Mark Travers – the new backup goalkeeper for Jordan Pickford?

Jesus, we must have some money to spend!

The life of a back up keeper. He will know what he's walking into.

We never know what will have, but although he hasn't suffered much with injuries, Pickford could get injured or even suspended.

Those old enough will remember the shock when the invincible Neville Southall got injured as we were closing if for the league title. Bobby Mimms, who knew his place, stepped in and did okay. Some point to Southall's injury as the reason we missed out, but for me, it was more about us having a wobble and a ridiculous run in by Liverpool. We only missed out by 2 points. One game.

It still hurts. And the less I say about the FA Cup final, the better. Old wounds.

The Bobble is reporting it, so I would expect this will be announced.

And at still only 26 he has a long playing career ahead of him as a regular starter if he can find the right club.

That's it Gavin. The add ons will include appearances.

Travers is young for a keeper and will benefit traing alongside Jordon

Also Big Jake and Seamus can help him settle!

4 million for a goalkeeper not considered good enough for Bournemouth!!? I would have preferred us to keep Virginia.

What’s the point in having highly rated young keepers if they are never given a chance? Yes Travets has premiership experience, but it wasn’t good enough for him to keep the position permanently. Disappointed with this transfer

But on the transfer budget, we don't know how much there is to spend. The only people who do are TFG, the CEO and accountant's. That will be passed onto the recruitment team so they can prioritise.

If the club. Say we can afford the reported £4m on a position we need, then we must be able to.

A £1m a year for ffp

Btw they finished above Everton for last few seasons

I could never really understand why Virginia stayed for as long as he did with almost no game time, similarly puzzling why Travers would want to play a distant second fiddle to Pickford. He must have his reasons, maybe it's simply financial.

If he was good enough, why have Bournemouth just bought another goalkeeper and sold Travers?

Andrew @ 15, Travers would never be considered good enough for PSG, so what’s your point?

Same as Everton have a better number one.

Hes a back up goalkeeper. What’s the issue?

His career total number of league appearances is 131 in twelve years, with his most appearances in one season being 45 for Bournemouth in season 21 / 22. So he’s hardly been a consistent number one wherever he’s been.

For a goalkeeper, you either play, or you don’t, there’s no in-between. Many outfield players can play in a position other than their preferred one, a goalkeeper can’t. Overall I think Travers will be more than happy with this move, and he will get to play a game or two, mainly in the early cup rounds, or if JP is either injured or god forbid, suspended.

I'm just a little suprised that our two first moves have been for a CF and backup GK rather than the priority positions of RW, RB and CM. The players we sign there will go some distance to dictating our success this season and ideally would be given time to settle during pre-season.

Of course, like most things we are never privy to what goes on behind the scenes. Just hope Moyes has had some influence as he has pretty much, though not always, been a good judge of a player's fit, and worth, for Everton Football Club !

Which one would you or anyone on here have signed instead?

I just have an uncomfortable feeling that Picks, who has been very fortunate on a couple of reckless challenges in recent years, is due to have his luck run out.

And if he flies into somebody and goes down for six weeks, I think Travers is of a sufficient level of quality to keep Picks' absence from costing us games.

So I'm glad this is happening.

I've been keeping an eye on that list too, and reading it makes a strong point that there's nobody available we should trust if Pickford goes down.

We can debate and question the logic of releasing both Begovic and Virginia, but some of that might have been for their own personal career reasons.

They're not here now, so other than question why we let both go, it doesn't affect us now. They don't play for Everton.

It looks as if Travers may do so.

But some just think you can buy players just like Football Manager!

Mark Travers moves to Everton from Bournemouth

Seems done.

Rob #23, on your trip to Bournemouth in January when we were shut out 1-0, the keeper was Travers. Unfortunately we never put a shot on goal, so you didn't see him do anything, but....

And when Doucoure scored THAT goal at Goodison, the keeper he beat was Travers.

Any current No 1 keeper anywhere who is good enough for Everton is going to cost more than £4M, so which out-of-contract goalie could we have signed on for free who is good enough?

