Everton's future transfer plans could soon become clearer as takeover nears
It will be a few weeks before we see Armando Broja in Royal Blue but his looming return to fitness sets up a fascinating storyline for the season ahead.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin is Everton’s first choice striker and has been for several years. Beyond the better days of the past, such as when service was far more suited to him under Carlo Ancelotti, he has played an important role in the club’s recent survival efforts - at least, when his body has allowed him to.
His value was evident again when he hit form when the team needed him in the spring: the winner against Burnley, the bravery when scoring from the spot at Newcastle United and then the joy of that header in the Merseyside derby win all providing moments of relief and celebration.
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The door remains open to him at Goodison even after a summer when his departure appeared, at times, likely as fresh terms were not accepted and the likes of Newcastle and Chelsea made tentative overtures.
Calvert-Lewin has had a reasonable start to this season, particularly given the wider issues of his team to support him, but speculation over his future will only intensify while his contract continues to run down. Expect more claims of interest from around the continent such as those that emerged from Italy this week, with Juventus said to be tracking him.
While that uncertainty remains, the storyline could take a new twist should Broja find fitness and form.
In fact, contractually, the option Everton have to make his move permanent perhaps gives the 23-year-old the best chance of being the striker that leads the Blues’ frontline into a new era on the Liverpool waterfront.
The forward remains a tantalising prospect even with the injury setbacks he has suffered over recent years. There is a hope the ingredients of a top class forward have survived those fitness problems and if they have, Everton stand in line to be the club that benefits.
Putting faith in Broja was a savvy move made in the final minutes of deadline day. The clauses at both ends of the deal work heavily in Everton's favour - the club do not start to contribute towards his wages until he is able to represent them; if he does well then the option to make the deal permanent means Everton could reap the reward of placing faith in his career. This is a low-risk move with potential for a huge upside that could carry Everton a long way.
The competition between Calvert-Lewin and Broja could be an interesting dynamic to follow once we hit winter. The fee it would take to sign Broja next summer is a big one at around £30m but if, in him, Everton have found the talisman of their future it will be a small price to pay.
While no-one will expect Everton to suddenly start fighting at the top end of the table once the move to the wonderful new stadium at Bramley-Moore is complete, the club will be under pressure to start to show progression on the pitch that echoes that made off it. New owners, should the Friedkin Group get their deal signed off as expected, will also be under pressure to show signs of intent and marquee strikers have been a theme of their tenure at Roma, where Romelu Lukaku and Paulo Dybala both arrived in the Eternal City amid huge fanfare.
The beauty of the Broja deal is that he will not need a grand arrival - he would already be on Merseyside. If he can justify the price tag then Everton's future is his. The Albania international may have been coveted for years by Goodison, a lusting that was a legacy of the Frank Lampard period and a summer in which Everton spent money and the former England international's star felt like it had the potential to lure some of the prospects that had flourished under him at Chelsea up to Merseyside.
It feels a long time ago now but I remember standing in the dugout in the August sunshine just two years ago after then champions of the world Chelsea needed a penalty to snatch an opening day win against Everton at Goodison Park. As one of those starlets, Conor Gallagher, walked towards the tunnel following his warm down a shout from the hospitality section asked whether he fancied a late transfer move to join Lampard. While it did not happen, it did not seem that fanciful at the time.
The Broja situation is a reminder of what Everton actually have in the squad as we approach a summer of huge transition. It is easy to look at the sheer number of players whose contracts are due to expire at the end of this season and panic - only 12 first team players are due to remain beyond June.
That will, of course, require sensible planning and will be a big issue for any new ownership - one which makes decisions over the futures of Dyche and director of football Kevin Thelwell a pressing issue. They too are both out of contract and both would like the opportunity to be part of a historic move they would argue, unless this season holds more demons than are currently apparent, has been made far easier given the work to keep Everton in the Premier League against the odds.
Of the work that has already been done, Broja is symbolic of the moves that have quietly given Everton a headstart on planning for a new dawn. If the focus on next summer turns on who is set to remain it is possible to look ahead with optimism.
Even amid the chaos of recent years there is an argument to say the core of a young, hungry and exciting squad has already been gathered - the youth of Jarrad Branthwaite, Jake O’Brien, Nathan Patterson, Tim Iroegbunam, James Garner, Dwight McNeil, Iliman Ndiaye and Youssef Chermiti will be complimented by seasoned professionals including Jordan Pickford, Vitalii Mykolenko and James Tarkowski.
Jesper Lindstrom can also be made permanent should he impress. Even if Branthwaite were to be the subject of serious bids next summer, new-found stability would mean Everton could demand enough money for any departure, frustrating as it would be, to offer the wriggle room to be more ambitious in the transfer market.
To create an exciting squad, Everton just need to finish off the job - something that would be possible with new owners and the improved regulatory position the club believe they now occupy. If Broja can finish his chances he could be a star figure in that rebuild.