Transfers, tactics and what can be achieved in the final pre-Christmas training sessions are the centre of attention at Finch Farm as Everton prepare for the return of the Premier League and a crucial period for the club.
The visit of Wolverhampton Wanderers is just days away and the January transfer window will open in less than a fortnight. Both are important dates for the Blues as Frank Lampard looks to chart a path up the table and away from trouble.
A transfer shortlist was drawn up before the World Cup with the priority being to strengthen Lampard’s attacking options. Outgoings will also be important and the departure of Salomon Rondon comes as an early boost to the club’s plans. But business is expected to be testing and, away from the transfer circus, key questions also linger.
EXCLUSIVE: Frank Lampard opens up on next stage of plan after Everton 'reality check'
EXCLUSIVE: Everton have January transfer shortlist as Frank Lampard explains 'priority' target
Officials at Everton know they need to act next month after a damaging final week before the World Cup saw concerns of a relegation battle ignited by defeats against Leicester City and Bournemouth in the league, and at Bournemouth in the Carabao Cup. While those with influence at Finch Farm are confident progress is being made, they are also aware of the need to avoid being dragged into another war for survival that would place the club’s Premier League status under threat, limit opportunities to develop and lead into another summer transfer window in which Everton would concede a headstart to rivals. The league defeat at Bournemouth has been described as a “reality check” by Lampard, who points to the summer loss of talismanic striker Richarlison and the club’s difficulties last season as important factors that need to be acknowledged when attempting to assess progress.
Context is important to those in charge who, while aware Everton will spend Christmas Day just one place and one point above the relegation zone, take some comfort that 180 Premier League minutes before the break there was a feeling of optimism as the Blues appeared to be on the cusp of entering the top half of the table. That was not to be and there is an understanding action is needed in January - though it is viewed as the next stage in Lampard and director of football Kevin Thelwell’s plans rather than a complete reaction to the final games before the break. When Dominic Calvert-Lewin was struck down by injury on the eve of the campaign work was undertaken to find new sources of goals, including the signing of Neal Maupay from Brighton and Hove Albion. There was an acceptance that only so much could be achieved in one transfer window, however, and recognition that a chance to address any shortcomings up top would emerge less than halfway into the season. That has become a necessity due to the persistence of Calvert-Lewin’s injury problems and the lack of threat displayed by Everton in his absence.
As a result, Everton’s January transfer window priority is on forward options and Lampard is hopeful of two signings to boost his firepower. The club had a shortlist of targets drawn up ahead of the World Cup break and Lampard and Thelwell remained in touch throughout that period, the impact of the 11-hour time difference on his ability to have serious discussions over players one of the factors in Thelwell’s decision not to join the first team in Australia for the Sydney Super Cup last month. The pair had defined the profiles of the type of players they wanted to target and planned on adopting a calculated approach to business. It is understood the club did not place a serious emphasis on tracking players on World Cup duty though did keep a watching brief on the tournament. Yet for all the preparation done in advance of January 1 there is also an acceptance the World Cup could alter plans. As the final groups of players return to their domestic squads, managers across Europe will be assessing their players and considering the impact injuries or the rise and fall of their stars will have. Everton suffered in the summer when a deal to bring Mohammed Kudus to Merseyside from Ajax was on the brink of completion until Manchester United’s dismal start to the season sparked a spending spree that saw Kudus’ teammate move to Old Trafford. That scuppered Everton’s deal as the Dutch club did not want to lose another forward. Since then he has scored goals in the Champions League, including at Anfield, and impressed for Ghana at the World Cup to the extent that Everton are now unlikely to be able to compete for his signature. January is a notoriously difficult time for business and the knock-on impact of the World Cup on transfer activity is something Lampard and Thelwell will have done their best to mitigate but which was largely outside of their control.
Everton are no longer discussing transfer business with the footballing authorities - which they did on a voluntary basis as the club flirted with financial limits - but will once again need to be savvy. There is a belief two forward players of the quality needed to improve the team are attainable without significant outgoings. But the club will seek to exploit the loan market or focus on carefully structured deals in their pursuit of incomings. One thing that is clear is there is a desire for sustainable recruitment - Lampard and Thelwell want to avoid the ill-judged spending of the early days of majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri’s investment in which huge sums were spent on players with little apparent thought for the long-term impact on the club. The current regime is keen to act responsibly and aware they must have a vision for any permanent deals. There is hope they can succeed in such a climate, however, with Thelwell’s masterstroke signing of Conor Coady on loan from Wolves, but with an option to buy for a reported fee of around £5m, one example of what can be achieved by canny operators.
Everton will place a significant emphasis on outgoings in January and the club is willing to listen to offers for several players. They have already secured the mutual termination of Rondon’s contract. The 33-year-old was clearly surplus to requirements under Lampard after rarely featuring despite Everton, at times this season, struggling for goals and not having another recognised and fit first team striker. Another player who has hardly featured this season is Michael Keane, whose opportunities were restricted by the arrival of James Tarkowski and Coady and then further limited by Lampard’s move from playing three centre backs to two. Keane’s future is the subject of debate and the ECHO understands West Ham United and Nottingham Forest are among the clubs monitoring his situation heading into January and could explore an opportunity to sign him on loan. Meanwhile, the long-term futures of several players whose contracts expire in the summer are also up for debate. Yerry Mina’s injury problems have proved troublesome yet again though he is coming towards the end of his recovery from an injury suffered in Australia. Abdoulaye Doucoure has said he wants to stay at Everton while Tom Davies, who has also struggled for games and picked up a knee injury in Sydney, recently told The Athletic he loved Everton and the city but “ultimately I want to play games, whether that be at Everton or somewhere else”. Contract discussions to extend the stays of Anthony Gordon, Alex Iwobi and Jordan Pickford have been ongoing for some time, with talks having said to have progressed with Gordon and Iwobi. Pickford has been away on international duty but his standout performances for club and country are rumoured to have attracted the attention of suitors.
