Leading football agent Gary Mellor has explained why he believes Kevin Thelwell was the perfect fit to become Everton’s director of football.
Thelwell, who was named as the club’s new football chief last month, made the move to Merseyside from New York Red Bulls, where he had been in place since February 2020.
Before working in America, the 48-year-old was previously sporting director at Wolves, where he had also operated as head of football development and recruitment.
Everton's new director of football comes into the role replacing Marcel Brands, who left the club last year having been on Merseyside for just over three years.
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Dutchman Brands joined the club just before the arrival of Marco Silva back in the summer of 2018, replacing the sacked Steve Walsh.
And Mellor, who is managing director of Beswicks Sports agency, has outlined how Everton’s new football chief likes to operate.
“Kev’s very strong and he’s got a process,” Mellor, whose company represents more than 100 players throughout the English game, told The Athletic.
“He’s very thorough. [He] will call you seven days a week to get his player as he’s very focused. He’s like a dog with a bone.
“He wanted Tom Edwards from Stoke, who initially wasn’t sure, and eventually, he wore us down with constant Zoom calls. He’s done the hard yards.
“Kev produced some good players at Wolves. A lot of the time in this industry, it’s about the shiny names with the sporting directors.
“It’s not always about shiny names — at Wolves, Conor Coady makes the team. Everton have got the right man. Kevin is someone who will look at things right the way from the academy up to the first team.”
