Everton are set to make an addition to the backroom staff of Sean Dyche at Goodison Park.
Indeed, the Toffees are to recruit Phil Boardman who will take up a European scouting role at the club.
Boardman is currently employed by League One side Portsmouth, where he has spent the last six years as Head of Recruitment.
Prior to his role at Pompey, Boardman worked for Wolverhampton Wanderers as Head of Performance Analysis.
Everton’s Director of Football Kevin Thelwell also previously worked at Molineux, and the pair could now reunite at the Blues.
That is according to the Liverpool Echo, who report that Boardman will serve a period of notice at Fratton Park before heading north to take up his role with Everton.
As per Portsmouth’s local newspaper, The News, Boardman’s departure appears to be part of a behind-the-scenes overhaul on the South Coast.
The report said: “Boardman has fitted in well with the new regime, as he continued with his manner of putting in the hard miles and operating largely under the radar.
He leaves with Pompey’s best wishes, but there is now anticipation at how that role can be driven forward with his successor.”
Sean Dyche needs the right men both on and off the field to bring success to Everton
Boardman’s imminent arrival could be seen as a show of faith in Everton’s Director of Football Kevin Thelwell, with the 49-year-old about to link up with his former colleague.
Indeed, their previous work together suggests that Thelwell could have contributed to the decision to appoint a scout that he already has a strong working relationship with.
If that is the case, it could bode well for the Blues, with the club’s overall recruitment leaving a lot to be desired for many years.
Thelwell himself was only appointed as Everton’s Director of Football in February 2022, one year before Sean Dyche arrived, and appears to have been given a show of faith.