Everton's failure to sign Beto replacement for bargain £13m comes back to haunt them
Everton's summer interest in Feyenoord striker Ayase Ueda ultimately failed to ever materialise into a real offer.
The 28-year-old instead completed a move to Ligue 1 club Lille in the final days of the transfer window, in an impressively cheap deal worth just £13million.
The Toffees sold Beto to Fiorentina for about £14.5m, but failed to replace him after a deadline day saga involving Folarin Balogun concluded with the striker returning to Monaco.
Ueda scored 26 goals across all competitions for Feyenoord last season and netted twice at the World Cup for Japan, seemingly attracting big interest from the Premier League.
Not only Everton, but the likes of Leeds United were also strongly linked, and even a newly-promoted side would have been capable of a £13m price point.
The decision not to sign him now looks to have spectacularly blown up in their faces, with Ueda on fire this season so far.
Ayase Ueda continues stunning form
It can only be imagined that Everton passed up on the option to sign Ueda over concerns about his adaptation to the Premier League.
The striker is in his prime, and it was unclear how he would handle to jump from the Eredivisie to the physical nature of England's top flight.
There was no guarantee he would get a move at all, but the Japan international scored three consecutive goals in his final games for Feyenoord and Lille eventually took the £13m chance on him.
Ueda has rewarded that faith massively, scoring three goals in his first four games for his new team.
Thursday saw him take that form into international duty, too, scoring off the bench for Japan as they beat Uruguay 3-1 in Rifu.
Ueda may well have struggled at Everton, but with every passing week, it becomes more and more baffling that, at just £13m, he was not worth the chance.
Former teammate: Ueda wanted move to the Premier League
Tsuyoshi Watanabe, Japan international and Feyenoord centre-back, revealed after the transfer window had closed that Ueda favoured a move to the Premier League.
"I heard that Ueda wanted to transfer. Although I secretly hoped he would stay, I also felt it was time for Ueda to take the next step," he said.
The 29-year-old explained that the striker's move to Lille was finalised before his final match for the Dutch side, a 2-2 draw with ADO Den Haag - Ueda scored.
"It's a shame to see him go, of course. But Lille is close by, and I had anticipated he would leave early in the season," Watanabe added. "Ueda was the top scorer last season and scored at the World Cup - his achievements are perfect.
"Ideally, a move to the Premier League should have been completed sooner. But there were no concrete offers, and although I hoped he would stay, I also wanted him to take the next step. So I was relieved to hear his transfer had gone through successfully."