Kevin Thelwell makes honest Everton January transfer window admission and 777 Partners takeover claim

Director of football Kevin Thelwell has admitted that he's unsure what the January transfer window holds for Everton.

The ongoing takeover of 777 Partners, coupled with the Toffees' ongoing case with the Premier League over a breach of profit and sustainability rules, means that there's currently a lack of clarity over whether fresh faces will arrive next month.

Everton were found guilty of breaching financial rules by an independent commission and docked 10 points by the Premier League. As a result, the Blues now sit in the relegation zone and are three points adrift of safety although they have appealed and a new commission will hear the case.

Everton have lost a combined £400 million over the past four years. As a result, they've had to cut their cloth accordingly while majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri has agreed to sell his 94.1% stake to 777 Partners. When the deal was announced in September, the transaction was earmarked to take place in the final quarter of 2023.

Speaking to the VSI Sporting Directors’ Podcast, Thelwell was asked about what plans for January could be. A candid Thelwell replied: "Right at this moment, who knows because we are in the middle of a takeover and we're not quite sure how long that takeover is going to take.

"We are in the middle of an independent commission around PSR. I'm not quite sure what the answer is to that. We have to plan for every eventuality. The one thing they (fans) can depend on is that we will be looking at ways to improve the team."

Everton found themselves in a difficult situation during the summer transfer window when it came to finances. The Toffees cashed in on Alex Iwobi and Demarai Gray as well as youngsters Tom Cannon, Ellis Simms and Ishe Samuels-Smith.

Meanwhile, the Toffees recruited Beto and Youssef Chermiti for a combined fee of around £32 million from Udinese and Sporting CP respectively although first payments were not due until the next fiscal year.

Thelwell insisted that if Everton are to recruit players to significant fees then they must have a resale value. He added: "I think it's been well-documented that Everton is in a difficult financial position and we need to stay on the right side of PSR continuously. Our reality is there is limited resource available and if there is any money, we're going to have to be spending it for the right reasons.

"They have to be able to help us right now going forward, if we are spending a large amount of money on a transfer fee, we have to have the ability for a resale in the future. "We're building a framework that hopefully builds a team in the right way.

"We still rely on and regard experienced players as a big part of the plan - James Tarkowski is an example, Abdoulaye Doucoure is an example - but then support that with the young players that have the opportunity to grow and develop with them as well as achieve. The Amadou Onanas, Jarrad Branthwaite this year, Jimmy Garner, Dwight McNeil. Understanding we still need to get results but are building a team in the right way."