited game time but Fatawu’s two assists mean he made a goal contribution every 289 minutes, while Dibling was one every 625 minutes.
Extrapolating figures is a dangerous game especially from such a limited sample size but if Fatawu had played only as much as Dibling last season he would’ve ended the campaign with six or seven assists - and the 21-year-old’s defensive performances were almost as impressive.
He ranks in the top 1% of wingers and attacking midfielders across Europe’s top five leagues for overall tackles, tackles in the attacking and defensive thirds and clearances while his overall tackle success rate puts him in the top 4% all per 90 minutes - awe-inspiring numbers that would instantly improve Everton.
Time for Everton to re-enter race for Fatawu
Everton had previously counted themselves out of the battle for Fatawu for a similar reason that they’ve now walked away from Dibling - they weren’t willing to meet a Championship club’s valuation of the player.
However, circumstances have changed and as more and more deals are done, the Toffees’ field of options narrows. Leeds’ victory over Everton showed this isn’t a season in which they can afford to tread water with no threat of relegation and if Everton can’t at least provide competition for Alcaraz by September there’s every chance they’ll be forced to overpay even more for a panic purchase in January.
Meeting Leicester’s price tag of £40m would put Fatawu on the podium of the most expensive Championship sales of all time, but delay much more and it could be a current Everton player joining that list this time in 12 months - the stakes really are that high especially with Sunderland interested in the Ghanaian. The time to strike is now for Everton.
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