Everton were joined by the likes of Manchester United, Arsenal and Everton in launching a transfer mission to scout out young talents at Leeds United’s under-23 clash against Nottingham Forest, according to the Nottingham Post.
The report states that the Premier League outfits, as well as a number of English League clubs, watched on as the Whites defeated their Championship opponents 2-0 at Thorpe Arch, Ryan Edmondson and Jordan Stevens grabbing the goals.
It is stated that Nottingham Forest’s Brennan Johnson, a 17-year-old forward, has already been a transfer target of Everton in the past, and that he was one of the star performers for the visitors.
Opinion
It is always difficult to judge just what scouts are looking for at these sort of games, but the fact that Everton have been credited with prior interest in Johnson might give a little signal as to why the Toffees were in attendance. There has been a great deal of young talent coming through the academy and reserve system at Goodison Park at recent years and it appears as though the Merseyside outfit think that the young striker might be able to follow in the footsteps of the likes of Kieran Dowell and Jonjoe Kenny. Still, with 21 other players starting the game, the Toffees had plenty of young talent to look at, and Leeds certainly seem to have their fair share of starlets waiting for their first team chance, manager Marcelo Bielsa already showing he follows the rules of ‘if they are good enough, they are old enough’. It will be interesting to see if Everton do make another visit to Thorpe Arch any time soon, for if so, it could be a man in white that has taken their fancy.