Everton launch big-money bid to sign “elite target man”

Everton’s search for a match-winning centre-forward is heating up.

The club’s recruitment team are pushing hard to secure a signing who can both lead the line with authority and bring a clinical edge in front of goal.

The profile they are targeting is clear: a striker in the mould of Romelu Lukaku – a player who can bully defenders with physicality and convert chances at a prolific rate.

The Toffees have been crying out for a reliable forward since the Belgian’s departure in 2017.

Now, with David Moyes at the helm and a summer recruitment strategy shaped by ambition, Everton appear ready to act decisively.

Everton’s looking at signing their new Lukaku

The club have already turned heads with the loan signing of Jack Grealish from Manchester City, adding star quality to their forward line.

But there is a growing acceptance that, without a proven striker to convert those chances, Everton’s attacking rebuild will be incomplete.

The latest target fits the brief, and reports suggest the Merseyside outfit are prepared to make a significant financial commitment to get their man.

According to Football Insider, Everton have submitted a £37m bid for AS Roma’s powerful Ukrainian striker, Artem Dovbyk.

Dovbyk, 28, has been the subject of widespread Premier League interest this summer, with clubs such as Leeds United, West Ham United and Sunderland all linked to him.

However, Everton appear to be leading the race, aided by the fact that Roma are also owned by the Friedkin Group.

The striker is reportedly keen on a move to England, just 18 months after joining Roma from La Liga side Girona.

His final audition came in a 1-0 pre-season win over Everton at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, where Dovbyk featured for 80 minutes.

The Lukaku Comparison

Everton’s interest in this “elite target man“, as he’s been referred to by European football expert Zach Lowy, comes alongside other forward-thinking moves in the market.

They are keeping tabs on right-wing options such as Real Sociedad’s Takefusa Kubo and Southampton’s Tyler Dibling, both of whom could operate alongside the Ukrainian in a new-look attack.

Dovbyk’s arrival would also provide valuable mentorship to 22-year-old French striker Thierno Barry, recently signed from Villarreal for £27.6m and boasting a similar physical style of play.

The comparison to Lukaku is an obvious one – and for good reason.

Both players stand at over 1.88 and combine their physical power with an instinctive eye for goal.

Dovbyk’s stats from his 2023/24 season with Girona underscore just how effective he can be.

The Ukrainian scored 24 goals and provided 8 assists in 36 league appearances, helping the Catalan club secure Champions League qualification for the first time in their history.

According to FBref, he ranked in the 97th percentile for goals per 90 (0.83) and the 97th percentile for expected goals per 90 (0.84), demonstrating the kind of consistency that Everton have been missing for years.

Crucially, Dovbyk isn’t one-dimensional. His link-up play is strong, as shown by his 82nd percentile ranking for expected assists per 90 (0.13), and he is deceptively adept with the ball at his feet, completing 68% of his take-ons.

He also wins nearly half of his aerial duels, adding to his utility as both a hold-up player and a set-piece threat.

When comparing him to Lukaku’s time at Everton, the parallels are striking.

Lukaku scored 87 goals in 166 appearances for the club, registering double figures in the league for four consecutive seasons.

His best campaign, the 2016/17 season, saw him score 25 league goals and claim six assists – earning him Everton’s Player of the Season award.

Like Dovbyk, Lukaku thrived on using his physicality to dominate defenders.

Dovbyk offers a similar promise – a striker who can be the focal point of the attack, hold off multiple defenders, and still find the back of the net with regularity.

The timing of this potential transfer could be transformative for the club.

Moyes’ side start their Premier League campaign on Monday against Leeds United and adding a striker of Dovbyk’s calibre before the window closes would give the squad a major psychological lift.

The prospect of linking him with Grealish, as well as emerging talents like Barry, hints at an Everton attack that could be both physically overwhelming and tactically versatile.

Furthermore, Everton’s recent struggles in front of goal have been as much about chance creation as finishing.

With Grealish capable of threading passes through tight defences and potential additions on the flanks to stretch play, Dovbyk could find himself in the kind of service-rich environment that allows him to replicate his Girona numbers.

For Everton, this feels like more than just another signing.

It’s a chance to reconnect with an identity that once made them a feared opponent – a team built around a powerful, relentless striker who can decide games almost single-handedly.

In Dovbyk, they may have found their next Lukaku.