Everton keen on Wigan Athletic player | OneFootball

Highlights

Premier League outfit Everton are keeping tabs on Wigan Athletic goalkeeper Sam Tickle, according to Alan Nixon.

The same journalist has claimed that the Toffees' boss Sean Dyche has sent scouts to keep a close eye on the shot-stopper, ahead of a potential approach for the 21-year-old.

It's believed that the Merseyside outfit are keen to find a young keeper who could potentially replace England international Jordan Pickford at some point.

Pickford's future departure will leave Dyche or a potential successor with a huge void to fill at Goodison Park, with the stopper performing well for both club and country in recent years.

At the moment, the Toffees will surely be focused on retaining their top-flight status considering how much they have struggled in recent years.

Promoted teams Burnley, Luton Town and Sheffield United may all be struggling at this point, with the latter only picking up their first league win of the campaign on Saturday, but Dyche's side can't afford to be complacent at this point.

They currently sit five points above the drop zone - and will want to increase that gap in the coming weeks and months.

At the same time, they will also be keen to have one eye on the long term to increase their chances of enjoying long-lasting success, being linked with some young players in recent months including Leeds United's Wilfried Gnonto.

Making his senior debut during the 2021/22 campaign, he has made his full breakthrough this term, appearing in all 15 of their league games so far this season.

That is an excellent achievement for the young stopper, who has conceded a respectable 20 goals in these 15 matches and kept four clean sheets in the process.

Doing well enough to attract interest from the Toffees and other clubs, the Englishman can be very pleased with his work and will be hoping to be rewarded with some appearances for England at a youth international level.

Whether that opportunity comes remains to be seen - but he will be delighted to have won so much game time this term.

Should Sam Tickle make the potential move to Everton?

He shouldn't be looking to push for a move away at this point for a couple of reasons.

Firstly, the Toffees may not have the funds to buy him, so it would be pointless pushing for this potential switch if the top-tier side can't make the deal a reality.

And secondly, he's getting plenty of game time at his current club.

They may be in League One at the moment - but that game time at a senior level is valuable and there's every chance they could potentially mount a promotion push next term.

Tickle definitely needs more experience under his belt before he can become a number one at a higher level.

Tickle won't be Dyche's first-choice shot-stopper straight away and with this in mind, he shouldn't make this move to Goodison Park yet.