The key qualities Maxwel Cornet can bring to Everton to help fill Richarlison void

With a few weeks until they kick off their season against Chelsea, Everton look to be making moves once more in the transfer market.

So far, the only arrival has been a free one, with James Tarkowski being confirmed as a new Blues star at the beginning of the month after his departure from Burnley upon the expiry of his contract. And, recent reports have suggested that one of his former Clarets teammates could be about to join him at Goodison Park.

The Athletic earlier in the week initially reported that Everton were interested in signing Maxwel Cornet after his side's relegation to the Championship. It has been suggested there is a release clause in the player's deal in that eventuality, meaning he could secure a return to the Premier League sooner rather than later.

It's no secret that Frank Lampard and Kevin Thelwell would certainly be interested in improving the creativity and goal threat of their side, especially now that Richarlison has left the club to join Tottenham Hotspur in a big-money deal. He's regularly been one of the squad's top scorers in recent campaigns, and his influence will need to be replaced as efficiently as possible.

And, looking at the numbers from last season, you can clearly see why Cornet might be someone to fit into that mould.

Firstly, in terms of the most simple metric of "goals", the 25-year-old managed to bag nine in 26 Premier League games in 2021/22. Richarlison claimed ten - while Anthony Gordon, Demarai Gray and Andros Townsend combined to find the back of the net 12 times between them.

But the underlying numbers behind that impressive figure in front of goal, when you consider he was playing in a struggling Burnley side, are also worth making note of. His goals-per-90 minutes