Reports: Everton to sign Kudus from Ajax

Interesting young AMC, who is fast and powerful, good running with ball and can shoot. Could be quite a player though has had a few injury issues.

Plays as a Number 10, aged 22 got huge potential and talent by all accounts but his injury record isn't the best since 2020. Fingers crossed he can stay fit and we have a real player on our hands.

"Attacking midfielder" in the same sentence as Everton?

Only just turned 22 and already a regular in the Ghana squad. It sounds like injuries have stifled his Ajax career. Let's hope he stays fit and justifies us buying him next summer. Wonder what the potential fee will be?? Ajax paid €9M in the summer of 2020.

This is the kind of signing we should be making. Young player, low risk with a lot of potential.

He'll have to fight for his place in the treatment room. Sounds promising!

Also just a few injuries over the last few years meniscal, ribs, fitness, ankle, ankle again, concussion.

So he only missed a miserly 40 games over the last few years. He seems like a brilliant signing.

He'll have had an excellent football education at Ajax, reports Ten Hag really rated him.

On loan he's no risk.

"He'll have had an excellent football education at Ajax" — like Davy Klaassen.

At that point, he was the new Michael Essien. Played more attacking at Ajax but then got a horrible injury after a great start. Looked like a rising star of European football. However, since coming back from injury he's not managed to nail down a place or position as far as I'm aware and Ajax fans not convinced.

Certainly got lots of ability, pace and drive, but possibly not very mature.

Loan with option to buy makes some sense financially. A good option for games but probably not a starter, yet.

On the chances taken scale, this is a good one to take in my opinion. Preferred to the Alli arrangement for damn sure.

Loan to buy, hopefully with a fee agreed in advance. Little risk and we could have unearthed one of those upcoming stars everyone on here keeps asking for.

Still hope in the next 2 weeks we land the 2 strikers we need and maybe move on a couple of ours not getting game time. (I'm sick of typing names like Gomes, Gbamin etc.)

Chris, if we get a centre-forward though, we could be. Something to aim for.

There's obviously some injury concern, but that's why it's a loan – low risk, high upside. If it works out, we could have a viable Morgan Gibbs-White alternative at a fraction of the cost.

Still need the striker though.

I've had an old Uni mate who's a massive Wolves fan and I asked him about Gibbs-White, and he says we've been lucky to swerve him. He's never done anything in a Wolves shirt and he's been in the squad for a few years, breaking in when he was 17 or something.

He had an amazing season in the Championship but my mate doesn't think it'll translate to the Premier League. Certainly not to a level to justify the transfer fee.

I now guess Alli will be on his way now and unlikely that Gueye will be joining us.

Can anyone clarify the loan position for me please? Thanks

I don't know what he's like, never heard of him but I'm prepared to see if he's good, bad or indifferent before I give an opinion on him, like I am with the strikers when they get here, which they will.

12 more days and we can start having a look at our chances for the season.

Good comment, how many of us had thought about Onana never mind buying him. Who knows... Thelwell and his scouts may know what they are doing.

Lots of negative comments, but this is promising. He has had issues that have slowed his progress, but none seem like serious issues, all non-related.

He's incredibly talented by the looks, very highly thought of, attacking, young.

People moan at overpaying and not finding the talent until they've made waves and then cost £30+ million.

This seems to be a case of trying for someone before they've made their mark. All he needs is one solid season at Ajax and he'd be valued at £40 million.

Like when we got Arteta and Pienaar, we got them because their careers had stalled.

A young attacking midfielder with high potential, signing of Onana as a young box-to-box with high high potential.

Seems we are learning.

"Who knows... Thelwell and his scouts may know what they are doing."

We still haven't bought or loaned a striker after two Premier League games, it will be three after Forest, That makes me think that they really aren't up to it, or they aren't calling the shots. Scary to think who is.

With Leeds, Brentford, Liverpool and Arsenal coming up, we really should be set up to win some matches, God help us if we don't have 4 or 5 points before the hard games...

I try to be optimistic but sorry, I just can't – he is like Red Flag City with his stats and injuries. He will be deadwood on arrival – although this is probably another fake story like the Gueye deal that Bobble, Romano and all the "experts" had wrapped up weeks ago.

