Allardyce planning Everton clear out in January, if necessary

There are a few reasons that Everton decided to go with Sam Allardyce as their next manager, and one of them has to be the no-nonsense manner in which he runs the team’s affairs. After brooking no further argument from Liverpool’s Jurgen Klopp over the game-tying penalty in the Merseyside Derby yesterday, Allardyce is now looking at who needs to be shown the door and who wants to stay with the Toffees this January.

Speaking to various media sources, Allardyce said -

“If every player is honest enough when I finally get through the one-on-ones they will tell me if they want to stay or they don’t. If you are going to be honest with the manager, or if they want to leave it a bit longer and see how it goes to January, then I’ll deal with it.

“I don’t want anyone here who doesn’t want to be here. By the same token there’s always a price to pay and the club accepts we are not going to be mugs and let people leave under value in today’s market. People might want to move because it hasn’t quite worked or they have not settled as well as they thought. Up until then all these guys have a chance.”

More straight-shooting by the new manager who did not deny that the Blues would look to improve the attack right away -

“At the moment we would look to add a goalscorer. Dominic Calvert-Lewin has done well, Oumar Niasse has scored a few. It is the hardest thing to recruit players who score goals and hopefully there is somebody that can be brought in. If not, we will have to try to get Sandro Ramirez to contribute a bit more.

“When everybody is fit we have a 31-man squad. At this early stage adding more players to that would mean thinking ‘Who is going to come in for one of our players and am I prepared to sell them or rotate the squad a little bit?’ I don’t want to be in a desperate position in January.

“I want the players to show me that I don’t desperately need to sign anyone and that we are going to be OK for this season. Then it would be a key element of next pre-season. The hardest time of the year to recruit the players, and the most expensive time, is January.”

The report from the Guardian also adds right at the end that Calvert-Lewin could be the next one up for a new contract after Jonjoe Kenny, whose new deal should be announced any time now.