Séamus Coleman’s departure from Everton this summer has been notable, not just for the Irishman’s impressive longevity with the club but also because of how he came to symbolise through his absence the Blues’ almost comical failure down the years to adequately address their right-back problem.
Once he had broken into the first-team following his now-legendary £60,000 transfer from Sligo Rovers, enjoyed a successful loan spell at Blackpool and cut his Premier League teeth as a right winger, Coleman had cemented himself as the undisputed first-choice right-back for Everton by the time David Moyes’s first spell as manager was coming to an end in 2013.
Tony Hibbert’s career was practically done at this point but save for utilising the likes of Phil Jagielka as a makeshift full-back or, fleetingly, blooding Tyias Browning from the academy, Coleman had no natural right-back as an understudy throughout the Roberto Martinez’s tenure.
That remained the case during Ronald Koeman’s only full season in charge at Goodison Park but while Coleman was usually available, it was seldom an issue. Until March 2017, that is. During an international fixture between the Republic of Ireland and Wales, Séamus suffered a compound fracture in his right leg in an ugly collision with Neil Taylor which sidelined him for more than nine months.
Koeman’s response to Coleman’s long-term injury was to draft in unheralded journeyman, Cuco Martina, as a free agent following his departure from Southampton and the Dutch-born player made 20 appearances in 2017/18 in Coleman’s absence before fading from contention.
If Coleman’s leg fracture had raised a red flag for either Steve Walsh or Marcel Brands, it wasn’t evident in the club’s recruitment. Djibril Sidibé came in on loan in the summer of 2019 and made 18 appearances in his only season on Merseyside. Ben Godfrey was acquired the following year and together with Mason Holgate, he deputised for Coleman under Carlo Ancelotti. Again, nominal centre-halves playing at right-back.
With youth product, Jonjoe Kenny, unable to convince that he was a viable option, it wasn’t until January 2022, almost five years after Coleman broke his leg, that Everton finally signed a natural full-back on a long-term contract to, first, provide cover for the Irishman and, eventually if all went well, succeed him.
Unfortunately, Patterson’s time with the Toffees has been blighted by injury, poor form and, seemingly, a lack of trust from both Sean Dyche and David Moyes. Throughout his time with the club, as Coleman has advanced in age and seen his effectiveness and availability diminish, there has been a glaring need to sign a top-quality player for that position.
That need was acute 12 months ago but, facing an unprecedented number of departures from the first-team squad at the end of 2024/25 and having seen Jake O’Brien acquit himself well as a makeshift right-back over the second half of that Premier League campaign, Moyes was prepared to continue with the big Irishman as a square peg in a round hole, at least until the January transfer window opened.
Despite realistic avenues being open for Everton to take a run at European competition, the club’s ownership opted not to spend during the most recent winter window to sign a new full-back for the role (Genoa’s Brooke Norton-Cuffy was mooted as a target) and, with Patterson overlooked, O’Brien kept his increasingly uncomfortable and ineffective place for the rest of the season.
If nothing else, Moyes’s lengthy experiment brought home the importance of finally rectifying this long-neglected part of the side. If you can get Evertonians to agree on anything it’s surely that a right-back was the number one transfer priority this summer. Seven weeks on from the end of 2025/26, however, and almost a fortnight into the summer window the club don’t appear to be anywhere close to signing one.
Between those with their ear close to the ground and the relentless media speculation, though, there do appear to be some solid options, even if some are more likely than others. With Raoul Bellanova of Atalanta regarded as more of a right-winger or wing-back, talk has recently coalesced around four names.
#### Ben White (Arsenal)
Everton’s need for a right-back, White’s adaptability and experience ticking some significant boxes for Moyes, and the fact that the player is no longer a guaranteed starter at Arsenal have provided plenty of fodder for the rumour mongers this summer.
White’s pedigree as a centre-half means that he could also provide cover in that part of defence, which could be important if the manager can’t rely on the consistent availability of Jarrad Branthwaite, but that would simply mean O’Brien reverting to right-back at a time when many Blues want to see him cemented in his favoured central role.
