Chelsea linked to £50 million transfer for Everton man

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By Martin Graham | 22nd Jun 2022

Latest reports are linking Chelsea with a £50 million move for Everton’s Brazilian forward Richarlison, who is ready to depart Goodison Park in the summer.

Richarlison is also a target for Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur and has been linked with a move to Manchester United as well. Everton have set that price for clubs who want to make the move to get their star man away with hopes that none of them choose to go ahead with the deal.

However, Chelsea are considering the deal as the prospect of losing Romelu Lukaku to Internazionale in the Serie A draws near and no replacements of repute in the transfer market. The Blues will turn to Richarlison with his Premier League experience to join their attack line ahead of what promises to be an important season as it is the first under new ownership for almost two decades.

The 25-year-old came to the Premier League from Brazil through Watford and played one full season with the Hornets. He moved to Everton where he has spent the last four years dazzling the league and turning up against the biggest opponents given Everton’s status in the league.

He followed up his 13-goal debut season for the Toffees with another 13-goal season. The season after that saw him score only seven goals as Everton began to struggle in the Premier League. By his fourth season, the 2021/22 season, the club’s struggles were a big issue and it almost saw them relegated from the league.

However, the former Watford man stepped up to the plate to lead the team to safety by scoring 10 goals. His chance creation and assists numbers also improved. After providing one assist in his first season and three in his next two seasons, Richarlison provided five in the 2021/22 season which made the threat of him real to other clubs, who had begun to take an interest in him.

This aspect of his game is where Chelsea need to improve and he could come in to shore up the team in that regard.

Other Chelsea interests

The reports also have it that the chase for Richarlison will in no way affect their move for Manchester City man Raheem Sterling. Lukaku’s exit may be the most publicised of all the potential exits to happen at the club, but it is understood that Thomas Tuchel is hoping to change a good number of his current attacking option because they have not provided enough to go on.

Their £4.2 billion takeover by Todd Boehly and his partners puts them on a path of rebuilding and they would like to take advantage of the new owner bounce to bring in as many players as they can to help the team achieve their aims next season.

The meeting for Sterling with Manchester City will still go on as planned and more reports will follow as that deal progresses.