Dave Prentice was happy on the Royal Blue podcast with Richarlison’s latest comments about his Everton future.
The Brazilian forward was given special exemption over the summer to go and represent his country at the Olympic Games, despite that meaning he would miss the majority of a pre-season where his future was brought into question, as moves to the likes of Paris Saint-Germain were quietly mooted.
Is Richarlison Everton's most important player?
Yes!
No!
Richarlison is Everton’s second-most expensive signing as they splashed out £35 million to Watford for him back in 2018 and with his contract set to expire in 2024, he has recently been speaking about his future and said: ‘I have great affection for the people of Everton and for the club, who received me so well from the first day I arrived’, showing he is not agitating for a move away in the present.
Prentice was happy to read what Richarlison had to say about Everton and his future.
“That sounds pretty enthusiastic, and the fact that he loves Finch Farm, the fact that he loves Goodison Park, I think people sometimes just sort of put two and two together where Richarlison is concerned and see his demeanour.
“Because he’s not the most exuberant personality, he’s always quite a serious individual, you could argue a little bit petulant sometimes.
“He always looks like he’s got the weight of the world on his shoulders, but that’s out on a football pitch where he’s doing the serious business of playing football.”
TIF Thoughts on Richarlison…
Richarlison is an incredibly important player for the Toffees as he’s never failed to register double figures in terms of goals and assists combined in the Premier League since moving to Goodison Park, and his partnership with Dominic Calvert-Lewin is something his teammate has talked up himself.
There was some late tension on Merseyside near the end of the summer transfer window when it appeared that Kylian Mbappe may have been heading to Real Madrid and that PSG were interested in bringing Richarlison to Paris as his replacement.
While nothing ever materialised, it’s not the first time that a big club has been interested in Richarlison as Barcelona were linked with him back in January 2020, so further interest in the Brazilian may not be a surprise.
In other news: ‘I’m a bit worried’ – Buckland fears ‘second season syndrome’ with Everton ace