Everton's attempt to sign United States striker Folarin Balogun from AS Monaco collapsed in the early hours of September 2 after medical concerns emerged during the deadline day transfer process [1, 2, 3]. The 25-year-old forward, valued at around £40 million by Monaco, was set to move to Everton following an agreement reached on August 31 [4, 5, 6].
Balogun previously rose through Arsenal's youth ranks after moving from New York to London as a child and joined Monaco in 2023 for £35 million. While at Monaco, he scored 31 goals in 91 appearances, including 13 goals in 30 Ligue 1 matches last season, and played in the Champions League [7, 4, 5, 8, 6]. He also featured prominently for the US national team at the 2026 World Cup, scoring three goals and drawing attention when his red-card suspension was overturned after lobbying that included US President Donald Trump [7, 5, 8].
Everton sought to conclude the transfer before the September 1 deadline but ran into problems after Balogun’s medical examination raised concerns about his fitness and future durability, prompting renegotiations including a payment structure with more add-ons and a smaller upfront sum [1, 9, 8, 2]. However, Balogun ultimately decided not to sign, citing discomfort with how Everton's medical department handled the situation. "I'm not feeling well because Everton's medical department raised doubts about my future or my health. I have nothing [no fitness or health issues], so I'm not comfortable signing a long contract here," Balogun said [3].
Monaco's sporting director Thiago Scuro confirmed that Balogun was "not comfortable" signing for Everton due to how medical concerns were raised, adding that for Monaco’s medical staff "everything was going pretty well until Everton raised questions... which made no sense at all" [3]. After the deal fell apart, Balogun left Everton’s Finch Farm training ground without signing [1, 2].
Everton manager David Moyes was left without reinforcements in attack as the club failed to secure alternative forwards during deadline day. Loan bids for Manchester United's Joshua Zirkzee and Aston Villa's Tammy Abraham both failed [1, 9, 2]. Meanwhile, Everton raised about £90 million in sales by transferring forwards Beto to Fiorentina for £15.5 million and Iliman Ndiaye to Manchester City for £60 million plus add-ons on the same day [1, 10, 2].
To bolster the squad, Everton signed right-back Ainsley Maitland-Niles from Lyon for around £4.2 million on September 2 [10]. Jack Grealish also rejoined Everton on loan from Manchester City for the season and could make his second Everton debut against Manchester United on September 3 [10].
Forward Richarlison remains linked with a return to Everton but has expressed frustration over his transfer situation at Tottenham, stating he wants control over his future decisions [7, 4, 5].
