Everton mailbag: Discussing David Moyes' future, transfer targets and shirt-sponsor rumours

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Additionally, do you think Leighton Baines is being groomed to take over once Moyes does hang up his suit? — Gerard L. I don’t think a decision has been made yet on Moyes’ future. From what I’m told that’ll likely be one for the summer, but there is definitely an appreciation of the job he has done so far in turning Everton from relegation battlers into contenders for a European place. It would be great if player-turned-first-team assistant Baines were in a position to be his eventual successor, but I imagine he and the club would want to see him cut his teeth in management elsewhere before taking that step. He’s certainly highly regarded, though. From what I understand, our finances comply with Premier League rules but not with UEFA’s. Will we need to sell to buy this summer? — Keaton S. As we detailed here, Everton believe they have headroom in a PSR (profitability and sustainability rules)/SCR (squad-cost rule) sense. UEFA’s squad-cost rules would be more challenging but, usually, the first step with a breach there is a fine and the implementation of a budget for the following season(s). Clubs have also had to record a positive transfer balance after falling foul of the rules. As far as I’m aware, this is not a sell-to-buy scenario. Everton will want to strengthen again this summer, particularly if they qualify for Europe. But they will need to continue to be mindful of the financial rules and trade carefully. That may well include outgoings if certain players are deemed surplus to requirements. Do we still go in for a striker in the summer after the improvement Beto has been showing? If yes, who are some possible targets? — Michael H. I’m not sure Moyes is particularly sold on either Beto or Thierno Barry. The club would almost certainly have looked to cash in on the former had they secured another striker in January. It’s still a bit early to go too hard on specific names, but I wouldn’t be too surprised if they ended up back in for Chelsea’s Liam Delap, who was their top target last summer when he was leaving relegated Ipswich. They could do with a different profile to Barry’s. For me, he and Beto are a bit too similar as players. Who is on the list of targets for right-back, assuming we finally sign one this summer? — Paul N. Will the club finally resolve the glaring full-back issue in the summer? Also, is anyone in the media questioning the club’s ticketing policies? — Eddie C. I do think Everton will finally address the full-back situation in the next transfer window — they have to, right? — and that options on both sides of the defence will likely be sought. Right-back will be near the top of their shopping list and there’s still a chance they could go back for a former target, such as Strasbourg’s Guela Doue, provided the price is right. Moyes and director of scouting James Smith were at Hill Dickinson Stadium last week to watch Doue’s Ivory Coast beat Scotland in a friendly international. The 23-year-old played the final half-hour as a substitute. On the other side, they need reliable competition for Vitalii Mykolenko, who is set to be out of contract at the end of this season. The most likely direction of travel currently is that Everton exercise their one-year option to protect his value before discussing a potential new deal in the summer. To Eddie’s final point about ticketing, regular attempts are made to understand Everton’s position and those held by the fanbase. The next big focus will be on the upcoming season-ticket announcement. With James Garner and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall on longer contracts and performing well, how do you see the future of the last midfield starting spot for the remainder of this season and into the next one? — Mark E. Idrissa Gueye is the incumbent and I’d expect him to partner Garner until the end of the current campaign, supported by Tim Iroegbunam and Merlin Rohl. The deal Gueye signed last summer contained a club option for a further year, but even then there was an acceptance at Everton that they needed to reduce their reliance on a player who turns 37 early next season. Have they done that? Well, they certainly have more options now and you could make the case that Iroegbunam, Rohl and Harrison Armstrong have all shown signs of promise. But the jury is still out on at least a couple of those and none have yet done enough to displace Gueye. No club met Everton’s lofty valuation for Iroegbunam in January, so they decided to keep him. It still wouldn’t surprise me too much, given Gueye’s relatively rare profile, if the club dipped into the market at some point to find a long-term replacement. Shea Charles, 22, of Premier League promotion chasers and FA Cup semi-finalists Southampton is one