29 in October and with a chequered injury record of his own, signing White would only seem to make sense if it’s in tandem with _another_ right-back acquisition which, given the fact that he wouldn’t come cheap, either in terms of transfer fee or wages, makes him a decidedly less appealing option.
#### Djed Spence (Tottenham Hotspur)
Signed as a hot prospect from Middlesbrough four years ago, Spence has only established himself as a first-team regular at Tottenham in the last 18 months or so. In between, however, he gained valuable experience with loan spells at Rennes, Leeds and Genoa.
Though notable for his speed, perhaps Spence’s best attribute is his ability to play both right-back and left-back to a similar level. With Everton also in the market for another option on the left side of their defence to push Vitalii Mykolenko, that kind of versatility could save them a transfer fee in a part of the team that isn’t as high on the list of priorities this summer.
The 25-year-old was, however, a member of a Spurs side that came perilously close to relegation this past season and, as such perhaps, his stock hasn’t been that high of late.
New Tottenham boss, Roberto de Zerbi, is reportedly open to letting Spence leave this summer which has heightened scrutiny of the player’s performances with England at the World Cup.
Criticised for his performance at right-back against DR Congo, Spence put in an eye-catching, swashbuckling display off the bench at left-back in the quarter-final win over Norway.
Assuming Everton are interested, the number of rival suitors and Tottenham’s asking price (rumoured to be around £30m to £35m) could prove prohibitive and force the Blues’ transfer committee to look elsewhere.
#### Aaron Wan-Bissaka (West Ham)
The West Ham connection has been cited as obvious link to Moyes and Everton where Wan-Bissaka is concerned even though the DR Congo international was signed by the Hammers after the Scot left the London Stadium two years ago.
More pertinent is the versatile defender’s potential availability given that West Ham were relegated from the Premier League in May and could be open to offloading more of their first-teamers before their Championship season kicks off.
Having spent two years with Crystal Palace and six with Manchester United, Wan-Bissaka has a wealth of experience and offers defensive prowess even if his abilities going forward are less impressive. He has just four goals in more than 230 Premier League appearances.
As such, in moving for him Everton would risk having two very similar profile players in at left-and right-back at a time when attacking full-backs have assumed huge importance in the modern game.
Finally, the fact that he will turn 29 in November adds another question mark but if worst came to worst, there is no question that Wan-Bissaka would improve the Toffees’ team should he be the one they end up turning to.
#### Guéla Doué (Strasbourg)
The message from the proverbial “jungle drums” is that Doué is at the top of Everton’s list of right-back targets but, as was the case with Denzel Dumfries a few years ago, they are facing stiff competition from the Continent and a high valuation.
According to recent reporting by the likes of Paul Joyce in _The Times_, Strasbourg’s asking price for the Ivory Coast international is around £35m to £40m, with Everton unlikely to push beyond £25m.
In recent days, that two Milan clubs are said to have entered the reckoning alongside Paris Saint-Germain (where his brother, Désiré, already plays), offering Doué a more attractive destination and creating the kind of bidding war that would effectively sideline Everton as the Blues seek to maximise their budget.
If the 23-year-old is, indeed, the transfer committee’s first choice then that would explain their lack of activity regarding a right-back so far. Everton could be playing a waiting game and keeping one of the three players above as options should Doué prove beyond reach.
The fact that Everton lost out on a player of Dumfries's calibre (despite how close it a deal appeared to be for the Dutchman, PSR constraints arguably made a move for him impossible at the time) and passed up signing Tino Livramento under Rafael Benitez in favour of Patterson) might highlight the benefits of pushing the boat out for a top-class full-back when the opportunities arise.
That might be doubly true if the Blues are able to boost their spending power this summer by offloading the likes of Tim Iroegbunam and the unfancied trio of Patterson, Dwight McNeil and Charly Alcaraz for fees.
Whether the transfer committee is comfortable splashing out £40m on a player like Doué remains to be seen and, again, competition from elsewhere might render the conversation around the Ivorian moot but there is a strong argument that if Mykolenko is to remain the first-choice on the left, it behooves Everton to bring in a significant upgrade on the right if they are to improve in an attacking sense this coming season.
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