It’s taken a while. Bids knocked back, a different fee depending on which end of the M62 you were standing, Tottenham and Crystal Palace circling — but Everton have finally (we think) got their man.
Offers of £12m and £15m were rejected before the club finally offered a deal Middlesbrough were prepared to accept, with the deal now structured at an initial £16.5m, climbing toward £25m depending on add-ons.
So what will Everton’s midfield actually look like with Hackney in it?
Career to date
| Season | Club | Competition | Apps | Goals | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-22 | Scunthorpe (loan) | League Two | 28 | 0 | 2 |
| 2022-23 | Middlesbrough | Championship | 36 | 3 | 4 |
| 2023-24 | Middlesbrough | Championship | 21 | 1 | 0 |
| 2024-25 | Middlesbrough | Championship | 43 | 5 | 9 |
| 2025-26 | Middlesbrough | Championship | 38 | 5 | 6-7 |
A few things jump out. The loan spell at Scunthorpe gave him senior minutes in League Two before he returned to Boro for the 2022-23 campaign and was handed his Championship debut in a 1-0 win over Birmingham City.
A dip in 2023-24 — fewer starts and some injuries — was followed by two outstanding seasons either side of his 23rd and 24th birthdays, in which he went from promising academy graduate to the best player outside the Premier League.
He went on to win the 2025-26 Championship Player of the Year award having started every one of Boro’s league games and racked up more minutes than any other outfield player in Kim Hellberg’s side.
Profile
| Hayden Hackney | Stats |
|---|---|
| Age | 24 (born 26 June 2002, Redcar) |
| Height/weight | 5’10” / 68-70kg |
| Position | Central midfield (6 or 8) |
| Foot | Right |
| Contract status pre-move | One year remaining |
| Honours | UEFA U21 Championship winner, England (2025) |
A homegrown product, club captain, boyhood Boro fan — this was never going to be a straightforward sale. That Middlesbrough held out for a number well above Everton’s opening offer was always going to be the case. Especially with other clubs sniffing
Strengths
This is the good bit. Hackney ranks in the top 10 per cent of Championship midfielders for ball retention, progressive distribution, final-third ‘access’ and press resistance.
He’s comfortable taking the ball under pressure, drops deep to dictate tempo, and is built for a team that wants to circulate possession and break lines through the middle of the pitch — a system that wouldn’t suit a more direct, transition-heavy approach.
Add genuine end product on top of all that — five goals and seven assists again this season — and it’s easy to see why three other Premier League clubs were hovering.
Weaknesses
The same scouting work that praises his range also raises a discreet flag. There are, it seems, defensive and transitional limitations, and the report argues he needs a disciplined, high-volume ball-winner alongside him to cover for that.
Put simply: he isn’t going to do Idrissa Gana Gueye’s old job on his own. His anticipation of opposition passing lanes and his proactivity without the ball are both flagged as areas still needing work before he’s the finished Premier League article.
Verdict
This has the look of good business. A 24-year-old England U21 international, the standout performer in the second tier, bought on a fee that’s structured to protect Everton if the step up doesn’t click.
The question now is fit — Hackney needs the ball and needs protection in front of the back four to do his best work, and how Moyes builds his midfield around him will decide whether this becomes a successful buy or a player who needs time to find his level in the Premier League.
Finally arrived. Almost. Hopefully. Fingers crossed.
