Everton’s transfer business over the past decade has not left much to be admired, and Marco Silva’s approved sale of Ademola Lookman looks to be one such deal that plagues the side at present, with the player flourishing and the Toffees crying for someone of his build.
Having signed for the Merseyside outfit as a 19-year-old for £11m from League One outfit Charlton Athletic in 2017, an impressive figure for a third-division side, there was a lot of hype gravitating toward the talented teen.
He failed to live up to such expectations, despite an excellent brief loan stint in Germany with RB Leipzig, registering five goals and four assists in 11 Bundesliga appearances, and was sold to Leicester City after scoring just four goals in 48 outings for Everton.
However, the Everton hierarchy will now be kicking themselves in the teeth after watching the Nigeria international flourish in the Italian Serie A for Atalanta, who signed him for around £12.5m this summer.
He has since notched six goals and three assists across 14 fixtures as his side challenge for an eventual spot in the top-four, clinching Champions League qualification.
As per FBref, the ace ranks within the top 8% for non-penalty goals per 90, and is within the top 15% for touches in the attacking penalty area and progressive passes, when compared to positional peers across Europe’s big five leagues.
He is also averaging 1.6 shots per game, an improvement on any of Everton’s wide options, whilst also doubling any goal tally the Toffee’s wingers can boast.
To ice the cake, he has created four big chances this term and holds a 79% passing accuracy.
The £8.7m-rated star was hailed as having a “big future” by then-manager Ronald Koeman at the time of his arrival on Merseyside, and whilst he failed to live up that expectation initially, he is now starting to bear the fruit that will lead to a successful career on the European stage.
Furthermore, Lookman is the exact model that Lampard is craving; a direct, pacy, slick winger to bypass the defence from both the inside and the overlap, and he would certainly bolster the somewhat toothless Toffees attack.
And whilst he failed to impress during his spell in England’s North West, he can hardly be blamed, having never been offered a regular platform to exhibit his qualities in a languishing team struggling for stability.
It remains unlikely that he will play in Everton blue once again, and the board should learn from their mistakes and invest more trust in promising talents in the future, with Lookman blossoming into his own and certainly a player that could aid Everton’s travails this term.