According to reports in The Daily Mail, Everton manager Marco Silva is ready to bid to bring Celtic defender Kieran Tierney, and has £25m of his transfer budget earmarked to earmarked for the deal.

The Daily Mail says that the Merseyside outfit are ready to find out how much the Bhoys want for the Scotland international, with Premier League rivals Tottenham Hotspur, Bournemouth and Wolverhampton Wanderers all keen on him.

The report adds that the Portuguese boss has highlighted bringing a new full-back to Goodison Park as a priority, presumably to replace the ageing Leighton Baines who may well not be capable of being a regular in the starting XI next term.

That said, the 21-year-old has only recently signed a new six-year deal with the Scottish Premiership champions and likely won't come on the cheap, and the Toffees should forget about spending £25m on him and get a better deal for someone else.

Here are three left-backs Everton should target instead of Tierney in order to save some money…

Everton have already been linked with a move for the Hertha Berlin left-back this summer, and while he was hardly impressive for Germany during their miserable 2018 World Cup campaign, he clearly has impressed enough for the Bundesliga outfit to force himself into first-team contention for his country.

The Toffees' Premier League rivals Huddersfield Town are also keen on the 26-year-old according to The Mirror, which suggests he is available for a much lower fee than Tierney perhaps would be.

The Argentina international only signed for Ajax during the January transfer window, but the left-back has shown for both club and country the defensive and attacking ability and energy that he has, and he could be the ideal Baines replacement for the Merseyside outfit.

One goal and two assists in 15 games for the Dutch giants proves the effect he can have in the final third, while the fact that he cost just £4m just a few months ago would mean that Everton fancy their chances of picking him up for a decent fee – and one far lower than Tierney's probable price tag.

The Bayern Munich man is another player that the Toffees have been heavily linked with in 2018 as he finds himself behind the likes of David Alaba in the pecking order at the Bundesliga champions.

The Spaniard certainly has plenty of pedigree having made 113 appearances for Bayern, and the fact that the German giants are reportedly ready to listen to offers for the 25-year-old – who has just one year remaining on his contract – suggests he could be available for a reasonable fee.

Do you agree, Everton fans? Let us know below.