It’s something of a surprise that there has been no confirmation of Andre Gomes leaving Everton already, with several lower earners being shifted off the Goodison Park books over the past two months.
He is yet to feature at all under Sean Dyche, and was sent out on loan to Ligue 1 side LOSC Lille last season.
However, with the Turkish transfer window still open until September 15th, Gomes has been given a potential lifeline to revive his footballing career, with Fenerbahce reported to be amongst the frontrunners for his signature.
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Andre Gomes leaving Everton – a win-win situation
Gomes leaving Everton before the window shuts would be the best option for all parties. The 30-year-old is clearly not in Dyche’s plans, and has not featured for the club since the 2021/22 campaign.
On over £110,000-per-week at the Toffees, he is also one of their highest earners, and with Everton’s current financial situation, it would be a relief for all connected with the club to get him off the books.
The Merseysiders are also still in the midst of building their new stadium, which restricts them financially. In turn, they will hope that the sale of Gomes, alongside a takeover by Miami-based investment firm 777 Partners, will see the 145-year-old club finally put their troubles behind them.
Where it all went wrong
Gomes was originally signed with plenty of excitement at Goodison, having joined permanently from Barcelona for £22m four years ago, after a successful 2018/19 campaign as an Everton loanee. He featured 29 times that term and was a regular starter under Marco Silva as the Toffees challenged for European qualification.
However, a horrible injury sustained from a challenge by Tottenham Hotspur forward Son Heung-Min during a 1-1 draw at Goodison in November 2019 ruled him out for three months, and he has not been the same player since.
Silva was sacked one month after Gomes sustained that career-changing injury too, and his replacement, Carlo Ancelotti, had little room for him as the squad’s dynamic changed yet again.
And not even Ancelotti’s departure for Real Madrid in the summer of 2021 changed Gomes’ fortunes, as he also fell out of favour under Rafa Benitez and Frank Lampard. Both men would last less than a year in the Goodison Park hotseat.
Looking ahead to January
With a perfect storm, consisting of a career-changing injury, high managerial turnover and club troubles off the pitch, Gomes’ hours – not days – left on Merseyside are now very numbered it would seem.
For their part, meanwhile, Everton can now plan for the January transfer window in more depth, with the ongoing process of trimming their wage bill seemingly about to take another drastic turn.
The Toffees do still have a healthy array of central midfielders like Abdoulaye Doucoure, Amadou Onana and Idrissa Gueye in their ranks, but Dyche could look to add a player with a bit more guile – one very much in the mould of Gomes when he was playing for Barcelona and a regular at international level with Portugal.
Dyche could also bring James Garner back into the middle of the park, as the Englishman has predominantly played out wide this season, or try and get a tune out of Dele Alli.
Likewise, he could also look to sell the latter to raise more funds, and a potential buyer in Turkey could emerge following his loan spell at Besiktas last campaign.
