Fan Article Youssef Chermiti: Keep or Loan? The 21-year-old striker's tenure at Everton has been difficult so far, presenting supporters with a glaring question. Billy Birmingham 10/07/2025 45comments | Jump to last The 21-year-old striker's tenure at Everton has been difficult so far, presenting supporters with a glaring question. Since his arrival in August 2023, the Portuguese striker has frequently shown overt signs of his potential as a mobile centre-forward for the Blues, with his strong hold-up play being a key reason. Most notably, his only Premier League start, an impressive 90-minute display in a triumphant victory over Brentford in April 2024, indicated the prospect emerging ahead of other options. However, a torrid foot injury sustained only 4 months later cruelly ruled Chermiti out for 118 days before a successive hamstring injury. Although an array of Evertonians believed it to be his breakthrough season, last campaign, the striker played just 42 minutes of Premier League football. In stark contrast, Beto, also born in Portugal, played 1,628 minutes in the competition. “I’m still getting to know Chermiti,” David Moyes expressed how most Blues still feel regarding the player, following a brief cameo in the dramatic 1-1 draw with West Ham Utd in March. Furthermore, Frenchman Thierno Barry penned a 4-year deal this week, arriving from Villarreal, and will undoubtedly feature frequently for the Toffees this upcoming season, whilst Chermiti, on the other hand, may struggle to make his mark. Personally, I believe David Moyes must at least consider giving the 21-year-old striker a fair opportunity to emerge as a rational striking option in addition to Beto and Barry. Everton’s six upcoming pre-season friendlies, featuring competitive clashes with both Manchester United and AFC Bournemouth as part of the Premier League Summer Series in the United States, will be a perfect opportunity for Chermiti to appeal to Moyes. Also, with Everton’s squad currently extremely thin — ranking as the 3rd smallest in Europe’s top 5 leagues (18 players), according to Transfermarkt — holding on to the former Sporting man may reduce Everton’s expenditure on squad depth over the course of this summer transfer window. Whilst his injuries have clearly stalled his development, what Chermiti needs most is to be playing football regularly. Could a loan move reignite his knack of scoring vital goals and linking up play neatly for Sporting? Possibly, but an entire, intense season may equally prove to be crucial for him to not only prove his clear talent to Moyes, but show he is physically capable of performing in the Premier League. Reader Comments (45) Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer () Christy Ring 1 Posted 10/07/2025 at 08:39:04 We need a second striker. It's most likely Chermiti goes on loan and we are replacing him. Martin Farrington 2 Posted 10/07/2025 at 10:10:55 Not sure why we have kept Chermiti on the bench for nearly two years.If anyone needs to be out on loan it's him because, unless I'm missing something, he hasn't impressed in his appearances, apart from the odd glimpse of something maybe.Now Barry is here, and he knows where the back of the net is, as does our enigma, Chermiti will be no use as 3rd reserve on a bench of academy no hopers.Get him gone for some experience, Moysie. Ryan Holroyd 3 Posted 10/07/2025 at 10:25:26 Chermiti has been injured. Not kept on the bench. A simple bit of research would have told you that. Martin Farrington 4 Posted 10/07/2025 at 10:27:22 Not for 2 years. Ryan Holroyd 5 Posted 10/07/2025 at 10:33:24 He was for most of last season. Annika Herbert 6 Posted 10/07/2025 at 10:56:25 Chermiti got injured during the latter part of pre season last year. After impressing in the games in which he appeared.He was then out injured for virtually the entire season. Martin Farrington 7 Posted 10/07/2025 at 11:22:49 Yes. So put him out on loan. He won't get game time is what I am saying. It will give him experience he has missed and develop him. Ryan Holroyd 8 Posted 10/07/2025 at 11:23:23 You didnt say that though!!! You asked why he was kept on the bench for two seasons. He will go on loan though this summer. Danny O'Neill 9 Posted 10/07/2025 at 11:49:05 I'm not so sure about Chermiti going on loan, but I'm not Moyes.With him, we have 3 strikers. It only takes an injury and we're down to 2. Add in cup competitions, which hopefully we will have a decently run in, we'll need backup. Plus, won't we lose Beto for the Africa Cup of Nations mid-season?Again, I'm not calling the shots, but if I was, I wouldn't be sending Chermiti out on loan. Dennis Stevens 10 Posted 10/07/2025 at 13:06:15 I suspect that we'd have been in the market for a striker, even if DCL had stayed. That being the case, loaning Chermiti out would be an obvious choice. Maybe it would still appeal if a loan can be brought in as an experienced 3rd choice striker, although one would hope it would not be one who is injured, like Broja! Thereby allowing Chermiti the opportunity to get more match experience than Everton are likely to offer him without leaving ourselves short of cover. David Bromwell 11 