According to a recent report from The Sun, Everton are interested in a summer move for centre back Chris Smalling. The 28-year-old currently plays his football at Premier League giants Manchester United and has done so since leaving Fulham back in 2010, but with his contract up at the end of the current campaign, his future at Old Trafford remains uncertain.

And reports suggest that Everton manager Marco Silva is eyeing up a move for the England international, and having seen director of football Marcel Brands pull off plenty of transfer masterstrokes last summer, a shrewd move for the £16.2 million-rated star (as per Transfermarkt) could prove to be another to add to the Dutchman’s growing list.

The Breakdown

Ultimately, Brands took over as Toffees director of football earlier this year following the departure of Steve Walsh, enabling him to oversee what many viewed as a very successful transfer window for the Merseyside outfit.

The likes of Lucas Digne, Andre Gomes, and Yerry Mina were persuaded to leave Barcelona for Goodison Park while Kurt Zouma left Chelsea for a temporary spell at the club - let alone the big money move for Richarlison which, while ridiculed at the time, is already looking like an outstanding piece of business.

Thus, the Dutchman has got very little wrong during his short stint at Goodison Park, and while some Evertonians may have reservations about United’s Smalling, he’s a player who could seriously benefit the club in their quest for European football.

The 28-year-old may not have proven to be the most reliable defender in the Premier League in the last few years, but he has enjoyed a better run of form in Jose Mourinho’s team in recent times, while his tally of 303 appearances for one of the biggest clubs in the world can hardly be scoffed at.

And while the Toffees have improved drastically at the back in recent times, it’s a defensive department which could have a completely new look to it come the end of the season, what with Zouma only on loan until the summer, while club captain Phil Jagielka is likely to leave at the expiration of his contract.

That would leave just Mina, Michael Keane, and Mason Holgate as the senior centre backs at Goodison Park, and while the Keane has improved this term and Mina performed solidly on debut last weekend, there remain some reservations regarding the latter’s overall ability in the Premier League - Smalling’s addition would bolster those ranks.

And given how right Brands has been with the vast majority of his signings so far at Goodison Park, sealing a shrewd move for Smalling, likely to be on a free in the summer or a cut-price deal in January, could prove to be yet another masterstroke from the Dutchman.

Everton fans… what do you think? Let us know!