Kevin Phillips has advocated for Tom Davies to leave boyhood club Everton in a bid to reignite a stagnating career – and namedropped another young English midfielder in the process.
Davies has just two starts to his name across all competitions this season and has struggled to break into a midfield pivot of Abdoulaye Doucoure and Allan on a regular basis.
Consequentially, Davies’ situation was compared to Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher who is enjoying his fourth loan spell in three seasons with fellow Premier League side Crystal Palace.
Indeed, Palace were recently linked with Davies himself as the Eagles continue to hunt for reinforcements for Patrick Vieira’s new-look Palace side.
When asked for his view on what is best for the Everton youngster, Philips presented a stick-or-twist situation as he spoke to Football Insider.
“His career has stagnated a bit.
“18 months ago the kid was getting a lot of game time and playing good football.
“The problem for him is, Allan and Doucoure have come in. Their arrival has pushed him down the pecking order. He is at the back of the pecking order really.
“Is his time at Everton up? Maybe. The fans will not want to see him leave because he is a good young player who’s come through the academy there.
“But, I think Davies knows that he might need to leave to further his career.
“It’s a bit like Conor Gallagher really. Gallagher is playing week in, week out at Palace and is being tipped for an international call-up soon.
“Davies may need to look for a move in January and I think he’d be a very good signing for someone. I think a move will be on the cards in January.”
Read Everton Verdict
It feels like time is running out for Davies to make a real impact on this Everton side.
Given Benitez’ strong preference for other midfielders, it seems that Davies will have to accept a peripheral role at the club unless injury forces the manager’s hand.
In that view, a move may satisfy the needs of both the young midfielder and the club.
With Davies out of contract in 2023, cashing in while the club can still leverage value before he enters the final year of his deal could be sensible.
