Everton spends 160 million pounds but still stuck at No. 9
Everton have spent nearly £160m on 17 strikers in 10 years but are still starved for goals. Beto and Thierno Barry have only scored once in 19 Premier League games, a draw with Sunderland exposed the problem.
Thierno Barry’s flick-on from just yards out in the draw with Sunderland summed up Everton’s long drought. Ten years, 17 strikers, nearly £160m and the No. 9 problem still unsolved, despite the Merseyside club taking an early lead but then letting the win slip away.
Beto and Barry: the telling numbers of Everton's attack
Manager David Moyes has alternated between Beto and Barry, but the killer instinct has yet to emerge. Both have scored just once in 19 Premier League games – a statistic that reflects a stalemate in the penalty area. Beto, a £21.5m signing from Udinese, scored in the Merseyside derby last season but has been inconsistent. Barry – a £27m signing from Villarreal – has repeatedly missed his target since arriving in the league.
Jamie Carragher said: “Everton need a real centre-forward. If they don’t find a consistent goalscorer, they will be in danger of relegation at the end of the season.” It’s not just a warning about individual performance, but also a reminder of the urgency of Everton’s attacking structure.
After Lukaku is a long gap
Since Romelu Lukaku left Goodison Park in 2017, Everton have scored 358 Premier League goals – the fewest of any team that has never been relegated. That number suggests the club has failed to reestablish a striker to anchor the team. Many names have passed without leaving an impact, such as Cenk Tosun, Moise Kean, Neal Maupay and Salomon Rondon.
Richarlison scored 43 goals in four seasons but had to leave due to financial pressure. Dominic Calvert-Lewin exploded under Carlo Ancelotti but was held back by injury. The attack lacked a stable backbone, leading to matches that dragged on in stalemates and depended on the moment.
Tactical changes and consequences for strikers
According to BBC Sport, Everton have had nine managers in 12 years – enough to disrupt any build-up cycle. For strikers, there has been a breakdown in pressing principles, second-ball organization, and final pass quality. With roles constantly changing, confidence in front of goal is hard to build.
In that context, situations like Barry’s missed shot or Beto’s indecisive handling are no longer isolated individual errors. They are a reflection of an attacking system that lacks repetition and habit of creating high-quality chances.
Transfer and the unsolved problem
Since the Friedkin Group took over, Everton have spent £97 million in the summer transfer window of 2025, mainly on young talents such as Tyler Dibling or Barry. The policy of "buying cheap, nurturing talent" helps balance the finances, but does not solve the urgent need: a consistent scoring center forward.
Need a striker of Lukaku's class
The goal of returning to Europe and ending 30 years of trophylessness forces Everton to break the curse of the No. 9 position. Jack Grealish’s impressive season alone has not been enough to break Moyes’s team. When missed opportunities continue to occur, confidence erodes faster than the time it takes for a football project to crystallize into goals.
The January transfer market is therefore seen as the last chance for Moyes to find the “new Lukaku” – someone who can turn around the chance-taking rate and help Everton escape the obsession of goal scarcity.