Posted 10/07/2025 at 13:09:24 Like so many, we bought Chermiti because of his potential, sadly injuries and lack of game time means his development has stalled. For his benefit, he needs to play regularly and this is most likely to happen if he gets a loan to another club. Pity as we are clearly short of numbers, but we have no idea if he is Premier League match ready. Robert Tressell 12 Posted 10/07/2025 at 13:09:28 We loan out very, very few players compared with all other Premier League clubs - largely because of a lack of strength in depth and generally poor academy.Now that we have Beto and Barry, Chermiti has to go on loan to develop. Danny O'Neill 13 Posted 10/07/2025 at 13:14:30 To my previous point though, Robert. What if one gets injured and we lose Beto to AFCON? Robert Tressell 14 Posted 10/07/2025 at 13:20:42 Danny, it is not about looking at this one season at a time. If we are without a senior striker for a spell, then we will have to adapt our tactics. As we did when Dyche played Demarai Gray as our No 9 for a spell. But if you don't send Chermiti on loan to go and play 35-ish games, then you are seriously harming his development as a footballer, especially since he's missed so much football since arriving.If he comes back from loan a good player, then we might keep him with the first-team squad next season. Sam Hoare 15 Posted 10/07/2025 at 13:27:42 He's got to go on loan. There's absolutely no point buying young players with potential if you're not going to provide them with consistent game time and he's not going to get that here.Perhaps we can include a recall clause in case of injury but this is a £10M asset who will either leave for next to nothing or hopefully develop into a £30M player. He won't do the latter sat on the bench. Ryan Holroyd 16 Posted 10/07/2025 at 13:40:53 Got to go on loan if fit, without a doubt.Two forwards, and I would get Callum Wilson and loan Chermiti. Beto won't be going to the AFCON as his country didn't qualify. Jay Harris 17 Posted 10/07/2025 at 13:53:42 Chermitti has shown glimpses of real quality when played and to me has the potential to be better than Calvert-Lewin or Beto but, as most have said, he needs to make up for game time lost by going on a loan to boost his game time.This is a make-or-break time for him and I'm confident that, given the right guidance and development, he will come good.As for only having two strikers, we need to get intense in landing a couple of goalscoring wingers in the Richarlison mode. Sam Hoare 18 Posted 10/07/2025 at 14:05:37 Jay, yes we really don't need more than 2 frontline strikers. We just need to get some versatile forwards who could play there in a pinch but are more likely to start out wide. Evan Guessand would be my pick. John Keating 19 Posted 10/07/2025 at 15:03:00 Keep. You cannot start the season with one striker who is a bit questionable – Beto – and another kid who has never experienced the Premier League – Barry.Chermiti is also young but he's been in and around the team and is fully aware of expectations.Should Beto or Barry get injured, who else do we have up top? Dennis Stevens 20 Posted 10/07/2025 at 15:13:43 A lot of people want to see Keane up front, John Alan J Thompson 21 Posted 10/07/2025 at 16:02:56 Sam (#15); A recall clause is not of much use as I'm fairly sure that these days the player can only be recalled to play in a transfer window. Whatever, the majority seem sure we won't have two dedicated strikers on the pitch at the start of a game. Danny O'Neill 22 Posted 10/07/2025 at 16:17:47 So we loan a young striker out that we already have and bring in another that is arguably past his best?I don't see the logic myself. But we'll have to see what Moyes thinks. Then again stranger things have happened.As for Keane up front. Please no. He can be effective when on the pitch going up for set pieces, like most centre-backs, but he's not a centre-forward. Mike Allison 23 Posted 10/07/2025 at 16:31:58 Keep him and play him. Very hard to make a decision on this until other business is done. We need around 6-7 more players just to have a basic squad of 25.If we get that done quickly enough we could perhaps start thinking about being more strategic about Chermiti's development. For now, with the way we've dragged our feet about appointing people and signing new players, no-one can leave. Frank Crewe 24 Posted 10/07/2025 at 16:37:54 Unless a youngster is loaned to a club of equal standing, then I don't see the benefit of loaning him to a lower division club. When Branthwaite was loaned to PSV he came back a better player. Lewis Dobbin loaned to Derby County. Played 43 games, didn't improve at all. Sold to Villa as a makeweight, immediately loaned out to West Brom and then Norwich. No doubt Villa will loan him out again or sell him.If a young player must be loaned out, at least loan him to a club where he will learn something besides "toughening up". Mark Taylor 25 Posted 10/07/2025 at 16:42:43 If he's fit, can we not at least give him a decent run out in the friendlies we have lined up? The guy has never been given a chance, partly due to injury. It is not at all clear whether he is worse