Two West Ham full-backs worth a closer look by Everton
Everton have been under severe financial pressure for a while now with mounting debts and the last campaign of course saw the club docked a final total of eight points for successive breaches of PSR.
Therefore going into the off-season, the Toffees were having to consider player sales in the transfer window to balance the books and avoid another breach.
In particular that meant allowing prize assets Amadou Onana and possibly Jarrad Branthwaite to leave if hefty bids came in for those two.
And in terms of any additions, the Blues were also almost certainly going to be shopping in the free-agent and loan market, although that situation may now change if the proposed takeover by Dan Friedkin can be done sooner rather than later.
In the last few days too things have moved on quickly and the potential sale of Lewis Dobbin to Aston Villa as Tim Iroegbunam comes the other way, may significantly improve Everton's finances enough to ensure the club will not fall foul of another PSR breach, regardless of other player sales.
At any rate until the takeover situation is resolved, the Toffees still need to shop carefully in the transfer market and with that in mind there are two West Ham United players who might help with what has been a problem position for the Blues.
Right-back is that position where Everton have tried to find a long-term successor to Seamus Coleman for a while now.
Nathan Patterson was signed in January 2021 and the young Scot has had a very up and down time since moving to Merseyside from Rangers.
He has not been able to consistently establish himself as Coleman's replacement with neither Frank Lampard or Sean Dyche seeming to have complete faith in him, and his Blues career has been blighted by injury too.
The other options tried at right-back by Dyche last season were ageing veteran Ashley Young and also Ben Godfrey, but neither is a long-term alternative to the Irishman.
Well the Hammers have two players - Ben Johnson and Vladimir Coufal - who's contracts are up at the end of June and who might provide a solution to what has become a headache for Dyche.
Johnson is probably the better bet as he is younger and can also play at left-back and in midfield, while he offers more in attack too.
That sort of profile makes him a player who does seem an ideal fit for a Dyche-led Everton side where Johnson's versatility and the ability to put in lots of crosses from wide areas suits what the manager requires.
As for Coufal he is a very experienced Czech international defender who is solid enough defensively and could provide a more short-term option, perhaps while Patterson has time to re-establish himself.
So, one or both of these players could be worth a closer look if West Ham aren't re-signing them, especially as the Toffees are still constrained by financial challenges while the wait for a conclusion to the ongoing takeover saga goes on.