Everton are now ahead of the game in the race for Ayase Ueda
The club are preparing an offer in the region of £18m–£20m
Feyenoord want closer to €30m–€35m – and they are in no rush
We have been tracking Everton’s interest in Ayase Ueda since late April, when his name first surfaced as a target. Then it went quiet. Now it’s back.
According to SportsBoom, Everton have moved from admirers to pursuers. The figures doing the rounds this week are £18m–£20m from Everton’s end, and €30m–€35m from Feyenoord’s. That is a gap of somewhere between £6m and £10m, depending on where the exchange rate sits on the day someone blinks. Not enormous. But not nothing. And in light of yesterday’s news…
Brighton and Leeds are also circling, which is worth keeping in mind. Everton are described as the most concrete candidate in the race, but concrete is not the same as done, and both clubs would fancy their chances if this drags into July.
Why Moyes still needs a striker
The reason Moyes wants a striker is not a mystery. Thierno Barry was signed last summer for £27m to fill the hole left by Dominic Calvert-Lewin, and in fairness, he settled better as the season went on. Beto, too, chipped in.
Between them, they managed a decent enough haul. But neither looked like someone you would build your attack around going into a season in which Everton genuinely have European ambitions. That matters. A striker who scores 25 league goals for Feyenoord is a very different proposition.
Which brings us to Ueda. The numbers this season are hard to argue with – Eredivisie top scorer, a goal every 90 minutes, 31 starts from 31 games. He is the man Feyenoord built their attack around, and Robin van Persie clearly thinks the world of him.
“With Ayase, that isn’t an extra challenge either, because he has such a good mindset and a great growth mindset. He wants to get better every day.” — Robin van Persie, October 2025.
Feyenoord signed him in 2023 for around €8m when he was still trying to get out of Santiago Gimenez’s shadow. Three years on, they know exactly what they have – and they are pricing him accordingly.
The questions Everton need to answer
That said, there are a couple of things worth noting before getting too carried away.
One is the Eredivisie context. Twenty-five goals in the Dutch top flight is impressive, and Ueda’s underlying numbers are strong. But there is a reasonable point that Everton’s strikers currently average barely over one shot per game – Ueda takes more than three.
Whether that reflects how Everton play or how good Ueda is at creating his own chances probably matters quite a lot to how this could work going forward.
The other is the World Cup. Ueda will play for Japan this month. A strong tournament pushes his price up and his availability back. Neither is ideal for a club that wants someone settled before pre-season ends.
So the situation is this: Everton have identified their man, know what they want to pay, and know Feyenoord will not settle for that without a fight. Feyenoord are in no rush – they qualified for the Champions League again, Ueda is under contract until 2028, and they have plenty of leverage.
Whether this gets done probably comes down to how badly Moyes wants Ueda specifically, and whether Feyenoord decide the money on offer is better than the uncertainty of holding firm.
Gary is editor for ReadMotorsport, ReadNorwich, and ReadEverton. He has many years experience of sports writing behind him after deciding (belatedly) that the world of accountancy wasn't for him. His work has been featured on (among many others) BBC Sport and The Metro. He has written on many sports, but considers himself an expert in football and F1. When not writing and editing he likes to go to the cinema and sip a lovely cold pint of Guinness (not always at the same time).
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