These strikers are among the players Everton could test the waters for in January as David Moyes looks to strengthen his squad
These strikers are among the players Everton could test the waters for in January as David Moyes looks to strengthen his squad(Image: Stuart Franklin/Getty Images; Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images; Prestige/Soccrates/Getty Images)
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After two successive defeats, it's easy to lose sight of the positives on display as Everton started the season unbeaten after eight games in all competitions.
One of the biggest positives has been the improved output of striker Thierno Barry, who battled with Beto for the starting shirt last season but has now notched six goals from his first 10 games this season - while only Erling Haaland has a higher Expected Goals (xG) total among Premier League attackers thus far this term.
Striker was a position in which David Moyes was left short after a frustrating end to the transfer window, when Monaco and United States striker Folarin Balogun pulled out of a deal to join the Blues on deadline day after Everton medical staff raised concerns over his medical.
Although Barry's goals have been important for Everton and his improved performances have been encouraging, there is little in the way of competition for a striker who has at times lacked composure with his finishing, three of his six goals coming against Preston North End in the Carabao Cup back in August.
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If Barry were to pick up an injury, even a small one, Moyes would be reliant on players performing out of position to fill in, making the issue an even more pressing one if a solution can be found in the January transfer window.
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Despite The Friedkin Group's recent decision to listen to offers for Everton, the American ownership group has committed to continue supporting the club, and of course were prepared to commit £40m to Balogun as late as two months ago.
With that in mind, here are three players the Blues could target to solve their squad depth nightmare up front and provide competition for Barry as they look to improve on just eight league goals so far this season.
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The criteria
Using Transfermarkt player valuations as a guide, the three players featured here are all assigned a market value (MV) of €45m (£37.7m) or less - the closest figure to the £40m package Everton had planned to spend on Balogun.
One solution that Everton could explore is looking at players from leagues whose domestic seasons finish in the winter, like the Norwegian Eliteserien or South American leagues, but while Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A strikers like Flamengo's Pedro and Club Athletico Paranaense's Kevin Viveros were considered, they didn't pass other non-negotiable criteria.
These were largely based on the profiles of Barry and Balogun. We can ascertain from these two players that Everton would prefer a striker who is somewhere between a poacher and a traditional number 9.
This means a player who gets plenty of shots away (at least three per game), who can trouble athletic Premier League defenders with pace (at least 33km/h, in line with most attackers in the English top flight), and who finds space in the box (let's say, at least five touches in the opposition box per game).
In the case of Barry, and with previous Moyes number 9s like Wayne Rooney at Everton or Michael Antonio at West Ham, it's clear that Moyes also likes a striker who doesn't shirk physical challenges - so they should ideally thrive in duels. Strangely enough, though, this isn't really the case with Balogun. While Barry is in the top 20% of Premier League strikers for both duels won per 90 (7.36) and win percentage (47.5%), Balogun posted much lower figures of 3.21 and 36.4% on his way to scoring 13 Ligue 1 goals last season.
Similarly, while Barry wins on average more aerial duels per 90 (4.86) than 92% of other strikers in England's top flight, Balogun won just one aerial duel per 90 last season and stands at 5'10", suggesting that being an aerial threat is not necessarily a prerequisite for the Blues. Nevertheless, Barry's headed conversion rate stands at just 7.1% this season despite taking more headed shots than any other Premier League striker, so being proficient in this area would certainly pose an advantage.
Naturally, goalscoring prowess is also a factor, allowing for the usual drop-off in output strikers typically face initially after moving to the Premier League from another division, especially divisions lower down Opta's League Power Rankings.
Also allowed for is a striker's age - for example, if the player doesn't have the most impressive overall goal record, but has shown his promise with an increasing goal tally of late. After applying these filters to every striker valued between €20m and €45m on Transfermarkt - plus a few wildcards thrown in for good measure, and discounting any obviously unrealistic transfers - the results brought up the three strikers that would, in theory at least, be ideal for Everton.
