There was a point in the final hours of the summer business period when everything seemed to be falling into place. By the deadline, everything had fallen apart.
The worst situation surrounds Folarin Balogun, who was targeted to join from AS Monaco to add to Everton's goal threat. The player dramatically changed his mind on the move as the transfer deadline passed.
Now, the club must pick themselves up and hope their paper-thin squad can hold their own through to the winter.
Initially, Everton agreed a £40m fee with Monaco for USA striker Balogun. But after he failed a medical, they tried to renegotiate the deal. Rather than simply walk away, Everton kept working on it, and Monaco eventually agreed to let him move for an adjusted fee.
At the same time, the Toffees had been exploring a move for Joshua Zirkzee from Manchester United.
It was a back-up plan to Balogun that could have proven quick and easy. They knew United and Zirkzee were open to him leaving, and thought they had a loan lined up.
It was an insurance policy for the Balogun deal that made sense.
But then United pulled back. They decided it would be more beneficial to keep Zirkzee around than let him solve a problem for a rival Premier League club - especially one they face this coming weekend.
It did not seem to matter too much at the time, as the Balogun deal was back on.
A deal sheet was submitted to the Premier League - which was signed by Balogun and allowed Everton extra time to complete the transfer beyond the 23:00 deadline.
However, Balogun decided he did not want to proceed. His change of heart is intriguing, considering he has spent the entire summer angling for a transfer and has not been involved at all at Monaco this season as he has been waiting for his next landing spot to open up.
To make matters more frustrating, Everton also made an enquiry about Aston Villa's Tammy Abraham, but could not find any breakthrough on a deal. And other attacking options had already moved on.
Star attacker Iliman Ndiaye signed for Manchester City for £60m, while a deal for Richarlison that had been worked on at the end of last week was confirmed as dead. He stayed at Tottenham.
That was not the end of it as Beto left too, joining Fiorentina for a package worth around £15.4m.
Every attacking transfer decision had gone badly wrong.
There was one ray of light as Everton secured Jack Grealish on loan from Manchester City for the remainder of the season. That could prove significant as Grealish brings Premier League experience, creativity and the ability to change games.
Grealish also now brings much-needed depth, joining Tyler Dibling, Brennan Johnson, Tyrique George and Thierno Barry among Everton's front line options.
The club will get a chance to make up for their transfer problems when the window reopens in January.
But right now, Everton's squad - particularly the attack - looks worryingly thin.
Dean Jones is a transfer news and football insider for Flashscore, since 2025. He has been a journalist on leading UK newspapers and websites over the past 20 years, establishing himself as an authoritative and trusted voice in the industry.
