Everton vie with PSG for Neres

I'll file this one under "believe it when I see it," but who knows? Maybe Richarlison has some pull with his fellow Brazilians.

Was he in the same side as Davy Klassen?

Where would this leave Bernard.

Phil Roberts

Not sure if he was but the Ajax side that Klaassen captained was a pale imitation of the side this season. If we landed Neres given his exploits in the CL then it would be an absolute coup

Andrew, it would leave Bernard vying for competition in the 7/10/11 roles with Neres, Richarlison, Sigurdsson and Lookman/Walcott (assuming one or both of them leave). So not too much to worry about yet

We have got to look to improve our options up front Walcott and Lookman are not good enough. I like the look of Lookman when he plays he's got that X factor, can beat a man and create a chance. But Koeman Unsworth Allardyce And Silva have not started with him often yet the Germans loved him.

This is the type of player or go have a look at or may look at getting a good deal on Malcom he's not getting a look in at Barca or Neres who may think fuck it if I got do it in the PL I Can go to Spain then rather than France. Imagine getting one of these for 30-40 mill who are 1st team players and selling lookman and Vlasic for about the same swap 2 players you won't play for one you will or even sell Onyekuru swap 3 for 2 and get them both or throw lot at then lad from Juve.

Last Season we had two players in double figures if we could get 4 players in double figures that's a big difference in points. After Gylfi and Richarlison we only had DCL on 8 and Walcott 6 ( £120k pw for 6 goals FML)
that's what we need to improve, do that and learn to defend set pieces and we could have a good season.

Quite right, Bill @1. We are a club which has made a fine art out of disappointing expectations. We should wait until any of our rumoured captures is¿» standing on the Street End in our kit and snogging David Harrison who is holding the dry signature.

Otherwise it's bollocks, all of it.

@ Paul 5

Finally a fellow blue with some sense. One that can see Lookman needs moving on. He's not good enough, simple.

Too many Evertonians feed the theory that not playing makes you a better player. Pennington, Dowell, Kenny and Lookman are all the next big thing apparently or at some point in the last 2 years have been. Besic was before that.

It's existed as long as I've been blue.

Who cares what this means for Bernard? If he's good enough, it won't matter who we sign, he'll get into the team. If not, he becomes part of the wider first team picture, if he's failing there then we ship him on.

Our club I hate to say it needs to follow the example set across Stanley Park. In the last 7 years they have gone from being about level with us in terms of squad quality and achievement to absolutely eclipsing us as a football club. And I hate it.

Their transfer policy during this time underpins this.

They have had several young players who were the next big thing. They were given chances if deserved and within a year, if the requisite level wasn't shown. They were shown the door. Ibe and Solanke being the key examples. There's been no time for waiting for these players to get good. It's ruthless but it has really worked for them.

Blues are sat around thinking at 21 Kieran Dowell is going to be the new Kevin Sheedy. It's embarrasing. He needs to be offloaded to a championship club immediately. For his sake and ours.

The other feature of LFC was their ruthlessness with players who were no longer performing. No sentiment involved with Sturridge despite his incredible 2013/2015 performances. Did they wait for him to come good again? No, they moved on and he became a squad player that they've been trying to offload for at least two years.

Same looks as Richarlison. Is it the winner looks? I think so. So let's bring this one on and play him as a striker if he's able. Or else where should Bernard play? AM? Sigurdsson? But let's get this guy.

This is a bigger test for Silva as he has still not convinced a lot if fans that he is up to the job he was saved by a good end of season..

If and its always a big IF Everton get off to a good start then he may well survive the inevitable dip in form leter. however the pressure will mount if the team falters at tge start if the season..

Unfortunately bringing in qaulity loanies is both a blessing and a curse..

A lot of posts on othere threads seem to think that other than the shite and man city the other top 4...6 contenders are in some sort of mess or transition and that we are on the up...

For me I feel next season will be very much like last season except the shite will win the premiership...

Not sure where he would fit in, cant see him as the main striker as he may find the Prem a little to robust for him like Klassen. As a winger ? then who is he going to displace ?

Tommy #7, brilliant post. For far too long we have persevered with too many crap-to-average players hoping they would become the next Rooney only to see them wither and die.

If Lookman, Davies, Holgate etc... are judged as not going to make the grade at Everton then they should be moved on. No room for sentimentality in this game. We need to be ruthless!

