Everton are reportedly set to hijack a deal for Dinamo Zagreb winger Mislav Orsic and the Croatia international could be the ideal signing for Frank Lampard at Goodison Park.

What's the word?

According to Croatian journalist Izak Ante Sucic, Southampton's deal for the 30-year-old is now off after a second bid was deemed far too low, with Everton now ready to 'hijack' the deal.

Nottingham Forest are also credited with an interest in Orsic, which suggests that a number of relegation-threatened teams in the top flight see him as a potential saviour in the second half of the season.

Despite spending the vast majority of his career playing in Croatia with Dinamo Zagreb, Orsic is well-known to a lot of English football fans for his goals in European competition against Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur in recent seasons, with the wide man scoring a memorable hat-trick to knock Spurs out of the Europa League in 2021.

He also scored a beautiful goal for Croatia in their World Cup third-place playoff game against Morocco recently, which may have been enough to convince a number of Premier League managers that he is capable of cutting it in the top flight.

Exactly what Lampard needs?

Everton find themselves in a desperate situation this season, with a lack of quality in the final third once again seeing them occupy a place at the wrong end of the Premier League table.

Demarai Gray and Anthony Gordon are the current joint-top scorers with just three to their name in the top flight, while Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Neal Maupay have both struggled in front of goal for the Toffees.

While it is difficult to judge the Croatian top flight at the same quality as the Premier League, Orsic has shown during his time with Zagreb that he is an extremely reliable option in front of goal, contributing 91 goals and 40 assists in 214 appearances for the Blues.

The aforementioned Sucic has been full of praise for Orsic in the past, when he was heavily linked with a move to Burnley last season before a deal collapsed at the last minute.

He said: "If they are trying to sign a good player who is capable of producing one piece of magic to do the crucial thing in a game, then he is the one."

Moments of magic are exactly what Lampard needs to keep his job at Goodison Park right now, so the former Chelsea man should do everything in his power to bring in Orsic this month. He could just be the man that keeps the Merseyside outfit in the Premier League.