Everton eye Sunderland’s Jack Clarke

This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict‘ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Sunderland winger Jack Clarke is on Everton’s radar.

Football League World understands that the 22-year-old is likely to be sold this summer due to the interest in him – with the Toffees among the clubs keen.

But would he be a good signing for the Goodison Park outfit? And should Sunderland cash in?

We quizzed our FLW writers…

Ned Holmes

I’d be trying to keep hold of Jack Clarke if I was Sunderland.

With three years left on his contract, the 22-year-old’s valuation will surely only continue to rise if he builds on his impressive form in 2022/23.

With Amad Diallo back at Man United, losing Clarke would damage Sunderland’s chances of battling for promotion in the Championship again next season.

From an Everton perspective, they do need more forward firepower and Clarke has shown his qualities as both a goalscorer and a creator.

He drifts in and out of games but should become more consistent as he continues to develop his game and this summer might not be a bad time to strike.

He will need time to get up to speed in the Premier League, though.

James Reeves

Clarke would be an excellent signing for Everton.

The Toffees were incredibly short of goals and creativity as they once again narrowly avoided relegation from the Premier League this season, scoring just 34 goals in 38 games, the second-lowest in the division.

Clarke reached double figures for both goals and assists for Sunderland this campaign which suggests he could be the perfect solution to Everton’s attacking issues, while it could be argued he is an upgrade on the likes of Demarai Gray and Dwight McNeil.

At 22, Clarke still has plenty of room for development and would represent a smart long-term investment by the Toffees, although there would be question marks over whether they could afford a deal given their well-documented FFP issues.

Sunderland should do everything possible to keep Clarke at the Stadium of Light this summer, but as interest grows in his services, it could be tough to hold on to him.

Ben Wignall

When you look at where Everton need to strengthen this summer, they do actually already have three quite good wide players for Premier League level who have all showed something this past season in Dwight McNeil, Demarai Gray and Alex Iwobi.

Iwobi though could be transitioned back to the middle of the park potentially which would open up a berth to sign an exciting wide forward, which Clarke has proven to be at Sunderland following a very good season at Championship level.

Clarke has always had talent and that is why Tottenham snapped him up from Leeds years ago, but he’s finally put it all together and added a consistent end product to his game and he could now be ready for the Premier League.

Sunderland though are in a good position where he’s tied down for multiple years, so they do not have to cash in on the cheap – the Kyril Louis-Dreyfus model however does mean buy cheap, sell high when necessary.

Therefore, I could see Clarke departing this summer, however it would have to be north of £15 million for Sunderland to even consider it in my mind.