City are reportedly closing in on a loan deal for Everton forward Francis Okoronkwo.
No, before you joke, he cannot play left back.
Understand Everton striker Francis Okoronkwo is set to join Lincoln on a season-long loan. Okoronkwo was in attendance for Lincoln’s win over Plymouth on Saturday. #EFC #Imps pic.twitter.com/vxHPHJez9O
— Pete O’Rourke (@SportsPeteO) August 16, 2025
Where I imagine he can play is across the three behind James Collins, as well as offering support in the forward role. Wikipedia trawlers will note he scored just four times for Salford during a loan spell, but that was from just 12 starts. However, he certainly has bags of potential, and as recently as last week, he created both Everton Under 21 goals in their 2-1 win in the National League Cup against Solihull Moors.
He was once on the books of Sunderland, moving to Everton as a teenager for £1 million. He’s been a big player throughout the academy setup at Everton, with 22 goal involvements in 50 matches between 2022 and 2024. He hasn’t yet made a senior appearance for the Toffees, but did spend last season in League Two getting valuable senior experience.
76′ GOAL! Excellent move from Everton and some persistence from Braiden Graham ends with the youngster firing home from inside the box.
[1-1] #EFCU21 pic.twitter.com/Gss3YlY387
— Everton Academy (@EvertonAcademy) August 12, 2025
He’s a confident lad – after scoring his first goal for Salford, he claimed he backs himself to score when one-on-one.
“As long as I’m in those positions, nine times out of 10 I am going to back myself to score. Hopefully that will continue. My game is more in behind and over the top and as long as I get that ball and am front-facing on goal I’m going to at least work the keeper.”
Are their legs in this? Well, seeing as a number of supporters claim to have spotted him at the game yesterday, you’d probably believe so, yes. It does feel like perhaps Jack Moylan’s injury has prompted this – Draper played deep yesterday, but watching the clips of Okoronkwo in action, he’s able to create for others, and the chances he teed up for Braiden Graham are the sort of thing James Collins would thrive on.
He’s also a decent height, over six feet, which makes him perfect for our Land of the Giants sequel. Back in the day, Brian Laws used to say that about City, and it is nice to see an aerially dominant Imps side. One of the criticisms of some PL loan players is their physicality, but in the case of Okoronkwo, I suspect it may not be an issue.