We get the inside track on reported Everton transfer target Abdul Fatawu and just exactly what is happening at crisis-hit Leicester City
Leicester City's Abdul Fatawu (left) and Coventry City's Jay Dasilva battle for the ball during the Championship match at King Power Stadium on Saturday, September 20, 2025(Image: Mike Egerton/PA Wire)
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No-one in the Everton squad is looking any further than this Sunday's first-ever Merseyside derby against Liverpool at Hill Dickinson Stadium.
But in the background, the Blues' recruitment team will be hard at work ahead of what is shaping up to be another key summer in the transfer market.
According to Football Insider, Everton and their Premier League rivals Sunderland are tracking Leicester City winger Abdul Fatawu.
The Ghana international has scored nine goals and created seven more in the Championship this season for crisis-hit Leicester City, who are facing a second successive relegation.
The Blues considered making a move for Fatawu last summer before deeming Leicester's valuation of the winger too high and went on to sign Tyler Dibling for £35m instead.
But, if the reports are to be believed, and the 22-year-old is back on Everton's radar, what type of player could they be getting?
To find out, we spoke to Foxes fan Josh Holland, who works for the Liverpool ECHO's owners, Reach PLC, and to also get his thoughts on Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and just what is going on at the 2016 Premier League champions...
Abdul Fatawu is again being linked to Everton. What kind of season is he having?
On the eye, Fatawu has had a decent season. He’s scored nine goals and assisted seven for a club 23rd in the table. However, the goals have been fairly spread over the season and minus his viral screamers, he’s been poor.
Since the point deduction and relegation threat emerged, he has been one of City’s most frustrating players. Alongside being one of few threats in a team lacking confidence, it’s been a difficult watch to see him try too hard.
At the start of the season, nearly everyone associated with the Foxes were under the impression that he was a player of Premier League quality. That view has drastically changed throughout the season, quite drastically.
However, the ‘big picture’ issues at Leicester have made things more difficult for the forward to shine.
What kind of player is he?
Fatawu has a good mix of pace, skill, attacking ability and bravery. On his day, he’s unstoppable and can cause defenders issues all game.
A right winger with a strong left foot, his ability to beat players and create something out of nothing is apparent. However, possibly his biggest weakness is that he is very bland with his versatility.
He constantly looks to come inside on his left foot and the confidence in himself, which is great to see, often results in him firing towards goal. There isn’t many occasions I can remember where he has gone on the outside or used an overlapping team-mate.
Despite your concerns, do you think he can prosper under David Moyes?
With the right manager, he should. He didn’t play much in the Premier League due to an ACL injury so Leicester have enjoyed his raw ability in the Championship against lesser quality of opposition.
Under Enzo Maresca, he was better than this season. With better players around, something he has lacked this term, Fatawu could become a remarkable forward player. Moyes definitely could help him improve
A Leicester old boy in Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall is having a great season for Everton. Are you surprised?
Absolutely not. When he first broke into the Leicester first team and became a regular, the likes of Youri Tielemans and James Maddison constantly overshadowed him. But even then, his energy and versatility made him a fan favourite.
They were lucky to keep him for the season in the Championship and he, at times, single-handedly won City games. If he wasn’t at the club under Maresca, I have serious doubts that they would have come back up.
Chelsea was the wrong move for him, but at Everton, he’s rediscovered himself. It’s so good to see him competing at the highest level and being a regular in the Premier League.
I genuinely hope he guides the club back to Europe and gets the respect he deserves. I’ll never forget watching his goal at Old Trafford on my long-haul flight back from Thailand, a special player.
A lot of Everton fans look at Leicester's current predicament and think, 'it could have been us', had the club gone down. Just what has gone and is going wrong?
Not quite sure where to start with this, but I will certainly keep it concise. Relegation set the club back so much, coming two years after they won the FA Cup. They got the appointment of Maresca spot-on to win the Championship, but they have since been charged for breaching the financial rules for that season.
The summer before their return to the Premier League was a disaster. Steve Cooper’s appointment wasn’t the right one, confirmed by the club after they sacked him after just 12 league games. Their recruitment was as bad, with the fees spent on Oliver Skipp (£25m) and Jordan Ayew (£5m) making little sense and leaving an ageing Jamie Vardy as their number one striker.
Any attempt to stay in the top flight was below the standard, they got battered every week and lost eight successive home leagues without scoring, something no team had managed before them.
This season, the ambition was to spark another return to the Premier League. But with the lingering financial issues, a points deduction was always a threat and when it did, it dragged them into a relegation scrap.
To put it simply, plenty has gone wrong. From the people in charge of the football club to the players on the pitch.
Even if relegation looks a near certainty, what needs to change?
Loads of players will leave Leicester in the summer, a few for a fee and others on a free transfer, so the team will be changed. But long-term, if they are to ever return to the pinnacle of English football, something needs to be done upstairs.
The numbers turning against King Power have increased this season, with those wanting Jon Rudkin, who was promoted from director of football to chief football officer, to be sacked continue to call for his exit every game.
It’s so difficult to see how far they have fallen. But it is a perfect example of how poor management at football clubs can undo recent history within a matter of seasons.