Everton right back search ramps up ahead of January window | OneFootball

Both Nathan Patterson and Seamus Coleman spent another afternoon watching from the treatment room at Finch Farm, and it summed up Everton’s problem better than any scoreline. While they recover, David Moyes keeps turning to centre-backs and midfielders to fill a specialist role that really should not be improvised anymore. Jake O’Brien did a steady job again in the 3,0 win over Nottingham Forest, but he is a centre back playing out of position, and Everton know the strain it places on everything else they are trying to build.

This is not a sudden issue. The club have been juggling that side of the pitch for months, and the longer it goes on, the more it pulls at the seams. Everton have stabilised themselves this season and climbed into the European conversation, yet the right back role keeps behaving like the one loose screw that rattles every time the team starts to gather momentum.

A position patched together far too often

The Everton right back search exists because the club have only four genuine options, and none of them offer consistency. Patterson has not played a minute of Premier League football because of recurring fitness problems. Coleman is 37 and dealing with a hamstring issue that has kept him out since November. Garner has spent parts of the season filling in on both sides of the defence. O’Brien has racked up 13 appearances out wide, even though he was signed to compete at centre back.

Ashley Young, who might have solved the issue for a short period, left in the summer and is now 40. Roman Dixon is still learning his trade in the academy and is not viewed as a senior solution. Moyes confirmed that himself.

It leaves Everton with an odd mix of patches that work in short bursts but cannot support an entire season. You can work around weakness for a while, but no team pushing for Europe can keep redeploying their midfielders and centre-backs every time the fixtures intensify.

Patterson’s opportunity and Moyes’ warning

For Patterson, this should have been the season he stepped forward and made the position his own, but his body has held him back far more than the opposition ever has. Moyes wants him involved. He knows Patterson brings a running power and bite that Everton sometimes lacks out wide. But he has also been honest about what is needed.

Everton are not out of patience, but they also cannot build a season on the hope that Patterson might string together ten games in a row. That is not a tactical issue. That is simply reality.

A fully fit Patterson would push O’Brien back into his natural lane and allow Garner to stay where he is most effective. But until that happens, Everton remains stuck balancing short-term fixes with long-term planning.

Coleman still matters, but Everton cannot rely on him

Coleman’s influence has never been questioned. Even at 37, he continues to deliver strong performances for Ireland when available, and the dressing room still responds to him. But the Premier League at that age is unforgiving. A hamstring problem is not something you gamble with.

Moyes admitted he had not expected his setback.

Everton hopes to have him back early in the new year, especially with Ireland needing him for their World Cup playoff with Czechia. But they cannot build their season around the return of a player his age, no matter how dependable he has been for over a decade.

Coleman will play a part, but he cannot be the solution, especially given his age and injury proneness now.

James Garner, contracts and the need to keep him central

This is where the Everton right back search connects directly to the club’s midfield. Garner’s contract is running down, and although talks have stepped up in recent weeks, nothing has been signed yet. Everton wants him to stay. Garner wants clarity about his role. Other clubs want to take him.

Everton have made a point of telling him that midfield is his long-term spot, and that is why the club are putting such real effort into finding a specialist right back. They know he does not want to spend another season drifting between full back and midfield. They know the constant switching harms his development and his confidence.

He is 24 now and has turned himself into a Premier League-calibre midfielder. It is no surprise that several clubs in England and abroad have registered interest. The biggest name in the mix is Manchester United, who have looked into the possibility of bringing back a player who grew up in their academy and has matured into the sort of all-round midfielder they have lacked. Manchester United have expressed an interest in bringing home their homegrown star who has established himself as a Premier League-quality central midfielder on a free transfer this summer.

Garner is believed to earn around thirty thousand pounds a week and would expect to more than double that in any new deal. For Everton, the calculation is simple. Tie him down, keep him central and build around him. To do that, they must remove the temptation of playing him out wide. That is why the right back search is not just a tactical decision. It is part of the club’s contract strategy.

There is confidence from Everton that they will get the deal done, and some believe the noise around his contract situation is to demand more money from them.

O’Brien’s contribution and the question of fairness

Jake O’Brien’s run at right back has not shocked anyone inside Finch Farm because he ended up doing the same thing last season. What has stood out is how reliably he has handled it again. He is not a natural full back, and he is the first to admit that, but he plays with a calmness that managers love. There is nothing dramatic about how he goes about his work, and that is probably why Moyes leans on him whenever the squad thins out.

He keeps his shape, he stays switched on and he follows instructions exactly as they are given. That is not flashy, but it is valuable when you are filling in a role that normally demands pace, aggression and a quick understanding of angles. O’Brien does not pretend to be a specialist, yet he gives Everton stability during a period when they have needed someone to steady that side of the pitch.

If Patterson returns, or if Everton brings in a new right back in January, O’Brien will step aside, but not because of anything he has done wrong. Moyes sees him as a long-term centre bac,k and this stretch out wide is another chapter in a player who keeps proving he can solve problems when the squad need him. Everton will call on him again this season, because football always throws up another moment where someone has to step in and do a job with no fuss.

