Everton beat new Brexit rules to sign Niels Nkounkou but future changes are unclear

Everton would have been forced to rethink some of their summer relocation activities under the new Brexit rules.

The Premier League, the English Football League and the Football Association have confirmed the revision of the transfer regulations which will come into effect when the UK leaves the European Union after 31 December.

Clubs will no longer be able to sign European players as before but, instead, will have to ensure that the transfer objectives meet the requirements for obtaining a work permit.

Players signed from outside the EU currently need to obtain GBE approval before their move to England can be ratified but, as of the January transfer window, these rules will also apply to players Europeans.

And the transfer of younger players will be made more difficult for Everton and the rest of the Premier League with clubs no longer allowed to sign those under the age of 18 from the EU.

All players aged 18 and over will be subject to GBE regulations, although the new requirements criteria have been expanded to ensure top young talent can still come to the Premier League.

Premier League football director Richard Garlick said yesterday: “The clubs still want to maintain their international competitiveness in recruiting the most talented boys from around the world.

“And the FA wants to make sure that promising young English players still have the chance to play at the highest level.

“So, the focus of the Premier League and the FA discussion was on Premier League clubs’ ability to sign emerging foreign players who they identified as gifted but too young to have a chance to gain the necessary first-team experience to meet the GBE point criteria. “

I have Lamb

Everton signed 17-year-old Jagne, of Swedish side BK Hacken in October, but under the rules that go into effect in January, the Blues would not have been allowed to hook the midfielder.

The Blues would be forced to wait until January 2022 (depending on the dates of the summer window) and then hope that the Swedish youth national team met the relevant criteria to earn a GBE.

Even having to wait another 12 months would have increased the chances of Everton rivals getting in the way of trying to sign a player, recently lauded as a “big presser” of the ball.

Niels Nkounkou

Under the new transfer rules due to take effect in January, Everton may have had a hard time signing Nkounkou.

The then 19-year-old joined the Blues after his contract with Marseille expired, but even taking into account the “additional criteria” established to help “Youth Talent” meet the requirements for a GBE, there is some doubt if the left-back would have qualified.

To reach the necessary 15 points, the Premier League, EFL and FA (with proposals now ratified by the Ministry of the Interior) have expanded the GBE process beyond international limits and that country’s FIFA ranking.

The playing time for their club and the level of competition are also taken into account as part of “more flexible and far-reaching criteria by which players score points”.

For young players, aged 18 and over, the new rules also take into consideration whether they have been nominated in a first team squad, even if an unused substitute, or any cup appearances. Their international youth presences are also taken into consideration.

If a player scores between 10-14 points, his case will be directed by an exceptions panel.

Nkounkou was named to the Marseille squad twice last season, but has not gone off the bench. He trained regularly with the first team but spent much of the campaign playing for Marseille B.

His international experience has included only a handful of appearances with France Under 18 and Under 19 and so Everton may have struggled to sign him under the new rules.

What impact on future relocation plans?

As part of the ongoing changes to Everton’s scouting network, there has been the creation of seven Academy-level jobs that focus on recruiting players between the ages of 13 and 18.

And while there will be expectations to identify international talent, the new roles will be based in the UK as Everton seeks to strengthen their youth ranks, with national talent signing now easier with the new regulations.

At the first team level, football director Marcel Brands will again ask his recruiting team to highlight the most talented young players across Europe and the expectation is that the Blues would be able to sign Moise Kean – who had 19 when he joined the club – under the new rules, given his visibility in the first team and in the national team.

Everton, of course, have done a considerable amount of business with a number of European clubs for a number of EU players and there would have been no problem ratifying the transfers of Lucas Digne or Andre Gomes, for example, based on to the new rules.

The changes can, of course, now add a premium to the price of such players with sales teams now aware of the extra hurdles Premier League clubs have to overcome.

Everton has signed players from five different top-flight rivals since the summer of 2018, while this summer also broke into the league twice for recruits, and Brexit regulations could see clubs increasingly trying to do business at home.