Could strained relations between Everton and Watford hurt Toffees’ Richarlison pursuit?

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Everton are reportedly hoping to land Watford forward Richarlison, but the two Premier League sides seem to have a frosty relationship.

When football fans discuss Premier League signings of the season so far or the biggest surprises of the campaign, it seems highly likely that Watford forward Richarlison will get a mention given the start to life he has enjoyed at Vicarage Road.

The Brazilian has scored five goals and contributed three assists in the Premier League, and already appears to be an absolutely vital part of how the Hornets play – so it is no surprise that he is already attracting attention from some of their top flight rivals.

The Gambling Times recently reported that Everton are keen to bring the £11 million 20-year-old to Goodison Park, but are not the only team seriously keen on the forward.

So perhaps the last thing the Toffees needed was for Richarlison to play for a club whose relations with Everton have seemingly become strained in recent weeks.

Marco Silva was heavily linked with the manager’s job on Merseyside following Ronald Koeman’s departure, and The Independent reported during their pursuit of the Portuguese that the Hornets were left angered by Everton’s approaches of Silva, who was keen to talk to the Toffees but refused to resign and would not leave without Watford’s blessing.

Watford may already be hesitant to sell Richarlison to Everton given that he has established himself as one of their best players already, and of course, selling him to the Toffees would see a top flight rival strengthen their own squad.

But perhaps the way that Everton’s pursuit of Silva played out will make the Watford hierarchy even more determined to ensure that even if they are resigned to losing Richarlison at some stage in the future, Goodison Park will not be his destination.