By Kieran Maguire

23rd Apr, 2021 | 7:00pm

Everton 'heavyweight' Brands key to £100m+ transfer plan as new deal done - Maguire

Marcel Brands is a “heavyweight” and absolutely essential in Farhad Moshiri’s quest to turn Everton into an elite-level outfit.

That is according to finance guru and Football Insider columnist Kieran Maguire, speaking exclusively after Everton announced that Brands has signed a contract extension keeping him at Goodison Park until 2024.

That means he will be charged with managing the £100million-plus transfer war chest which this site revealed Moshiri is likely to sanction this summer.

The director of football has already overseen £266m worth of expenditure since joining the club in 2018.

Maguire claims Brands’ importance to the Everton project cannot be overstated and he will therefore be vital if Moshiri is to fulfil his sky-high ambitions.

“He’s a heavyweight at the club,” he told Football Insider correspondent Adam Williams.

“He’s got the trust of the board, he’s got the trust of the manager as well.

“Brands is in that intermediate position where he can see all of the activities in the club and assess them.

“He is a big part of Farhad Moshiri’s long-term plans for Everton. So I think this is a very, very sensible piece of work for the club.”

In an accompanying statement, Brands told the club’s official website: “Everton is a very special football club and a club with clear and exciting ambitions.

“We are making good progress and I believe we have everything in place for us to be successful.”

In other news, Everton could be about to pull of “genius” bit of business amid Moise Kean transfer latest.