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Christian Kofane (Bayer Leverkusen) - MV: €40m (£33.5m)
Kofane scored five goals and bagged four assists for Leverkusen in the Bundesliga last season
Kofane scored five goals and bagged four assists for Leverkusen in the Bundesliga last season(Image: Stuart Franklin/Getty Images; Fotmob)
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20-year-old Christian Kofane is a full Cameroonian international plying his trade domestically in the German Bundesliga, where he has impressed despite inconsistent playing time since joining Bayer Leverkusen from Spanish side Albacete in summer 2025.
Everton have previously shown an interest in the 6'2" striker. Kofane's agent, Eric Depolo, was said to have been spotted at Finch Farm in the summer, and Depolo himself later claimed that Leverkusen had rejected three offers from Premier League clubs worth in the region of £60m.
Still drumming up a move to England in January amid his client's stalling contract talks with Leverkusen, Depolo's outspoken nature might be enough to put off some clubs - but the precarious situation could be too good for Everton to pass up, especially if botched negotiations over a new deal see his price fall.
Kofane has only scored 10 goals from 50 Bundesliga appearances, but only made his first forays into senior football with Albacete in January last year and already has two goals from just 134 minutes of Bundesliga action this season.
Looking at Kofane's stats from last season, it's easy to see why English clubs have taken an interest. Kofane took an average of 3.45 shots per 90 for an average of 0.50 expected goals (xG) per 90 last season, while his expected goals on target (xGOT: a widely-used measure of the likelihood of a goal based on the quality of a shot) sat at 0.45 - numbers that suggest he was unlucky to score just five league goals from 1,235 minutes in the league.
Coupled with that, Kofane also bagged four assists in the league last season, completed 58.3% of his dribbles and averaged 5.98 touches in the opposition box per 90. In winning an average of 4.96 duels per 90 (42.8%), including 44.4% of his aerial duels, Kofane also showed he can be a physical presence, including in the box with 0.80 headed shots per 90 (73rd percentile among Bundesliga strikers), and a top speed of 34.85km/h.
A well-taken goal against Borussia Dortmund and an assist against Manchester City in the Champions League showcased Kofane's ability to step up in the big games - an important trait when chances are often at a premium against the Premier League's top sides.
Price-wise - especially if £60m turns out to be the going rate - this could be too much for Everton to realistically spend on one player with shortages in other areas of the squad, but Kofane's potential is clear and previous interest could give the Toffees the upper hand if a move becomes possible in January.
Ricardo Pepi (PSV Eindhoven) - MV: €30m (£25.1m)
Pepi scored 16 goals and assisted once for PSV in the Eredivisie last season
Pepi scored 16 goals and assisted once for PSV in the Eredivisie last season(Image: Prestige/Soccrates/Getty Images; Fotmob)
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After the Balogun move broke down, Everton could do a lot worse than looking at his principal rival for the starting spot up front for the United States: Ricardo Pepi.
Starring for PSV Eindhoven, Pepi has scored an impressive 48 goals from 110 games after signing in the summer of 2023 before the reigning Dutch champions embarked on a run of three successive Eredivisie titles.
Still just 23 years old, Pepi has already scored three goals from six starts this season, continuing to show an impressive knack for popping up in great positions in the box to fire home. Pepi has averaged a whopping 0.73 non-penalty xG per 90 this season, with an xGOT average (including penalties) of 0.75 per 90, and has tried his luck from outside the box on five occasions already.
Unafraid to try and test the keeper, Pepi averages 3.93 shots per 90. While his finishing needs refinement - averaging just 1.45 shots on target per 90 - 7.03 touches in the opposition box per 90 suggests he is getting into good positions to score on a regular basis. And at 34.1km/h, Pepi is PSV's fastest current player based on recent Champions League measurements, and he won possession in the final third more often than 90% of other Eredivisie strikers last season.
Averaging just 3.12 duels won per 90 last season, which put him in the bottom 4% of Eredivisie strikers, Pepi isn't the combative presence Barry is - but that hasn't affected his numbers for headed shots, averaging in the top 20% of players in his position with 1.14 efforts with his head per 90. It also didn't put off Fulham, who initially agreed to sign him for £28.5m ahead of the summer transfer window, only for the move to break down after they requested an option to pull out if he picked up an injury before the end of the season.
A knee injury in the 2024/25 season saw Pepi miss 28 games for PSV and the United States, while a new injury has already seen him miss five games of the new season.
