Welcome to our Everton FC live blog for Wednesday, February 22, where we will be bringing you all the latest Blues news and transfer rumours.
Stick with us throughout the day as we bring you breaking stories, comments and reaction to all the big talking points from Goodison Park - as well, of course, the latest transfer gossip from all over the globe.
Everton are continuing to be linked with a move for Atalanta striker DUvan Zapata, plus there are also updates on Benfica star Florentina Luis and Lyon forward Moussa Dembele.
As well as that, we will also be building up to this weekend's Premier League clash between Everton and Aston Villa from Goodison Park.
Get involved and send your thoughts to @LivEchoEFC.
And don't forget to subscribe to our free Everton FC newsletter, our YouTube channel and listen to our Royal Blue Podcast, with all your favourite ECHO regulars including Joe Thomas, Chris Beesley, Connor O'Neill, Gavin Buckland and Paul Wheelock.
A huge update
Jordan Pickford is expected to sign a new deal with Everton after speculation over his future at Goodison Park.
The paperwork for the new deal is expected next week. Great news for Sean Dyche!
What Everton must do
The Premier League's profit and sustainability (P&S) rules have been impacting Everton for some two years.
The heavy investment into the playing squad in the early years of owner Farhad Moshiri's reign was done so to try and bridge the gap between the Blues and the so-called 'big six', the aim being to spend to improve the product on the pitch to deliver success that would turn into prize money and greater revenues. The Champions League was the ultimate aim.
Read the full story HERE
Jordan Pickford new deal
Jordan Pickford is close to signing a new contract to extend his stay at Everton, ending all doubt over his future.
The Everton stopper had been linked with moves to Chelsea and Tottenham previously, but is set to stay with the Blues, according to Paul Joyce of The Times.
The England goalkeeper moved to Goodison Park six years ago and has made over 200 appearances for the club.
Everton may face awkward decision
Everton could be impacted by potential agreement between the government and the Premier League over the removal of gambling sponsors from the front of shirts.
With a white paper on gambling regulation in the UK set to be published in the coming weeks, the BBC report that the government are 'likely' to agree a deal with the Premier League where clubs would be urged to make 'voluntary changes' to front of shirt sponsorships, which are prevalent in English football's top tier with eight of the 20 members clubs having front of shirt deals with gambling firms.
Read the full story HERE
Derby fine
Everton have been charged £40,000 after the spat in the Merseyside derby at Anfield. Jordan Pickford and Andy Robertson's coming together sparked uglier scenes as players got involved.
Liverpool were fined £25,000 and the Blues were made to pay £15,000 more after being previously charged in the past 12 months.
Brad Friedel praises Sean Dyche
Brad Friedel praised Sean Dyche to Sporting Post.
"Sean Dyche is one of the coaches I respect more than most in the game. He did an incredible job at Burnley and look at what he’s done in a short space of time at Everton. I want Villa to get the result but I see Sean getting at least a draw here, I think his revival with Everton is well and truly underway.
"Dyche is playing percentages of course and getting a bit of luck, it was a fortunate goal against Leeds, but look at their use of set pieces - almost every one is a goal! The way he always puts players around the goalkeeper makes it hard to come out. He puts the big boys in and their service is great, it’s a melee! I think there is at least a goal or two in it for Everton, likely from a set piece or a counter attack, something of that nature. But his teams are really hard to play against, especially when they are fighting against relegation."
Coming up
On Saturday, Everton will once again play at home as they welcome Aston Villa to Goodison Park. Sean Dyche has a 100% win ratio at Goodison and will be looking to make it three wins from as many games as Blues boss.
A win for Everton could move them level with Leicester in 14th place.
Coady praises Dyche;'s training regime
“I think a lot of it is behind-closed-doors works that supporters don’t see on the training pitch.
“We have to be pushing each other every single day on the training pitch — I think that’s where winners and losers are made.
“Training has to be competitive at all times, not to the point where you’re kicking lumps out of each other but in terms of being desperate to win, being desperate to contribute with a goal or an assist or a block or a tackle. That’s where it starts.
“If you have that every day in training then it becomes normal to carry that on at the weekend. That’s where we’re getting to.
“The gaffer helps with that competitiveness and there’s little forfeits in the sessions that you don’t want to be on the end of — nose flicks, ear flicks and all kinds!
Everton may face awkward decision on record sponsorship deal after government review
Everton could be impacted by potential agreement between the government and the Premier League over the removal of gambling sponsors from the front of shirts.
With a white paper on gambling regulation in the UK set to be published in the coming weeks, the BBC report that the government are 'likely' to agree a deal with the Premier League where clubs would be urged to make 'voluntary changes' to front of shirt sponsorships, which are prevalent in English football's top tier with eight of the 20 members clubs having front of shirt deals with gambling firms.
Everton are among those eight teams having signed a 'club record' multi-year deal with online casino Stake.com last year. That deal arrived after the Blues took up an option to end its previous main partnership with online car dealer Cazoo early.
Just prior to the pandemic, at the start of 2020 Everton CEO Denise Barrett-Baxendale said: "Moving forward, in an ideal world we would look to have a different type of sponsor on the front of our shirt."
Read the full story, here.
