Can Everton find success in the damaged goods market again? | OneFootball

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The transfer window has only officially been open a few weeks, but already there has been some fan frustration with a lack of credible reports of incomings.

Movement, however, has started. Hayden Hackney has arrived from Middlesbrough for an initial £16.5m, while an agreement has been reached with Chelsea to bring back Tyrique George on a permanent basis.

Hackney and George represent two talents on the up, a market most Evertonians would encourage the club to focus on. But there’s an argument that it hasn’t always been the most successful route, with Adam Aznou and Tyler Dibling two names of similar profile who are yet to make the desired impact. George himself saw limited minutes last season during a six-month loan, afforded a solitary Premier League start.

It left me wondering what exactly are the markets that Everton are operating in this summer?​

Everton do not have the financial power of the Premier League’s wealthiest sides, and while Hill Dickinson Stadium and its associated new revenue streams will help bridge the gap, this will take time.

Nor do Everton have the carrot of European football. As alluded to earlier, the Toffees, too, are yet to show that the club is an ideal environment for young players to develop, a path Brentford, Brighton, Bournemouth and Crystal Palace can all credibly offer, though it is one David Moyes has mentioned as part of the plan.

There’s an argument that Everton’s best signings of recent times all have one thing in common: They’ve been under appreciated at high-profile clubs.​

James Garner played only seven senior games for Manchester United. Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall spent a season on the sidelines at Chelsea. Iliman Ndiaye’s miserable move to Marseille was supposed to be the Champions League platform he craves. Even Jack Grealish, signed on loan last summer, needed a fresh start and to be loved again.

Signings that have stuttered elsewhere come with risk, but so does second-tier shopping, as seen with Hackney, or the pursuit of players from outside Europe’s top leagues. Thierno Barry was signed after scoring 11 La Liga goals for Villarreal, a decent return by anyone's metric, and still struggled to settle. There’s risk to every deal.

​So is the 'damaged goods' market one Everton can find success and value in again?

Liam Delap is one name who fits this profile, and there has been some objection to regular reports of Everton interest. What had appeared a coming-of-age campaign at Ipswich Town was followed by a season looking out of his depth at Chelsea.

​Delap hasn’t become a bad player overnight, even if his time at Chelsea has been truly torrid. Neither has Nicolas Jackson, Lois Openda, Ben White, or some of the other names linked with Everton during the silly season.

​Confidence is not there to go out on a limb and champion any of these deals with full faith, but likewise, they shouldn’t be met with such apprehension. Kevin De Bruyne and Mohamed Salah are just some of the flops-turned-Premier League success stories, brought about by changes of environment.

​Everton, in recent history, have had some success too.