Finance Expert: Everton could soon secure £10m windfall they haven't seen in years

Everton have a chance to return to European football for the first time in eight years.

Things looked bleak after Everton lost Manchester City loanee Jack Grealish to injury last month but the Toffees reacted in the transfer market.

On deadline day, Everton secured the loan signing of Tyrique George from Chelsea, who can play up front and on the wing.

With 14 games of the season to go, Everton sit 10th in the Premier League table, just two points off Brentford – who occupy the last European qualification spot.

Everton’s last dalliance with the continent came in the 2017-18 edition of the Europa League. Now, they are targeting Europe again, as helpful windfalls come into view.

Everton told why the Europa League should be in their sights

While the Champions League is the ultimate goal for a team seeking European action, the Europa League and Conference League can still be very worthwhile.

A Champions League spot may be out of reach for Everton, who are six points behind fifth-placed Chelsea and seven adrift of fourth-positioned Manchester United.

But financial expert Dan Plumley has outlined why the Europa League is very much worth their while, and the same could be said for the Conference League, but to a lesser extent.

When asked if there was a difference between those two competitions financially, Plumley exclusively told Goodison News: “There is.

“The Champions League is the pinnacle, that’s the biggest windfall, and then there’s a big gap between the Champions League and Europa League.

“You might be talking low single-digit millions for Europa League participation in terms of group stage and additional matches, so conservatively you might make £10million but the Conference League is going to be half of that.

“You do get those big swings in the European competitions, and it would tier up so Conference League to Europa League to Champions League.

“I’m sure Everton would absolutely take the European place on offer if they get there, but you want to be aiming towards the Europa League; that is where long-term sights will be set. But it would be a significant windfall boost if you could get Europa League over Conference League.”

The last time Everton were in Europe, they failed to make it out of the group stages. If they make it to the same competition next season, they will hope to go one better.

And if they do qualify, a windfall of £10m or so could go towards signing a new, exciting player.

Incidentally, Plumley previously explained why Everton spent so little in the winter window.

• Read more: Everton winter window 2026 round-up: Two deadline day loans confirmed, Blues star ‘devastated’

Do Everton have the personnel to qualify for Europe?

So far, this season has shown that the league is wide open. For instance, just three points separate Brentford in seventh from Bournemouth in 12th.

At the start of the campaign, the Cherries were in the top four, and then over Christmas, they had plummeted down the table.

While Everton have a largely solid defence after conceding 27 goals in 24 games, they have scored just 26 in that time.

If they want to qualify for Europe, they, arguably, need to start being a bit more clinical at the top end of the pitch.

What will help their cause is that, other than Grealish and a Vitaliy Mykolenko knock, Everton finally have a very small injury list.

But when striker Thierno Barry is your top scorer with five, therein lies the problem. Everton’s sole first-team signing in the winter window was George, and he is still relatively unproven at this level.

If Everton can align their impressive away form with their middling home form, Europe is very much a possibility. But a few things need to fall into place for that to happen.

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