Louis Saha: Everton were right to sack Lampard
Speaking to Lordping, the former Goodison Park favourite said:
Everton made the right decision sacking Frank Lampard, you can see that by the results.
The defensive side was very important but that’s not solely down to the manager. Overall, the team and squad needed a change and the easy one was the manager, but it has the impact they wanted.
They beat Arsenal which was fantastic, but then the big one against Leeds was huge.
I think it was the right decision because this manager is brilliant in terms of his honesty and his communication was right on point.
Sean Dyche facing nervous Amadou Onana wait and three major Everton questions
Everton returned to winning ways at the weekend as they claimed a huge three points against Leeds United at Goodison Park.
After being defeated 2-0 by Liverpool last Monday, Sean Dyche made it two wins from two at Goodison Park as Seamus Coleman’s second-half wonder strike was enough to edge out Michael Skubala’s side.
The win moved Everton out of the relegation zone and next up for the Blues is another home game, this time against Aston Villa. And the ECHO has taken a look at the changes Blues boss Dyche could make to his starting line-up for the fixture.
Read the full story, here.
Everton yet to make an offer for midfielder they are 'in love' with
Benfica will rebuff any imminent offers for midfielder Florentino Luis, according to reports.
The 23-year-old midfielder has impressed for the Portuguese giants so far this term and more recently in the absence of Enzo Fernandez and has been linked with a move to Goodison Park.
Reports in recent weeks have claimed that the Blues could look to make a move for Florentino in order to steal a march on competitors for his signature, but the Record claim Benfica chiefs will not entertain any offers for the midfielder until the summer at the earliest.
Although the Blues are yet to make any formal offer to Benfica, however, the Record claim Goodison Park officials are 'in love' with Florentino.
'Everyone has the same goal' - Everton fan gets VIP treatment after amazing transformation
Keith Paterson is a big Evertonian but he’s nearly half the man he used to be after shedding eight stones and he given a VIP reward for his weight loss by being given the ‘blue carpet’ treatment at Goodison Park.
Scouser Keith, who now lives in Upholland, used the help of MANvFAT, which encourages overweight males to shape up while playing football, was in rude health after watching his beloved Blues beat Leeds United 1-0. He submitted a winning case study to an online campaign run by MANvFAT, who contacted the club to seek a suitable reward for their member’s incredible achievement.
Everton were delighted to throw their weight behind Keith by offering the 42-year-old two matchday tickets for Saturday’s Premier League clash with Leeds, when the Blues tipped the scales in their own favour with a welcome victory for Sean Dyche’s side to climb out of the relegation zone. Keith, who told his story to a wider audience on the club’s live pre-match show, said: “It was a great day, topped off with a perfect result, so thank you for the experience.”
Participants in the unique MANvFAT network compete in small-sided games in local leagues, with each player’s weight loss directly impacting on their team’s performance, as individuals work to score goals both on and off the pitch. Men with a Body Mass Index of over 27.5 are eligible to sign up to the programme, which results in over 90% of participants reporting positive results.
Read the full story, here.
Everton would need to list
Serie A outfit Atalanta would be willing to listen to offers for forward Duvan Zapata this summer, according to reports.
The 31-year-old was linked with both Everton and Southampton in the January transfer window as both clubs looked to address their woes in front of goal and could be allowed to leave Bergamo if a "good" offer arrives during the summer, according to AS.
Since arriving at the club in 2019, the Colombian forward has enjoyed a fine spell in front of goal and is currently Atalanta's all-time overseas goalscorer.
Would you take Zapata at Goodison Park, Blues?
Vitalii Mykolenko's brave dad missed Everton game to join Ukraine military effort
Vitalii Mykolenko’s brave dad was due to watch Everton play Manchester City but instead ended up joining the fight to save their homeland.
His father, Sergei, was set to visit Goodison Park for the first time in February of last year but his plans were disrupted when Russia invaded Ukraine. Mykolenko discovered his dad’s brave move in an emotional phone call as he was driving to Finch Farm for preparations for the game.
Advertisement
Reflecting on that conversation with his mum, Olesia, he said: “I don’t have kids yet but I remember my first thought being, ‘My father is never going to meet my kids.’ That was my first thought.”
Almost 12 months on from the invasion of Ukraine, Mykolenko is a popular figure on Merseyside who has established himself as the first choice left-back for what is now his third Everton manager.
He sealed the move from Dynamo Kyiv on New Year’s Day, 2022, and has played a prominent role in two of the club’s best days since then - scoring in the crucial 2-1 win at Leicester City during last season’s relegation battle and setting up the important second goal in the win over Crystal Palace in October, a game that was the high expression of what Frank Lampard was trying to build at Goodison before Everton’s season plunged into chaos.
He also had the honour of wearing the captain’s armband in a pre-season friendly with his former club that was held to raise funds for the humanitarian effort in Ukraine.
Read the full story, here.
Good morning, Everton fans
Good morning and welcome to our LIVE Everton transfer blog.
There's plenty of speculation doing the rounds at the moment, and we'll be bringing them all to you right here.
As well as that, we will also be building up to this weekend's Premier League clash between the Blues and Aston Villa from Goodison Park.
Make sure you stay tuned!
