Looking back, it feels this will be the summer Everton took a fresh approach. This could be the summer Everton returned to what they were good at.
For years, under the careful eye of David Moyes, the Blues bought astutely and smartly and were lauded for their transfer strategy.
Of course, their hands were tied financially, but the club’s recruitment was diligent and savvy.
All Everton needed was a cash injection to smash the glass ceiling and they would be able to compete at the top again, surely?
Money and the dream of a generous investor materialised, when Farhad Moshiri arrived in 2016 and ploughed millions into the club but sadly, the Toffees' acclaimed buying plan altered dramatically.
Kudos was lost and instead, Everton’s now seemingly scattergun approach was seen as the way not to do business.
However, the Blues seem to have learned their lessons as the 2021/22 campaign gathers momentum and the latest reported moves in the market should be cause for genuine optimism that Everton will now get their business right.
Already signing two wingers in Demarai Gray and Andros Townsend for a mere £1.7million combined, the balance in the side has been addressed, allowing manager Rafa Benitez to implement a front-foot style of play with lots of crosses into the box. It’s no surprise Everton have scored five goals in two games by attacking the opposition with purpose.
And now this week, the club have made moves looking to the future.
Rangers’ highly-rated right-back Nathan Patterson has been targeted while they are also interested in Sheffield United’s teenage attacker Daniel Jebbison , who scored on his full debut for the Blades at Goodison Park last season.
While reports claim Jebbison is valued at £5m, Ibrox boss Steven Gerrard laughed off the Toffees’ bid for Patterson, said to be the same amount.
However, though work will need to be done to get either deal over the line, the intent to sign youngsters with such profiles - young, hungry, talented players already trusted to play first-team football - is encouraging.
Sure, they aren’t £50m signings, nor are they joining the Blues from Real Madrid or Barcelona but, with a massive amount of hindsight, this seemingly new approach, led by director of football Marcel Brands and boss Benitez, should perhaps fill Evertonians with as much excitement as the big-money buys of the past did.
Signing young talents for more modest fees, talents who have huge potential to either bring silverware to Goodison Park or provide huge sell-on value, is a good plan and probably should have been the plan all along.
It feels Everton are returning to the transfer methods which proved so fruitful in turning players like Seamus Coleman, signed for only £60,000, into consistent Premier League performers.
Should the Blues, for example, sign Jebbison for £5m and see an increased offer for Patterson accepted eventually by Rangers, the club this summer would have addressed an imbalance in the starting XI and looked to the future for less than £20m, perhaps? A snip in the modern era of the game.
As they wrestle Financial Fair Play and look to balance the transfer books in order to more easily spend again in the future, that would be a brilliant starting block.
It’s a low-risk approach which could yield successful results, both on the pitch and financially. It seems Everton have a plan again and are looking to box clever in the market.
The players they have signed so far and the players they are interested in this summer, will not be an albatross around the neck like some previous signings who did not hit the ground, fell out of favour but then were stuck at Finch Farm with no other clubs willing to match the fees or wages Everton had dished out.
Now the deadwood which has restricted the Blues for so long has been chopped again this summer, it’s time to look forward.
For too long, the huge amounts of money spent with little return meant Everton lost the status and respect of rivals for being so shrewd in the market.
Now though, with a clear switch in thinking and strategy, the backing Everton have got from Moshiri can finally act as the springboard that was always needed during those years the club had no choice but to scrimp and save.
With no money, the club got it right the majority of the time. They can do it again, with a much healthier bank balance this time around, and are going about buying players the right way it seems.
