There has been a lot to take in at Everton this summer, with a change in manager and the arrival of a major investor offering encouraging signs for the future of the club. Appointing former Southampton manager Ronald Koeman as the successor to Roberto Martinez has proved to be just the beginning of Farhad Moshiri’s present and long-term plan at the Toffees who will look to put the disappointing 2015/2016 campaign behind them with a much stronger showing.
Koeman, who enjoyed a fantastic season with the Saints by finishing sixth in the table, represents a real coup for Everton, and although Martinez is a bright, young manager who will be back in management soon, fans will hope that the Dutchman brings an exciting brand of football to Goodison Park. His belief that everyone connected with Everton is ready to take the next step is music to the ears of those who feel the club have underachieved in the last two years, and although Betway believe the Toffees have a good shot at competing for a top six finish, moving the club forward both on an off the pitch can lay the foundations for even greater things in the future.
Moshiri has certainly wasted no time in restructuring the club, with Leicester’s Director of Football Steve Walsh being the latest acquisition as part of a big backroom shake-up. Bringing a man who was instrumental in discovering the likes of Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez through cut-piece deals can only benefit Koeman in building a squad that he believes is capable of taking Everton forward, with Walsh moving closer to his family in a deal that benefits both parties.
Unearthing players of similar quality at low transfer fees may prove to be difficult within a modern day market which continues to spiral out of control, but there is a growing belief that the Toffees are willing to spend big in order to bring in top quality players to the blue half of Merseyside.
Placing a £41 million bid for Napoli centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly is undoubtedly a statement of intent that Everton are not afraid to mix it with the big boys in the transfer window, and with Moshiri promising that he will give whatever he has, it should provide Koeman with the green light to bring in the big names that fans want to see.
Maarten Stekelenburg, who has played under Koeman at Ajax and Southampton, is the only first-team arrival to date, with Bassala Sambou and Chris Renshaw acquired for the youth academy from Coventry and Oldham respectively. Bringing players through from the academy is something that Koeman became accustomed to whilst in charge of Ajax and Southampton, but while the likes of Ryan Ledson and Kieran Dowell could benefit hugely from his presence at the club, this summer may be dominated by big-name arrivals.
Euro 2016 winner William Carvalho is the latest star to emerge on Everton’s radar, with Koulibaly, Kasper Schmeichel, Georginio Wijnaldum and Axel Witsel other names that would suggest Koeman is being more than bold in his attempt to inject quality into the squad. It is this level of ambition that not only precedes previous years in which Everton have tended to be more conservative, but would also make fans more confident of backing the club with Betway to secure a top six finish.
It remains to be seen whether Koeman and Moshiri are able to pull off any of these deals before Everton open the 2016/2017 campaign with a tough home fixture against Tottenham, but the lure of the Premier League and being part of an exciting project could prove to be decisive in the club’s pursuit of those players.
Koeman will need time on the training ground to implement the ideas and philosophies that worked so well at Southampton, but there is every hope that the Dutchman can bring a winning mentality to Everton. He will hope to keep hold of John Stones, Ross Barkley, and Romelu Lukaku, with all three valued as integral players which an entire team could be built upon; their individual assets need to be harnessed and brought to the fore by Koeman, and although rumours persist that Stones may be joining Manchester City in the not-too-distant future, being under a manager who will work with him and lift the pressure off his shoulders could be all it takes to convince the England defender that his future lies at Goodison Park.
Adding extra quality to the squad can only improve Everton moving forwards, and although there may be a few who leave the club as a result, having a team that is capable of putting last season’s disappointment behind them and challenging higher up the table will undoubtedly make fans feel better about the future.
