Everton scouts have now reportedly been spotted watching Republic of Ireland international Troy Parrott over the break, as he scored twice to shock Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal side.
The Toffees very nearly enjoyed the perfect summer. They welcomed Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Jack Grealish on loan from Manchester City and splashed out on one of their biggest-ever deals to sign Tyler Dibling from Southampton. In many ways, it was a statement from The Friedkin Group ahead of Everton's move into the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
That statement came without one key part, however, and that was a clinical goalscorer. Those in Merseyside took a £27m gamble on Villarreal's Thierno Barry, but he's yet to score a goal for the club. Meanwhile, Beto hasn't done much better - scoring just twice in 13 games in all competitions.
PL stats 25/26 Barry Beto
Minutes 386 609
Goals 0 1
Assists 0 0
Expected Goals 1.3 4.1
What's most concerning about the form of Everton's strikers is that they've both had the chances to record better records than they have done. Barry is without a goal with an XG of 1.3, whilst Beto has significantly underperformed with one goal from a 4.1 XG.
It's a clear problem that Everton must address for David Moyes in 2026 and a number of targets have already emerged as a result. According to recent reports, the Toffees have so far set their sights on Celtic's Daizen Maeda, who wants to leave the Scottish club, Manchester United's Joshua Zirkzee and Al Ahli's Ivan Toney.
All three options make sense. Maeda wants to leave Celtic and is reportedly available for just £15m. Zirkzee could offer Everton a repeat of their Grealish revival, whilst Toney may need a Premier League return to boost his World Cup chances.
The list doesn't end there, however. Joining those aforementioned names, Everton reportedly sent scouts to watch Parrot against Portugal earlier this week.
Everton send scouts to track Troy Parrott
According to Everton News, Everton sent scouts to watch Parrott in action for Ireland against Portugal on Thursday night, as he netted a brace to hand his country a major boost towards their World Cup hopes. In the same game, Ronaldo was handed the first red card of his international career to sum up a shocking night to forget.
On a stage which featured Ronaldo, Bernardo Silva and others, it was Parrot who stole the show to take his goal total to 13 in 14 games for the season. Quite simply, he has been in sensational form for AZ Alkmaar and Ireland.
Compared to Irish legend Robbie Keane by the man himself, Parrott has scored more goals than Beton and Barry combined so far this season and there's still plenty more to come.
troy-parrott-ireland
As Everton's search for a striker goes on, they may hand the former Tottenham Hotspur gem the perfect chance to complete a return to English football.
Everton hatch striker plan as Moyes moves for star with 18 goals this season