Joel Piroe rather than Viktor Gyokeres could be the prolific Championship striker to solve Everton’s scoring woes with Swansea City manager Michael Duff admitting he was expecting offers for his best players and “if they are the right bids they will go.”
After posting the lowest equivalent points total in the club’s 135-year history in the Football League/Premier League, coming within a Abdoulaye Doucoure wonder-strike on the final day of the season from a first relegation in 72 years and netting just 34 goals in 38 games, the Blues are in desperate need of additional firepower. Director of football Kevin Thelwell was understood to have been planning to bring in two new attackers in the January transfer window but Everton were the only club fighting in the battle against the drop not to strengthen their squad.
Thelwell and manager Sean Dyche are now prioritising forward options – along with a left-back – ahead of the 2023/24 season as the Blues, whl have lost Yerry Mina, Asmir Begovic and on-loan Conor Coady from last term, attempt to avoid a third consecutive relegation fight. Despite raking in almost £70million this year through the sales of Anthony Gordon and Moise Kean, funds are believed to be tight and after failing to raise the £12million that Aston Villa wanted for Danny Ings in the winter window and majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri declaring: “If we need a striker, we’ll get one,” Everton, with James Maryniak now interim chief finance officer following Grant Ingles’ resignation last month, somehow have to put together suitable packages to prise targets from their present employers.
Coventry City’s Gyokeres has been linked with a potential move to Goodison Park for many months now but with reports claiming the Swedish international is closing in on an £18.5million move to Sporting CP, the strength of interest from the likes of Everton, West Ham United and Brentford must be questioned if a Portuguese club can make the best offer ahead of a trio of Premier League sides. Piroe – who has scored more goals in the Championship than Gyokeres over the past two seasons (41: 22 in 2021/22 and 19 last term as opposed to 38: 17 in 2021/22 and 21 last term) – provides an intriguing possible alternative to the Blues with Wales Online reporting they and Nottingham Forest have both enquired about him without making a formal approach at this stage.
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The article adds that given that the Dutchman has only one year left on his contract and he has told the club he won’t be signing an extension, he is almost certain to leave this summer. The Championship season starts a week before the Premier League and after a warm weather training camp in Spain, Swansea’s new manager Michael Duff sat down for his first formal press conference in the role this weekend and explained the general transfer situation.
He said: “It depends what bids come in, football is a business. We all live in a world where there’s a food chain, and if someone bids the right price, but that’s not my decision, I’m the head coach there’s a sporting director and a board.
“It is a business at the end of the day. Am I expecting bids, probably, if they are the right bids they will go, and if they are not they will still be here, that’s just the nature of the beast, and that’s not just the players you’re talking about.
“You’re talking about the big ones. There will be other players in the squad there will be bids for, and everyone has got a price, and if we think it’s right for the football club, and it will help move the football club forward that’s what we will do.”
Piroe’s specific situation inevitably cropped up and while Duff insisted it was a case of business as usual until an offer arrives, he acknowledged the 23-year-old’s contract situation would be a significant factor when it came to potentially letting the striker go. He said: “I’ve got plans for every scenario, football isn’t A,B,C. The relegated teams might get a huge bid for some of their players, then all of a sudden there’s fifty million quid burning a hole in their pocket, there’s always a knock on effect.
“I had a good conversation with Joel yesterday, and he is asking about what I want from him and until anything changes we will keep having those conversations. If he goes he goes, if he doesn’t he doesn’t, it’s not personal so there will be plans in place for him to stay, and there will be plans if he goes.
“I understand he’s the big name, and he is in the last 12 months of his contract. Until something happens there’s nothing to talk about really.”
With Ellis Simms attracting interest from the Championship – Swansea are one of those names linked to the striker who netted seven goals in 17 games in the competition on loan at Sunderland in the first half of last season – Everton might be able to thrash out a mutually beneficial package for both clubs which allows the Welsh outfit to take the Oldham-born player in a part-exchange. Dyche has strong links to Duff having been his manager for four years at Burnley when the Northern Ireland international was a centre-back and their past association could potentially be of great significance when it comes to striking a deal.
Publicly at least, Duff was tight-lipped about Simms and when his name cropped up, it proved to be the cue for the 45-year-old former Barnsley gaffer to look at his watch and bring a halt to what had been a lengthy discussion. He said: “If we talk about every player, I was up at a quarter past five this morning from Spain and I want to go and see my family at some point, Josh (Marsh, head of football operations) is in the building on Monday, so that’s a different conversation, there’s thousands of names. So without being rude, it’s pointless me commenting.”
