Everton have reportedly turned down an incredible £85million bid from Barcelona for Richarlison. The La Liga giants made a huge offer for the Brazil striker as part of their bid to replace the injured Luis Suarez. The bid was immediately rejected, with the Toffees unwilling to sell one of their best players.
Richarlison joined Everton in 2018 from Watford in a mega deal which eventually amounted to £50m, which surprised many at the time. Despite the occasional dry patch, he has 21 goals in 57 Premier League appearances for the Toffees, eight of which have come this season.
Everton are unwilling to weaken their current squad having made subtle improvements under manager Carlo Ancelotti. The Toffees have spent big in recent years in order to push for the European spots but currently sit 12th. Richarlison was brought by Marco Silva but following a dreadful start to the campaign, saw him sacked and replaced by Duncan Ferguson followed by Carlo Ancelloti.
Everton boss Carlo Ancelotti has stressed the importance of man-management for a modern boss and sympathizes with the frustrations fringe players feel when they are overlooked.
Carli Ancelloti said ” Man-management has changed a lot. It has become more difficult because when I started training I had only 16 players. Now I have 25 players and most of them want to play in the games. You have to manage this because you need to keep the players motivated. The players who are not going to play influence the intensity of the training, they have to be motivated all the time if they don’t play. I understand that sometimes I have to be patient with them. Sometimes at past clubs their behaviour was not so good, not so professional, but I have to understand the fact that if the player does not play it is frustrating for him. I have to pay attention to this.”
Carlo Ancelotti has been lauded for the quality of his man-management throughout his coaching career, with the experienced Italian able to manage big egos and characters.
Everton have been handed a welcome boost with the news that Portuguese midfielder Andre Gomes has rejoined first-team training for the first time since the frightening fracture and dislocation of his right ankle suffered in November.
Everton club said “The former Benfica and Valencia star was able to complement his individual programme by working alongside his Blues team-mates for small sections of today’s first-team session”
It is the first time Gomes has trained under Carlo Ancelotti, who was appointed manager last month.