than Beto or even Barry. In his extremely brief cameos, there has been something there.Also can he (or possibly Barry) offer something in the wide roles? Barry certainly comes off the left a lot. We lack pace in the wide positions, have done for years now. Martin Reppion 26 Posted 10/07/2025 at 16:58:40 Sorry Frank (#24)Loaning a player so he gets game time, which may well be down a division or two will be beneficial compared to just training and occasionally warming the bench.By your argument there is no benefit in signing a player from a lower league as he will have learned nothing... erm, Tim Cahill?If we have cover for the front 2, be it a Richarlison type who can play across the front line, or an experienced striker, such as Vardy or Wilson (Not advocating, just saying), then Chermiti playing regularly, building up confidence and sharpness will be an advantage for us in the second half of the season or in future seasons.If he can't hack it at Stoke, we'll have learned something. Ryan Holroyd 27 Posted 10/07/2025 at 17:00:10 Leon Osman would disagree Frank.Going back David Beckham etc Stu Darlington 28 Posted 10/07/2025 at 17:03:16 Difficult one for me this.I can see the logic in Danny's argument for keeping him. And also in Robert's and Sam's point for loaning him out to get playing time for his professional development.I think we really need to see who else we get in and where they play to make a valid decision. Some versatile attackers or attacking midfielders can provide us with attacking options in case of injury. If this were to happen, it would open up a whole new dimension to the debate.But I agree with Danny, we don't want to go down the route of bringing in a veteran striker who is approaching the end of his career after loaning out a promising young striker already on our books.So my educated but totally useless opinion would be wait and see what happens! If we get the right players in, he goes out on loan; if not, he stays.Very uncomfortable on this fence!!! Ryan Holroyd 29 Posted 10/07/2025 at 17:03:49 It's pretty obvious really.He ain't gonna improve sat on our bench because he ain't playing ahead of Beto and Barry. He'll learn far more playing week-in and week-out than sat on our bench. Liam Mogan 30 Posted 10/07/2025 at 17:09:56 Loan - only scored 3 goals in first team football in his entire career. Needs to bang a few in and then come back. Robert Tressell 31 Posted 10/07/2025 at 17:17:24 Frank # 24 - I agree it's important to look at the standard (and also style) of football our loanees will experience.Chermiti might benefit from a spell in the Championship - where a high proportion of the best players are Premier League club loanees. Equally if there's a top flight club on the continent (Belgium, Netherlands, Portugal etc) that can offer him about 35 games then that's a good option.But I don't think you can rule out lower league experience entirely. Dobbin, like loads of Premier League academy graduates, found his level. He was never going to make it wherever he was sent on loan. Many of the players we are now all keen on – the likes of Doak, McAtee, Hutchison and Gallagher – all got games under their belts in the Championship (and in Gallagher's case League One, I think).They need competitive games. For players of any real ability, there is very little to learn in U18s and U21s football after hitting 16. Mike Gaynes 32 Posted 10/07/2025 at 17:24:22 I continue to believe the kid is a potential star, but he's gotta play -- now. I'll vote loan, with a right to recall in case of an injury. I have zero enthusiam for signing a veteran striker as third choice when we have so many other needs. Ndiaye can play up top in an emergency. Jason Li 33 Posted 10/07/2025 at 18:23:08 I'd like to see Chermiti loaned out. Will come back if he plays a lot of games much more match experienced as he's not had much top level competitive match experience like Barry, whose about a year or two older but played a lot of professional matches. Might even increase his valuation. The fact he looks decent at top level after only a few professional games says there is every chance Chermiti has a high ceiling once more experience has been gained.For me it's not really about if Chermiti can do it, it's that he's already 3rd place in the pecking order and Barry and Beto still need to learn the Premier League as well.I'd like a good experienced striker to come in as Beto is still learning top level football. Also, Barry both needs to learn more things plus get a lot of game time; as I'm sure the manager will give Barry game time to adapt to the Premier League instead of thinking when to give Chermiti a few minutes which would mean keeping Barry on the bench in some games.Will be exciting to see Barry, Ndiaye and Alcaraz flying down the left like PSG now there's pace and players who can run with a ball or beyond the man for a return pass. Frank Crewe 34 Posted 10/07/2025 at 18:24:04 Martin @26,When Cahill came to us, he improved. He had access to better coaches, better facilities and he played with better players. It doesn't work the other way around. I don't see how worse coaching and inferior facilities, not