Everton must sell Andre Gomes in the summer
A big summer transfer window waits for Everton irrespective of where they finish at the end of the season.
After a disappointing campaign, the Toffees are highly unlikely to keep hold of their star players – Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
Players who are in the last year of their contract are likely to leave for free. Likewise, Lampard could look to sell some of the fringe players to free up space for new additions.
One of the players who should be sold in the summer is Andre Gomes.
At 28, the Portuguese international should be playing at the peak of his career. Instead, he finds himself dropping down the pecking order at the club, managing only five Premier League starts thus far.
On February 19, as the Toffees lost 2-0 at Southampton, ex-England and Nottingham Forest defender Garry Birtles severely criticised Gomes for giving away a “ridiculous” free-kick [Premier League World Feed].
He is just a shadow of the player who once promised to rule the world when he was at Valencia.
Known for his playmaking abilities, and dynamism in the middle, he was supposed to be the midfield lynchpin at Barcelona, where he horribly failed.
Everton took a gamble on him. Apart from the 2018-19 loan campaign, he has cut a sorrowful figure, and that excludes his horrifying injury. He never rediscovered his form after that ankle injury.
Consistency has been a big demon for him. This season, he has looked completely bereft of confidence. Even the effort is lacking from him.
In such a scenario, it’s hard to build a team for the future involving a player who probably will never replicate the form that he showed six or seven years back.
He is a player on the decline. Unfortunately, for the Toffees, his sharp decline is just painful to watch.
Since the turn of the year, one will scratch their head to remember any notable performance from him, let alone a stellar one. Nada. Zilch.
If Everton manage to avoid the drop, Lampard will be looking to sculpt the squad to his own taste. Gomes has a contract till 2024, and the club should look to recoup some money by offloading him in the summer.
In other Everton news, Richard Keys has dropped a Sam Allardyce-to-Burnley shout and discussed Everton’s relegation chances.
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