of several players they have tracked over an extended period but is far from the only option. What’s the view on Charly Alcaraz? Are the club minded to keep him or to sell? — Nick R. I’ve never had the sense that Moyes has been convinced by Alcaraz, and that’s been reinforced by some of his decision-making. The midfielder was former director of football Kevin Thelwell’s pick at a time of financial strain for the club and just after Moyes’ reappointment. His winter-window loan from Flamengo was made permanent at the end of last season, but the original deal was renegotiated down to shorter terms (a two-year contract plus the option for a further 12 months). He is yet to nail down a place under Moyes and seems unlikely to do so with summer 2025 signing Dewsbury-Hall now at the club. I’m sure Moyes doesn’t mind having Alcaraz around and that he would be useful if there are extra European fixtures next season, but he’s probably one of the players who would be considered expendable should the right offer materialise. Does Moyes know Harrison Armstrong isn’t a winger? I’m sort of joking, sort of not — what’s the long-term plan for him? — Collin A. He does! But remember, he has a habit of playing midfielders and defenders slightly out of position when they are starting out under him. Jake O’Brien is a recent example of that and, going further back, Leon Osman and Mikel Arteta both began on the flanks before moving infield. In time, the expectation is still that Armstrong will develop into a quality No 8. Are there any youth prospects (for example, Braiden Graham) who could force their way into first-team consideration for next season? — John C. At the risk of sounding pessimistic, I’d consider it unlikely, unless Everton qualify for Europe and therefore need more rotation options. Before last summer, the feeling at the club was that only Armstrong was close to pushing for regular minutes. I’ve not seen much yet to suggest that has changed. Striker Graham, 18, is a talent — a tremendous finisher with smart movement — but some questions remain. He is small, so where does he fit positionally? And can he physically handle the men’s game? He probably needs a loan first. Longer term, I’d keep an eye on 17-year-old midfielders Malik Olayiwola and Demi Akarakiri, both of whom have quickly risen through the ranks. But the plan for now is likely to be that they get further under-21s minutes, followed by loans as a bridging step to the Everton first team. Akarakiri is also on course to be out of contract in the summer and the club will be keen to agree a new deal. Shea Pita, a 16-year-old winger who has also featured at under-21 level this season, is another promising talent. So, when can I buy a kit with the Toyota logo on the front? — Trent D. The club are still in discussions with several potential front-of-shirt partners. The most tangible link we have had so far is to financial services firm CMC Partners, but I’m yet to hear a definitive update. This is going to be a challenging period for clubs like Everton who have gambling-industry partners. New legislation in the UK means over half of the Premier League will be looking for different main shirt sponsors, and there is a fear that at least some will either struggle to match existing deals or head into the new season without a replacement sorted out. Everton are hoping to buck that trend and feel they are well placed to do so, as chief partnerships officer Mark Rollings told me here. There is also nothing to preclude current front-of-shirt sponsor Stake buying space on the kit’s sleeves instead or being some other form of club partner next season. Do you think that Everton will get a European place for next season? — Anonymous. I’ll be honest: at the start of this season, I simply didn’t think Europe was on the cards for Everton. I expected an improvement, based on their summer investment, but the table is tight with seven games to go (for most teams) and anything up to 11 of the 20 clubs could qualify. Everton are, by my money, currently slightly ahead of schedule. The squad still has clear deficiencies, but the win against Chelsea last time out was a huge boost. In that sense, the three-week break for internationals and the FA Cup quarter-finals probably came at the wrong time. Can they keep the momentum going? Their next two games, against direct rivals for Europe in Brentford (away) and Liverpool (at home), will tell us a lot. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Patrick Boyland has been The Athletic's Everton correspondent since 2019. Prior to joining the company, he worked for ESPN, Mail Online and press agency Sportsbeat, where he covered numerous major sporting events. Boyland's views on Everton have been sought out by local and national media, while he is also a regular on a number of podcasts focusing on the club. Follow him on Twitter: @Paddy_Boyland