Everton are eyeing a move to sign Manchester United striker Joshua Zirkzee this January, and talks may begin to accelerate after David Moyes learns of a fresh development.
Despite shelling out around £30m on Thierno Barry in the summer, Everton still have a glaring issue up front.
Barry just hasn’t done enough since joining from Villarreal, and Beto clearly isn’t up to the required standard for a team with European aspirations.
Barry is viewed as a project signing by David Moyes and his coaches, so the Toffees will look at signing another striker this winter.
Manchester United’s Joshua Zirkzee is on Everton’s radar, and now the Toffees have been given fresh hope of landing his signature.
Manchester United striker Joshua Zirkzee.
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Everton target Joshua Zirkzee frustrated at Manchester United
According to GiveMeSport, Man United insiders have been really impressed by Zirkzee’s conduct around Carrington, considering he’s played just 82 minutes in the Premier League.
Ahead of the 2-2 against Nottingham Forest, it’s understood Zirkzee was encouraging his teammates in the tunnel and showing real leadership.
However, despite his professionalism, the Netherlands international is growing increasingly frustrated at his lack of game time.
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In fact, he feels as though he can’t do any more to win Ruben Amorim over and get back into his thinking, so he’s been left feeling really confused.
Therefore, a January exit is looking likely ahead of the World Cup in 2026.
Everton hold the power in negotiations with Manchester United
Now that Everton have gathered more information on Zirkzee’s situation at United, they could intensify their interest and accelerate talks so that a deal is in place before the window opens on January 1st.
Clearly, talks should be relatively straightforward on the player side, as the 24-year-old will just be keen to play regular football to get back into the Netherlands squad.
The Toffees hold the power in negotiations with United, as Amorim will evidently sanction the sale and be eager to reinvest the cash elsewhere.
So, Moyes and his chiefs could land Zirkzee’s signature for a fraction of the £36m he cost a little over a year ago.
Perhaps they should test the water with a £20m offer and see if they can agree a deal in that region. That would certainly be good business from an Everton perspective.
Before joining United, Zirkzee netted 12 goals whilst laying on seven assists for Serie A outfit Bologna in the 2023/24 campaign.
So there’s clearly a talented player in there, and Moyes will be confident of extracting that out of him.