P.S. I still believe the three above mentioned players will come good but you get my gist.

Good threat, I have not much to Addi. But agreed with Paul (5), Tommy (7) and Colin (11). I think that after Moshiri came on we (the supporters) can allowed us to think that way. Letting players go sooner rather than later is most often a good thing for the players too.

If we can get this one over the line it will define our intentions for the future.
If we can beat a club like PSG to a signing what a statement that is.

my friends cousin has it on good authority from a guy who stood next to his mate in a pub that we are in for Jill Scott from the England womens world cup team

Tommy at 7 spot on mate, and I'd add DCL to that list as well.

Tommy Carter (5). If we were even remotely ruthless we certainly would not be offering a 30-plus-year old full back a new deal. The top 4 would have moved on from that problem and scenario 5 years earlier.

According to some on this thread we should just dump a large part of the squad and buy new, hopefully better, players.
Personally I prefer to let the management team make those decisions. Whilst I agree there are several players that need to be moved on, i fail to see how people come up with these ideas when they don, t see said players in training every day and base their judgements on a handful of games!!
On paper we can all be a top quality manager

According to some on this thread we should just dump a large part of the squad and buy new, hopefully better, players.
Personally I prefer to let the management team make those decisions. Whilst I agree there are several players that need to be moved on, i fail to see how people come up with these ideas when they don, t see said players in training every day and base their judgements on a handful of games!!
On paper we can all be a top quality manager

According to some on this thread we should just dump a large part of the squad and buy new, hopefully better, players.
Personally I prefer to let the management team make those decisions. Whilst I agree there are several players that need to be moved on, i fail to see how people come up with these ideas when they don, t see said players in training every day and base their judgements on a handful of games!!
On paper we can all be a top quality manager

Martin @ 10, let's face it Klaasen was like a Snowflake in a Desert Storm, another of that master (bator) tactician Koeman's great ideas, and he's now Manager of Netherlands.

I think there could be some possibility in this link too, especially with the association with Brands, his friendship with Richarlison, his desire to play in the Premier League. I believe we will make a Marquee signing this window, Neres could be it.

Annika makes decent point (not that it needed to be made 3 times haha).

Whilst 'patience' with average players is clearly what we need, so yed, players like Dowell unfortunately will not cut the mustard and need to find a new club.

The 'buy players who are good enough' philosphy is very risky and usually leads to signing a number of flops.

Tje likes of Klaassen, Bolasie, Walcott, Williams, Schneiderlin, Tosun are testament to this.

We need to invest in, and test our young players. Davies, Lookman, DCL, Vlasic, Gordon and a few others have shown great potential and deserve more chances.

In terms of Neres, exciting, but worry about signing a player like him when his value is at maximum. He could turn out to be brilliant, but could equally struggle in the Premier League.

But of course, Neres or Walcott on the right is no contest. Hopefully we find a new home for Walcott.

Although I've only watched both these players a couple of times, Ziyech, is the player I'd love to see Everton sign.

I didn't state at any point that we should go out buying anybody instead of the younger players we have in the squad. Far from it. But we hang on to players for too long in the hope that they will come good, rather than based on any solid evidence that they will come good.

Kenny will not do anything for Everton football club in the next 12 months. Why not follow the model of European clubs. Move him on but with a clause that we can bring him back for a pre determined fee should he show the quality that we need. Instead these players are rotting in the reserves or going off to clubs on loan where they are treated like any other player. I don't see how the loan spell of Dowel to Sheff Utd benefited him in any way last season. He certainly didn't look any better 12 months on in his development than he looked at Forest the year before. Do 2 years ago we could've sold him and then the team that buys him have to justify their faith in the investment. It benefits everybody. If we have to buy Dowell back for £10m because he turns out to be unbelievable then it is a small price to pay. The current model absolutely doesn't work for us. With these players gone it also creates space for Unsworth to have to bring in even younger players and test them above their level. Rather than winning meaningless under age games with a squad full of players too good for that level but not good enough for the first team

How many times has this European model clause been used, because the player who has been sold, has been that good, that his former club want him back?

If you think you've got a really good bunch of young players, then surely it's better to send them out on loan to see if they improve, rather than look to sell them just in case they don't?

