Everton end of season loan verdict: Forwards

We assess the performance of every Everton player who spent time on loan this season. In part one, we look at Everton’s forwards: Boris Mathis, Sam Byrne, Sandro Ramirez and Henry Onyekuru.

As thoughts turn towards the transfer window, and a new manager after Sam Allardyce, it’s time for Everton to take stock.

There were some incredibly disappointing performances this semester, as the Blues’ transfer policy created a mismatched team with little leadership or creativity.

The current team looks sparse, but is there any support already at the club, in the form of Everton’s loanees?

I have been writing a monthly loan report since January, and, to assess the state of play at Goodison, I thought it would be useful to give a verdict on how Everton’s loan cohort have performed.

In this series of posts, we will analyse each player’s performance, to see if they have any chance of making an impact for Everton – whether it be on the pitch, or in providing a nice fee on the transfer market.

Some loanees were out to gain experience, while some were jettisoned due to poor performance in the first team.

Regardless, we rate them on three parameters. One, their performance on loan. Two, the likelihood of them leaving Everton this summer. Three, the likelihood of them making an impact for Everton’s first team next season.

Sandro Ramirez

Club: Sevilla

Appearances: 18

Goals: 0

Ramirez departed Everton on loan for Sevilla in January. To recap, the Spanish striker looked like a steal when The Blues picked him up for £9,000,000 just last summer. In 2016-17, he scored an enviable 14 goals in 30 appearances for Malaga.

Ramirez flopped at Everton, and fared little better at Sevilla. The 22-year-old played consistently during his loan spell, but failed to find any sort of scoring form.

Despite this Ramirez insists that he will return to Spain in the summer. Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo claim that Sandro wants to sign permanently in Seville.

Sandro will not turn into a competent striker for Everton overnight. However, it is difficult to see any team picking him up after this season, and paying his allegedly extortionate wages (source: Silly Season).

Sadly, it is very possible that he will remain with The Blues next year. Don’t expect him to do much if he does.

Performance on loan: 2/10

Likelihood of exit: 4/10

Likelihood of impact: 4/10

Henry Onyekuru

Club: Anderlecht

Appearances: 19

Goals: 9

Henry Onyekuru is probably the best Everton prospect you’ve never heard of. The Blues snapped up Onyekuru last summer for around £7 million, beating off competition from a range of European teams.

Onyekuru is relatively unheard of Merseyside for one simple reason: a lack of a work permit. The Nigerian striker is unable to play in England until he secures legal rights from the FA.

The Liverpool Echo give a great summary of the regulations impacting on Onyekuru here, and simply put, he needs to play a lot of international football before a permit can be considered. He has made just two senior appearances for Nigeria so far.

Despite this, Onyekuru had a great season in Belgium, scoring nine goals and playing Champions League football with Anderlecht, before his season ended prematurely with a serious knee injury.

Due to his permit issues, he will likely spend next season on loan again. Hopefully, this succession of short-term tenures with various clubs won’t stunt his development.

If Onyekuru had a work permit, he would be able to compete with Oumar Niasse and Dominic Calvert-Lewin to understudy Cenk Tosun up front. However, it is very unlikely his situation will change soon, and you shouldn’t expect Onyekuru to play for Everton for a few years.

Hopefully the highly talented youngster won’t get too impatient while he waits to arrive on Merseyside.

Performance on loan: 8/10

Likelihood of exit: 2/10

Likelihood of impact: 2/10

Boris Mathis

Club: Northampton Town (Sky Bet League 2)

Appearances: 5

Goals: 0

Boris Mathis arrived at Northampton Town on loan in January, having played sporadically for the Everton reserve team. The Blues signed Mathis on a free from FC Metz in 2017, due to the young striker’s decent performances in the French reserve league.

He failed to kick on at Northampton however and was sent back from his loan early after the Cobbler’s manager, Jimmy Floyd Haisselbank, was sacked.

Mathis hasn’t shown much since arriving in England, and it is incredibly unlikely that he will ever make the Everton first team.

I doubt the Blues will attempt to sell him, although release into free agency is possible. If he doesn’t agree mutual termination, Mathis’s Everton contract expires in 2019.

Performance on loan: 2/10

Likelihood of exit: 6/10

Likelihood of impact: 2/10

Sam Byrne

Club: Dundalk

Appearances: 2

Goals: 0

Sam Byrne was signed as a free agent by Everton in 2014. The former Manchester United youth player has since been a semi-regular fixture in the Everton reserves, where he hasn’t been prolific.

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Admittedly though, he has been unfortunate with injuries, including a horrific leg-break, which put him out of action for most of 2017, as reported in the Liverpool Echo.

Since arriving at Dundalk, Byrne has been similarly unlucky, and has been left out due to injury for the majority of the Irish football season.

Currently, Dundalk sit first in the League of Ireland Premier Division, but Byrne has only managed to feature twice. Hopefully, he can stake a claim for a starting spot if he finds fitness soon.

Next: Some less known coaches for the Everton job?

Byrne’s contract expires this summer, and he will likely be released by Everton.

Performance on loan: n/a

Likelihood of exit: 9/10

Likelihood of impact: 1/10