Moshiri can land Everton's next Jagielka in swoop for "outstanding" £70k-p/w machine - opinion

Everton have had a disappointing season in the Premier League with the side narrowly avoiding a drop into the Championship by just four points, and Frank Lampard will now be tasked with identifying players that can improve the squad ahead of next season.

The Toffees have struggled at both ends of the pitch, but their defensive performances have come under harsh criticism over the campaign, with the side conceding the fifth-most goals in the league and 23 more than they scored.

In fact, Everton centre-back Michael Keane has come under scrutiny for his inconsistency and poor performances in the back-line this season, with Gabby Agbonlahor branding the defender “absolutely dreadful” in an interview with Football Insider.

With that being said, the Toffees now have the best opportunity to go into the market and sign upgrades to improve the defence this summer and one player who has been heavily linked is recently relegated Burnley’s James Tarkowski.

The centre-back is available on a free transfer this summer and could be the second coming of Phil Jagielka if Everton can secure a deal for the player who was hailed “outstanding” by Sean Dyche.

This season, Tarkowski has been the highest-rated player in the entire Burnley squad according to SofaScore, and it’s not hard to see why when you look at his overall performance for the club.

The £17k-per-week defender has scored one goal and contributed two assists, making 1.8 tackles, 1.4 interceptions and an impressive 5.2 clearances on average per game.

He’s also won the large majority of his aerial and ground duels combined (68%) and been successful in completing the majority of his dribbles (71%), proving that he is a solid defender with the capabilities to offer an attacking