Everton head into the international break sitting 16th in the Premier League table, three points clear of the relegation zone.
Recent results have shown encouragement that the Toffees can avoid yet another battle at the bottom of the table, although Sean Dyche will be hoping for a few more wins when the domestic calendar resumes.
Several players have been performing well of late. Iliman Ndiaye has scored three goals this season, having joined the club in the summer, while Orel Mangala is becoming an important presence in the heart of the midfield, completing 89% of his passes and winning 61% of his ground duels.
Dwight McNeil has been the talisman, however, continuing to shine when others around him are struggling.
Dwight McNeil’s stats this season
The Englishman has netted three league goals this term already, along with registering three assists, creating eight big chances and averaging 2.7 key passes per game.
He is starring under Dyche and could well be the reason Everton stay in the Premier League come next May.
Despite his role as one of the club’s finest performers, his weekly wage is among the lowest at the club.
McNeil earns £25k-per-week for the Goodison Park side, ranking him as the 22nd highest in the squad, behind the likes of Michael Keane, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Nathan Patterson.
1
Doucoure
£130,000
£6,760,000
2
Pickford
£125,000
£6,500,000
=3
Tarkowski
£100,000
£5,200,000
=3
Calvert-Lewin
£100,000
£5,200,000
5
Harrison
£90,000
£4,680,000
=6
Gueye
£80,000
£4,160,000
=6
Keane
£80,000
£4,160,000
The Toffees have spent lavish wages on players who have underperformed in recent seasons, costing the club a fortune in the process.
One notable name is Andre Gomes, who drained the club of millions during his spell on Merseyside yet failed to deliver the goods on the field.
How much money Everton wasted on Andre Gomes
The midfielder joined Everton from Barcelona in the summer of 2019 for a fee in the region of £22m after he impressed during a season-long loan in the Premier League.
Despite this lavish fee, Gomes would go on to play just 85 games for the club over the next five seasons (spending the 2022/23 season on loan at Lille), scoring only three goals in the process.
Marco Silva was the man who signed Gomes, but it was those in charge after him who had to put up with his underwhelming displays.
He played over 20 Premier League games in just one season during his permanent spell on Merseyside, finally departing in the summer to join Lille.
The Portuguese midfielder earned a sizeable £112k-per-week at Everton, a staggering sum for someone who was performing at their best, never mind a player who failed to hit top form.
2023/24
14
2
0
2021/22
19
1
2
2020/21
32
0
2
2019/20
20
0
1
2018/19
29
1
2
Combine his £22m transfer fee with the £23.4m in wages he took home at the Toffees, and it is clear that the £45.4m wasted on the former Barcelona gem was simply not worth it.
Indeed, his salary last season was four times more than what in-form McNeil was being paid, despite the Englishman emerging as a key player under Dyche.
It will be Dyche’s job to ensure he doesn’t pay silly money for players who fail to perform on the pitch, as this isn’t feasible in the long term.
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