Everton forced to choose between Seamus Coleman and Ashley Young for 2024/25 season
Everton and Sean Dyche have a major decision to make on their squad this summer when it comes to the futures of Ashley Young and Seamus Coleman.
The veteran duo are out of contract at the end of the season at Goodison Park, and both players are well into the twilight of their careers.
Young has been a regular in the team this season, making 31 appearances in all competitions, and the 38-year-old’s versatility has been of great use to the manager as he has often been deployed at full-back and midfield.
Coleman has had less luck with injuries keeping him out for much of the campaign, limiting him to just ten appearances in all competitions. But the 35-year-old club captain has been praised by his teammates and manager for his influence in the dressing room.
The Toffees have managed to escape relegation with three games to spare despite having eight points deducted from their total this season for breaching PSR rules and despite all the distractions off the pitch with the protracted 777 Partners takeover dragging on since September.
But now as eyes begin to look forward to the new season, Dyche will know that he can surely only afford to have one of these veterans around for next season if he wants to bolster the squad during the transfer window.
Seamus Coleman or Ashley Young to leave Everton?
Nathan Patterson’s exit could be all but guaranteed after a spat with Dyche in Portugal, before an injury in the 6-0 defeat to Chelsea curtailed his season early.
But that leaves Vitalii Mykolenko and Ben Godfrey as the other full-back options on top of the veterans, and both have played well enough to expect to keep their places in the side next season.
Coleman’s unreliability when it comes to fitness is something that has to be considered, while Young is believed to be on “big money” at Goodison Park.
The financial situation at the club means they cannot afford to have passengers who can’t contribute, and while Young has been good this season it can’t be forgotten that he is almost 39. He can’t go on forever.
A one-year extension for either man makes sense. Both are leaders in their own right and have a good relationship with the fans, and neither will expect to play regularly if a younger option is brought in. But having both would limit the club’s movement in the window.
Dyche must decide which of the two he wants to have in his squad more and make the tough call to let the other go in a different direction for the good of Everton.
In other Everton news, the club want to sign a young attacker who has been compared to a Champions League winner after his price tag emerged.
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