Everton Explore Surprise Move for Jamie Vardy
Everton are exploring a surprise move for Jamie Vardy on a free transfer, with a growing number of supporters backing the idea of the veteran striker making a dramatic Premier League return.
The club head into the autumn with a glaring problem: only one senior centre-forward on the books. Deadline day saw Beto sold, and a late push to land Folarin Balogun came to nothing. The window is shut. The squad is thin. The risk is obvious.
That leaves David Moyes staring at the free-agent market as his only realistic route to reinforcements before January. Vardy, freshly released by Cremonese at the end of the 2025-26 season, has emerged as one of the names under consideration.
The 39-year-old has not been short of admirers since leaving Italy and has already been linked with several clubs, reportedly turning down an approach from Wrexham. A drop down the pyramid never quite felt like his stage. Now a different storyline is on the table: one last shot in the Premier League, in royal blue.
Fans back Vardy despite obvious risks
On paper, it is a move that invites scepticism. Vardy is long past his explosive peak and has not gone through a full pre-season. The miles are on the clock. The legs have seen better days.
Even so, when The Sun reported that Everton were weighing up a move, the backlash many expected never really came. Instead, a wave of Everton fans took to X to argue that, given the state of the squad, Vardy would be a smart, pragmatic signing.
They know the stakes. Relying solely on young Lewis Barry up front until the winter window is a gamble that could define the season. One injury, one prolonged dip in form, and Everton would be left brutally exposed. Points would slip away. The table would start to tilt the wrong way.
That is why the free-agent pool suddenly looks less like a last resort and more like a lifeline. Vardy, for all the caveats, offers something Everton simply do not have enough of: a proven eye for goal.
Can Vardy still deliver at this level?
Strip away the age and the nostalgia and the numbers still carry weight. Last season with Cremonese, Vardy scored seven times in Serie A and was named Player of the Month in November. That is not a farewell tour. That is contribution.
No one at Goodison would expect the Leicester City icon to replicate his title-winning exploits or churn out double figures in half a season. Everton do not need that. They need moments. A handful of goals. The odd winner on a cold night when the margins are tight and the mood is tense.
If Vardy can still time his runs, still sniff out chances in the box, he could give Moyes exactly what he needs to get to January intact.
For now, it is only interest, not a done deal. Talks, if they happen, will have to move quickly, with the club weighing short-term impact against long-term planning.
The question hangs over Goodison: do Everton take the plunge on a 39-year-old with a history of delivering when it matters, or walk away and hope their thin forward line survives the grind of a Premier League winter?
