Mason Holgate could be among three players to leave Everton in the January transfer window after Marcel Brands admitted that the squad at Goodison Park is too big, according to the Mirror.
The newspaper claimed in it’s live transfer blog on Thursday [12:19pm] that as well as the centre-back, Oumar Niasse and Morgan Schneiderlin could also be on their way out of the Merseyside club in order to free up space for new signings.
It is understood that director of football Brands is unwilling to add to the current 27-man squad and Everton are only likely to make new additions next month if they can force others out.
OPINION
Marco Silva inherited a squad in the summer that has had a lot of money spent on it over the last couple of years, so he was bound to end up with too many players on the books because it is hard to get rid of players who are on long-term deals. The Toffees did well to offload players like Davy Klaassen, Wayne Rooney and Ramiro Funes Mori, but there are still a few too many players on the payroll at Goodison and that needs sorting. Silva has ended up with a very good first team now and unless there are injuries and suspensions, he is unlikely to make many drastic changes. If there was one position that needs strengthening in January it is the centre-forward role, but even that might only be strengthened if Niasse leaves, or even Cenk Tosun, who has struggled in his first year in England.