Everton’s misguided transfer activity across the last decade is the outstanding catalyst which has taken them from a solid mainstay of the Premier League and turned them into consistent relegation battlers.
Farhad Moshiri sits at the core of this outstanding failure, having funnelled the funds in with reckless abandonment.
He may not have directly informed every single wrong decision that the Toffees have made under his leadership, but those who did dictate the direction of this club were employed by him.
The managers and directors of football spent freely and without thought, and now Sean Dyche and Kevin Thelwell are paying the price.
Now, this summer, this duo can’t afford to make any mistakes.
Everton showing interest in Arthur Melo
Having been ruthlessly stung twice last season by the Premier League for their PSR breaches, the entire division has been scared into submission over how active they can be in the market.
On one hand, it feels like as good a time as any to try and disrupt the traditional top-six monopoly just as Newcastle United and Aston Villa have done in recent seasons.
On the other hand, despite both having now recorded Champions League football, they will have to sell before they can build upon their success.
The system is hopelessly broken, and whilst these two are merely at threat of sliding down the table, for the Toffees going any lower results in relegation.
So, with reports suggesting Everton want Arthur Melo this summer, this is a deal that feels somewhat unlikely given the club’s current financial climate.
After all, despite a fine campaign on loan with Fiorentina, such a move would be treading over old ground, and taking the same lucrative risks that led to their current predicament.
Everton cannot afford more expensive risks
The list of high-profile and big-money acquisitions that Everton have made across the last decade is exhaustive and hugely damaging.
And at the time, most of them seemed like smart business too.
Ronald Koeman, seeking to kickstart his new era, invested heavily in Gylfi Sigurdsson and Michael Keane , neither of whom worked out.
Then Marco Silva sought to do the same, but Andre Gomes, Yerry Mina, Alex Iwobi and Moise Kean all failed to reach the heights that their huge price tags warranted.
Even more recently, despite the increasing severity of their financial position, players like Cenk Tosun and Allan were clearly bought for instant success rather than within a long-term plan.
Arthur Melo turns 28 later this year, and is currently sat on a £53k-a-week contract at Juventus having joined from Barcelona for £61m.
Snagging what looks like a top player from the outskirts of a European giant is not all it’s cracked up to be. Everton should know.