Everton's Bold Move for Free Agent 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 former England striker arriving at Goodison Park.

The club’s situation up front is stark. After selling Beto on deadline day and failing to land Folarin Balogun, the Toffees are left with just one senior centre-forward on the books. It is a gamble that could define their season.

With the window shut, David Moyes has only one realistic route to bolster his attack before January: the free agent market. That search has led Everton towards a familiar name.

Vardy, 39, is available after leaving Cremonese at the end of the 2025-26 campaign. Since his release, he has been linked with several clubs and is understood to have turned down an approach from Wrexham. Now, the prospect of a dramatic Premier League return has been thrown into the mix.

Everton fans, far from dismissing the idea, have largely embraced it on social media, with many on X arguing that context matters more than age. Given the current state of the squad, they see Vardy as an opportunistic fix rather than a romantic punt.

A thin line up front

Everton’s reliance on one senior striker, Barry, is a glaring risk. An injury, a suspension, or even a simple dip in form could drag the club into serious trouble and cost vital points in a league where margins are thin.

That is why a short-term signing makes sense. A veteran who can step in, carry some of the burden, and offer a different option off the bench could prove invaluable between now and the winter window.

When The Sun first reported that Everton were considering Vardy, it would have been easy to imagine a backlash. A 39-year-old without a pre-season, long removed from his explosive peak at Leicester City, is not the obvious answer to a relegation fight.

Yet the mood has been anything but hostile. Supporters have largely argued that the current circumstances demand pragmatism. Vardy on a free, for a few crucial months, feels to many like a risk worth taking.

Can Vardy still deliver?

The question is simple: can he still do it at this level?

The evidence from last season suggests he is not finished yet. Vardy scored seven goals in Serie A for Cremonese and was named the division’s Player of the Month in November. He no longer presses with the same ferocity, no longer burns defenders over 90 minutes, but he still finds space and still finishes.

No one at Everton would expect the Leicester legend to replicate his title-winning heroics or hit double figures in half a season. He would be judged on moments, not volume. A handful of goals. A late winner here, a crucial equaliser there. That might be all Moyes needs to drag the club through to January and buy time for a more permanent solution.

For now, it is only a consideration, not a done deal. Everton have yet to make an official move, and Vardy’s next step remains undecided.

But the fact the club are seriously weighing up a 39-year-old free agent underlines the scale of their striker crisis. The next few weeks will show whether Everton are prepared to roll the dice on one of the Premier League’s great late bloomers one more time.