Former Everton midfielder Leon Osman has raved about summer signing Bernard as he backed the Brazilian to fill the void left by Steven Pienaar in attack.
The diminutive winger has caught the eye with some exciting performances of late after his free transfer from Shakhtar Donetsk in the summer, registering two assists in his last three appearances.
Osman has now highlighted Bernard’s displays as a huge positive for the Toffees in recent weeks, and claimed he has been the player the club have been missing since Pienaar left.
Speaking to the Mirror, Osman said: “Since Steven left, we have lacked that type of creative player, with guile, trickery and that ability to play off the left, finding space in little pockets.
“We tried a couple of No. 10s out there, wingers, even central midfielders and strikers, but couldn’t find that balance. People maybe didn’t know what to expect when Everton signed Bernard, but five minutes into his debut, you could see people taking a step back, thinking, we might have another little cracker here.”
OPINION
Osman is obviously excited by Bernard’s performances in recent weeks for Everton, and it is easy to see why. The Brazilian live wire has been in scintillating form for the Toffees, and has really staked a claim for a regular starting place going forward. It was a slow start to his career on Merseyside after his free transfer in the summer, but that was always to be expected. His small frame means adapting to the Premier League was set to be a task, but it is one which he has tackled head on. The way in which he uses his pace to get past players with ease makes him a huge danger for the Toffees on the wing, and his delivery into the box has proved to be of high quality so far. The comparison to Pienaar is an obvious one, with the South African of similar stature to Bernard, but the two are slightly different players. Bernard is more of a natural winger than Pienaar was, and he is much quicker as well.