The biggest talking point right now amongst Everton fans, is the headline grabbing interest in youth academy graduate Anthony Gordon from Chelsea. The London club have had more than one approach turned down now by Everton, rumoured to be around £42-£45million as Everton look set to hold out for £50mill+ to even sit down and talk to Chelsea. There has been interest this summer in Gordon from Spurs & Newcastle respectively, but the dizzying heights Chelsea are seemingly willing to go to has got Everton fans talking amongst themselves, should Everton sell their ‘star boy’?
The overwhelming answer is yes from I’d say the majority of the Evertonians I’ve seen discuss the matter on twitter/spoken to. £50/60million for a 21 year old with 4 PL goals to his name last season is a lot of money for Everton right now, it also offers the chance to reinvest in much needed quality additions for the first team squad. Additions are needed in attack, as the first 3 games of the PL have shown just how blunt Everton are in the opposition box after injury to DCL & Richarlison’s summer departure to Spurs. Everton need additions to the forward line, and quite frankly should have had it by now, with the impending sale of Richarlison becoming apparent early in the summer window, so to be little more than a week out from deadline day without a goal scorer being added to the Everton ranks is incompetence of the highest level.
So, would it make sense for Everton to cash in on Gordon?
In my opinion? Absolutely. The fee is really good for a player who of course has big potential, but is nowhere near that fee level of potential yet. It’s a brilliant deal for Everton football club, whichever way you look at it, it’s pure profit against P&S and offers Everton the chance to bring in 2/3 additions that could potentially help steer them away from a relegation battle. The player may go on to be worth more than that at Chelsea, he has a lot of natural desirable qualities, but can Everton gamble on that potential being realised with themselves? there is every chance Gordon could be worth an extra 10/20million if he sets the world alight this season with the toffees, but there’s every chance also that he doesn’t. for me Everton can’t gamble with this sort of figure in the position they’re in, all be it it’s not ideal for this deal to go through in the final week of the window as it adds more potential pressure to replace him on top of the desire to STILL replace Richarlison. It means Everton could be in a state of panic, and selling clubs know they’ve had a cash injection so will more than likely demand more cash on deals, but on the other hand it offers the chance for Everton to shop in a better shop standard of players.
If you’re talking out & out output (which isn’t the be all and end all in replacing players) there is actually an argument that Everton could already have their Anthony Gordon replacement in new summer signing Dwight McNeil, to replace Gordon’s output in the PL last season Dwight McNeil would need 4G&3A. It’s a realistic target for McNeil to hit, we know last season his stats aren’t brilliant but in a side which Frank Lampard wants to have the ball it should see McNeil get more opportunity, and it’s also easy to forget McNeil is only a year older than Gordon. So taking this in to account, the Gordon money should actually be spent on replacing Richarlison’s goals & more, which although I find bonkers could work? It’s a fee of pure profit so allows Everton to spend more than what they were able to spend on Richarlison’s fee income, all be it again not ideal that it’s in the last week of the window where panic sets in. Talking replacements is easier said than done, and understand obvious trust issues from supporters on Everton recruitment, but Everton need additions. Think good question to ask is if Everton neglected Gordon offer & went in to the season with the same attack as last season, with McNeil instead of Richarlison? That’s Everton playing with fire with huge risk of dropping out of the top flight. All be it Gordon sale or not I think Everton add a forward, but Gordon sale invites more than one addition & makes it possible for Everton to add quality.
Another talking point is the value, and the question of gambling on the potential that Gordon would be worth more than this in the future. £60million is the latest offer from Chelsea reported through the media, how much more over that could Gordon be worth in an Everton shirt? I personally don’t see Gordon ever being a £100m player, so if there’s potential for him to say get to £80mill value, is it worth Everton risking that investment for that? If we were in a stronger position then maybe it would be, but in our position where I think it’s very real Gordon doesn’t push on, is another year down on his contract & doesn’t see that value increase, Everton could be left to rue their decision not to cash in.
Understand it’s never nice to watch one of our own leave the club for pastures new, but the position Everton finds itself in, needing additions to try and get away from a very realistic relegation battle once again, the fee is just too good to turn down for a player whose worth nowhere near that as of time of writing.
This is no slight on Anthony Gordon as a player or personally either, Gordon stepped up last season at such a young age and gave everything he had to ensure PL survival or the club. He’s a good player too, who has the potential to go on to be a very good player, but to put it simply It’s a Chelsea team who are in a good position to buy potential, it’s an Everton team that’s a bad a position to gamble on potential.
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