Transfer targets begin to take shape

Everton’s recruitment team have been working through a shortlist that has slowly narrowed to three realistic profiles, each offering something different and each fitting the broader plan under Moyes. The club want a full back who can play regularly, stay fit and give structure to a part of the pitch that has been stretched thin all season. These three names sit closest to the criteria Everton is working from.

Vitinho – Botafogo – estimated £10m to £14m

Vitinho is the most attack minded option of the group and the one Everton have monitored for the longest. His data reflects a player who plays on the front foot. His crossing sits in the top percentiles, his expected assists numbers are strong and he carries the ball with confidence. Botafogo use him almost like a wide runner who pushes high and stretches the pitch, which explains why he consistently posts high figures in progressive carries.

Defensively he relies more on anticipation than strength and his aerial numbers are modest, but his recovery pace means he can get himself out of trouble. Everton like him because he provides something the squad do not currently have on the right. Someone who can break lines with the ball, sprint beyond midfield and force opponents back towards their own box. In a side that often tilt left when building attacks, Vitinho would rebalance the structure.

Juanlu Sánchez – Sevilla – estimated £17m to £18m

Juanlu is the most rounded profile on the shortlist and the one who fits most comfortably into a coached, disciplined system. Sevilla value him highly and his numbers reflect why. He is strong in aerial duels, clever in defensive situations and tidy on the ball. He picks the right moments to carry or overlap rather than running for the sake of it. His technique is clean, his positioning is dependable and his understanding of space is one of his biggest strengths.

He does not have the explosive quality of Vitinho, but he would give Everton something they have been missing for months. Structure. Balance. A full back who will not wander or gamble. Someone who gives a consistent outlet on the right without forcing Garner or O’Brien into uncomfortable zones. Moyes would get a player he can trust, which is probably why Juanlu keeps returning to Everton’s scouting discussion.

Omar El Hilali – Espanyol – release clause around £26m

El Hilali is the most defensively minded option and arguably the most Moyes-like. His radar jumps out in two areas. Progressive passing and possession wins. He reads the game with a maturity that belies his age and positions himself well in compact defensive shapes. He is not the type to dribble beyond players often, but he rarely loses his duels and does not expose the space behind him. His aerial numbers are solid and he plays with a calmness on the ball that allows his team to build without risk.

Everton pushed for him in the summer and the interest never fully cooled. Espanyol’s reported release clause makes him the most expensive choice, but also the one with the clearest defensive profile. If Moyes wants a right back who mirrors the reliability of the left side rather than one who changes the attacking output, El Hilali is the closest match.

What these three tell us about Everton’s approach

The club are casting a sensible net. Vitinho offers the attacking spark. Juanlu gives balance and control. El Hilali brings defensive stability. All three fit Everton’s budget at different levels, and each one offers an answer to the question that has followed Everton since August. How do you stop this position from being patched every week?

Everton will not force a deal if the terms are wrong, but for the first time this season, the recruitment picture on the right is clear. They know what they want, they know what each option brings, and they know exactly why they cannot keep improvising.

Everton’s bigger picture under Moyes

All of this is happening against a backdrop of genuine progress. Everton sit seventh and have won four of their last five. They are not hiding from their ambition anymore. Moyes has spoken repeatedly about pushing for Europe.

The right back issue stands out because it keeps pulling at a team that have improved in several areas, even if they are still not the finished article. The spine has become more settled, and Moyes has managed to build a clearer structure in midfield, but the front line has gone through its own problems. Beto has struggled to offer the threat Everton thought he would bring, and Barry has found it hard to make an impact as a regular Premier League starter. It means the club are not ruling out another striker search in the coming windows, especially if the right opportunity appears.

Even with that in mind, the imbalance on the right remains the most obvious tactical gap. It affects how Everton builds attacks, how they defend transitions and how often the midfield needs to cover wider spaces. Fixing that flank would not solve every problem, but it would remove one of the recurring issues that keeps dragging players away from their natural roles.

What comes next

Everton will head into the January window with a simple approach. If the right player becomes available, they will make their move. The recruitment staff have three clear targets they would be comfortable signing and each one fits the plan Moyes has been shaping across the season. They are not looking to sign for the sake of it, but if one of those names opens up at the right price, Everton will act.

They still want Garner tied down, they want Patterson fit, they want Coleman available when required and they want O’Brien focusing on the position he was actually bought for. Sorting right back helps all of that fall into place.

If none of the three preferred options can be done in January, the club will hold their ground and wait for the summer. But the intention is obvious now. Everton have spent long enough plugging this role with whoever happens to be fit, and they know a specialist would settle the whole right side of the pitch.

The foundation of the team has improved this season. The next step is strengthening the areas that keep slowing them down, and right back is at the front of that list. Everton believe the right signing is within reach. It is only a question of when the window opens and which of those three targets becomes workable.