Why Everton should make Andre Gomes’ deal a permanent one
Everton have made a tremendous start to life under new manager Marco Silva. They are now sixth in the Premier League table, having won six of the 13 games played. Furthermore, the pleasing thing for the Toffees is that they are not conceding easy goals, which was a theme in the past couple of seasons.
The midfield looks strong on and off the ball, thanks to the pivot of Idrissa Gueye and Andre Gomes, the latter of whom is on loan from Barcelona for this campaign. To round it off, Gylfi Sigurdsson and Richarlison are doing a great job in scoring vital goals, however, the club still needs a genuine goal-scoring striker.
But for now, let’s switch our attention to the midfield, where Gomes is doing more than just a decent job. The Portuguese started playing games a bit later in the season due to injuries, yet he is making quite a mark in the most important position on the field.
He is developing a healthy partnership with Gueye, which is helping the team to be solid, reliable and secure in the middle third. The 25-year-old is showing a range of attributes he has in his locker, something which Barcelona must have seen before signing him in 2016.
Predominantly, he is a ball-playing central midfielder who can pass the ball with great effect, can dribble past opponents in tight areas and have a pop at goal whenever there is an opportunity in and around the box.
His height (188cm) allows him to be a genuine threat in both boxes, and win aerial duels in front of the centre-backs when the opposition play the long balls.
Looking at some of his stats of this season, Gomes has passed the ball at a success rate of 87.4%, and has dribbled past opponents on an average of 1.8 per game. His aerial prowess means he wins headers at a rate of 1.8 per match, and he has the same rate when it comes to tackling as well.
It is fair to say that the 25-year-old has been fantastic for Everton in the five league games he featured so far. There is no reason why the Toffees shouldn’t make him stay beyond this season. In fact, they must do everything to keep the Portuguese at Goodison Park.
From the player’s viewpoint, going back to Barcelona after this season won’t really work as the Catalans already have the likes of Phillipe Coutinho, Arthur, Arturo Vidal and Ivan Rakitic competing for the central midfield positions.
Stats Courtesy – Whoscored.com