Everton director of football Marcel Brands has admitted that the club need to sell before they buy this summer given they currently have a 38-man squad to play with, and when they offload a few bodies Marco Silva can start to bring new players to Goodison Park.
One of former manager Ronald Koeman’s signings has reportedly already told the club that he wants to go before the transfer window slams shut on August 9, and he could be the first of many that exits in the coming weeks.
Silva will already know the areas in his team that need strengthening when the club have completed his cull, and while their frontline doesn’t need too much work, it is a different story in midfield and defence.
The Merseyside club need a new left-back and at least one – and perhaps even two – centre-backs, while they still appear to be missing that something in the middle of the park, too.
The likes of Idrissa Gueye, Morgan Schneiderlin – who isn’t a popular figure among the Goodison Park faithful – and Tom Davies were regulars in central areas under Sam Allardyce, with others like Davy Klaassen unable to get a look in.
While Gueye and Schneiderlin were brilliant together in the second-half of the 2016/17 campaign following the Frenchman’s move from Manchester United in January 2017, the former Red Devil went completely off of the boil for large chunks of the season that has recently come to an end.
The 28-year-old has been renowned in the past for his tackling, interceptions and passing ability, and while the former pair are still two of his main strengths, he appeared to struggle more on the ball last season and would often play the simple passes rather than using the huge passing range that he has in his locker.
Perhaps it was a confidence thing after a difficult campaign in which he was often roundly booed by the Goodison Park crowd, but Everton need more in that area if they are to push on and try and challenge the top six clubs in the Premier League next term.
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Gueye is also brilliant when it comes to tacking and interceptions, but sometimes he can lack a little discipline, and he also isn’t effective at coming forward with the ball as he should be.
It seems obvious that Silva again needs to carefully assess his options in that area, and if Schneiderlin does go – along with others like Wayne Rooney, Mo Besic and James McCarthy – he may need two new individuals to come in.
The Portuguese boss needs to be looking for players that offer something different to Gueye and Schneiderlin – who are too similar in many ways – and bring something to the table that they can’t.
Sampdoria’s Lucas Torreira would certainly be one option following an outstanding campaign for the Serie A outfit, where he impressed in terms of both the defensive and offensive sides of his game, while a big enforcer like Sporting Lisbon’s William Carvalho would add some much-needed power, strength and a barrier in front of the backline that was sometimes missing last term.
He is a player that controls proceedings and uses the ball well to get his team moving forward, and he knows how to make things happen in attacking areas, too – something Schneiderlin and Gueye often struggle with.
Likewise, Yves Bissouma of Lille could prove to be a real upgrade on Gueye seeing as he is especially effective at bringing the ball forward and taking on his opponents.
On the face of it, the 21-year-old certainly looks to be more suited to the box-to-box role than the Senegal international is.
The options are certainly out there for Silva, and now he needs to ensure that if he does bring in a new midfielder – or two – this summer, they offer something much different to the likes of Gueye and Schneiderlin to make the Toffees both more solid defensively but also more effective in attack.
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