Dyche could replace Godfrey in Everton move for £42k-p/w colossus
The summer transfer window officially opened for business earlier this month and Everton have completed one new signing to bolster their squad so far.
England youth international Tim Iroegbunam has joined on a permanent deal from Premier League rivals Aston Villa to add to Sean Dyche’s options in the middle of the park.
Meanwhile, promising academy graduate Lewis Dobbin sealed a permanent switch to the Villans in a separate move, as the two clubs essentially swapped young talents.
Selling gems from the academy can be registered as pure profit for PSR and The Athletic reported that the club viewed the sale of Dobbin as being crucial to complying with PSR rules.
The Toffees still have around two months left to bring in more players from elsewhere to strengthen the manager’s squad, in the hope of avoiding a close relegation battle next season.
With incomings, players will also have to move on and away from Goodison Park, like Dobbin, and the club are reportedly closing in on the sale of a defender.
Everton centre-back set to complete move
Everton centre-back Ben Godfrey is set to complete a move away from Merseyside as he goes in search of regular game time, having been a depth option for Dyche last term.
According to Sky Sports reporter Dharmesh Sheth, Serie A side Atalanta have agreed a deal with the Toffees to secure his services this summer.
The journalist claims that the Italian outfit will pay an initial fee of €10m (£8.5m) with €2m (£1.7m) in add-ons to take it to a €12m (£10.2m) package in total.
Sheth’s post of the news came on Sunday night and he stated that Godfrey was due to undergo a medical on Monday, which means that it has already taken place by the time of writing (28/06/24) or is about to be completed.
Dyche could now brilliantly replace him by swooping for one of the club’s reported transfer targets – Juventus defender Federico Gatti – this summer.
TuttoJuve reported earlier this month that Everton and Newcastle United have both made contact with the Old Lady to enquire about a deal for the versatile enforcer.
The outlet claimed that there are no offers on the table for the central defender at this moment in time and added that he is still at the European Championship with Italy in Germany, which could delay any decision on his future.
It also revealed that Nottingham Forest made a €25m (£21m) bid for the 26-year-old star earlier this year but Juventus were not interested in cashing in on him at the time.
Everton must now act upon their interest in Gatti to secure a deal for his services as he could be a brilliant replacement for Godfrey next season.
Why cashing in on Ben Godfrey makes sense
Firstly, the former Norwich City ace only has one year left to run on his contract at Goodison Park and this could be the club’s last chance to recoup money on him.
The 26-year-old titan could have signed a pre-contract deal elsewhere from January 2025 onwards and then moved on from Merseyside on a free transfer next summer.
Instead, Everton are set to rake in at least £8.5m back from the staggering £25m deal that they agreed with the Canaries in the summer of 2020.
It could also make sense from a footballing perspective as the English gem only made 15 appearances in the Premier League, despite being available for every match.
James Tarkowski and Jarrad Branthwaite were the undisputed centre-back partnership for Dyche and that meant that only two of his outings came in his favoured position, with the majority coming as a right-back.