£4M seems a reasonable amount to pay for a decent back-up. I have no issues with this signing.

The Arsenal fans were fuming when they found out Kepa was being brought in as a back-up keeper for £5M because they don't rate him at all.

Yet Kepa was the keeper that kept Travers out of the Bournemouth team. Still some people believe he is of sufficient quality to stand in for Pickford. He isn't.

A Number 1 goalkeeper isn't coming to Everton to be a Number 2.

All Arsenal fans were fuming?

Outfield players know they may get a chance because of injuries, loss of form, players moving on, etc. But keepers tend to avoid injuries and the likes of Pickford are consistent and rarely lose their form.

He is Everton's and England's No 1 and probably will be for at least the next couple of seasons. Travers will no doubt get his chances to play in the cup games for now. But at 26, he has time on his side. After all, Pickford isn't getting any younger.

I have yet to hear an Arsenal fan say anything good about Kepa and, again, I try to cover as many fan sites as possible. I spend hours watching and listening to fan sites, including the Everton sites of course.

I am sure there will be some Arsenal fans that appreciate the Kepa signing, but there won't be many.

It makes no sense to me to sign an, at best, average keeper, then allow 3 to walk out of the door.

We haven't allowed 3 to walk out the door. Begovic was about 50 years old and Virginia apparently wanted to leave. My Middlesbrough supporter friend said they were disappointed they couldn't keep him.

So due to your vast knowledge of football, who should Everton sign as Number 2?

Travers seems an okay signing as back-up. Is he good enough to replace Pickford? No. Is he good enough to play some games between transfer windows, if required? Yes, I think he is, from what I've seen.

A bit like Keane, it's clear players just want the money, rather than playing every week.

Arsenal fans moan at anything. You only have to watch Arsenal Fan TV to know that.

I have yet to see any positive comments regarding Kepa on Arsenal sites. Clearly you visit the superior sites though.

Kepa won't push Reya hard for the Number 1 spot at Arsenal, he is too error-prone. Shame Middlesbrough didn't sign him, he might be up to Championship level.

In their careers Kepa has made 5 errors leading to goals, 3 for Raya and 21 for Pickford

Last season Pickford saved 72% of shots saved. Raya 72% and Kepa 71%

So tell me which gk we should have signed?

Here you go

https://www.reddit.com/r/Gunners/comments/1l4rx4j/gunnerblog_arsenal_make_chelseas_kepa/

https://www.reddit.com/r/Gunners/comments/1ljne0v/kinsella_arsenal_are_set_to_complete_the_signing/

On what Anika says, I'd be very surprised to hear that the majority of Arsenal fans would be moaning about Kepa's signing as a No.2 on their fan sites and channels.

I hope you are right, Sam, and this signing is an indicator that we will be spending more than the projected £70m-100m budget. We need to spend a healthy amount when we see the likes of Chelsea getting £130m for this Club World Cup. The competition seems like another way for rich owners of so called elite clubs to bypass PSR

Anikka, I wouldn't take what Ryan asked personally. You expressed a view, he's just asked you what you base it on.

Personally, I have no opinion to give on our likely new keeper. I've barely seen him play.

Personally, I'd have not bought either and got Angus Gunn in for no transfer fee who's Scotland's No.1 and was inexplicably let go by Norwich.

If we haven’t signed the necessary upgrades on the right flank by the end of the window then that’s the time to complain. As it happens I think we’ll get our business done.

I won't judge till the window is done but our most important bits of business are still pending in my view.

Danny, he was sarcastic, I replied in kind

The Arsenal fans I am taking about are all season ticket holders, or were until recently

Gavin @ 46, try checking there fans sites if you don’t believe they aren’t happy. Start with Lee gunner.

That, in itself, is a huge improvement on just about everything since the Martinez era.

Those deals should take time as we have to get those choices right, especially the right flank.

Annika, you didn't answer Ryan's question. Based on your hours of football watching, who would you have preferred to sign?

