Everton are going for it in a very big way this season.
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In his second season in charge, Ronald Koeman has spent big to rebuild the Toffees after Romelu Lukaku’s departure to Manchester United. This Everton side now has plenty of depth and attacking talent to push for a top four finish. With rivals Liverpool also pushing hard to return to past glories another golden age could be upon us on Merseyside, especially with Everton boasting a whole host of top young talent.
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Despite not winning a trophy since the FA Cup in 1995, historically they are one of England’s most successful teams with 15 major trophies to their name including nine league titles. The last of those league triumphs came back in 1987 and although the Goodison Park faithful aren’t getting ahead of themselves just yet, excitement is building under Koeman with Wayne Rooney now back at his boyhood club, the core of England’s U-20 World Cup winning side with the Toffees and new stadium plans kicking on.
Best, worst case scenario: If they finish in the top four, win a domestic cup and make a deep run in the Europa League Koeman will delight every single Evertonian. However, another seventh-place finish and no serious push for a silverware may have some wondering what all the fuss is about.
Best possible XI is…
----- Pickford -----
---- Coleman ---- Keane ---- Williams ---- Baines ----
---- Schneiderlin ---- Gueye ----
---- Klaassen ---- Davies ---- Rooney ----
----- Ramirez -----
Transfers in: Jordan Pickford ($33 million, Sunderland), Michael Keane ($33 million, Burnley), Davy Klaassen ($31.2 million, Ajax), Sandro Ramirez ($6.8 million, Malaga), Wayne Rooney (Free, Manchester United), Cuco Martina (Free, Southampton), Henry Onyekuru ($8.9 million, Eupen), Josh Bowler ($1.98 million, QPR), Lewis Gibson ($1.2 million, Newcastle United), Nathangelo Markelo (Undisclosed, Volendam), Boris Mathis (Free, Metz)
Transfers out: Romelu Lukaku ($99.1 million, Manchester United), Gerard Deulofeu ($14 million, Barcelona), Tom Cleverley ($10.5 million, Watford), Aiden McGeady ($330,000, Sunderland), Arouna Kone (Free, Sivasspor)
Last season
- 7th in Premier League
- FA Cup 3rd round
- EFL Cup 3rd round
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - JULY 27: Wayne Rooney of Everton with his team mates on his home debut prior to the UEFA Europa League Third Qualifying Round, First Leg match between Everton and MFK Ruzomberok at Goodison Park on July 27, 2017 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
Getty Images
Star player: Davy Klaassen - The former Ajax captain will take some time to adjust to the Premier League but all of the early signs are good. His ability to ghost into space in midfield and attack mean he will slot perfectly into the fluid system Koeman is creating and his link-up play with Rooney and others is already developing well. He may not score 15 goals or grab 15 assists, but the Dutch international has the ability to make Everton tick.
Coaches’ Corner: Koeman has made this Everton squad his team with a summer of heavy spending before Lukaku’s big-money departure was confirmed. That was the correct way to go about this and the Toffees have big hopes for the Europa League plus trying to sustain a push for the top four. Koeman may well play a 3-4-3 system at times this season and he has a big enough squad, littered with talented youngsters hungry for game time, to cope with the Thursday-Sunday demands, but replacing 25-goal man Lukaku is his biggest task. He’s gone for the scatter-gun approach by adding Rooney, Klaassen, Sandro and possibly Gylfi Sigurdsson to all chip in. He loves to build solid defensive units who are also free-flowing in attack and at times last season Everton were one-dimensional with Lukaku and wantaway Ross Barkley in attack. That will no longer be the case.
PST predicts: The top six are ridiculously strong after another summer of heavy spending and keeping their best players, so it will be tough for Everton to push past seventh spot, especially with the rigors of the Europa League. That said, anything less than seventh will be a big disappointment and I think Koeman’s boys will finish in the top six as one of the top clubs will slip up. Expect a deep run in the Europa League too.
