Everton are already holding talks regarding potential January signings, with the Liverpool Echo claiming that the Premier League outfit want a new winger and a box-to-box central midfielder.
You would need to have a heart of stone not to feel some pang of sympathy for Jean-Philippe Gbamin.
Making his first league start in over 800 days thanks to a relentless series of injuries, Everton’s £25 million forgotten man looked, well, about as rusty as you’d imagine given that he’d played just 11 minutes of football since August 2019.
Gbamin was hauled off at the interval following 45 minutes of chasing shadows at Molineux – Everton’s third successive top-flight loss.
According to the Athletic, Rafa Benitez wasn’t even convinced that Gbamin was ready to start away to an in-form Wolves.
But, with Abdoulaye Doucoure unavailable, and with Tom Davies’ confidence shattered by that humiliating 5-2 humbling at home to Watford, the Everton manager obviously felt that he had no choice but to throw Gbamin in at the deep end.
What next for Jean-Philippe Gbamin?
It should be no surprise, then, that a dynamic, energetic central midfielder is one of Everton’s top priorities heading into the January transfer window.
In the injury-enforced absence of Doucoure – arguably the club’s player of the season so far – Everton have lost twice, conceding seven goals along the way, while failing to exert any sort of dominance in the middle of the park.
Should a new midfielder arrive, that would only force Gbamin ever further down the pecking order, while raising further questions about the futures of Davies, Andre Gomes and Fabian Delph.
The Echo claims that talks over bringing in a new winger are also underway – hopefully one capable of replicating the impact both Andros Townsend and Alex Iwobi have made at Goodison Park.
Everton continue to be linked with Porto’s Luis Diaz but, given that cash is in short supply, it seems highly unlikely that a man with a £68 million release clause will be arriving on Gwladys Street any time soon.
The Echo believe that Everton will need to free up funds by selling a number of fringe players.
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