Everton handed opportunity to appoint game-changing chief but Friedkin Group must act quickly

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Everton have made a really poor start to the season but they were 4-0 victors last time out.

Everton thumped Wolves 4-0 at Goodison Park in mid-week and moved clear of the relegation zone ahead of the busy festive period.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
12	NewcastleNewcastle	15	5	5	5	19	21	-2	20
13	Man UtdManchester United	15	5	4	6	19	18	1	19
14	West HamWest Ham	14	4	3	7	18	27	-9	15
15	EvertonEverton	14	3	5	6	14	21	-7	14
16	Crystal PalaceCrystal Palace	15	2	7	6	14	20	-6	13
17	LeicesterLeicester	14	3	4	7	19	28	-9	13
18	IpswichIpswich	14	1	6	7	13	25	-12	9

Sean Dyche’s men have now put five points between them and 18th-placed Ipswich Town, so there’s now a bit of breathing room.

That’s certainly relieved the pressure on Dyche, somewhat, although the Friedkin Group have still drawn up a three-man shortlist to replace him.

Sergio Conceicao is believed to be Everton’s number-one target whilst Graham Potter is also under consideration.

The Friedkin Group also need to be monitoring replacements for sporting director Kevin Thelwell, who is out of contract at the end of the year.

And with that said, they’ve just been handed the perfect opportunity to appoint Thelwell’s successor.

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Everton should try to appoint Dan Ashworth

On Sunday morning, Manchester United announced the shock departure of sporting director Dan Ashworth after just five months at the club.

Ashworth had been prized away from Newcastle United earlier this year after a highly successful stint in the North East and arrived at Old Trafford with a huge reputation.

However, the decision to leave was made following United’s 3-2 loss to Nottingham Forest, with talkSPORT reporting he had a personality clash with Omar Berada and wanted to appoint an English coach instead of Ruben Amorim.

That can be to Everton’s benefit, though, as they’ve now been handed the perfect opportunity to appoint one of England’s best Sporting Director’s.

Ashworth’s spells at Brighton and Newcastle evince that notion, so the Friedkin Group must act quickly to appoint him before inevitable interest from clubs around the Premier League and beyond mounts.

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Ashworth’s best signings

Ashworth’s signings over the years should give the Friedkin Group plenty of reasons to appoint him.

Here are his best five.

• Moises Caicedo (Independiente del Valle to Brighton)
• Alexander Isak (Real Sociedad to Newcastle United)
• Anthony Gordon (Everton to Newcastle)
• Kaoru Mitoma (Kawasaki Frontale to Brighton)
• Leandro Trossard (Genk to Brighton)

Evidently, his recruitment over the years has been first-class and those abilities won’t have been lost at Man United.

So Ashworth still remains a really attractive appointment for any side in the Premier League, especially Everton who are in need of a rebuild ahead of the move to the new stadium.

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