Everton’s pursuit of Liam Delap ends after player chooses Chelsea

Onward and upward regardless.

Can't say I'll lose any sleep over it.

He was obviously interested in Everton due to the new owners, new stadium and Moyes as Manager but that was not enough.
Be interesting to see who our next target is.

There has to be a good young player in European leagues or in South America who is worth risking. Not sure how good our scouting system is though.

Goes to show that some players can't or don't see that Man City and Chelsea spit these players out on a whim!

It would be nice to have a decision on Calvert-Lewin. It's starting to get annoying not knowing. Are they negotiating a completely new deal, as I would expect him to take a pay cut considering his fitness issues and lack of form.

With Delap, I remember hearing a few fans commentating on how crap he was when he played at Goodison Park. I feel like he hasn't scored for ages too, how long has he been on 12 goals? Maybe he got worked out or forgot where the goal was?

He's still only 28 and 21 goals from 31 games for Leverkusen. Talk about a focal centre-forward!

Paulie with Carmine vibes

Michael # 4, a scouting system can deliver a player of promise – but if you want first team ready the options are pretty limited.

In all of South America, I think the only striker currently capable of playing first team Premier League football is Yuri Alberto (who is linked with us and loads of others around Europe). He is probably not as good a fit as Delap for us.

Likeliest other options are now:

- Ferguson
- Emegha
- Castro
- Guessand (who Sam H rightly points out is a good player)

Or, perhaps the best option of all - stick with Beto (and maybe re-sign Calvert-Lewin or Broja) and spend the money on other positions and quality teenager(s) to takeover from Beto in due course.

But he's made his choice so we write him off and look for someone else. I'm sure there are more fish in the sea.

Take it or leave this one, on to the next one.

Anyway, I can hear it now: “Liam, Liam what's the score?”

He averages 1 in 2 over 5 years in the German league and at international level and he was a Bundesliga Champion just 12 months ago. Players like that don't go for £30M.

To be honest, he wasn't my choice. I'd prefer a target man like Ferguson, and he's no different to what Chelsea already have.

I must admit I know nothing of the other two Robert mentioned.

I wouldn't buy any forward from Italy because they never seem to work in the Premier League.

I'm not too disappointed. He is far from the finished article and we need someone who can boss the opponent's defence.

He certainly couldn't manage that against us.

The mind boggles…

I was thinking about the Alcaraz type of player, young and not too expensive. I know Carlos has had previous Premier League experience but maybe a centre-forward who Moyes could work with like he has with him.

Given the choice, I'd probably focus attention on getting a quality right back and right wing-forward in as the main priorities – while readying a few young strikers for the first team. Beto will do in the meantime.

Castro, the Argentine at Bologna, is good. He could well be a Champions League regular in a few years (he's only 20).

Gianfranco Zola, Paolo di Canto, and Ravanelli didn't fair too badly. I don't think it matters where a player comes from to be honest.

They can come from Kirkdale, Croxteth, Speke Donegal or Senegal. It doesn't matter.

Had he come here and been given 2 years of first-team football to develop and learn his craft, he'd be heading to the top. Instead, he will be warehoused with much of the rest of Europe's U23s.

I'm sick of injury prone centre-forwards. We've had that with Calvert-Lewin.

Castro sounds interesting.
Plenty more that didn't though, Danny.

Including Scamacca who Moyes signed for West Ham.

Our somewhat limited funds will be better spent improving other positions in the team, as per Sam Hoare's analysis.

In Moyes we trust… at least until the glass ceiling.

He's got to be a better punt at that price than Delap!

Let's hope so, Paul. Next season will tell.

Teren Moffi is over his knee injury, playing 5 games for Nice. I'd imagine he would be available at a fair price.

Does he not read the sports news, and know how many bench warmers there are?

I'm not sure about him either.

There is a litany of failed signings: James Beattie, Andy Johnson, Jermaine Beckford, Jelavic, Big Vic. In fact, from memory, only the Yak and super Kev worked out for a short while.

