Despite being in the job for just over a week, Frank Lampard has seen two new players arrive as well as having taken charge of two matches – but things don’t appear to be getting any easier, with Richarlison reportedly looking to leave Everton.
The Brazilian has been with Everton since 2018, but could finally be about to leave Goodison Park, with Dean Jones telling GiveMeSport that Lampard has a task on his hands to convince the forward to stay beyond the end of this season, with Richarlison seeing the 2021/22 season as his last at the club.
Would Everton be better without Richarlison?
Yes!
No!
But what could a Richarlison exit mean for Everton? Here are two potential consequences…
Lampard to show who’s boss?
Last summer, it appeared that Richarlison could have left when PSG were credited with an interest as they looked to be losing Kylian Mbappe, however, while a deal failed to materialise for either player, the Everton man could still have his head turned and be dreaming of a move to Paris to play alongside Lionel Messi and fellow countryman Neymar.
If that is the case, Lampard could put his foot down, show he means business at Everton and put Richarlison on the bench until he can prove that he’s committed to the football club and their fight against relegation – something which was not the case against Newcastle United in midweek, as he had zero shots on target and registered just 26 touches of the ball, which was only greater than Demarai Gray, who went off injured.
While it would be a huge call and potential blow to drop their top scorer and someone who’s netted 33 goals across all competitions since the start of the 2019/20 season, it could well bring about a renewed kind of enthusiasm in their team if someone like Alex Iwobi or Dele Alli were handed more prominent roles as they could prove to fans and the media that they’re good enough for this level.
This decision would likely have to wait until Dominic Calvert-Lewin was fully fit and firing, as to have both of them out of the starting lineup could essentially remove the majority of their goal threat.
Dele Alli to replace Richarlison?
Swapping Richarlison with Alli perhaps doesn’t make much sense initially, however, a change of formation and reverting away from a three-man defence that Lampard has used in his opening two games could allow Alli to operate as a No 10 or slightly more further forward as a second-striker.
This slight tweak could be game-changing for Lampard, as Alli has very rarely been played in such an advanced role recently, and especially under Antonio Conte, he was more often than not asked to play as a central midfielder, which meant he had a lot more jobs to do defensively.
During the 2016/17 season, he played as an advanced playmaker, essentially a No 10, and that campaign saw him net 22 goals and registered 13 assists. So if Lampard has the bottle to drop someone who’s been reliable for Everton over the years and cost the club a lot of money for Alli, then the Toffees could reap the rewards of moving up the table.
In other news: Journalist excited about Lampard’s ‘clever’ Finch Farm move at Everton