Everton are working hard behind the scenes to strengthen in the transfer market according to Sean Dyche.
Ashley Young is undergoing a medical with the club on Tuesday and would become the first addition of the summer should everything go to plan. The 38-year-old would join a threadbare squad that has lost a series of influential and experienced figures this summer already.
Efforts to ensure more new teammates follow are continuing but Dyche insisted patience would be required due to the complexity of the market and the situation Everton are in.
He has also suggested the door is open for players who have rejoined the squad after playing on loan last season to impress him as he considers all options ahead of the opening game with Fulham at Goodison Park on August 12.
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Young’s arrival would herald the addition of an experienced professional who was valued at Aston Villa last season. His versatility would be a key attribute for an Everton squad thin on options - the former Manchester United and Inter player can play on both sides of the defence and midfield.
More signings would be needed, however, with the club desperately lacking support for Dominic Calvert-Lewin. After arriving at the club’s training base in the French Alps, Dyche explained the current position on transfers.
He said: “I have always said it is not as easy as people think. You need finance but it is not just that, it is aligning all the deals, it’s aligning all the people involved, it is not just a player and the manager and the opposite manager, there is a lot more to it than that so it does take a lot of work but there is a lot of work going on behind the scenes, there always has been to be fair, sometimes there is a bit of noise about that, but we can’t tell everyone everything we are trying to do so there is work being done and we will see where it takes us.”
Everton are thought to be operating with a tight budget this summer and Dyche appeared to acknowledge this, adding patience would be required as work continues. He said: “There are very few clubs who can put enough into a situation to get it done there and then. We are not at that state at the moment but we have to work very hard at the deals and that is what we will do.”
Senior and academy players have returned from loan spells, meaning Dyche is getting the opportunity to train with them for the first time. Dele Alli, Andre Gomes and Joao Virginia are among those on the pre-season tour after playing elsewhere last season. Jarrad Branthwaite has not joined with the squad because he, like James Garner, has been given additional time to rest following their success in the Under-21s Euros with England.
Academy starlets such as Tom Cannon, Lewis Warrington, Lewis Dobbin, Tyler Onyango and Ryan Astley are with the tour group after their own taste of first team experience in the Football League.
Dyche said: “The younger lads are certainly here to try to impress. Some of them were on loan last season and they’ll get a chance now to work with the group more closely and with us. Pre-season is always a time when you can make a mark as staff take notice. There are plenty of young lads here due to some of the internationals being away so we won’t have the whole squad for another 10 days to two weeks but the majority are back here now.”
