Summary Everton could look at signing a 'special' £30m striker to replace Calvert-Lewin. The player in question plays for one of the biggest clubs in European football. He could be a revelation at Goodison Park if nurtured properly.
Everton manager Sean Dyche continues to scour the transfer market for a new striker despite making several offensive acquisitions already this summer, and may have received a big boost for a key target.
After securing a place in this season's Premier League with a final-day victory over Bournemouth last term, the Toffees have been trying to combat their scoring woes – they finished the 2022/23 campaign as the division's second-lowest scorers – with their activity, signing Arnaut Danjuma and Youssef Chermiti already.
However, with Neal Maupay misfiring since his £15m move from Brighton & Hove Albion last year and Dominic Calvert-Lewin's fitness levels unreliable – absent for 30 matches over the past two years – Dyche has seemingly focussed his attention on Paris Saint-Germain's Hugo Ekitike in what could be a significant display of intent.
What's the latest Everton transfer news?
According to journalist Patrick Berger, the Toffees have received some pleasing news as they pursue Ekitike, with Borussia Dortmund pulling out of the race for the 21-year-old striker.
Read the latest Everton transfer news HERE…
French side Lens will give the Goodison Park side competition, but Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that Everton have been working fervently to secure his signature on an initial loan deal with a €35m (£30m) purchase option, there's a concrete possibility they get this one over the line.
How good is Hugo Ekitike?
There have been a deluge of reports claiming Everton are targetting a new centre-forward this summer, with BBC Sport recently summarising that Leicester City's Patson Daka and Southampton's Che Adams are on Everton Director of Football Kevin Thelwell's radar.
However, Daka has been underwhelming in the Premier League since arriving, scoring just nine goals from 53 matches, while Che Adams has never been the most prolific of forwards, albeit he is dynamic and boasts good link-up play.
Ekitike only scored four goals and supplied four assists for PSG last term but he only made 14 starts across all competitions, and the previous term, with Stade Reims, he landed ten goals and four assists from just 15 starts in Ligue 1.
Hailed as a "special, special player" by his former boss Oscar Garcia, Thelwell simply has to work tirelessly to obtain his services, bolstering the ranks with a first-class talent.
Standing at 6 foot 2, Ekitike could be the imposing talisman to serve as the heir to Dominic Calvert-Lewin's position as the Everton focal point; while the 26-year-old is prolific on his day, he indeed spends too much time sidelined and has been linked with a move away to Roma this summer.
He is no longer untouchable, despite plundering 60 goals from 209 outings for the Toffees, and given the certain similarities between the respective players, Ekitike could thrive in his stead.
Calvert-Lewin ranks among the top 8% of forwards across Europe's top five leagues for aerials won per 90, as per FBref, and is indeed heralded as a "monster" by talent scout Jacek Kulig in the past.
The £80k-per-week Ekitike needs to improve his aerial dominance, though he did win 1.5 and 1.1 aerials per game across his two campaigns with Reims, as per WhoScored, and Dyche could nurture this element of his game on Merseyside.
He also ranks among the top 5% of forwards for pass completion and the top 3% for assists per 90, and therefore, would be a dynamic, all-engulfing attacker to bolster Everton's frontline and then some over the next several years.
As Kulig has also already called him, Ekitike could be a "revelation" on Merseyside.