Of course you will take what Gunner has to say with a pinch of salt. Being as you are the expert.

If he was such a good back up, Bournemouth would have made more of an effort to keep him.

Are you suggesting I am lying about how much football I watch Mike? Because that’s how I am reading it.

So after your hours of watching football, the only back up keepers you mention are ones we let go?

Why haven’t these two got new club’s yet?
If they’re so good then they would have been snapped up

If Travers is so good, why were we the only team wanting to buy him?

Kepa bought for £72m, sold for £5m. But his book value was probably, so a £5m psr profit on a player they didnt want.

The money they make out of the market in transfer gains and loan fees, all part of the financial alchemy.

Then you said Arsenal fans were unhappy with their new back up GK.

I gave you links to a threads where some were happy.

Then you said, after your many hours of football watching, there were better back up goalkeepers around.

How do you know no other teams wanted to buy him?
I asked you which ones and then you said Begovic and Virginia.

I also take at face value Moyes' decision that neither of his inherited backup keepers met his standards for the ability to replace Pickford in case of accidents. Virginia in particular seemed to impress exactly zero of his managers, not just his four at Everton but out on loan as well, enough to give him a real opportunity.

But amongst our rivals there’s no exciting business done.

Bournemouth are weaker without Huijsen and Kerkez

West Ham are weaker without Kudus

Palace are weaker without Mitchell

Wolves are weaker without Cunha and Ait Nouri

Forest have lost Elanga and Gibbs White could follow

Brentford look wobbly for various reasons

They can recruit of course because there’s a while to go. But we’ve secured Branthwaite and now brought 3 players in. Not too bad.

But it's true that the PL teams who have significantly strengthened in the window are all teams that we weren't about to catch this season anyway.

Defensively they're a shambles, with an iffy keeper.

Kudus well might replace Son, and Gibbs White replace Maddison.

But whats the point of doing that when the defence is that bad.

Mike @ 75, sorry I took some time to reply. I was watching some more football. This time from South America. You know the stuff that people question I watch?

As for replacements Travers must have been on the radar, and there must be someone like Dubravka available, but whether he will want to be an understudy again is unknown.

Maybe they’ll sell Gordon to them lot and we have a sell on clause

Maybe they’ll sell Gordon to them lot and we have a sell on clause

I do think Brentford could struggle in the context of their recent standards.

They are likely to lose a couple of their best players and just as important, they've lost the coach who helped build and shape that team.

It could be a tricky season for them compared to what they have recently been used to.

It isn't an Ange problem. It's a Dna issue of spending a £110m on attacking players, and 10p on the defence.

Famously came third in a two horse race with Leicester. Champagne players rather than a strong spine. They put Ledley King on a plinth, and he only played 268 games in 13 seasons.

Liverpool got it right when they spent big money on Van Dijk and Allison. If you want to compete, you cant skimp there.

4m is more than we spent in a whole summer not long ago !

Getting the CM is most important imo. Yes RB, RW and LB cover too, but we need a guy to control a match, dictate our attacks & create chances.

Which Evertonian, wouldn’t take something similar?

That was a very sensible post Ian B, because not many teams win the biggest honours without having a real defensive discipline, which is something that I think Dyche, instilled into Everton, whilst he was boring us to tears!

Because of this key aspect, maybe we were not as far away as we thought? I’m just trying to be positive but, Who knows?

A dismal season, but a European trophy and Champions League qualification as a result.

Equally as much as I'm interested to see how Brentford get on without Thomas Frank, it will be interesting to see how Thomas Frank gets on at Tottenham with Daniel Levy breathing down his neck.

Not very giamourous, but it all screams well-run business to me so far.

Still 4 million wasted for me

Football has really changed since everyone started playing out from the back, and sometimes these foreign managers, put a massive emphasis on a goalkeeper’s ability with the ball at his feet, above anything else?

I’m wondering what this side of his game is like, thinking this might explain why we have got him relatively cheap?