The return of David Moyes to Everton was met with great fanfare after the Scottish manager replaced Sean Dyche at the helm for the remainder of the final season at Goodison Park.
People often say that players and managers should avoid going back to a place where they have already been successful, at risk of tainting the legacy set the first time, but it has been a terrific start to his second spell.
The Toffees have won two of his three Premier League matches in charge so far, beating Tottenham Hotspur 3-2 and Brighton & Hove Albion 1-0, after losing 1-0 to Aston Villa in his first game.
Moyes has got the players going and helped them to move seven points clear of the relegation zone, as they look to move well clear of the battle to avoid dropping down to the Championship at the end of the season.
Despite a strong start to his second spell at Goodison, the former Manchester United and West Ham boss is still looking to bolster his squad before the end of the January transfer window.
The deadline is next week and the Toffees are reportedly looking to bring in a forward who could be their next Romelu Lukaku…
Romelu Lukaku's Everton career
The Belgium international initially joined the club on loan from Chelsea for the 2013/14 campaign and was an instant hit on Merseyside, with a return of 15 goals and seven assists in 31 Premier League matches.
Lukaku came in as a player with top-flight experience, having played for West Brom on loan the previous season, and hit the ground running as a reliable outlet at the top end of the pitch.
The Belgian marksman’s sublime form on loan convinced the Toffees to splash a club-record fee of £28m to sign him permanently from Chelsea in the summer of 2014, which turned out to be a fantastic piece of business.
13/14
34
16
7
14/15
48
20
7
15/16
46
25
6
16/17
39
26
7
As you can see in the table above, Lukaku went on to score 20 or more goals in all three of his seasons as a permanent Everton player after his £28m switch from Stamford Bridge, which shows that the club certainly got their money’s worth for him.
The Toffees then made a gigantic profit on the powerful centre-forward when Manchester United signed him for a reported fee of £75m in the summer of 2017, after his 26-goal haul in the 2016/17 campaign.
Everton could, now, repeat the masterclass they played with Lukaku by swooping for another loan striker from a Premier League side this month.
Everton keen on Premier League forward
According to The Athletic, in a piece written by David Ornstein, Everton are one of a number of clubs interested in a late move for Brighton centre-forward Evan Ferguson.
The report claims that the Toffees are keen on a deal for the Ireland international and are lining up a swoop to bring him to Goodison Park on loan for the next four months or so.
It states that Brighton are open to sending the 20-year-old number nine out on a temporary deal if a move suits all parties, but it remains to be seen where they would be willing to send him.
The Athletic adds that West Ham United and Bournemouth, who are dealing with injuries to their own strikers, are among the other teams in the race to land the Brighton academy graduate before next week’s deadline.
It also reveals that there are clubs from Germany interested in Ferguson but that a move to the Premier League is the most likely scenario at this moment in time, which could come as a boost for the Toffees, although they still have to fend off interest from the Hammers and the Cherries.
Transfer Focus
Everton are in need of a striker after Dominic Calvert-Lewin pulled up with a suspected hamstring injury against Brighton last time out, which is why they should push to get this move over the line.
Why Everton should sign Evan Ferguson
Like the Belgian forward, Ferguson cuts an imposing figure, at 6 foot, at the top end of the pitch and could provide the team with a presence in the number nine position.
It is the 20-year-old attacker’s finishing qualities, however, that could see him emerge as Lukaku 2.0 at Goodison Park, because he has proven himself to be lethal inside the box at Premier League level.
Injuries have hampered his attempts to become a regular starter at Brighton, as he has missed 24 games through injury since the start of last season, but the potential is there for him to be a star if Everton can bring him in and keep the youngster fit.
One of Lukaku’s biggest strengths during his time as a permanent player at Goodison was his lethal nature in front of goal. He scored 53 goals from 49.16 xG across three Premier League seasons after his £28m move, which illustrates how ruthless he was for the club.
Ferguson, who was hailed as “phenomenal” by teammate James Milner, has shown similar qualities in his limited game time for Brighton in recent seasons, which suggests that he has the potential to be a star for the Toffees if it all comes together.
22/23
5.67
6
+0.33
23/24
3.97
6
+2.03
24/25
0.66
1
+0.34
Total
10.29
13
+2.71
As you can see in the table above, Ferguson has consistently outperformed his xG in the Premier League with the Seagulls and appears to have the quality in front of goal to make the most of any high-quality opportunities that come his way.
Calvert-Lewin has scored three goals from 6.11 xG in the Premier League this season and this suggests that the Irishman could come in to offer more than the Englishman in the finishing department.
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Therefore, Everton should push to sign the Brighton youngster on loan for the second half of the season, in the hope of repeating their Lukaku masterclass.