To make a difference to the team, we need to buy players that will make a difference, ie top quality, not second rung quality - we already have plenty of them.

Fran (19), the likes of Klaassen, Bolasie, Walcott, Williams, Schneiderlin, Tosun who you quote fall into that second rung category (at best) and we have to move on from those types.

Add to that we should allow the kids a chance (both in training and in the odd game) to prove they can be top quality or move them on also. Its either top quality or accept the status quo. No time for sentimentality. It is this strategy that the likes of that shower over the park have followed in recent years with spectacular results and we need to do the same.

Whilst we can't just buy a whole new team of top quality (see what I'm doing here?), we should be looking to add 1 or 2 every summer window which then steadily moves us up the pecking order. We really are at a tipping point - grasp the opportunity as its the only way to leave mediocrity behind.

The problem with making wholesale changes to your squad is that it can go two ways. A success like Wolves or a total disaster like Fulham.

Over the last few seasons our various managers have bought and sold with abandon and it hasn't improved our squad at all. I think the main reason for this is because since Moshiri has been bankrolling our spending we have tended to go for quantity rather than quality. During his tenure, Martinez bought 24 players and, with the possible exceptions of Lukaku and Barry, there wasn't a top quality player amongst them. Koeman brought in some decent players, Gana, Gilfy, Keane and Pickford come to mind but again he packed it out with the likes of Williams, Lookman, Vlasic, Sandro, Klaassen. Allardyce just gave us bog standard Tosun, past it Rooney and a mercurial Walcott.

Now we have Silva and Brands who appear to have learned the lessons of recent seasons and are trying to bring in proper quality players. Richarlison, Gomes, Bernard, Digne are the kind of quality Everton require although the jury is still out on Mina. I think this is the direction we need to move in. Only quality players. No more makeweights or past it stars.

Better to spend 㿞 million on one top quality player than 㾶 million each for five duds.

Stephen, in an ideal world that is what we would do one or two top players per season = a too team in 4-5 but top players want silverware/CL football now. How do we keep them? Also top players cost 50/60 million. So 120 million per year on 2 players for 5 years. Just aint gonna happen.

I feel our best way is signing potentially top players, and then investing in the potentially top players we have.

Lookman remains an enigma, but personally, I wish he had played all the games Walcott had done over the last 18months. At least then we would know.

Liverpool got Mané and Firmino, none of whom where 'top' players at the time.

Spurs got Alli, Erikson and Son, none were 'top players' when signed.

The only club witj success in buying ready made talent is Man City, and even they buy young players who they can improve.

Annika you are right the people who watch these players play in day out are the best people to judge but these people don't pick them. One thing we need to to is balance the books that's parts of Brands job rescue the wage budget and reduce the age of the squad. And we have a huge squad, the questions the management team I'm sure are asking:

Will they figure this year?

If no will they figure in the future?

That will I would guess depend on if they then try and sell, and if not loan if nobody will buy or if they are for the future get the 1st team football in any top European league. Or even a team chasing promotion in the championship look at Tammy Abraham.

I do propose we dump a large part of the squad and buy better players just like Brands did last summer. Players not in the first team or not certain to be on the Bench.

McCarthy
Lookman
Vlasic
Henry O
Dowell
JJK - now loaned
Schneiderlin
Besic
Bolasie
Tom Davies
Mirallas

I'm sure the management team will have to ask the two questions I mentioned about all of the squad but the ones above have made only small if any impact. I'm not saying get rid of them all but we need to get rid of some / most who would like to guess the return in transfer fees and reducing the wage bill reduction I would only be guessing!

Could that fund two or three youngsters with great reputation like a Richarlison or a Lukaku? That's what we need to do, it won't be easy but I thought we did well last summer and I think with a years worth of knowledge in the bank Brands will do well this summer. He needs to a Goals and we need to defend set pieces again easier said than done.

Fran 25 - Great point about Lookman. I would rather see him that Walcott.

The Premier League is the number 1 league on the planet with some of the most accomplished, skillful, toughest and fastest defences around.

At least 10 teams in the league are capable of hurting anyone. We (i'm proud to say) are one of those teams.

Do I think that Neres should be the marquee signing at Everton. NO.

Since Marcel Brands arrived I have paid more attention to Dutch football. I watched this guy a lot last season and a few areas of his game need work. I have the following reservations.

