One of the biggest pieces of news to come from Everton in recent weeks has been the fact that star midfielder James Garner has signed a new contract at the club. There were worries that the 24-year-old might not pen fresh terms, with his previous deal set to expire in the summer.
Everton held some of the power, with a one-year extension clause in the deal, but that ultimately did not matter.
The midfielder signed on the dotted line at the Hill Dickinson Stadium and is now tied down for another four and a half years. It is a significant piece of business for the club.
Now, they might turn their attention to making some signings before the window slams shut.
Everton targeting Serie A star
There are already some intriguing transfer rumours beginning to pick up the pace on the Blue half of Merseyside. One of those suggests Kalvin Phillips could well make the move to Everton from Manchester City.
However, that is not the only deal they are supposedly interested in doing.
According to Football Insider, the Toffees are ‘credited with an interest’ in signing Genoa and England under-21 right-back Brooke Norton-Cuffy, who could make a return to English football this winter.
Indeed, the ex-Arsenal star is not only a target for David Moyes’ Toffees. Newcastle United are directly named as an interested party, too. West Ham United were interested, but he has reportedly turned them down.
In terms of a potential fee, it was reported earlier in the window that he could cost as much as £17m.
Why Norton-Cuffy would be a good signing
22-year-old Norton-Cuffy has had an interesting career to date. London-born and a product of Arsenal’s academy, he enjoyed several loans to various EFL clubs before finding a permanent home at Genoa in the summer of 2024.
This season, the former Gunners man has been impressive, operating as a right-back and right wing-back, with a real license to get forward.
In 19 Serie A games, he’s chipped in with one goal and one assist from that right-hand side, playing 90 minutes on all but two occasions.
The 22-year-old was a part of England’s squad for the Under-21 European Championships in the summer, which the Three Lions won.
He played in all but one of the games, the group stage opener, and was on the pitch for 58 minutes in the final, a 4-2 victory over Germany.
This season, the defender has put up some strong underlying numbers, which highlight his quality. Going forward, he’s averaging 0.6 completed crosses and chances created per 90 minutes, as well as winning an impressive 4.5 duels each game.
His quality has really shone through this campaign.
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Norton-Cuffy key stats in 25/26 Serie A |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Stat |
Per 90 mins |
Season total |
|
Chances created |
0.6 |
11 |
|
Crosses completed |
0.6 |
11 |
|
Take-ons completed |
1.4 |
24 |
|
Duels won |
4.5 |
81 |
|
Ball recoveries |
3.6 |
65 |
|
Stats from Squawka |
||
You could certainly make a case that, if Everton get a deal for Norton-Cuffy over the line, it is a deal reminiscent of the one for Garner.
Not positionally, although you could make that case to an extent, given Garner can operate at right-back.
In actual fact, this deal is similar because of their similar career paths. Both players came through academies at two of England’s biggest clubs, Arsenal in Norton-Cuffy’s case, and Garner at Man United.
Neither got much of a chance at those clubs; Garner pulled on that famous Red shirt seven times, and the ex-Gunners star never made an appearance.
After some loans in the EFL, Garner ended up at Everton where he has since shone. 109 appearances later, he is a key man on Merseyside.
Norton-Cuffy is in a similar position, bouncing around EFL clubs to learn his trade, before potentially finding a home on Merseyside, via Serie A.
For a fee of £17m, this could be a steal for the Toffees. They have seen how well Garner’s move has worked out, and this could well be a repeat, given the nature of their career so far and their earlier football education.
If Norton-Cuffy, described as an “insane” player by football analyst Ben Mattinson, does move to the Hill Dickinson Stadium, Moyes would surely love him to become the club’s new Garner.
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