Why Everton’s unglamorous moves in the transfer market are cause for optimism

It was only 12 hours into Manchester City’s new golden era that the defining tension of Sheikh Mansour’s initial project emerged, fully formed. Because even as Robinho gripped that most unglamorous of shirts, a cheeky grin and cocked eyebrow paying tribute to the incredulity of the day, optimism inside the Etihad was strangely undercut by events transpiring in the other half of town.

Dimitar Berbatov – a bona-fide Premier League superstar – had snubbed an invitation to speak with City and instead joined rivals Manchester United. Day one of the new order, and Man City had failed to sign the established star, succeeding instead in luring an erratic talent with dollar signs practically visible in his eyes.

Berbatov proved to be everything Robinho was not: composed; calculated; consistent. He was a winner, and his rejection of City was stark, though unspoken, confirmation that City’s new Brazilian was a glitzy-but-hollow version of the new ideal. Though nobody at the Etihad that day wished to confront the thought, it was clear to onlookers that Man City - despite their billions making a mockery of United’s resources - were still awkwardly excluded from the elite.

It was a lesson that Farhad Moshiri and Everton, inactive in the transfer market so far, are learning the hard way.

For a mid-sized club there are only two types of player a sugar-daddy can lure: cash-hungry Robinho types (who are to be avoided), and talented players squirming uncomfortably in the half-space between being too good for mid-table but not good enough for title challengers. The Berbatov’s - the title winners - are not immediately available. Their trust must be earned through gradual increments, through stepping-stone signings that first outmuscle the surrounding mid-table competition. It was not Emmanuel Adebayor, Robinho, or Kolo Toure that hoisted City into the top four, but Gareth Barry, Joleon Lescott, and James Milner - hard-working types desperate for a chance to prove themselves.

Everton are not attempting expansion on the same scale, but a similar principle applies for a club willing to invest £100 million on new players and shatter their wage budget this summer. Unfortunately the wild transfer rumours that have circulated since the February takeover would suggest that, until very recently, Everton were unaware that billionaire status does not instantly earn you the right to bid for world-class players.

Juan Mata, Mateo Kovacic, Carlos Bacca, and Morgan Schneiderlin are amongst the most outlandish names being reported by the media, and whilst these could all be false, the ominous lack of signings in June and July suggest otherwise. However, notably less exciting transfer stories have emerged over the last two weeks - suggesting that the club has finally begun to take a more pragmatic approach.

Ashley Williams is exactly the sort of player that Man City would have signed in the years leading up to their first title win. His consistently outstanding performances for Swansea should have earned Williams a move to one of England’s big clubs by now, but at 31 Everton represent his best chance of playing in Europe. He is a solid, composed, and technically blessed defender that perfectly fits Ronald Koeman’s preference for ball-playing centre-backs.

Aston Villa’s Idrissa Gueye is another outstanding Premier League football who deserves to play for a side with top four ambitions. His 144 tackles and 141 interceptions last season was bettered only by N’Golo Kante, and these destroyer instincts were matched by an elastic-limbed composure from the base of midfield. Gueye has the kind of scuttling defensive energy reminiscent of Schneiderlin’s performances under Koeman, and is thus a perfect fit for the new manager.

Recent reports linking Kasper Schmeichel, Kalidou Koulibaly, and Alex Witsel to Merseyside are hugely encouraging for similar reasons. These are the future stars capable of moving to any number of big(ish) teams, but likely to end up at the club that can financially overpower the competition.

The new £8 billion TV deal complicates the trajectory of new chairmen with expansionist ambitions (an extra £30-50 million per season per team could create a certain financial levelling amongst Premier League clubs), and indeed the degree of Everton’s superiority depends on the volatility of an unpredictable and unstable market entering unprecedented territory. Transfer fees and wages will inevitably balloon over the coming years, but nobody yet knows how this will affect the sugar-daddy model.

But it is the restructuring of Everton’s business model, and not just the new money itself, that separates them from the likes of West Ham and Southampton. A sudden, rabid ambition to grab at Champions League riches has led Moshiri to demolish the austerity measures designed to conform to mid-level-club FFP standards. Gueye, Williams, and Witsel are highly coveted players, but all three seem likely to end up at Goodison Park.

At the first stage of new-found financial power, the only option is to gradually, and carefully, out-think clubs in the immediate vicinity. Like Man City in 2009 rapid expansion can only be achieved by bullying competition for emerging stars and buying up the talent that squirms for an elite-level transfer in vein. Williams and Gueye will not ignite the sort of giddy adrenaline surge that Robinho brought to Manchester seven years ago, but with patience Everton fans will find Koeman is quietly rebuilding the club in the best possible way.