Everton have finally come to life it seems after a torrid start to the Premier League season, as once again their lack of a striker hampered them in the opening fixtures.
Despite carving open Fulham and Wolverhampton Wanderers on numerous occasions, accumulating a 2.73 and 1.34 expected goal tally in those games respectively, the absence of Dominic Calvert-Lewin unsurprisingly proved essential.
They would lose 1-0 on both occasions, spurring Sean Dyche to act fast in the market.
Acquiring Udinese forward Beto for a whopping £30m, already this is proving to be a shrewd investment, as not only does it offer that crucial focal point up top, but also it has given the England international enough slack to return from injury better than ever.
Two goals in his last two games emphasise such success, which could now help them towards a campaign hopefully devoid of the relegation stresses of the previous two.
However, if reports are to be believed, the Toffees could have actually acquired a number nine with quality that surpasses both their current strike partnership, and the youth to dominate for the next decade.
After all, there is not a team on earth that would not jump at the opportunity to have Erling Haaland on their side nowadays.
Did Everton nearly sign Erling Haaland?
Although Calvert-Lewin has enjoyed some impressive goalscoring spells during his tenure on Merseyside, having notched 16 league goals under Carlo Ancelotti during the 2020/21 campaign, it cannot really come close to the levels reached by the Norway international ever since he burst onto the scene in Austria.
Again, whilst their new Portuguese forward's tally of ten in Serie A last season was admirable, the Manchester City man stands out above all else.
So, with the suggestion that he very nearly joined the Goodison Park outfit circulating, it must mark a frustrating report for the numerous managers to have been thwarted since the departure of Romelu Lukaku.
As noted by the Daily Mail, former Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson recalled a 2018 visit to Finch Farm in which he was shown a video of an 18-year-old Haaland tearing it up for his hometown club.
However, then chief executive Robert Elstone delivered a crushing blow by suggesting that the £7m commanded would have been too expensive.
To make matters worse, some haggling with the Norwegian club Molde made them willing to then sell for a reduced £5m, which was again knocked back, deemed too much for a player who would seemingly not have made an instant first-team impact.
Although that line of thought can be appreciated, it is also worth noting that, around the reported time frame of their interest in the 23-year-old, the club was spending with ridiculous freedom. Across the 2017/18 campaign, Ronald Koeman would unload a mouth-watering €203.2m (£175.77m), yet could not spare a fraction to invest in their future.
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And what an investment it could have been, given how he would go on to thrive for RB Salzburg, Borussia Dortmund and now the Citizens.
In Austria he would notch 29 goals in 27 appearances, assisting a further seven, and upon moving to Germany, increase these figures even more despite the increase in standard. Improving his creativity, the hulking marksman would add 23 assists to his 86 goals, spread impressively across just 89 appearances.
He was ready to take his final step to the apex of world football, and given their steady rise alongside him, the Etihad seemed a natural fit.
However, few could possibly have predicted just how dominant the forward would instantly become, acquired for a supreme bargain reaching just £51m.
How many goals has Erling Haaland scored for Man City?
Whilst many might gawk at those ludicrous goalscoring figures across lesser divisions across Europe, it was expected that upon moving to statistically the toughest league on the continent, there could be a drop-off.
However, it could be argued that Haaland has never been so in-form, having broken all manner of records last season whilst spearheading Pep Guardiola's push for, and subsequent winning of an unprecedented treble.
Claiming the Premier League title, alongside the FA Cup and Champions League marked an unparalleled return for a debut season, made even sweeter as he would break the division's record for most goals scored in a single term.
Already across his short career in Manchester, he boasts 60 goals in just 62 appearances, with his 11 assists taking him over a goal contribution per game. Haaland always scores, and as such the words of pundit Rory Smith cannot be disputed: "Haaland's different. Haaland is a generational talent."
Unsurprisingly, his Spanish manager has rushed to laud him too, noting: "It is unbelievable how many goals he has scored – so many important goals to help us win games. He is a unique person, as a player but also the person is special. He deserved the guard of honour."
To truly emphasise the exponential growth the 26-cap ace has enjoyed over the last few years, it is worth noting where his value lies given Everton passed up that £5m opportunity only five years ago.
What is Erling Haaland's market value now?
CIES Football Observatory offers a fair estimation and unsurprisingly rates him among the most expensive players on the planet. Seemingly worth more than Bukayo Saka and Kylian Mbappe, and alongside the likes of Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Junior, an astounding €250m (£215m) figure has been placed on his head. Realistically, few could argue with it.
Given the goalscoring woes suffered on Merseyside in recent years, as their failure to find a natural heir to Lukaku has haunted them for so long, at last they seem to be in a good place, with Beto and Calvert-Lewin feeding off one another and pushing each other to reach new heights. Then, should one be struck down, a more than capable alternative is waiting to take the opportunity presented.
However, there is likely no striker that will come close to Haaland in this generation, and as such it will be a mistake that the Toffees are forever made to rue.
What's worse is that this is only the beginning. There is no limit to the heights he can reach and the records he will inevitably break. A true freak of nature, but deemed £5m too expensive by Everton.