You've certainly got your sad head on today mate!! Can't you even pretend you like him? To be honest none of us know how he will turn out but wait and see at least.

With our financial position, who do you believe we can get as a decent striker on loan or cheap, unless you believe we should sell Gordon and then pay too much for a decent striker as other clubs can see we are desperate?

I confess to knowing nothing about him, his highlight reel looks good, quick feet and able to transition quickly up the pitch. Agree with Rob he's likely to be a super sub for now.

Now let's go get Broja and Gana. If we are getting two strikers, I quite warmed to Mike's suggestion of Vasquez from the MLS, an unpolished diamond.

The Kudus loan potentially gives us the option of playing Iwobi in a wide position if It transpires that Gordon is sold in this window.

I am not sure why, but I have an inkling that very patient work is going on in bringing in at least one central striker, and that we may need to sacrifice Gordon to make it work.

The loan makes it very low risk. It’s a bit of a gamble but I think many of you could be quite pleasantly surprised. I hope so. If it goes well he could be something like peak Ross Barkley on a good day.

Who knows how this transfer – or any transfer – will pan out? But young, quick, on a loan with an option to buy – looks like a sensible acquisition and suggests that, if we do decide to sell Anthony Gordon, then we've got his replacement in early.

I suspect Lampard might want to use Kudus in a similar role that he is trying to use Gordon – ie, in one of the two attacking midfield spots off the striker.

To all the naysayers, how about we give him a chance before we start to bag him?

According to Transfermarkt, he's primarily an attacking midfielder, but has played as striker at times as well. That would give us some options if we only end up bringing in one additional striker.

Did not edit.

Should say: Wonder what he is like tracking back and tackling.

Always found that an attacking player like Kudus who is equally good with both feet is a handful to play against. Really is a bonus to have such a player. Remember Bobby Charlton after the Brazil v Italy 1982 World Cup game saying the same thing.

I've just read again his injury record: no meniscus, concussion or 2 ankle injuries! Was a knee injury over 2 years ago, one ankle injury... And a broken rib! He scored 8 goals & 1 assist in 24 games, so his stats are goooood!

Seen a video of him he looks the business! Time will tell, of course. Cheers, enjoy the game if you're going,

Implies to me that Gibbs-White was probably our first choice but that our tactic now (as with Onana) is to wait for bids to be accepted so as not to be drawn into a bidding war. And also that we have alternative plans in place to move on quickly and effectively if those first-choice players don't materialize.

Kudus and Onana are both highly rated, dynamic young players with the potential to reach the very top level. Difficult to know how quickly or effectively such players will bed in and progress but I like this transfer strategy and am curious to see who the striker targets are (it seems to me that first-choice is likely Broja, hence the hold-up, but I wonder who favoured alternatives are given that Kudus was a name that came out of nowhere).

Anyone know what the details of the loan will be as it is wonderful having these loans but, if the loan fee and the wages are high, you have to question the value if the player spends a big percentage of his time in the sick bay.

There will be irons in the fire if Broja doesn't come off, of course. I suspect we know some of them already. Maybe some surprises too.

The Gueye deal might be similar. One or two others lined up if it doesn't come off. Presumably it's a way to manage cost and value.

What I find encouraging is just how physical and dynamic we could be if things come together.

For example, a 5-3-2 with Gueye, Onana and Kudus in midfield and Calvert-Lewin + Broja up front could be very powerful, direct and physical.

We've not been able to say that for a while with weaklings like Davies and Gomes on the books.

Too often, our midfielders have been afraid of that, and tend to go for the safe option of passing it sideways or back. There's nothing worse for a defender than running backwards with his back to goal. So personally I'm all for us giving this lad a chance.

I've never even heard of the guy before yesterday, but a Dutch mate of mine rates him highly. A few injury problems over several years does not make him Mina Mk 2.

After a victory later today, I trust many of you will be feeling a bit more cheery.

If we'd had Calvert-Lewin (or any decent striker) we wouldn't be on zero points currently. We were good against an underwhelming Chelsea and lacked luck v Aston Villa. Today is a new beginning.

