Barkley’s return to Everton would be warmly welcomed.
Everton, of course, had considerably less riding on the game than the Hatters, who truly needed all three points, because their Premier League place was already guaranteed for another season. Several of Luton’s attacking players stood out yesterday night, and despite dominating for large stretches of the game, the visitors failed to capitalize on the opportunities they generated.
In the match report, I mentioned one of those players, Elijah Adebayo. The 26-year-old forward scored the Hatters’ equalizer and looked dangerous throughout the game. To me, Adebayo, or even his teammate Carlton Morris, appears to be the type of forward the Toffees should consider signing this summer. Tahith Chong, a former Manchester United youth team player, also performed well. He possesses a lot of pace (which is much required) and has proven to be a thorn in Everton’s defence.
Of course, there’s former Blues prodigy Barkley, whose tenure at Goodison Park ended in such tragic circumstances. Despite his evident talent, he struggled to maintain consistent form or a regular spot in David Moyes’ or his predecessors’ squads. As with other academy products, such as Tom Davies, who may not have fulfilled their early potential, he found himself on the wrong side of some members of the Goodison crowd.
After departing under a cloud in January 2018, the brilliant attacker spent some time abroad when things did not go as planned in West London before returning to England and joining Luton. This season, he has been perhaps the Hatters’ greatest player, and he has put in some excellent performances, scoring five goals and assisting four times, which is an impressive return from midfield. What he does offer, which we saw glimpses of when he wore the famed royal blue, is genuine inventiveness and the potential to open up a defence.
Barkely can also carry the ball from deep, which Everton has badly missed since Alex Iwobi’s transfer to Fulham last summer. I’ve talked about the paucity of youth team players developing recently, and since Anthony Gordon’s departure, there hasn’t been anybody who appears ready to step up and play in the Premier League. Obviously, Barkley is no longer a rising star, but he was once, and his return would sort of complete the wheel, so to speak.
I believe he has grown, and his results for a very ordinary Hatters squad indicate he can still contribute at this level. While bringing back players, particularly those who had a difficult relationship with the home crowd, may not seem like a good idea, the Blues will have to think and work very creatively to bring in new talent this summer given all of the uncertainty and financial pressures the club is facing.
To be honest, I don’t believe he will return even if there is a chance, but stranger and more implausible things have happened in this game of football.