He has pace but isn't great on crosses.

He can dribble but he's no Rivaldo, Denilson, Neymar or Ronaldinho.

His stature and game is very similar to a young Nani or Walcott.

He's a lightweight and hits the deck more times than rain.

He tries silly tricks that don't come off, resulting in frustrating the attack.

He doesn't track back. An issue for some I guess.

He's Brazilian so everyone automatically thinks he's great.

He's surrounded by an impressive array of talent in the current Ajax squad.

40 - 50 Million is a lot of money.

The right wing has been an issue in recent years for us. Many have arrived and few have consistently made the grade. As with a striker this has to be a critical position. How I long for a Trevor Steven or Kanchelkis!

If you don't deliver we at Everton kind of let you know about it. If he's a confidence player, well, good luck with that.

I would rather have Vinicius Jr, Ziyech, Malcolm, Traore or even our own Bernard.

Whether it be leading the line or running down the wings I cannot see what he will bring to move us forward from what we already have.

I had reservations regarding Klaassen and Mina. That sick feeling of ignoring the hype and just looking for myself.

If we buy him, I more than hope he proves me wrong. That'll be one humble pie that I would love to eat.

But these are just my views and he is yet to convince me that the top 6 or even 10 should be quaking in their boots. They will have an answer for him.

Jason @30, I agree that anything over 㿏M would be a lot for Neres. It seems he still has a few flaws in his game and will certainly need to improve his defensive side to make it as one of Silva's wingers.

But he's got real talent. He's fast and can dribble pretty well. He can shoot and pass well too. He's performed well in the Champions League this season and is now starting for Brazil. And he's only 22.

Plus he's mates with Richarlison and has played with him at youth level.

It's a risk certainly but I think he has the talent to be a special player if he works hard.

Vinicius is not leaving Real. Ziyech is older and will demand Champions League football. Traore is interesting but very inconsistent. I rate Malcolm highly and would maybe go for him over Neres but it would probably only be on loan (or with Barca buyback clause). To be honest I'd be happy with either of them. A quick left-footed winger who can score goals but also playmaker would go down nicely.

Just move them on? Who the fuck to? Lookman? Move him on. Sandro? Move him on. Let's move the whole fucking squad on. The world will be biting our hands off. " we need to be ruthless", yes, fuck contracts and employment law move them on.There has been some utter shite on this thread.

I'd take Neres before Bertrand Traore. Potential is where we are as a club and I'd take this level of potential in a heartbeat.

Personally prefer Bertrand Traore. Seems to have a better eye for goal

Jason

As alluded to the players mentioned above will have their sights set higher than a mid-table, “best of the rest” club. I see in the Liverpool Echo this morning Agent Richarlison is trying to convince Neres to come to Everton.

This is the kind of player we need to improve the squad. Yes he has flaws in his game but if he didn't then other richer clubs would sniff after him. But he's improve the squad and that is clearly Brands' and Silva's main aim: to improve the squad with every signing.

If we signed him for £35m and he lit up the league for two years we'd easily double our money, and might be in a position to attract top-calibre players. Look at Lukaku. We all knew he was using us as a stepping stone but got 3 decent years out of him (goals wise) and tripled our money (shame Koeman and Walsh blew the money on signings which didn't work out.) Looking at his performances since going United I'd say we did well there.

Regardless of the pairing, I like it when I see one player I a club encouraging another player to join our club. When it comes to Richie I think it has additional bite to it!

This is the kind of thing we need at Everton. let's face it, from a distance Merseyside isn't the most exciting place in the world to which to attract talent! Sorry, guys and gals, but only being realistic. Same here in Adelaide compared with the likes of Sydney.

So, if the likes of Richarlison is trying to attract a Neres, it must be a plus +++ for us

We don't seem to be linked with any strikers, only wingers, which is baffling me as the one position we need to address before any others is the striker position. There's a poll on this site showing over 80% of fans saying this is the position we need to address. We've never replaced Lukaku, and yet all we are linked with is midfielders and wingers!

It would be an ambitious one, but I'd like to see us have a go for Gabriel Jesus of Man City. He's their reserve striker, but we could potentially have Brazil's front two if we could tempt him here to play with his mate Richarlison. I may be dreaming, but money talks, even for Man City.

In any case, I just want us to sign a proper number 9 who can get us 20 goals...

