da roleta： Everton are reportedly one of the clubs in the race to sign Brennan Johnson from Tottenham Hotspur now that the January transfer window is open for business.

da dobrowin： Fabrizio Romano recently reported that the Toffees have made contact with Spurs to discuss a possible deal for the Wales international, who is attracting interest from a host of teams.

The Italian journalist added that Crystal Palace have already agreed a £33.5m deal with the Lilywhites, whilst Sunderland have also called to check in on the situation.

Why Everton should not sign Brennan Johnson

Johnson scored 18 goals in all competitions for Spurs last season, including the winner in the Europa League final, but the Toffees should back out of the race to secure his signature this month.

The Wales international’s form has fallen off as a goalscorer in the current campaign, hence why Tottenham are willing to cash in on him, after his impressive output in front of goal last term.

An issue Johnson has had with his performances, stretching back to the start of last season, has been a lack of creativity in possession on the right flank, with just three Premier League assists in the 2024/25 campaign.

Johnson (Premier League)

24/25

25/26

Appearances

33

16

Goals

11

2

Minutes per goal

199

314

Key passes per game

0.6

0.4

xA

2.05

0.29

Big chances created

4

1

Assists

3

0

Stats via Sofascore

As you can see in the table above, the Spurs attacker has not been as prolific in front of goal in the top-flight this season, whilst his lack of creativity has become an even bigger problem.

This is why Everton should back away from the race to sign him for £33.5m this month, because he may not make a significant impact in the final third.

Instead, the Toffees should splash their cash to bring in a new centre-forward to lead the line, having recently been linked with an impressive marksman.

Why Everton should sign Serie A striker

Everton can sign an even bigger talent than Johnson and make a more useful addition to their squad by swooping for Roma number nine Artem Dovbyk in the January transfer window.

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It was recently reported that the club have made contact with the Italian side to discuss a possible deal for the Ukraine international, who is valued at around £21m. This means that he would cost more than £10m cheaper than Johnson would.

To sign a 28-year-old striker, who should be in the prime years of his career, for a fee of £21m seems like a bargain on paper, and it is one that has been created by a drop-off in form this season.

Like Johnson, Dovbyk has only scored two league goals so far this season, per Sofascore, but the mitigation in his favour is that he has only started three Serie A games, which shows that he has not had many opportunities to score goals.

The left-footed marksman was described as a “presence” who is “similar to (Erling) Haaland” by Mario Balotelli at the time of his move to Roma, and it is an understandable comparison, as he is also a towering and powerful centre-forward.

Whilst the Ukraine international may not score 25 goals in 24 games, as Haaland has for Manchester City this season, Dovbyk does carry a significant goal threat to go along with his Haaland-esque physical attributes.

Artem Dovbyk

23/24 (LaLiga)

24/25 (Serie A)

Appearances

36

32

Goals

24

12

Minutes per goal

109

203

Big chances created

10

5

Assists

8

2

Aerial duel success rate

50%

42%

Stats via Sofascore

As you can see in the table above, the 28-year-old marksman provided a regular threat in front of goal for Roma and Girona in the 2024/25 and 2023/24 campaigns when he started matches on a regular basis.

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This suggests that Everton could benefit by taking advantage of his current situation to provide him with regular game time in the Premier League in the second half of the season, which could lead to him returning to his usual self in the final third.

Dovbyk is a natural goalscorer, as evidenced by goals like the one in the clips above and his form for Roma and Girona, and the same cannot be said for Beto and Thierno Barry, who have combined for three Premier League goals this season.

Therefore, Everton should use their money to sign Dovbyk instead of Johnson because he has the quality to offer even more to the team as a goalscorer, and a creator, given his output in LaLiga, which could make him an even bigger talent for David Moyes to utilise.

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