According to a report from the Daily Star, Director of football Steve Walsh is being criticised for his transfer strategy at Everton.
No one’s going to deny it has been a difficult start to the season for Everton. So much more was anticipated, with everyone under fire.
This includes Blues’ Director of football, Steve Walsh. According to a report from the Daily Star‘s Paul Hetherington, questions are being asked about Walsh’s transfer strategy.
The genesis of this stems from the fact Everton are near the bottom of the Premier League, despite spending around £150 million during the summer. One of the main areas of criticism, relates to essentially buying three number 10s.
As Hetherington writes, people are bemused by Walsh’s approach, which saw the Blues sign Wayne Rooney, Davy Klaassen and Gylfi Sigurdsson. There are apparently some who even believe Everton already have the perfect player for the role, in Ross Barkley.
Let’s start right there, with the reference to Barkley, which shouldn’t even form part of any condemnation. The England international made it quite clear he has no intention of staying, after refusing to sign a contract extension.
In addition, Barkley picked up an injury during the summer and has yet to even play this season. In fairness, Hetherington does make reference to the midfielder being unsettled, but either way, he is not relevant to any criticism of Walsh.
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So what about the apparent bemusement of bringing in Rooney, Klaassen and Sigurdsson, while also playing them all in the same team? All we can say is, the benefit of hindsight is a wonderful thing.
When all three players had been signed, do you remember hearing or reading much criticism from media or fans alike, about Walsh (and Ronald Koeman) signing three number 10s? No, neither did we.
Now it’s true playing all three in the same team has been troublesome – this is clear during games. However, that’s just it; no one really had a problem with the signings until we actually saw the performances on the pitch.
The reality is most people were excited with bringing the trio in. To criticise Walsh after the fact, is easy — and too convenient — to do.
The next aspect Hetherington refers to, is Walsh’s policy of making certain recruits with a view to the future, rather than now. Now, he doesn’t specify if this is actually a criticism or not, but we’ll assume it is, otherwise why include it in the article?
And if this is being viewed negatively, it makes little to no sense. Everton should be — and to be honest have been — lauded for their approach to the youth setup at Goodison Park.
Look no further than last season’s Premier League 2 title as evidence of the sterling work being done with the younger players. In addition, it’s not as if the senior team has suffered – at least in terms of the effort and investment made during the summer, to improve the squad.
(Apart from Rooney, Sigurdsson and Klasseen, Everton also brought in the like of Jordan Pickford and Micheal Keane for big money. Last time we checked, those two were playing pretty well.)
As far as we’re concerned, the only area where you can even remotely make any criticism of Walsh’ transfer strategy, is selling Romelu Lukaku without having his replacement lined up. Even here though, it has taken a perfect storm of circumstances to highlight this.
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Be honest, did anyone predict Lukaku to get off to such a sensational start with Manchester United? Similarly, did we really think Everton would only have four goals through seven league games?
Of course, this doesn’t change the fact that once again, criticism seemed minimal at the time of the sale. The perspective was generally along the lines of believing it was sensible to move on from Luakau as soon as possible, getting the money in and there still being a month left in the transfer window, to find a replacement up front.
Overall, if people are criticising Walsh, this is ridiculous. Anyone can pick apart someone’s approach, strategy, etc, after the fact, if it goes wrong. (Something which the sports media and fans are repeatedly guilty of.)
At the end of the day, the Chorley-born Walsh has an outstanding reputation in the game and is someone Everton need. Look no further than his scouting and recommending players such as Gianfranco Zola and Didier Drogba at Chelsea, along with Riyad Mahrez and Jamie Vardy at Leicester City.
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What’s your take on the apparent criticism of Walsh? Do you agree with it or not? Does it even make sense? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.