I love that Everton are ‘leveraging their existing relationships with his representatives' these days rather than leveraging a pair of free tickets to blood brothers.

Andy,

There lies the problem. Not many will take up to a 50% cut in there wages. Only way to get them out is to give them a chunk of the transfer fee.

Jason 30 – purely by going off his Wikipedia entry, Malcolm doesn't appeal that much. He sounds a lot like a Pogba, Lingard, Rom type of character...

Interesting that someone asked what signing potentially better calibre of player would mean for an existing one. Simple answer, competition.

A common theme of the teams playing outside the top 4, and to a degree top 6 is that, on their day, most teams can put together good performances, even string together a streak of wins. But generally they cant prolong it to really stand a chance of breaking the stranglehold at the top. One main difference is squad strength, because to put together a winning run most of the teams in and around us need their best 11 fit and performing well.
The top teams have that strength in depth to change things around when needed.
When Richarlison was off form we generally looked short of goal threat. There were no serious options on the bench that really were an upgrade.
City. If Ageuro cant do it, there is always Sane or Jesus available.

Bernard turned out good in the end. And hopefully he can push on this season. But to really move forwards we need the players on the bench an in the squad to be pushing the first team players for their places.
Often people asked how Walcott was still getting games. Simply because Lookman, although putting in some decent cameos, never really convinces that he offers any more.

Its good to see we are linked with players that would give the manager headaches come team selection time. Hopefully we can get some quality additions made and really have a crack this year.

Slightly off topic here but still concerning the Copa America, I see Yerry Mina played the whole 90 against Argentina, in their surprise win over one of the anticipated winners/favourites.

By all accounts he had a good game, so contrary to many who have stated that he has been a flop, he must have done something right to keep Messi and Aguerro quiet all night.

Newish owner, great new management team, fantastic new stadium. Could we at last have...

Link

We need a striker more than any other position. Che Adams has bags of potential and his middle name is Everton.

We always sign players who seem to do well in their country's or club cup competitions and then in the Prem. they struggle to impact.
Mina and Besic come to mind along with Klassen.
I agree wholeheartedly with Tommy and Colin and hope that the era of second-rate performers is coming to an end soon.
Players who only impress in their first one or two games and then fade into inconsistency shouldn't be kept on.
As you say Lookman and Walcott are liabilities and arguably quite a few others who have been mentioned.

James @44, I think we have more chance of getting him than Everton Soares, but I didn't know Che Adams's middle name was Everton.

Dermot, let's hope we have more Kudos than Kudus, but you never know – he may be the player we've been missing.

Derek #46: at least you got my weak Sunday joke!

dup

I see Moyes has sneaked back into football. He's dyed his hair white, called himself Kerr and taken over Scotland women's team.
Only their mothers could tell them apart.

Dermot @ 47, forget to mention before Kudu is the name of an African antelope, of which there are two species, the lesser and the greater, surprisingly the greater is larger than the lesser. :-)

If your man is anything like his antelope namesake, he should be quick off the mark, good in the box, good at rutting, and a hoot at Stag Parties. He shouldn't be too deer either!

Jason,

He's 22 right? So far from the finished article. And we don't play 4-4-2 (who does these days? Very Mike Bassett / 1980s), so the crossing thing is irrelevant.

To be honest, providing we invest in a 20+ goal striker (yes easier said than done), can you imagine a "made in Brazil" trio of Richarlison, Bernard & Neres interchanging behind him? It makes us unpredictable, fast and attacking.

With Gueye (hopefully) and Gomez sat behind them, that is a pretty exciting prospect.

Ray @ 49, thanks for the update on Moyes, but really I couldn't Kerr less!

Derek. You need help.

Danny @ 51

I wasn't going to respond but I feel a duty.

"The crossing thing is irrelevant." Bizarre comment.

So Aaron Lennon and Theo Walcott having a poor crossing ratio hasn't been an issue as to why we are/were looking to replace them.

Neres is a very similar player to Walcott. He's quick, lightweight and tries to cut inside a lot due to his inconsistent crossing ability. The result is that he loses possession a lot more times than the proverbial you tube highlight reel suggests.

After a few months once the honeymoon period is over lets see how many of us are forgiving due to his age.

