The worst kept secret in L4 is now out with Everton having confirmed the arrival of Ashley Young.
The 38-year-old is not just the first signing of the summer, he is the first Blues signing of 2023. The deal immediately removes the prospect of a repeat of January’s transfer deadline day nightmare when the realisation began to dawn that Everton would not sign anyone at all.
Young is a signing that makes sense for a lot of reasons but it is his relationship with Sean Dyche that most intrigues me. We heard time and time and again about the influence of Frank Lampard in bringing players to Everton last summer. The club was reeling from a relegation fight and money was tight, yet Lampard was able to sell a vision and that pitch clearly resonated so effectively as it came from one of the great midfielders of the Premier League era.
I have spoken personally to the likes of James Tarkowski, Conor Coady and Amadou Onana about getting *that* call from Lampard and what it meant to them. I also remember being sat with Neal Maupay in the team hotel in Australia in November, when Everton took part in the Sydney Super Cup. Lampard walked through the double doors into the library and Maupay lowered his voice as he told me how, the night before, he had been reading up on how Lampard had finished second in the prestigious Ballon d’Or in 2005
Regardless of how Lampard’s tenure at Everton concluded, it was clear he had a pull that could attract players and I was unsure whether Dyche could replicate that. It may sound superficial, but in the position the club currently finds itself in, everything that can help does matter. Having been speaking to people around the arrival of Young, I find that I have done Dyche a disservice. Whether his pull can be as great as Lampard’s may be a topic to consider in the future, but it would be wrong to think there is not one. Speaking to those close to Young, I was told the player appreciates Dyche’s honesty, how grounded he is and how he approaches football. Dyche was captain of the Watford side Young burst into at the start of his career. Young has since plied his trade at clubs including Manchester United and Inter, enjoying incredible nights in Europe and winning titles at both clubs.
That Young has retained respect for Dyche’s approach over the two decades since they played together speaks volumes and he said as such in his comments upon signing: “I know him and know what his passion and desire is like. His honesty, will to work hard and his hunger for the game is second to none. I know things haven’t gone too well for Everton in the past couple of seasons but the manager’s ambition, speaking to him and hearing what he wants to do to change the club around, was a key factor in my decision.”
For Everton to build on what looks set to be a challenging summer transfer window, it is important that Dyche is able to sell that vision to others and this is a good start. For Everton, Young offers experience, professionalism and versatility in a squad that will benefit from each of those attributes.
Who will come next is the question that I keep being asked and the truth is that this role, as privileged as it is, is perhaps its most difficult at this time of the year. Speculation and rumour swirls and with the all-pervasive presence of social media a quiet night can quickly be ruined by the butterfly effect of a claim breaking in one part of the world and then rippling across to the shores of the Mersey. Earlier this week it was Wilfried Gnonto who was pitched as having been signed up as a Blue. Arnaut Danjuma and now Anthony Elanga have joined him as the names that appear in the trending column of my Twitter homepage.
All three represent intriguing prospects and it is easy to see why they would be on the club’s radar. Elanga, in truth, has never dropped off it. Everton were hopeful of a deal with Manchester United for the winger last Christmas, pursuing him at the same time they were making Sunderland aware they would pull Ellis Simms from his loan spell once his recall clause could be triggered on January 1. Behind the scenes, Lampard was open about him being a target and I sometimes wonder how different this year could have turned out had Elanga been in through the doors of Finch Farm on New Year’s Day and others had then followed.
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It makes sense that the same recruitment team that was in place then believes that he can improve the squad. Now, unlike then, my understanding is those at Old Trafford are willing to do a deal.
On Gnonto, Leeds United are – on the surface at least – resistant to a move. The cards are stacked in the club’s favour as far as decision-makers there are concerned. He is under contract and sources close to the club say he is on what is deemed to be an affordable wage despite relegation. This does not mean a deal would be impossible. Just that Everton would have to work hard to get there. It is similar with the claims around El Bilal Toure at Almeria – whose general director said Everton had made a bid for last week. In the same interview he made clear the club was looking at player sales as a way to fund wider squad improvements.
On Toure, Almeria are open to a deal, the question is whether Everton can – or want – to get to a price the club will accept. There is a 40m Euros clause in his contract but the longer the summer goes on, the more likely that may drop – the club may wish to avoid the same fate as last year when it sold star striker Umar Sadiq on the final day of the summer transfer window after months of speculation over his future. Almeria then ended up in a relegation battle the club only just won.
