Everton have made five new signings this summer so far but are still in the market for a new striker before the transfer window closes, and now a potential transfer target has been identified.
What's the latest?
According to The Daily Mail, Everton are one of four Premier League clubs interested in signing RC Strasbourg striker Ludovic Ajorque.
As per the report, the Toffees join Brentford, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Leicester City in their interest of acquiring the services of the popular player this summer.
Strasbourg are willing to sell their player before the transfer window closes but the asking price is believed to be £18m.
He could be Lukaku 2.0
Everton are in desperate need of a new striker at Goodison Park, with the side having to start their Premier League season without one in their opener against Chelsea last weekend following an injury to Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Salomon Rondon serving a one-match suspension from last season.
With Calvert-Lewin missing for at least the next six weeks, it would make perfect sense for the Toffees to bring in a striker that can fit seamlessly into his role as Lampard would have had a style of play in mind throughout pre-season to enhance the striker's chances of converting chances in front of goal.
As a result, finding a striker who is a similar profile of player as the 25-year-old would be the most advantageous option for the Toffees to get stuck straight into picking up points in the Premier League over the coming fixtures where Calvert-Lewin will be certainly missing and Ajorque could be the perfect fit.
The hulking 6 foot 6 goal machine who was hailed a “complete player” by Julian Stephan has been dominating his opponents with ease over in Ligue 1, scoring 12 goals, delivering eight assists and creating an impressive 11 big chances over 36 appearances last season.
Ajorque has no trouble using his stature when causing trouble for the players he comes up against with the player ranking in the top 3% for tackles compared to his positional peers in the top five European Leagues over the last 12 months, as well as ranking inside the top 10% for aerial duels won.
With that in mind, Everton could even land their next Romelu Lukaku, a player the club has struggled to replace since he left Goodison Park. During his time on Merseyside, he bagged 87 goals and delivered 29 assists over 166 appearances, with a goal contribution every 120 minutes for the Merseysiders.
Just like Ajorque, Lukaku also uses his wiry 6 foot 2 stature to knock players off the ball and win possession in the air in the final third with the striker completing the majority of his aerial duels (52%) last season at Chelsea, something that the Frenchman can now emulate if Everton can secure a deal.
With that being said, the signing of Ajorque could be a big addition for Everton, but they will need to act fast as they need a striker as soon as possible in order to boost their hopes of staying in the division.