The second David Moyes era is now officially up and running.
Moyes’ return to Everton proved to be a bit of a damp squib, beaten 1-0 by Aston Villa on Wednesday, but it was certainly second time lucky on Sunday, smashing Spurs.
The Toffees raced into a 3-0 half time lead; Dominic Calvert-Lewin broke the deadlock, his first goal since September, Iliman Ndiaye then added a second with a sublime solo strike, before an own goal in injury time had the Gwladys Street End rocking.
Tottenham did hit back twice in the second half, the second of which came far too little for them to mount a full-scale comeback, as the Blues held on for a victory that moves them four points clear of danger.
So now, before travelling to Brighton on Saturday, could Everton strengthen this squad by signing someone from the Seagulls?
Everton aiming to bolster their midfield options
According to a report by Mark Brus of Caught Offside, both Everton, as well as Leicester City, have “held talks” with Brighton & Hove Albion about the possibility of signing Jakub Moder.
It had been widely reported last week, including by David Ornstein of the Athletic, that Moder was on his way to Eredivisie giants Feyenoord, but both Everton and Leicester have made a late attempt to sign the Polish international.
Moder is out of contract in the summer, hence why Brighton had agreed to sell him to the Duch heavyweights for a miserly €1.5m (£1.27m), underlining why two of the Premier League’s most cash-strapped clubs are eager to snap up a bargain.
The 25-year-old joined Brighton from Lech Poznań for a reported £9m in 2020, becoming a key figure upon his arrival, featuring prominently between January 2021 until April 2022, racking up 2,350 Premier League minutes, before rupturing his ACL against Norwich, heartbreakingly sitting out the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
He didn’t feature at all during the 2022/23 season, before making his return against Nottingham Forest in November 2023, after a huge 602 days on the sidelines.
How Jakub Moder would improve Everton
This season, Moder has seen more minutes for his country than his club (167 compared to 160), hence why Fabian Hürzeler is willing to let him go during this window.
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At the peak of his powers, however, Jacek Kulig of Football Talent Scout described the Polish midfielder as “strong, athletic, versatile, tactically intelligent and a good passer”, so he’s certainly worth taking a chance on, especially with Brighton willing to do a cut-price deal.
Given that both Tim Iroegbunam and James Garner are currently sidelined, the former has not featured since 5th October due to a foot injury, David Moyes has limited midfield options, starting Idrissa Gana Gueye, Orel Mangala and Abdoulaye Doucouré during both his matches so far, with teenager Harrison Armstrong the only midfielder in reserve.
Gana Gueye in particular shone during Sunday’s victory over Spurs, with Sofascore naming the Senegalese midfielder their statistical man of the match, while Statman James on Twitter described his performance as “absolutely class”, so let’s see how he and Moder compare.
Appearances
79
96
Minutes
4,011
6,964
Passes per 90
28
37
Pass completion %
74.3%
84.5%
Progressive passes per 90
2.96
3.41
Shot-creating actions per 90
1.37
1.74
Shots per 90
1.43
0.84
Goal or assist per 90
0.13
0.10
Touches per 90
36
47
Tackles per 90
1.43
3
Blocks per 90
0.80
1.29
Interceptions per 90
0.47
1.50
Yellow cards per 90
0.13
0.25
Even when affording Moder an extra season, Gana Gueye has racked up almost 3,000 more minutes than the Poland international during the given timeframe, as a result of his aforementioned long spell on the sidelines.
As outlined in the table, Gana Gueye is much more of a combative midfielder, hence why he’s accumulated more tackles, blocks, interceptions and yellow cards.
Meanwhile, despite what this stupendous strike against Brentford may suggest, the Senegalese midfielder isn’t much of a goal threat, racking up only four goals and four assists in almost 100 appearances since August 2022.
Moder, hardly prolific himself, would offer Everton a bit more going forward so, considering the Toffees have failed to net during nine of their last 12 Premier League games, this would be a welcome edition.
Couple that with the fact he’s ten years younger than Gueye and in due course, he could well usurp the Senegal star in Moyes’ midfield.
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