35 Million is a lot of money for a one trick pony. At the top end of the Premier League you've got to hit the ground running regardless of age. Buy the wrong players and you could be sacked by Christmas.

I had an issue with us signing Walcott for similar reasons. I didn't think he would add much more than Lennon to our right wing. Some got carried away with the "takes us forward" mantra however I still think that Deulofeu was better. Why, because his crosses to Lukaku were a masterclass of beauty and got Lukaku a ton of goals. I dare say that DCL would profit more from this service.

As for having 3 Brazilians interchanging. This is not the Mario Zagallo's 70s World Cup era. Having 3 Brazilians in your team doesn't give you the divine right to tear the Premier leagues and worlds finest defences apart. If you believe that then have a word with Bernard and the 2014 German side.

Sigurdsson is our costliest player, our top scorer and kept the boss in his job. I can't see him being dropped for now. Expect him to take the Captaincy at some point.

On the plus side if Bernard was put on the bench to accommodate Neres this could work if we sold Lookman and Walcott (possible?), as Neres can play both wings. That is where an argument to sign him (might) stand. He would just need to work on, keeping possession, consistently finding a team mate and passing accurately in the air and on the deck.

We will still need an alternative to Sigurdsson as he is slow and predictable. So much so that it is effecting DCL's game. DCL has resulted in making runs to create space for Sigurdsson to shoot from long range or follow him into the box. Sigurdsson ends up with more chances than most players in his position due to doing less work. Clever.

Ziyech like Arteta and Salah run more at the opposition. They draw defenders out and thus create space for strikers to run into open spaces... thus more goals for them. Ziyech in my opinion has been the heart of the Ajax team. We need this type of play maker at Goodison.

I agree that signing a 20 goal striker is paramount. That and a central defender to rival Zouma. I simply don't think Neres is a priority, more a costly luxury. There are alternatives and we are hopefully looking at them... In Brands I trust.

Lengthy response, Jason. Okay, I shouldn't have used irrelevant. I think less relevant from the forward wide players in the style of play Silva seems to be establishing. I think, in that context, we will see more direct players who can link with the forward and attack defenders themselves by running at them.

Crosses (in the traditional sense) will come more from attacking full backs and set pieces (eg, Sigurdsson when he's not rippling the back of the net!!).

And I meant lengthy as in detailed with fair points, Jay. Just read back & didn't mean to sound abrupt!

Dutch reports indicate Ajax want £80m for him and have turned down a £50m offer from China. Even if you halve those dubious figures, it would be a massive gamble. Can't see this one happening.

Hasn't done enough to command anywhere near those kind of figures. He also plays mostly from the left wing. We already have Bernard and Richarlison there.

Ziyech is the one who would be perfect for us.

Danny O'Neill,

Thanks for responding, mate. No offence taken and none given on my side also. Always nice to debate with mature minds on this site. And I'm always open to being proved wrong.

Enjoy your day.

Jason [30]: Neres … 'isn't good on crosses'; that's okay, he can share a room with Pickford!

Between De Ligt, De Jong and Champions League money Ajax will be receiving somewhere in the region of €200M. There's also talk of Van der Beek leaving as well who'll give them a decent fee. I can't see them letting Neres leave for what we'd think is a reasonable fee unless the player forces their hand.

As others have said, I'd also rather Ziyech but I think we've missed our chance with him which was before he went to Ajax, his last club needed the money more than Ajax do.

Martin, where you do you hail from?

If it's true that Ajax want 㿼 million for David Neres, I think that is too steep a price to pay. I know Richarlison wants him to come, but 㿼 million is too much to spend on one player and I think for that kind of money we can make some quality signings.

Shane,

I live in Brisbane now but grew up in the north of Scotland after my parents moved us there from Liverpool.

㿼 million is silly money. Marcel Brands won't fall into that one.

I'm still not quite sure he's the player we should be seeking. I'm not an Ajax fan, and haven't seen much more of him other than the Champions League matches.

Rumour has it now that we're after Donny v/d Beek. Ronald Koeman has condoned it, for all that's worth... He's certainly smarter than Davy Klaassen. Very often on the right spot, at the right time.

Get him or Malcom in to freshen things up. Move Walcott on. He's stealing a living.

I'm not keen on this kid but I've only seen YouTubes of him. Very hit-and-miss type of player, not what we need, very Lookman-ish.