Others play with a proper Number 9 or a false 9. Everton: no No 9. Incredible! All we have is competition on the treatment table.

Well said, Jim Potter.

He hasn't cost us anything so what is not to like? He will keep competition in the midfield if Gordon does go.

Injuries are part of the game and hopefully he will stay clear of them whilst with us. He could be another Mina or another Reid, either way it's low risk for a young player with potential.

Or we can play the waiting game in this window in the hope that we sign somebody better than bang average, who will allow us to make that steady progress up the table this season. In a season where we aren't going to break into the Top 6 anyway, write off the first few games and take the longer view.

Of course, that all assumes that we will sign that better-than-bang-average striker.

Can he hack the rigours of the Premier League? It's tough out there

I think most fans wouldn't be bothered about an out-an-out striker if we had goals coming from different areas of the pitch.

Man City and Liverpool are the dominant 2 teams and, up until this season, hadn't played with an orthodox striker though they create chance after chance and score near 100 goals or more every season.

We on the other hand do not have any goals in the entire squad. We don't have a style of play that creates regular chances. We don't have enough movement off the ball or guile on it.

If we bought Harry Kane and Jamie Vardy, they would have to make their own chances to score.

Don't get me wrong, I think we need 2 strikers before the deadline to at least give us a focal point to get the play higher up the pitch, but our main problem is the lack of goals in the entire squad.

When Calvert-Lewin gets back, we have a guy that will be our top scorer with 15 if he is lucky. Next top scorers will be a couple in single figures.

It sounds like Kudus is a similar type of player, so good luck to him if and when he joins us.

Dave, please stop talking sense. I'm an Evertonian, I kind of like being depressed.

It's a shock to the system to let positive thoughts sneak in!

Your posts both put the destiny of Everton's season at the heart of getting a striker in but also how the whole team performs.

I'm with Brent on waiting to try and get the right man in as long as the team does more movement and offers more guile as Rob suggests, there was an improvement versus Chelsea but the poor careless passing and lack of movement was still there.

I think and hope that a couple of strikers will arrive along with another central midfielder but the obvious danger to that is we seem to be waiting and relying on Chelsea's action in the transfer market to get players in to get our own players in. If Chelsea don't make the right moves, it could result in Everton's plans falling by the wayside and another disastrous season ahead.

Regarding a striker, linked with Watkins, who has fallen out with Gerrard, a definite yes from me.

As always, time will tell but it will take a lot of financial oversight to be successful, at least off the pitch, while on it may be a case of damned if you do, damned if you don't.

After 55 years of supporting Everton, you have to have an open mind. Let's hope that there is an improvement of squad players under Lampard and we have a decent season.

No strikers on the horizon but plenty if midfielders albeit no-names and loan deals. Kind of gives you the bigger picture doesn't it.

Another poor day at the office today against Forest.

It's just always something, but still – reinforcements are welcome!

Gana, apparently, has had three medicals, signed his contract twice and has even played for the reserves.

It’s amazing the crap they write. The Mail had Dele in Turkey yesterday signed, sealed and delivered, deal officially completed and ready to play.

Can we apply for that job? £200k pa probably...

My guess is that Ajax were open to the loan offer and everything was close to being agreed but maybe United's awful form and sudden escalation of their pursuit of Antony has changed things.

Shame as I think he could be useful and can certainly carry the ball very well, think he had the most completed dribbles in his match yesterday despite only being on for 20 minutes.

I would have thought it's more likely that we have lined this up subject to losing Anthony Gordon and another £5M from Chelsea will see a ‘when Tottenham sold Bale' chain of events ensuing.

It could all lead to a mad dash in the last 48 hours and they'll be winners and losers when the dust settles.

I wouldn't be surprised if we get 3 more players in with a few outgoing too.

All very unpredictable.

Robert@111, yes I'll be very surprised if we don't see at least 3 players in over the next 9 days. More if we sell Gordon. I expect we'll use both our loans left (Kudus and Broja?!) and then buy one more player; more if Gordon leaves.

In terms of outgoings, I imagine it will be loans with a percentage of wages getting paid maybe?

Every transfer is a gamble. But personally, I'd always be interested in any product of the proven Ajax treadmill.