This record might encourage caution around a move for the No.9, but at a relatively low price point, a deal could no doubt be agreed that would suit all parties.
Orri Oskarsson (Real Sociedad) - MV: €20m (£16.7m)
Oskarsson scored nine goals for Real Sociedad in LaLiga last season
Oskarsson scored nine goals for Real Sociedad in LaLiga last season(Image: Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images; Fotmob)
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Like Pepi, Real Sociedad's Orri Oskarsson stands at 6'1", but unlike the American, this 22-year-old striker's status in his national team is undisputed.
Already captain of Iceland, Oskarsson joined the Basque side from FC Copenhagen in the summer of 2024, and has since scored 21 goals from 73 appearances.
This season and last, though, the goals have come more regularly. In the 2025/26 season, Oskarsson scored nine times from 20 LaLiga appearances, while he is already off the mark with three from just five starts in Spain's top flight this season.
Taking 3.78 shots per 90, Oskarsson is currently averaging 0.61 xGOT from 0.82 xG per 90, but last season, he plundered 0.98 goals per 90 from just 0.66 xG. Strikers typically see their stats fluctuate in this way, but at just 22, this suggests Oskarsson's ceiling in terms of goal output could be exceptional.
In terms of his all-round game, he is similar to Pepi in that he is more of a goalscorer than a creator, which suits Everton's tendency to create lots of chances for their striker without him being involved as much in build-up play. Averaging 2.06 shots on target per 90 in the league last season, Oskarsson was hitting the target more regularly than 90% of other LaLiga strikers - which is some statistic.
With a recorded top speed of 33.8km/h in the Europa League last season, Oskarsson is no slouch, but Everton would no doubt hope there is still room for improvement in the other aspects of his physicality having averaged just 3.58 duels won per 90 (41.8%) last season.
Time is still very much on Oskarsson's side, and in captaining his country at such a young age, it is clear that he has the intangible skills required to act as a leader in the dressing room.
According to some reporters, Everton are one of several Premier League sides tracking Oskarsson ahead of a possible January transfer, while his current contract expires in 2028. That, combined with his affordable market value, could make Oskarsson a relatively low-risk option for Everton, giving Moyes greater squad depth from the off and the potential to add regular goals.
Who should Everton target?
Just based on the numbers, and the level of consistency in front of goal, one target stands out above all others: Ricardo Pepi. While Christian Kofane may have the highest ceiling (but a potentially prohibitive price tag) and Orri Oskarsson may have the highest potential as a pure finisher, Pepi combines a stellar goalscoring record with extensive top-level experience, including at the World Cup this summer.
Any of these three strikers would represent a signing with significant room to grow and develop, potentially earning Everton a higher transfer fee further down the line if they were to ultimately move on - not that The Friedkin Group will necessarily care as much about protecting the value of their investment.
There are, of course, other options. Richarlison is the romantic choice, having been excluded from Tottenham's squad for the new season, but - sad though it may be to admit - you feel that there might have been more movement around that particular transfer if the Brazilian was as keen to make a return to Everton as supporters would be to see him in blue and white once again.
After being frozen out by Roberto De Zerbi, the writing looks to be on the wall for Richarlison at Spurs, the team he joined from Everton for £60m four years ago
After being frozen out by Roberto De Zerbi, the writing looks to be on the wall for Richarlison at Spurs, the team he joined from Everton for £60m four years ago
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(Image: Getty Images)
The 29-year-old's shot count and top speed also didn't quite meet the cut-off we established earlier, and though it should be accounted for that he was playing for a struggling Spurs side, there are perhaps younger options available who could give Everton more in the long term.
Amine Gouiri of Marseille is another who has been linked with Everton, while recent rumours around Dinamo Zagreb's Dion Beljo are particularly exciting in the light of his 12 goals and five assists from the first nine games of the current season.
Both of them just fell short in terms of top speed, but possess the all-round quality to be considered options. Beljo especially, a 6'5" monster who wins 80.6% of his aerial duels and scores goals for fun, looks destined for a move to a bigger European league, and could well be worth keeping an eye on despite being something of a late bloomer at 24.
In truth, having anyone to compete with Barry would be better than no one - but these players and all of the others we've covered might just be the strikers that could genuinely improve Everton in the January transfer window.