It’s been over a year since the Friedkin Group took over Everton Football Club and to mark the occasion, chief executive Angus Kinnear addressed fans to talk about the club’s summer progress and plans for the upcoming winter transfer window.
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Everton have signed nine players this summer, bringing in established players such as Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Jack Grealish, while also bringing in young talents who have yet to make their mark in the form of Tierno Barry, Tyler Dieblin and Adam Aznou.
The club also renewed the contracts of Michael Keane and Idrissa Gana-Guey, while also signing Jarrad Branthwaite on a new long-term contract.
Everton’s chief executive said: “The recruitment structure we have established, combining world-class analytics with industry-leading talent identification and player trading capabilities, is already delivering results.”
“The signings of Jack Grealish and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall have perhaps rightfully grabbed the headlines and validated our principle of only signing players who are prepared to crawl through broken glass to put on our jersey, but I believe we have made equally wise decisions in retaining players to provide continuity and acquiring emerging talent. While it is important to be patient with our young players, we believe they will make an impact in the months and years to come.
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“The renewals of Michael Keane and football’s Benjamin Button, Idrissa Gana-Guey have proven to be smart decisions, combining statistics and coaching input to retain talent that might otherwise have been overlooked.
“Similarly, Tierno Barrie, Merlin Rohr, Tyler Diblin, Charlie Alcaraz and Adam Aznu may have had limited minutes as a collective so far, but their hard work at Finch Farm has shown they are capable of contributing at the highest level.”
Despite these signings, the Blues currently face a crisis period with a number of injuries and the absence of Iliman Ndiaye and Idrissa Gueye due to international duty. Therefore, fans are looking forward to the arrival of several players in the winter window to relieve the pressure and help the Toffees compete for European football in the second half of the season.
However, Kinnear stressed the club will not resort to short-term fixes as the aim remains to address another phase of the rebuild next summer.
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“In January, Sky Sports transfer window offers will be counting down by the millisecond to try and stir up a deal frenzy among viewers, but all our experience shows how challenging it is to deliver quality and value in the winter market,” he added. “We will work hard to find and execute on opportunities that make us stronger in the long term. But these opportunities must be exceptional and we will avoid short-term fixes that would weaken our strength in the second phase of our rebuild next summer.”