Season › 2024-25 › News The Rumour Mill Everton intensify Thierno Barry approach Anjishnu Roy | 13/06/2025 9comments | Jump to last Everton are preparing to intensify their approach for Villarreal striker Thierno Barry, reports Paul Joyce of The Times. The 22-year-old French forward has emerged as the leading target for the club after failing to sign Liam Delap, who opted for Chelsea. Barry has a release clause of €40M (£34M) and he has scored 11 goals in 35 matches in La Liga this season. “It is likely that Everton would try to negotiate that figure down given the amount of deals they must look to do before moving into their new 52,888-capacity Hill Dickinson Stadium on the banks of the River Mersey next season,” the report said. Barry is currently with the French national team at the European Under-21 Championship in Slovakia. Acquiring a striker has become a priority for the club as Armando Broja has returned to his parent club Chelsea and Dominic Calvert-Lewin is likely to leave as a free agent. Beto, who scored 12 goals in 35 appearances this season, has largely blown hot and cold. Michael Keane set to leave Everton Along with Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Michael Keane is almost certain to leave the club once his contract runs out this month. Besides Broja, Jack Harrison, Orel Mangala, and Jesper Lindstrom have also returned to their parent clubs. “Everton have offered Idrissa Gueye a new deal, but the Senegal midfielder wants two years rather than the one on the table. The club captain Seamus Coleman, 36, has also been offered a playing contract,” the report added. Abdoulaye Doucoure, Ashley Young, Asmir Begovic, João Virginia, Neal Maupay and Mason Holgate will also leave the club as free agents this month. The Blues have, however, opted to make Carlos “Charly” Alcaraz’s loan signing permanent for £12.6M. He has signed a 2-year deal with the option for an additional year. Reader Comments (9) Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer () Robert Tressell 1 Posted 13/06/2025 at 21:06:31 How intense does our interest need to get before we actually sign him? Dennis Stevens 2 Posted 13/06/2025 at 21:10:19 Robert, don't get too excited - we're reportedly only preparing to intensify our approach. I presume this means that we're thought to be considering actually making an approach. Don't hold your breath! Stu Darlington 3 Posted 13/06/2025 at 21:14:22 Certainly fits the right age profile of the players we should be looking at but a £34M release clause seems a bit inflated to me for a striker who scored less goals than Beto last season.Possibly worth a punt if we could get that down to £20-£25M,but still a gamble for an untried striker in the Premier League.He is a big lad though isn’t he? Ryan Holroyd 4 Posted 13/06/2025 at 21:58:19 Why would Villarreal sell him for less than the release clause when they've got Champions League football? Neil Thomas 5 Posted 13/06/2025 at 22:30:28 11 goals in 35 games ain't exactly terrific. I would like to see how many Chermiti would get if playing the same amount of games. Christian Hill 6 Posted 13/06/2025 at 23:01:52 Beto scored 12 in 35 games, so this guy isn't exactly an improvement on what we already have. Note to the recruitment team: Please Keep Looking! Sam Hoare 7 Posted 13/06/2025 at 23:11:27 I like the look of Barry, wins a lot of headers but also has some genuine pace and good technique for a big lad. He definitely has the potential to outstrip Beto long term and right now could either replace him, play alongside him or possibly feature on the wing (he works hard and is a decent dribbler).Would be an exciting signing and could be our next Lukaku.Chermiti needs a season on loan. Would like to see how he did at a solid Championship club. If he gets 15 goals there, he either shows he's ready to step up for us or becomes an asset we could sell for £15M plus. Anthony Dwyer 8 Posted 13/06/2025 at 23:43:51 Biggest thing on this page for me is Gana not signed a deal yet — we claimed to have wrapped him up weeks ago.He's a must-keep player, probably our best and most consistent last season. Get this sorted out, we're acting like our usual amateur selves again. Dave Williams 9 Posted 14/06/2025 at 10:25:14 I'd be surprised if we sign anyone before the end of June. Once the PSR period concludes, then we can spend Friedkins money but I'd guess we will be too close for comfort after buying Charly to do more now. Add Your Comments In order to post a comment, you need to be logged in as a registered user of the site. » Log in now Or Sign up as a ToffeeWeb Member — it's free, takes just a few minutes and will allow you to post your comments on articles and Talking Points submissions across the site. How to get rid of these ads and support TW © ToffeeWeb