I hope Kevin Thelwell can see same issues as Everton supporters before transfer window

I think everyone in the world of football knows the situation at Everton but I think it was good for director of football Kevin Thelwell to address it when he talked about how players will be sold.

However, I look back to some teams in the past who have lost key players year after year and it finally catches up with you.

Look at Southampton. They had a fantastic youth policy and brought a lot of talent through and sold a lot for big money - mostly to Liverpool - and while it seemed like a good business model, continually cashing in on your prize assets eventually comes with a price. We've already done it a couple of years on the bounce now with Richarlison and Anthony Gordon, if we do it again then it puts more pressure on the recruitment team to get it right.

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We might not just replacements but the kind of players to help us kick-on. Normally when you've got a settled team, you might just need that one missing piece but Everton might find themselves having to buy a whole new jigsaw.

I hope that Thelwell and company can see what the fans see. We don't have players who are dynamic enough, who are strong and physical but can run with the ball, take opponents on and play those forward passes.

At one stage in the not-too-distant past, Everton had three number 10s in their squad but now we don't have any. Abdoulaye Doucoure is not a number 10, he's energetic, he gets about and causes a lot of mayhem but the quality and composure in certain moments is what let's him down and that's what we need more of going forward.

Let's get pre-season right, if we do that then it's going to help us. If you don't have a settled pre-season then it can be tough, not knowing where you're going to go and which players are going to be at the club.

I feel that this summer - not just for Everton but everyone in the Premier League - is going to be like two transfer windows. There will be the attempts to get deals done before June 30 so they're in that accounting period and then there is a second 'window' later in the summer over who you want to bring in to take you forward.

From a business point of view you might not like shouting to everyone that you have to sell your prized assets as you don't want to be low-balled but I think the whole world knew. We often complain that the club don't come out and communicate with the fanbase over what is going on but there's so much happening off-the-field with 777 Partners and potential new owners or not, I think no matter who comes in, it's going to be a difficult period for us financially.

Thelwell might reckon that doing it this way brings less pressure from the fans and will help him focus on what needs to be done. He needs to be cute and clever in the transfer market while finding money for the likes of Beto and Youssef Chermiti who were signed last summer but haven't been paid for yet.

We know the type of players that Sean Dyche likes which is fine for his style of play but we also need a bit of quality and that's difficult to get. I know it was many moons ago now but previously we've been able to find players with that element of surprise with the likes of Tim Cahill and Steven Pienaar, who can offer you something special in terms of a goal or an assist and they didn't break the bank.

Hopefully the scouting team who have been working hard all-year round, can highlight who they think will be right for Everton Football Club but it's not their position to press the button on deals or write the cheques. We need to try and get everything in line from the manager to the director of football and the owner to focus on what is required.

A few players are due to be out of contract which could help us financially but then it could also cost a lot to replace them so it's a balancing act to try and get on top off. We don't want to be having to go through more points deductions or appeals next season, we want to be talking about football.

I expect it's going to be tougher in the Premier League next season. The three teams that came up last year are all going straight back down but the promoted sides this year might be stronger and I'd expect the likes of Nottingham Forest to be better.

Win over Sheffield United just highlighted transfer headaches

I was glad to see Everton finish with another win in their final home fixture of the season but for me the game just highlighted our weaknesses and the transfer headaches that Dyche and Thelwell will face this summer.

We'd had a disappointing run of games at Goodison Park earlier in the season so I was hoping to see us finish on a high on home turf after our recent upturn. There was certainly an end-of-season vibe but we did a professional job to get the three points and kept another clean sheet.

Having the lap of appreciation in front of a capacity crowd for the first time in five years was a nice send off for the season and was good for both the players and their families plus the fanbase. Sheffield United's supporters were fantastic, they had a nice little party atmosphere going on throughout the match which was good to see and I wish them well for next season.

However, they're a poor side and I felt we could have been a bit more positive. It should be a three or four nil game against a team like Sheffield United but we're missing dynamic play.

When Chermiti has been coming on he's been showing glimpses of why he was brought to the football club with some nice little touches, close control and a willingness to take a defender on. While it's good to see, I've been thinking: 'Wow, I haven't seen that from anyone else'.

We've got wingers who won't take full-backs on, midfielders who don't like running with the ball and we're very sloppy in our final play. We're okay at keeping possession in midfield but there are too many touches and sideways passes and while that might make your stats look good, it doesn't hurt the opposition.

We need someone who is willing to break the lines. Amadou Onana did it a couple of times in the first half but his final ball was over-hit.

We should be steamrollering teams like Sheffield United at Goodison Park but unfortunately we haven't got the quality to do that. That cost us games earlier in the season when Dyche was going on about xG, that final bit of quality whether it was sloppy crosses that were too easy for the goalkeeper to collect, a final ball that was overrun or wasn't to feet - we just made football look difficult at times.