Everton ended a forgettable season with something of a whimper on Sunday, as the hangover from their remarkable Goodison night on Thursday - where they confirmed top flight status for a 69th consecutive season - kicked in. An embarrassing 5-1 defeat at Arsenal showed just how much work boss Frank Lampard needs to do in the summer transfer window, to make the Blues competitive again.
With Everton ’s future secure, the manager indicated he will swiftly get down to business in an attempt to reshape his team, before the start of the new campaign. And after the curtain came down on a miserable season, with the club finishing 16th, their lowest position since 2003-04, he hinted strongly he will demand funds to make sweeping changes.
That money could come through a busy summer of transfer dealing. Several players will leave when their contracts are up, including Jonjo Kenny and Cenk Tosun, and there are also question marks about some of his biggest stars, with the likes of Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin attracting interest. Mirror Sport has the latest Everton transfer news, including updates on two potential defensive signings, plus one in midfield. And one confirmed departure, along with a possible departure of a big name with interest from Arsenal.
Toffees interested in midfielder
Lampard has made no secret of his desire to bring in new faces to the club, saying immediately after the defeat at Arsenal: “There are things we need to try and work on and work on pretty quickly - to look at the squad and how we can improve that.” Midfield is a key area, with the likes of Allan and Andre Gomes likely to be offloaded - if at all possible - in the summer, and Fabian Delph out of contract.
He may have the chance to sign loanee Donny van de Beek permanently, with the Athletic claiming that a damning report from interim boss Ralf Rangnick highlights the failure surrounding the signing of the Dutchman, indicating he will leave Old Trafford. But elsewhere talkSPORT suggest that Lampard has made clear he wants Chelsea starlet Conor Gallagher, either on loan next season or on a permanent deal.
£27m striker set to leave with five suitors
Cenk Tosun wrote an open letter to Everton fans on Sunday, saying goodbye, with his contract up in the summer. “I would like to thank our fans! I loved it to be an Evertonian and I will always be an Evertonian,” it read. "I have nothing but love for this club! This club has so much potential and I am sure soon Everton will have better days and when the day comes I will be celebrating as well. Take care, Cenk Tosun."
But it seems he has plenty of options, despite his failure at Goodison, with Turkish outlet Sabah quoting the Turkey international as saying: “There are offers from Turkey, England, Spain, America and Dubai. I will leave England 100 per cent. It does not seem possible for me to play in teams chasing championships in the Premier League. I am going to a competitive team with goals - these conditions do no exist for me in England.”
Blues eying move for central defender
It will be a busy summer for Lampard it seems. He has been linked with not one, but two centre halves, after struggling in that position all season. The Mail report that Everton are firmly in the running for relegated Burnley defender James Tarkowski, but face competition from the likes of Aston Villa and Fulham, with the experienced defender out of contract at the end of the season.
While Turkish media outlet Ajansspor, report an interesting Goodison link with the relatively unknown South Korean defender Kim-Min Jae, with an apparent £19.2m release clause set in the contract of the Fenerbahce centre half.
Arsenal show interest in Calvert-Lewin
Finally, on another busy day of Blues related transfer gossip, it seems Lampard will have to raise funds to make all these signings, and the Liverpool Echo report that they could do it by sacrificing star striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
They suggest Arsenal are still interested in the England striker, despite reports saying they had cooled on him, and could look to revive a deal in the summer.
