October 5, 2024

Everton: Wilfried Gnonto could repeat Tarkowski masterclass

The Toffees could be set to repeat their masterclass from the summer prior…

Everton had to sell to buy last summer, with the heartbreaking departure of Richarlison funding the bulk of their transfer incomings.

With Anthony Gordon having left in January, and Amadou Onana now the most likely to be their next big sale, it seems that once again the Toffees will operate on a shoestring budget as they desperately seek to retain their Premier League status.

Fortunately for them, manager Sean Dyche is well-versed in such an environment, given how Burnley often recruited from lesser-known divisions or the Championship during their top-flight stint.

Everton had to sell to buy last summer, with the heartbreaking departure of Richarlison funding the bulk of their transfer incomings.

With Anthony Gordon having left in January, and Amadou Onana now the most likely to be their next big sale, it seems that once again the Toffees will operate on a shoestring budget as they desperately seek to retain their Premier League status.

Fortunately for them, manager Sean Dyche is well-versed in such an environment, given how Burnley often recruited from lesser-known divisions or the Championship during their top-flight stint.

However, few could have predicted he would be so influential in their survival, proving a true defensive warrior in a back line that had seemed fragile the year before his arrival.

Their goals conceded dropped from 66 during the 2021/22 campaign to 57 most recently, with the 30-year-old a large part of that.

After all, he was the only outfield player in the entire division to play every minute of every game, somehow maintaining an outstanding 7.20 average rating throughout too.

This was a figure boosted largely through his petrifying presence at the back, and recording 5.2 clearances per game as well as making the most blocks in the league by some distance, he remained a solid constant amidst all the uncertainty.

Should Gnonto have half as big an impact through joining, he would certainly be considered an instant success.

Whilst wildly different assets, the Italy international could provide some attacking flair that Dyche’s team have admittedly been missing. They were the second-lowest scorers last term as they narrowly avoided the drop.

Not to mention that his tally of eight goal contributions in his first senior year in England is more than admirable, and certain to be boosted with added experience at this level.

Such fine form at one point during the campaign even spurred pundit Tam McManus to wax lyrical about him, branding the teenager a “pocket rocket”. Despite his 5 foot 5 frame, he boasts an explosivity and dynamism that Dwight McNeil lacks, and Demarai Gray has only shown in flashes.

Seeing as the latter seems set to depart this summer too, Gnonto could represent the perfect replacement who could once again prove a coup from a relegated club.

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