Before the transfer window opens, Everton have games with Wolves and Manchester City. The visit of Wolves to Goodison Park on Boxing Day is set to be a massive match as the bottom of the table side play their first league tie under new manager Julen Lopetegui. The result will set the tone for a month that could define Everton’s season. A win would ease concerns of a gruelling season ahead and home games against Brighton and Southampton in the near future present further opportunities for Everton to pull away from trouble. But defeat to Wolves could pave the way for the Blues to enter the new year in the bottom three. Two big questions remain over that encounter - whether Dominic Calvert-Lewin will be fit and who will replace Coady in the heart of the defence, the centre-back unable to feature against his parent club presenting an opportunity for another player - or players should Lampard revert to three centr- backs for the fixture. Calvert-Lewin’s recovery timeframe is unclear and he did not travel to Australia with the senior squad as he sought to overcome knee, shoulder and hamstring issues. In his absence, Maupay would lead the forward line. Maupay has struggled since scoring the winner against West Ham but has only been at the club for 10 league games and has not had a sustained run due to Calvert-Lewin’s comebacks.
Key to his success will be the side setting up to play to his strengths and he is desperate to succeed at Everton - and believes he can. Maupay is a passionate speaker and a player happy to carry out media duties even on difficult days. He is also grateful for the opportunity that presented itself at Everton and keen to make an impact. Transfer negotiations are expected to be difficult and so patience may be needed ahead of the arrival of new signings. As a result, Maupay could well get his opportunity for a run of starts. Should Calvert-Lewin remain out of action, the early January games will also provide a chance for Tom Cannon. The teenage striker made his senior debut at Bournemouth in the Carabao Cup then his Premier League debut against the same opposition days later in the last game before the World Cup break. He performed well in Sydney, scoring in the shootout against Celtic then scoring in the 5-1 win over Western Sydney Wanderers. His belief is he can make an impact in the first team and he is proving unstoppable for the Under-21s. He scored the last-minute winner against Mansfield Town in the Papa John’s Trophy after returning from Australia then produced a fine, ruthless strike against Lincoln City in the following round. There is little doubt he is ready for men’s football and U21s boss Paul Tait is braced to lose him for the rest of the season. That is most likely to be on loan, with several Football League clubs tracking his availability, but with Rondon having left he may well be Maupay’s deputy should Calvert-Lewin need more recovery time and may therefore get a chance to stake a claim for remaining with the first team.
The trip to Australia was crucial in stopping the negative momentum of the final week before the break and building confidence with two good wins. Maupay also got a goal against Western Sydney Wanderers - a match in which Anthony Gordon got a hat-trick and there were glimmers of an understanding developing between some of Everton’s forward line. But the breakout star of the trip was teenage central midfielder Isaac Price. He played both games and was declared the best player on the pitch against Celtic by Lampard, who then said he was in competition for the first team at the end of the tour. Price is out of contract at the end of the season and the ECHO understands he has attracted the attention of a number of clubs across Europe, who could potentially sign him on a pre-contract deal once he enters the final six months of his Everton contract. Everton are keen to retain him and securing his future is likely to be another priority.
While January will be a difficult time on and off the pitch there is relief at Everton that one further distraction has been removed. Gareth Southgate’s decision to stay on as England boss means Lampard will not get drawn into discussions about the hunt for his replacement. While there is no guarantee he would have been in the running, and Lampard has previously dismissed speculation linking him to the role, he has typically appeared among bookmakers’ front runners when Southgate’s future has appeared in doubt and he has a number of key attributes that would have corresponded with the Football Association's profile of any replacement.
At Finch Farm the final training work ahead of the Wolves game is underway. Everton drew 1-1 in a training exercise with Manchester United last week and are set to link up with another Premier League club for a similar exercise this week. Amadou Onana’s return from the World Cup has seen him back at Finch Farm as Lampard continues to consider how to best use the Belgium international in his midfield, while the Blues boss has been boosted by the work Mina, Davies and Ben Godfrey have been able to undertake as they make their injury comebacks. James Garner and Andros Townsend are longer-term cases, however. Players and staff have also been buoyed by the return of festive visits for the first time since 2019. An important part of Everton’s work with the community, Davies, Onana, Asmir Begovic and Seamus Coleman have visited charities such as Claire House and Zoe’s Place this week while Gordon and Dwight McNeil have also been busy supporting good causes. Covid-19 restrictions prevented in-person visits over the past two festive seasons.
Over six long weeks without Premier League football, Everton have been busy preparing for Wolves and the January transfer window. In just a few days’ time, Goodison Park will start to see the fruits of that labour.
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