Everton starts pre-season training tomorrow

The new Everton manager Marco Silva starts work in earnest tomorrow as the first-team players report to Finch Farm for the pre-season. Some players have been putting in extra work with Leighton Baines already showing up for some additional fitness work.

It will be interesting to see who doesn’t show up, especially with a number of players linked with moves away this summer. Ashley Williams picked up some broken ribs and a collapsed lung on international duty and could be out a little longer. Morgan Schneiderlin is another expected to leave, and he’s alread been working on his conditioning.

Wayne Rooney and Ramiro Funes Mori have officially left the club while Joel Robles did not have his contract extended. Marcel Brands continues to work on purging the deadwood and bringing the squad size down to 25-30, with just over a month left to go in the transfer window.

Gylfi Sigurdsson and Idrissa Gueye will get an extended break after being eliminated from the World Cup, with the pair expected back with the squad ahead of the trip to Portugal to play the Algarve Cup on July 21st. Goalie Jordan Pickford is still with England in Russia, and many fans will be hoping he stays there for another couple of weeks too.

According to the official releases so far, this is what Everton’s schedule for the next couple of months looks like -

• Mon, 2nd July, 2018 - Everton preseason training starts
• Sun, 15th July, 2018 - World Cup 2018 ends
• Wed, 18th July, 2018 - Everton at Bury FC (Preseason friendly)
• Sat, 21st July, 2018 - Everton vs LOSC Lille (Preseason friendly, Algarve Cup, Algarve)
• Sun, 22nd July, 2018 - Everton vs FC Porto (Preseason friendly, Algarve Cup, Algarve)
• Thu, 26th July, 2018 - Everton at Blackburn Rovers FC (Preseason friendly)
• Sat, 4th August, 2018 - Everton vs Valencia (Preseason friendly, Goodison Park)
• Thu, 9th August, 2018 - Premier League Transfer Window closes
• Fri, 10th August, 2018 - Everton at Wolverhampton Wanderers (Premier League)
• Sat, 18th August, 2018 - Everton vs Southampton (Premier League)
• Sat, 25th August, 2018 - Everton at AFC Bournemouth (Premier League)
• Fri, 31st August, 2018 - FIFA Transfer Window closes.

A game against SportPesa Cup champions Gor Mahia at Goodison Park is on the cards too, with no date announced as yet. The Toffees beat the Kenyan side 2-1 in Tanzania last summer.