The 2025 winter transfer window was one of little movement for Everton. There was little to speak about for the Toffees beyond the late loan deal for Argentine midfielder Carlos Alcaraz on Deadline Day.
Going into the transfer window, the general feeling regarding the squad was that it was already light to begin with. Injuries to key players like Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Armando Broja, Dwight McNeil and Orel Mangala have only made matters worse. Therefore, the addition of just a single midfielder in Alcaraz certainly seemed to be a risk, given that a lot of Premier League football is still to be played.
New boss David Moyes hadn’t been shy of stressing the need to add reinforcements to the squad either. The situation in the forward line seems particularly concerning with Beto being the only fit senior striker for Everton following injuries to Calvert-Lewin, Broja and Youssef Chermiti.
Reports from the club suggested that there were no players of that profile who could come at the right price and improve the team immediately. The Friedkin Group, the new owners of the club, have laid the template that money will be used prudentially rather than for the sake of doing so.
While Calvert-Lewin suffered a hamstring blow and could be back before the end of the season, Broja is expected to return to action in a month. Chermiti is also looking at the same timeline for recovery as Broja.
Moyes certainly has reasons to feel frustrated by the lack of transfer activity, but it’s also clear that the market conditions as well as financial limitations left the Toffees without much room to manoeuver in the window.
The positive developments on the pitch, however, have eased the management’s concerns. Three wins on the bounce allowed Everton to put some distance between them and the relegation zone while the other teams hovering around the drop zone have struggled to build any kind of form.
Alcaraz also has a golden opportunity to impress fans during his loan spell and force Everton to trigger the option to buy. The Argentine has prior Premier League experience, having scored four league goals for Southampton in a previous stint. He has also featured in 11 games for Juventus and can play in a variety of positions.
Avoiding any unnecessary or rash signings is never a good idea for any long-term project. Buying for buying’s sake is a mantra that Everton fans are familiar with and believe should be consigned to the past.
While the underlying feeling at Goodison Park is that the club took a swing with a lack of reinforcements this time, the Toffees will be in a much healthier position going into the summer transfer window.