Increasingly desperate moves afoot as Everton face deadline day failure

Everton are desperately searching for forward additions as the hours and minutes to the close of the transfer window tick down.

One of the latest concerns Lucas Joao, with Everton now supposedly ready to make an offer for the Reading striker after seeing a succession of other attacking targets reject them.

According to numerous reports, throughout the day the Toffees’ have tried to bring in this forward and then that one, all of whom have turned their nose up at a move to Goodison Park.

It is a frankly dreadful situation for this club to be in. But then, what’s new these days?

Because of all this Everton are forced to shop around almost aimlessly it seems, in the hope they can land someone who, at least on paper, might add some goals to this team.

And so, Joao becomes the latest in a bloated list of apparent transfer targets with reports claiming the Blues’ are launching a late bid to sign the towering Portuguese centre-forward.

Joao has netted five times in eleven matches this season for the Championship club so far this season, and has been a fairly consistent goal-scorer for the Royals over the last few years at roughly a goal every other game.

That’s not bad, but of course as with earlier reports concerning Genk and Nigeria front man Paul Onauchu, the standard of football he’s been playing, is obviously of a lower standard than the Premier League.

As with so many of these players and alledged links, I have no idea if Joao would represent a good buy or would be able to contribute enough to this goal-shy Blues’ side to make any substantial difference.

The players who seem to have the quality needed are all going elsewhere.

On and on the mery-go-round of ever more unlikely rumours goes and we wait in the increasingly forlorn hope that this club might eventually find a way to bring reinforcements in before the window slams shut. Less than fours hours to go…