Alan Stubbs has suggested that Michail Antonio would have been absolutely perfect for Everton after the West Ham striker was linked with the Toffees earlier in the summer.
Stubbs was speaking on the No Tippy Tappy Football podcast as Everton already appear to be facing another tough campaign.
Sean Dyche’s side have boosted their chances of staying in the Premier League with the signing of Beto. But Alan Stubbs believes that another striker linked with an Everton move this summer would have been an even better option.
Reports from The Sun in March claimed Everton were considering a move for Michail Antonio if they stayed in the top-flight. And obviously, they did manage to keep themselves up.
Stubbs thinks Antonio would’ve been perfect for Everton
However, there has been no move for Antonio. And he has since reiterated his importance to West Ham with a masterclass of a performance in their surprise win over Brighton at the weekend.
Obviously, ruling anything out in this transfer window is nearly impossible. But with little more than 24 hours to go, there is surely no way that Antonio ends up at Goodison Park before the deadline.
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And Stubbs clearly believes that Everton missed a brilliant opportunity.
“He was linked with Everton early on in the summer. And I think he would have been perfect for Everton, in terms of how they play, holding up the ball. A big striker that Sean Dyche wants,” he told No Tippy Tappy Football.
“And I think any Everton fans you would’ve asked if you could take anyone now, I think Antonio would’ve been right at the top of the list, because we’ve signed Beto, but obviously, he’s still an unknown. We don’t know what we’re going to get just yet. Whereas at least with Antonio, you know exactly what you’re going to get.”
There were some promising signs from Beto in the Carabao Cup. But clearly, Everton have to step up their game considerably after the opening three games.
They are yet to score a single goal. And they have created plenty of chances along the way. So having a decent striker could make a massive difference to their fortunes.
The good news is that Everton have added some good attackers to their ranks in this window. And there are some weak sides in the division this season.
But you can certainly understand why Stubbs is ruing the fact Everton did not manage to sign Antonio when there was speculation.