Everton tried to sign Luis Diaz before he joined Premier League rivals Liverpool because they were planning for life without Richarlison at Goodison Park, as reported by The Athletic.
If your girlfriend threatens to dump you and spends the evening packing her bags, then you’re probably within your rights to consider setting up a new Tinder profile, right?
So when Richarlison indicated in the summer of 2020 that he planned to spend just one more season at Goodison Park, it was only sensible that Everton would start scouring the market for potential replacements.
“If a good offer were to come in, we sit down and talk, that’s part of football,” said the Brazil international, considering his options after another season of underachievement on the blue side of the city (Daily Star).
“(Manager Carlo Ancelotti) is bringing in new players, so we’ll sit down and talk. But I think I can hold on for another season.”
How long will Richarlison stay at Everton?
With Everton and Richarlison seemingly heading for an amicable divorce, Luis Diaz felt like the new flame. As far as rebounds go, the Toffees certainly could have done a lot worse.
According to The Athletic, Everton identified Diaz as a ‘contingency plan’ if Richarlison departed. The Colombia international, they felt, could step into the void created by his fellow South American on the left-hand side.
Richarlison ended up staying beyond the summer of 2021. But that is not the reason why Everton missed out on Diaz.
According to Fabrizio Romano, the Porto star was keen on a move to Goodison Park. Everton even submitted a £25 million bid. But the deal fell through when James Rodriguez, intended to go in the other direction, priced himself out of a move to Porto.
Signing of the season?
Six months later, Diaz was putting pen to paper a mile down the road at Anfield. Liverpool snatched the £37 million winger from under Tottenham’s nose.
And, if his first few weeks under Jurgen Klopp are anything to go by, Richarlison won’t even be the best South American winger on Merseyside by the end of the season.
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