So we come to the near the end of the season and the summer transfer window approaches. Let's say we have 100M to spend (without needing to sell Lukaku) who should we buy? I'm talking about names not just positions. Here's my picks.
Striker(s) Dolberg (Ajax) - pretty skillful but a bit raw.
Moussa Dembele (Celtic) - quick, strong and good finisher.
CBs - Michael Keane (burnley) - Looks a good prospect so far
Bjorn Engles (Club Brugge)- Tall, good in the air and can play a bit
LB - Jetro Willems (PSV) - strong, skillfull and can pass
RB - unsure but we do need a natural one.
Playmaker / winger Bruma (Galatasarray) - very very quick and skillful
Youri Tielemans (Anderlecht) Great feet, can tackle, can pass, can score goals. Looks the real deal.
Rodrigo Bentancur (Boca) Amazing skills (not sure about end product but still young enough to coach)
GK yvon mvogo (Young Boys) Looks a really good prospect but might only be back up
Gianluigi Donnarumma (AC Milan) He's meant to be the next big thing but will be difficult to buy from AC Milan.
Pickford (sunderland) Again young prospect.
Jack Butland (Stoke) A much better option for 1st team goalkeeper.
What are your choices?
If we want to move on to the next level, I personally think it's important to identify the positions that need strengthening first, before listing random names, and then, look at options.
Goalkeeper is an obvious one, as both Stekelenburg and Robles are Calamitous, so I think both need upgrading. Keepers can have good reactions, and string a few good games together, but they need to be calm, and make the right decisions, and that's not something you can see from watching videos, as it's only ever the mistakes that stand out. When a keeper makes a good decision, nobody notices. Both our Keepers make 'too many' bad decisions.
Defending, I think if it wasn't for our midfielders our Defenders would have their arses served to them on a plate, and would have no problem getting shut of most of the seniors, including our Fullbacks.
Phil Jagielka - Too old and makes too many errors. Contract expires in June 2018, so time to sell him and cash in?
Ashley Williams - Too old and too slow, and I don't see captain material.
Ramiro Funes Mori - Gets the blame too much, but ball watches & often oblivious to oncoming attackers
Leighton Baines - Rarely crosses a ball, and rarely tries to beat a man. Plays it safe all the time, so given he's not the greatest defender in the world, I don't think he is attacking enough to be immune from getting the boot.
Seamus Coleman - gets forward far more than Baines, but I don't rate him as a defender, and think all his praise comes from attacking. Let's be honest, we could put a Winger at Right Back, or Left Back, and they'd be fabulous at attacking too, and average in defence also, so his broken leg gives us an opportunity to try somebody new.
Holgate has looked like he's almost ready, and Galloway and Garbutt have both shown potential, so maybe next season they can step up. Not seen enough of Pennington to assess, and unfair to judge him when he's thrown in at the deep end.
Midfield, we're possibly the strongest I've ever seen in terms of defensive midfield options, with Morgan Schneiderlin, Tom Davies, Idrissa Gueye, James McCarthy, Muhamed Besic, Gareth Barry, and now Joe Williams emerging.
However, We can only have so many players in a squad, and I think that Gareth Barry will definitely miss out next season, and James McCarthy will be sold. Besic will get a chance to impress pre-season, and maybe the first half of next season, but come January, if he hasn't impressed, I don't see a future, given he isn't a Koeman signing.
Attacking Midfield, we have Ross Barkley, Aaron Lennon, Kevin Mirallas, and Yannick Bolassie. Lennon is definitely out of the picture, and contracted until June 2018, as is Mirallas, but I'd keep Kev and sell Aaron, but not hugely bothered about either.
(Gerard Deulofeu probably won't come back, nor Tom Cleverley, and neither will Aiden McGeady.)
Attacking midfield in my opinion needs more goal scorers, so definitely needs quality additions. Ross Barkley when playing well is good enough to keep, but I disagree with anybody who says "build a team around him", as his end product is frustrating. Maybe there isn't enough movement in front of him, but he hesitates, and I don't think that is going to change.
I'm not 100% sure Koeman rates him, and I get the feeling that the contract offered to him is not one that reflects a player Everton are desperate to keep, and is a bit of a "Take it or leave it" contract, that will put the onus on Ross, rather than the club, if he leaves.
Mirallas? How many times does he frustrate, as well as impress?
Attack, Romelu Lukaku is a definite keeper, and we have one summer transfer window to impress him enough that he will see the club's intentions, and ambitions, and we'd best do it early, or he could be gone by September if we don't.
Arouna Kone, what a joke of a signing he was, and a total waste of a squad place since the day he arrived.
Enner Valencia looks like he has something to offer that complements Lukaku, but on the fence as to whether to keep him or not. We really need to give him game time between now and the end of the season to see what he truly has.
Our young strikers, or any other positions are exempt from my analysis.
So, in summary, get shut of the following players:
Joel Robles
Maarten StekelenburgPhil Jagielka
Ashley WilliamsGareth Barry
James McCarthy
Aaron Lennon
Gerard Deulofeu
Tom Cleverley
Arouna Kone
Maybe get shut of:
Leighton Baines
Ramiro Funes Mori
Kevin Mirallas
Enner Valencia
Muhamed BesicI'll offer some replacements in another reply.