I know we had no money so I'll take that into account but he seemed to follow a similar route at West Ham.

I just wonder if it was lack of money or a blind spot.

6ft 7in
12 in 33
24 years of age
Just called up by Italy and has 3 caps.

Absolute cart horse. Can header them for fun, but general foot work is dreadful.

Here we go 👊

Lots of names will be linked and suggested but we've seen the likes of Hojlund, Nunez, Rutter and Solanke all fail despite big fees.

I reckon the Lukaku we loaned / bought first time around would cost about £70m or more in today's market.

The standard of the Premier league is so high it is hard to get past 15 goals even for a very attacking team. For us, likely to be quite conservative, it is even harder.

There's really not a lot of striking talent about. The best available like Osimhen and Ekitike just aren't available to us. For real quality, we need to be patient.

I did note one person trying to big himself up at your expense, he must be plastered in the eggy face now!

Big Vic was a youth player and pretty average.. Yak was a good player ruined by injury. Super Kev was a pre-Moyes signing.

I thought he left Man City for more game time?

VfB Stuttgart striker Nick Woltemade looks very good but will other German clubs like Bayern have an interest? That would be hard for him to turn down.

Do you have a view on Stuttgart's Woltemade?

From the clips I've seen he looks good a holding a ball played up to him - which has been a key requirement of our strikers and probably will continue to be if Moyes opts for a counter-attacking style.

Okay, sorry, getting my coat.

I hope he gets splinters in his expensive arse from spending all season on the bench.

1 in 2 for Rennes last season.

I take it Calvert-Lewin is leaving which I feel is a pity, he might have stayed if some complete idiots had kept their numb thoughts to themselves.

We do need more than Beto, what about Callum Wilson, we could be 3 years too late with him but he could be a useful addition.

We do have Chermiti who I think is a likely lad if he stays injury free.

The great pity was the lack of playing time given to Chermiti which was a great shame because I'm sure exposure to some serious playing time could mirror Beto's improvement. What is more important is wide players or overlapping full-backs to provide serious ammunition for these guys.

Otherwise, if Beto is injured – and this is Everton, so why wouldn't he be? – we are royally screwed.

"Gianfranco Zola, Paolo di Canto, and Ravanelli", and Viali.

Some might disagree with me but I think it shows a lack of ambition. Although he will be a player for a team involved in European competition – just how much will he really be involved?

I'd rather have thought regular first team football would be a more dynamic, ambitious choice,

He left Manchester City to presumably get more games, show what he could do, and he subsequently demonstrated that with Ipswich.

Maybe he has the confidence to feel he's good enough to be Chelsea's first choice No 9. Not a bad trait for a footballer in my book.

I bear him no ill will.

Alternatively, he backs himself to start in a top European team and expects to win things straight away. If that's the case, he was never going to end up at Everton and he doesn't deserve any criticism.

He might have signed for us if he felt he wasn't going to play much at Chelsea and recognises that he does need to be playing to develop into a top striker.
We asked the question, but that's obviously not how he has seen it.

I'm not too disappointed. I think we'd be better served with a versatile forward who could play striker or elsewhere if needed. As per my article Evan Guessand would be my top pick but the likes of Nick Woltemade and Arnaud Kalimuendo are interesting options.

Lots of decent options out there and just have to hope the scouting team have identified the right players.

Should Gyökeres sign for Chelsea, they will have Jackson, Delap and Gyökeres. I wonder who will get the most splinters in their arse?

When someone calls out a player for the wrong reasons... surely that's worth putting right no matter who he signs or plays for?

I don't know what's your age, but Beattie at the time was a top striker, so you haven't a clue what you're talking about.

Beattie was never a great striker.

He had one very good season with Southampton and Everton took a chance on his potential... bit like today's Liam Delap scenario.

Didn't work out well for either party but Beattie as a "top striker" pretty much ended with his Everton gig.