to mention surrounded by less skilful players, can improve a young player. Especially to Premier League standard. All that happens is they end up getting loaned to club after club until their contract runs out.Somebody mentioned Leon Osman. The exception that proves the rule. He eventually became a decent player but he was never going to be a great one. Chermiti is 21 and he's already been at the club for 2 years. We should not be loaning out a player we paid £12M quid for or he'll turn into another Tosun. Ryan Holroyd 35 Posted 10/07/2025 at 18:38:50 We definitely should be loaning out Chermiti. He isn't at 21 starting games in the Premier League and won't learn anything sat on the bench. Tosun was what 26 when he signed for Everton and a full international, not a 21-year-old unproven kid who's not played 30 senior games like Chermiti. So many players in history dropped down and played a lesser standard of football and then started Premier League games for their parent club. Ryan Holroyd 36 Posted 10/07/2025 at 18:45:02 Brighton have loads of players they sign and then loan out to foreign clubs. Look at liam Delap too. Norwich and Hull he went on loan too. Raymond Fox 37 Posted 10/07/2025 at 18:48:46 Keep him, what little I've seen has shown me he can make a very good player. We get injuries for fun so you need alternatives that can step in.Barry will need time to settle, so if we loan Chermiti out, we are going to look a little short up front. Danny O'Neill 38 Posted 10/07/2025 at 19:02:20 We could play transfer / loan tennis back and forward on this one all night. Some think loan, others, like myself not.I think more players have gone on loan and not made it back to the Premier League and Everton than have over the years.We can probably cite Leon Osman, Seamus Coleman and Jarrad Branthwaite in recent times. Maybe Harrison Armstrong will join that group. Maybe some can point out others, but those named is over a 20+ year period.I'm not changing my position. My concern is that we are left light in that position, something that has impacted us in all positions over the pitch for seasons.If Moyes decides, and it's his decision, not ours, that a loan is beneficial, I'd probably prefer he went to the continent.Gut instinct? If he goes on loan, I wouldn't expect to see him back at Everton. No crystal ball, just a hunch.We've got other areas of the pitch to worry about if we maintain 3 strikers.Ryan, watching Pedro, I wonder what Delap is thinking right now? Dave Abrahams 39 Posted 10/07/2025 at 19:17:25 We've only got a small squad so I'd be keeping Chermiti here, using him in first-team games as much as possible, especially in League Cup games.He will definitely get game time in the friendly games starting next week. Injuries have kept him back in the last year; let's see him here and see if the potential he had has improved. Mark Murphy 40 Posted 10/07/2025 at 19:33:27 I agree with Dave. He's been here 2 years (Chermiti, not Dave) and he's 21. He's past the “prospect” tag imho and should be either brought into the squad or sold.Btw, Dave, your hun temple did a great job yesterday for the graduation. They even had “The Bird Is Blue” banners!I'd share them if I knew how! Ryan Holroyd 41 Posted 10/07/2025 at 19:43:48 People on here would have written off Liam Delap as an example. Three loans he had playing 70-odd games in the Championship. Chermiti needs a loan to the Championship unless he's sold. He doesn't need a season on the bench playing the odd 10 mins and the odd cup game. Bill Hawker 42 Posted 10/07/2025 at 19:51:02 Clearly, if we bring in three or four more, then a loan is best for both parties. If we only bring in one more, then he may have to stay just to give us some depth. Danny O'Neill 43 Posted 10/07/2025 at 20:03:51 Who are these "people", Ryan?I don't recall anyone writing off Delap on here. Only those who must have followed him closely suggesting he would be a good addition for Everton.Personally, I had no idea, as I hadn't followed him and know nothing about his earlier career.I'm not against the loan system, I just don't think this would be a good move for Everton right now. Let's at least get to Christmas and see where we are.Last I'll say on it, as we'll be going around in circles. Kevin Molloy 44 Posted 10/07/2025 at 20:13:24 I think a lot will depend on how he plays in pre-season. If he does well, Moyes may be minded to keep him. If he doesn't make much of an impression, I think he definitely goes on loan. We and he can't afford another year of not playing. Mike Gaynes 45 Posted 10/07/2025 at 22:05:04 Jason #33, say what???"I'd like a good experienced striker to come in as Beto is still learning top level football."Okay...Beto has made 122 top level league appearances... half in Serie A, half in the Prem... and has scored 32 goals. Add Your Comments In order to post a comment, you need to be logged in as a registered user of the site. » Log in now Or Sign up as a ToffeeWeb Member — it's free, takes just a few minutes and will allow you to post your comments on articles and Talking Points submissions across the site. How to get rid of these ads and support TW © ToffeeWeb