After Everton‘s 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Sunday, David Moyes admitted that the dream of qualifying for Europe is slipping away from the team.
The Toffees are four points off seventh place with two matches left to play and would need a big swing in results to sneak into that seventh spot to have a chance of qualifying for the Conference League.
Moyes said: “And I’ve enjoyed talking about Europe, because it’s making the supporters dream again and me hopeful that maybe it can happen again.
“As you know, I’ve done it at West Ham, so I was hoping that I could get to a level where we could try and be competitive again at the European level. It has not gone yet, but it’s certainly drifting a wee bit away from us at the moment.”
With it being unlikely this month, the target for the Toffees next season should be to qualify for one of the European competitions by finishing high in the Premier League.
Everton discussing move to sign Premier League star
In order to push for Europe, the club need to be brave in the transfer market and push for ambitious targets, as they did when they brought James Rodriguez to Merseyside in 2020.
The Colombian icon spent a year at the club after joining on a free transfer from Real Madrid and produced six goals and 11 ‘big chances’ created in 23 appearances in the Premier League.
According to former Everton chief executive Keith Wyness, the Toffees are now in talks to sign their next version of Rodriguez in the form of central defender John Stones.
The club are said to be discussing a possible move to bring the England international back to Merseyside when his contract with Manchester City expires this summer.
Speaking to Football Insider, Wyness said: “It’s not necessarily nailed on, it’s an option and there’s been discussions, but certainly nothing finalised yet.
He added: “There’s been interest, as I understand, from Bayern Munich and that may well be an option for him that he might prefer. He might get a better deal in terms of a lengthier contract from what I’m hearing. So it’s not certain, but it’s still definitely being discussed.”
How John Stones would be a James Rodriguez repeat for Everton
Stones, who was sold by Everton to Man City for £47.5m in 2016 after playing 95 games on Merseyside, would be a James Rodriguez repeat for the Toffees because he would arrive at the club as a proven world-class talent.
Rodriguez, of course, joined Everton as a World Cup star with Colombia and as a two-time Champions League winner with Real Madrid, whilst he also won two Bundesliga titles with Bayern Munich.
Stones would return to the club with a similar pedigree because he has been a terrific player for Manchester City over the past nine years. In fact, only two centre-backs in the Premier League have made more PFA Team of the Year squads than him in that time.
Most PFA TOTY inclusions since 2016
Centre-backs
Inclusions
Virgil van Dijk
5
William Saliba
3
John Stones
2
Gabriel
2
Ruben Dias
2
The centre-back made the PFA Team of the Year in the 2020/21 and 2022/23 seasons for his outstanding performances at the heart of Pep Guardiola’s backline.
Stones, who was dubbed “world-class” by reporter Henry Winter last month, was described as the best player “by far” in the Champions League final against Inter in 2023 by his manager.
The 31-year-old star has racked up 293 appearances, six Premier League titles, and a Champions League during his time at The Etihad, and could yet add a seventh league title this month.
Stones was also a starter for England when they reached the final of the European Championship in 2020 and 2024, showing his quality on the international stage as well as at club level.
Like Rodriguez, though, the experienced star suffers from injury issues. He has missed 24 games through injury this season and Everton would be taking a risk on his fitness by signing him this summer.
It is a risk worth taking, however, because of his pedigree and what he has achieved in the game as one of the Premier League’s best central defenders in the past decade.
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