The atmosphere around Everton is as positive as it has been in over a decade. Their financial shackles appear to finally be somewhat over and the reappointment of David Moyes has left most Toffees fans barely even considering the possibility of relegation - something which has been on the forefront of the club’s mind for the last 5 seasons.

With Moyes, Everton have been transformed into a side that nobody wants to play. They’re compact and resolute, with players such as Ndiaye and McNeil who can hurt you in transition. The squad itself is by no means packed with talent, but the Scotsman is the absolute best at getting the best out of the players he has at his disposal.

Looking ahead at the summer transfer window, the Toffees started it off with a bang with the signing of Thierno Barry - a player we know all too well from his spell at Villarreal. The 6ft 5 striker is the perfect number 9 for the way Moyes’ likes to play. Strong, athletic and extremely dangerous from crosses, signings like these make me really hopeful about the season that Everton might have.

Along with Barry, Everton will be boosted by the return of Dwight McNeil who has been sidelined since December with a knee injury and only came back towards the very end of the 24/25 season. McNeil was one of Everton’s best players in the early stages of the season so it was a huge blow to the squad when he did go down. The forward, who can play off the right and in the 10 - adds creativity (had the 5th highest expected assists per 90 in the league) and unpredictability which can only be replicated by Ndiaye in the first-team. Now with Barry attacking his crosses from the right flank, don’t be surprised if his assist numbers jump up.

There’s also the fact that Everton have Iliman Ndiaye who I could write endlessly about. Maybe it’s not known yet but this a top 3 player in the league outside of the big 6. His ball-carrying and dribbling ability is up there with some of the best players in Europe whilst his knack scoring ugly goals means he’s also an extremely effective outlet. I expect his level to go up again this season as Moyes will look to build the squad around him, ensuring that he’s the heart and soul behind the Toffees attack. Next summer he could likely be the next non big 6 player linked with a £50 million move elsewhere, following in the footsteps of Cunha, Joao Pedro and Bryan Mbeumo.

As I said before, the Barry signing was a great start but it doesn’t mean the job is anywhere over for Everton in the transfer market. Moyes had his squad performing way over their actual ability in my opinion. When assessing the quality of the Everton team, it doesn’t look far off a side that deserves to be in around those 14th-17th places, battling it out to stay in the division. At the time of writing the Toffees only have 16 senior players and are extremely light in midfield and wide areas, severely lacking players who can run with the ball.

The question is if Everton can actually make the necessary upgrades. According to BBC Sport, Everton will have £50-£100m roughly to spend if there are no outgoings. Now this is not enough for a complete squad overhaul and the only real sellable asset that Everton have is Ndiaye given that Branthwaite recently signed a new contract. This means they’ll have to be smart and creative about the sort of players they target this summer. But luckily with Moyes, they have a manager that suits this to a tee as he’s been famed for his rigorous and hands-on approach to signings. The capture of very highly-rated left-back Adam Aznou is very exciting and other names like Malick Fofana and Takefuso Kubo show me that they’re barking up the right tree, but being linked with these guys and actually signing them is quite a big difference.

The Toffees find themselves in a position where the players they want are all European-level talents that ideally would join clubs playing Champions League football. This had led to Moyes coming out and relaying his frustrations to the press saying,"The one thing I'll do is I'll tell the fans straight, and I'm telling it straight at the moment, we're having a bit of a struggle getting ones in quickly." It’s a telling quote and it’s a testament to how far clubs’ recruitment has come in recent years. The big teams are now just as switched on to the hidden gems scattered across Europe due to a desire to cut out the middle-man. Moyes is competing against clubs much more desirable than Everton currently, and it means he could miss out on key targets. So they’re going to have to adapt - okay our 1st choice is gone, what about our 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th… and so on. Being proactive instead of twiddling your thumbs when things don’t go to plan is what makes the small differences in a rebuild that will leave you in a much better position five years down the line.

Last season Everton ranked 16th in the league for shots on target per game, 15th for big chances created, 16th for touches in the opposition box and 17th for xG per game. They need some attackers, and more specifically they need some creative attackers. The only player from Everton’s squad who picked up more than 3 assists from 24/25 Prem campaign was Dwight McNeil. I really like David Moyes but he isn’t a miracle worker - how can you score goals when you have no one to make them? There’s pragmatism and then there’s just making life more difficult for yourself. Moyes has spoken numerous times about bringing entertaining and fast-paced football to the new stadium. Having one player in your whole squad who can actually create something out of nothing, is not how you’re going to do it. It’s not rocket science and I’m sure that the recruitment team at Everton is aware of this. The attack needs game-breakers, players who can beat a man and create a chance out of nothing.

Defensively you know what you’re getting with Everton and so I don’t think this area is particularly a cause of concern. But again, the Toffees look slightly light in the centre-back position. Assuming O’Brien is used mainly as a right-back next season, Everton only have Branthwaite, Tarkowski and Keane on their books. The latter being a player who hasn’t looked at the level for over 12 months now.

Even if no more signings are made, I’ve got enough trust in Moyes that he will keep Everton up. But, moving into the Hill Dickinson is meant to signify the start of a new era for the Toffees - just staying afloat shouldn’t be the aim anymore. Everton have the fanbase, the history and now the stadium to be a top club in England, now’s the time to really push to do so.

With Moyes, they’ve got the perfect manager to kick-start this new era, but without the help of two or three signings to bolster the positions Everton are in dire need of improving, his hands are tied. Perhaps Everton do some late business and bring in some promising players, but until this happens - the dream of achieving European football in the first season at the Hill Dickinson, might be a bit too far-fetched. Maybe I’m being unrealistic for expecting a complete rebuild to be managed in one transfer window, the likelihood is that it takes 2 or 3 years for this Everton squad to start looking like the complete package.

It’s the beginning of a new era at Everton but perhaps the excitement of journeying into the unknown has made people forget that a huge deal of squad turnover needs to be done in order to reach new heights. This might take longer than Everton fans hoped, but there are still things to be excited about.

At the very least, you’ve got one of the most exciting two-pronged attacks in the league with Barry and Ndiaye ready to cause fireworks at the Hill Dickinson.

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