Longtime Southampton fullback Kyle Walker-Peters has indicated that he will be leaving the Saints after half a decade, with the club confirming the move this morning.
The England international has only played for two clubs during his professional career, having spent his early days at Tottenham before moving to Southampton in 2019 when he was just 22-years-old. Now 28, Walker-Peters will be looking for a new home.
Early rumors suggest that Fulham are leading the race for the player's signature, but the defender, who has spent time at both fullback positions, along with sliding in as a wing back and even a centerback this past season, should also be on Everton's radar.
The irony of Fulham getting involved is that the only reason they would need to be sniffing around KWP is because of the Cottagers are reportedly circling back on Kenny Tete in an attempt to lure him back to the club. The player was said to have a verbal agreement in place with Everton to join once his current deal runs out.
So why would Fulham need to add both Tete and Walker-Peters when there's overlap there and they still have Antonee Robinson patrolling the left-back position? Depth is vital, to be sure, but would the two players in question be happy to cede to the other if both signed for the London club?
We will see how that shakes out, but if Tete does, indeed, return to Fulham, then Everton should step in and convince Walker-Peters to come to Merseyside. He'd walk right into the starting XI and would provide something that Everton haven't had from their fullbacks in years: a presence going forward.
To be fair, KWP isn't the defender that Tete is, but he's a capable carrier of the football and someone who is willing to get forward when called upon. He's also been more consistently available, as Walker-Peters has played over 3000 minutes every season since joining Southampton, while Tete has never eclipsed 2800 minutes in his career.
The entire saga may be indicative of how difficult it will be for Everton to compete and build up the squad the way they want. That just means they'll need to be willing to zig when others zag or risk missing out on filling much needed holes in the team.