Fiorentina striker Beto has sent a message to the Everton fans following his Hill Dickinson Stadium exit
Beto during the match between Everton and Crystal Palace at Hill Dickinson Stadium on August 22, 2026
Beto during the match between Everton and Crystal Palace at Hill Dickinson Stadium on August 22, 2026(Image: Naomi Baker/Getty Images)
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Former Everton striker Beto has opened up on his relationship with the club’s supporters while explaining his deadline day transfer to Fiorentina.
Beto joined the Blues from Udinese for £25.8million on August 29, 2023, and played 113 matches, scoring 25 goals, hitting back-to-back figures in both of his last two seasons.
However, after entering the final 12 months of his deal at Hill Dickinson Stadium, he returned to Serie A on September 1, making a switch to Fiorentina for an undisclosed fee understood to be in the region of £17million.
Tuttomercatoweb – via Sport Witness – cite the 28-year-old, who has subsequently made three appearances to date for the Tuscan outfit, as saying: “The Everton fans and I have a wonderful relationship. They appreciated my work ethic, even when it came to the ‘dirty work.’
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“I’d fight and run all over the pitch, and they recognised that. They were overjoyed whenever I scored.
“I left Everton because I felt it was the right time to move on, but I can only thank them with great affection.”
The Lisbon-born frontman, now a Guinea-Bissau international, also struck double figures in back-to-back seasons in Italy first time around with Udinese.
But h4e insists he returns to the country as a better player following his time on Merseyside. Beto said: “It’s one of the most competitive leagues, but so is Serie A, I want to bring intensity and aggression, helping the team by attacking the space in behind.
“That’s my style of football – physical and aggressive – and I also want to bring experience. I’m not the same player I was during my time at Udinese.”
Beto looked set to be replaced at Everton by Folarin Balogun after they agreed a big-money deadline-day deal with Monaco for the USA international.
After an issue was flagged during Balogun's medical, the Blues restructured the deal with the French side to a much lower fee than the one that had been agreed, with the new terms including an appearance related trigger for additional payments.
Monaco agreed to the changes and both clubs and the striker were happy to sign a deal sheet just before 11pm in order to complete the transfer. However, an hour later, Balogun made it clear he wanted to return to his current club.
The saga has left Everton manager David Moyes with just one senior striker in Thierno Barry.