Ryan@42, I echo what Christy says. James Beattie was a very good player, just scored over 20 PL goals in a season for Southampton. He just wasn't suited to the isolated striker role, that was Moyes obsession at the time.

Perhaps I'm wrong but I think Beattie dropped a division to join Sheffield United.

I'm not saying he wasn't a good striker just not "top" in Premier League terms.

I think Richarlison would be better, although a bit older but how much do we need to pay to get him ? prob about the same as Delap.

Shame really as he would of been a good fit at EFC... not the first time a player prefers a move to a London club.

Can play on the flanks, create chances and makes a half decent number 9 with good heading ability and an eye for goal.

Injuries and his lack of game time seem to have taken their toll but at his best he is exactly what we need.

Anyway, let's move on to next target.

Calvert Lewin has missed 50 games over the last 3 seasons from injury, and odds are those injuries will increase going forward. Beto puts his body on the line every game, dcl doesn't. Beto stays fit and is currently out scoring dcl 3:1 over half a season.

If calvert lewin is quicker, it's hard to see that hes using that asset. As an out ball, he might flick it on, he might hold it up - but he certainly struggles to create any attacking moves for himself - and there has to be some ability to do that. He never seems to be involved enough to get more than one chance a match, and invariably he lacks composure to do the hardest thing in football and score from it. Centre halves invariably get an easy ride in games.

I said that hes not sole blame for the offsides, but hes the 2nd highest in the league and has only been on the pitch half the games. 27 times in 19 equivalent games. Wood had 28 and he plays nearly every game, and in a style forest don't play radically different.

I hope to see another striker, and for that reason I can't see dom sticking around as 3rd choice on £100k a week. 3 goals, 16 big chances missed and 27 offsides in 19 matches isn't good enough for a 28 year old looking for £5m+ a season.

And that goal scoring dance, obviously. We should do it in the stands, although personally, I wouldn't try. I have no rhythm and I'll leave that to the young ones.

It's always a tricky one for strikers with the offside rule as it stands. They play a high line to gain advantage, but when the hair of a toe can be ruled offside, it's tricky. Change the rule.

You mention Chris Wood. If I haven't already said it elsewhere, a journeyman who has had the season of his life. Twenty goals and everything he hit, including if it went off his arse, went in.

If he continues to work on that, the rest he already has to become a very good centre forward.

Would rather keep Beto than Calvert- Lewin, at least he will chase a ball down and put the goalkeeper and defence under pressure.

How the fuck do Chelsea get away with it? PSR is a joke. I felt we had a real shout with this signing. Certain starter, No 9 for an iconic club on the up, new stadium etc, near where he has lived for many years, mad fans etc.

Then those pricks turn up with their 7-year contracts and we have no chance. They aren't signing him to play, they are signing him to fill gaps and because the price is too good to ignore. Business decision fundamentally.

You speak on the behalf of all supporters Danny? I for one don't love him.

I'm just going on what I hear at the match.

Let me put it a different way. The majority I hear love him, but it doesn't include everyone. For the sake of impartiality and different views.

Those opportunities don't come around too often - he'll get a move if he's not playing but he won't always have the chance to move to a club who can win things.

I don't think it's quite the mercenary move some are labeling it as.

And, to be honest, I rate him. Big, strong, good work ethic, good finisher. He'd have been popular at BMD (I nearly wrote Goodison then).

Beto has nearly as good a record in the 2024-25 seasonand with less starts. Dyche wouldn't play him. He's not the polished article but neither is Delap. Both are more like pewter pretending to be silver or gold.

I'm not convinced Delap is Champions League quality (yet) but he now has the chance to prove himself.

There are more fish in the sea though. We move on.

Cos you can predict..."We're getting beat 25 - 0"

Anyone can predict... predicting correctly is the difficult bit.

Liam Delap explains Everton rejection after Chelsea transfer confirmed

No, he doesn't even mention Everton.