Improvement on him for player who might still leave Everton this summer

As all the increasingly feverish transfer talk continues unabated and Everton still haven’t signed anyone other than Ashley Young, one more of the current players could still leave this summer.

That player might be Amadou Onana. The 2022 summer signing from Lille has long been the subject of on and off transfer talk almost since he arrived on Merseyside a year ago.

Everton are in desperate straights financially after so many years’ of profiligate spending on players and managers.

After the departure of a host of players since the window opened, Onana is one of the few individuals left in the squad who could fetch a decent fee, along with someone like Jordan Pickford.

The Blues will surely not consider selling Pickford and the England keeper has repeatedly said he is happy at Goodison Park.

So, that really leaves Onana as one of the few options left if the Toffees want to raise some much-needed additional funds to strengthen the squad this summer, as they need so much to do.

There has been discussion by some of Everton’s coaches relayed through the media, about the next steps for Onana in terms of his development.

Steve Stone, who is one of Sean Dyche’s assistants, has been talking about the work they have been doing on the training ground with the young Belgian midfielder to enable him to progress.

Despite his fee, athleticism and talent and the fact the 21-year-old has already captained his country, Onana’s performances were very inconsistent last season.

At times during the last campaign he looked commanding in the centre of the park and at others he appeared lost and unable to affect games as he should have done. By the end of the season he had been dropped by Dyche to the bench.

Several other Premier League clubs have long been linked with a move for Onana, including Chelsea, Manchester United and most recently, West Ham United, now that Declan Rice has departed for Arsenal.

Nothing concrete has come of any of these rumours and so Onana remains an Everton player, for now anyway.

Stone’s comments conclude that the next steps are up to the player himself, if he wants to become the sort of dominant midfield powerhouse his athleticism and ability suggest he could be.

However, if a big offer does come in for him before the window shuts, might he end up continuing his development and fulfilling that talent elsewhere?