David Alexander Hughes has been discussing whether or not Everton should adopt a change in transfer strategy.
Over the 2019/20 season, the Toffees plunged a whopping £107.91m into transfers and sealed the arrival of seven players (per Transfermarkt).
However, after the Merseyside outfit endured their worst finishing position in the Premier League since the 2003/04 season (per Transfermarkt), it would appear that something has gone wrong.
So, in the latest episode of the All Together Now Podcast, Hughes spoke about Everton’s transfer policy and suggested a possible change.
He said: “We seem to do really good business in the lower leagues and [there are] really talented players in there, and what you’ll obviously avoid doing as well if you purchase from [the Championship] is you’re not, on the whole, paying the really high fees that you’re paying for proven Premier League players.
“So, yeah, I think too often, Everton have been a little bit – certainly since they’ve had the money under the [Farhad] Moshiri era – they’ve been trying to buy the ready-made player, but it’s often backfired and instead they’ve bought okay players for a lot of money and it’s ended up biting them on the backside.
“Whereas I think now they just need to start going back to being a little bit more shrewd, and a little bit, I guess, braver in their recruitment. And I think you can definitely find some talent [in the lower leagues].
“If it was me personally, I’d be looking down the divisions a little bit.”
TIF Thoughts…
As can be seen in what the journalist had to say, he clearly believes that Everton have previously wasted money on “proven Premier League players” and that has ultimately “backfired”.
Would you like to see Everton signing more players from the Championship?
Yes, would be a good idea
No, we need more quality
A prime example of the previous transfer strategy would be Gylfi Sigurdsson, who was signed from Swansea City for £45m in the summer of 2017 (per BBC).
Following his signing for the club, the Icelandic midfielder’s market value was £27m, however, now that value has fallen to just £16.2m (per Transfermarkt).
So, perhaps a change in transfer strategy could be a smart option for the Toffees, as Hughes suggests.