Everton: £8m star will be ‘special player’ after he was sold at Goodison Park
Everton may have made an error in allowing a £8million star to move onto pastures new despite having a bright future ahead of him
Respected journalist Paul Brown has hinted that Everton may have been better off holding onto Ellis Simms as he has a bright future ahead of him.
The Toffees decided to sell the frontman to Championship side Coventry City in a £8million deal during the summer transfer window.
Simms scored close to 60 goals for Everton’s under-21 and under-18 sides before finding the back of the net once for Sean Dyche’s outfit.
Everton may have made a mistake by allowing Ellis Simms to swap Goodison Park for Coventry City during the summer as he is destined to be ‘special’, but journalist Paul Brown has highlighted the key reason why the Toffees cashed in.
The striker headed through the exit door as boss Sean Dyche sanctioned a number of sales in order to recoup more than £70million before the transfer window slammed shut last month.
Everton transfer news – Ellis Simms
Simms brought the curtain down on his Everton career when, according to talkSPORT, the Merseyside outfit accepted a £8million offer from Championship side Coventry as they went in search of a replacement for talismanic forward Viktor Gyokeres ahead of his switch to Portuguese giants Sporting.
Having shown plenty of promise by scoring close to 60 goals for the Toffees’ under-21 and under-18 sides, he struggled to break into the forefront of Dyche’s plans ahead of the current campaign.
Simms only found the back of the net once in 12 outings, although that solitary strike proved crucial in Everton’s push for Premier League survival last term as it came in a 2-2 draw with Chelsea.
With Dominic Calvert-Lewin clearly being ahead of the 22-year-old in the pecking order at Goodison Park, he moved onto pastures new and penned a four-year contract worth £25,000-per-week at Coventry.
Despite being forced to contend with a place on the Sky Blues’ bench on several occasions during the early stages of the campaign, Simms got off the mark with a brace during a comfortable win over Queens Park Rangers last weekend.
The frontman opted to link-up with Coventry even though he also gained interest from Championship rivals Swansea City, Ipswich Town and Stoke City as it became clear that he was on the market.
Simms is ‘going to be special player’ in the future – Paul Brown
Brown has hinted that Everton should have been more patient with Simms as he has already shown that he could have a bright future ahead of him.
However, the journalist is aware that the former Blackpool and Sunderland man was offloaded as he would have had limited game time if he had remained at Goodison Park, with Dyche needing a more reliable option in the final third of the pitch as he seeks to avoid another relegation scrap.
I do think that, one day, Ellis Simms is going to be a special player. I think he’s got the potential to be much, much better than he is because he has got all the tools in his locker to improve greatly.
“It’s a shame, in a way, that Everton weren’t able to have the patience with him. But I don’t think he would have got many chances this season. I don’t really think that Sean Dyche was willing to be patient enough with him.
“I think they needed an upgrade in the position and they probably did the right thing. It’s just a shame because in two, three or four years’ time, I think Ellis Simms could still be a great player.”
