Everton's Transfer Plans: Focus on Hayden Hackney and New Targets
Everton’s summer plans are beginning to take shape in whispers rather than headlines, but one thing is already clear: West Ham United’s relegation will not trigger the cut‑price fire sale many on Merseyside had quietly hoped for.
The transfer window opened today with Everton still waiting to land their first signing. Behind the scenes, though, the pursuit of Hayden Hackney is gathering most of the serious attention.
Hackney at the heart of Everton’s early plans
Hackney, Middlesbrough’s homegrown midfield fulcrum and the Championship’s Player of the Season, is understood to want the move to Goodison Park. Everton want him too. The issue, as ever, is the fee.
Middlesbrough know exactly what they have: a 22‑year‑old who dictates games, carries local-hero status and has years left on his deal. Everton know exactly what they lack: a young, progressive midfielder who can carry the ball, press, and still grow in value. Talks continue, the gap between valuation and budget still to be bridged.
Until that is resolved, everything else sits in the realm of speculation.
Old ties, new targets at West Ham
That speculation keeps circling back to West Ham. Relegation usually invites predators. It also invites lazy assumptions. David Moyes’ history in east London and the make-up of the Hammers’ squad make them an obvious reference point for Everton’s recruitment department.
Right-back remains a priority position, but Aaron Wan-Bissaka, once heavily linked, is not currently on the active list, as reported last month. That leaves space for other ideas.
Moyes explored a move for Tomas Soucek last summer. The Czech midfielder’s experience, physical presence and knack for timely goals still fit many of Everton’s needs. Whether the club revive that interest now, with Hackney at the top of the midfield shortlist, is less certain. The shape of the summer may come down to which domino falls first.
On the left, Everton have also been linked with El Hadji Malick Diouf, an attacking full-back who would bring a very different flavour to the more measured Vitalii Mykolenko. The Ukrainian signed a new three-year contract last week, rewarded for his consistency, but Moyes has long preferred having contrast in his full-back options. Diouf, on paper, would provide exactly that.
And then there is Jarrod Bowen. Moyes would love to work with his former winger again. So would most managers in the Premier League.
West Ham’s captain is the sort of all-action wide forward Everton have craved for years: relentless runner, reliable finisher, leader. But Bowen sits firmly in the “dream” category. Relegation or not, he will have a queue of suitors and a price tag to match. Everton’s current financial reality makes any move for him highly improbable.
Crysencio Summerville, by contrast, looks more attainable in theory if not in practice. The winger has just added to his growing reputation with a sharp goal for Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands in their World Cup opener against Japan, underlining the pace and directness that would instantly upgrade Everton’s flanks. He will not be short of offers either, but he fits the profile of the kind of wide player the club want: quick, aggressive, and capable of changing games on his own.
Striker search meets harsh market
Up front, Everton are prepared to explore the striker market, but there is a realism bordering on resignation about what is out there. Proven centre-forwards are scarce, expensive and pursued by wealthier rivals.
If an affordable option emerges, they will move. If not, they will not force it.
One name floated over the weekend was Taty Castellanos. The 27-year-old Argentina international only arrived at West Ham from Lazio in January, yet still managed seven goals in 22 appearances in a struggling side. That return, in a team spiralling towards the Championship, has not gone unnoticed.
Castellanos offers mobility, work rate and a nose for goal. On paper, he ticks many boxes for a club that has spent years searching for reliable support and competition in the No.9 role. The question is whether he will actually be available.
Kretinsky’s stance changes the landscape
The assumption across the league was simple: West Ham go down, West Ham sell. Big names depart, good players become gettable, and ambitious clubs circle.
Daniel Kretinsky has moved quickly to challenge that narrative.
On Saturday it was announced he had agreed a deal with the family of the late David Gold to buy a further portion of their shares, a move that would lift his stake in the club to 43 per cent. With that, the tone around West Ham’s summer changed.
Speaking to The Times, Kretinsky set out a clear, uncompromising stance. He insisted West Ham do not need to sell players to balance the books and framed the entire project around a single objective: an immediate return to the Premier League under Nuno Espirito Santo.
“We have a very credible strategy. We don’t need to sell the players for financial reasons. We are doing this to make sure we are promoted back to the Premier League immediately. That is our only goal.
“Key players are waiting for us. They want to see there is a real chance of keeping the squad together. What matters is funding, strategy and consistency.
“We have spoken to all of them. They need to see that our project is real and serious. Promotion is our only goal.”
Those words land heavily at Goodison. Every Everton enquiry now runs into the same wall: West Ham are not desperate, and they are not dismantling their squad for parts. Any deal for a Bowen, a Summerville-type target from elsewhere, or even a Castellanos will require serious money or serious persuasion.
For Everton, that shifts the focus back to what they can control: closing a deal for Hackney, being smart on full-backs and wide players, and picking their moment in a brutal striker market.
The window has only just opened. The noise will grow. The question is whether Everton can turn any of this early gossip into the kind of decisive business that finally drags them away from the wrong end of the table.
