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.

As you can see in the table above, the former Norwich star’s statistics in and out of possession in the Premier League were underwhelming across the board.

He barely won the majority of his physical battles on the deck and in the air and struggled to retain the ball his passing, whilst offering very little in the way of creativity as a right-back.

Why Everton should sign Federico Gatti

Dyche should now swoop to sign Gatti as a brilliant replacement for Godfrey as the Juventus ace is a versatile defender who can play at centre-back, right-back, or on the right of a back three.

This immediately shows that the £42k-per-week colossus would be an ideal player to take the Englishman’s place, due to his versatility and ability to play in the roles that the Atalanta-bound battler was used in by Dyche.

Gatti, who started 30 games in the Serie A last season, could also come in as an upgrade on Godfrey and as a centre-back who could challenge Tarkowski for his spot next to Branthwaite in the future.

Firstly, the Italy international won 60% of his aerial duels and completed 86% of his attempted passes in the Serie A last term, which suggests that he could be stronger out of possession and more reliable on the ball in comparison to the £10.2m-rated defender.

The Everton target, who was once described as “humble” by teammate Danilo, also has the progressive qualities in possession to potentially offer greater competition for Tarkowski than Godfrey did.

As you can see in the table above, Gatti progresses the ball forward through passes and carries more frequently per match than the two current Toffees defenders.

He also only just turned 26 last month and Tarkowski turns 32 later this year, which suggests that the Italian will be heading into his prime as the Everton brute heads into the latter stage of his career.

This means that Gatti could then be the perfect player to take over as the starting right-centre-back next to Branthwaite, making him a brilliant replacement for Godfrey as a star who can come in and potentially land a regular place in the starting XI.