Sunday 23 September 2018 11:21, UK
Richarlison - who returns for Everton in their Super Sunday clash at Arsenal - has already made people forget about his price tag with his early displays for the club, according to Marco Silva.
It is fair to say eyebrows were raised when the Everton boss spent an initial £40m - a fee that may rise to £50m - to lure Richarlison from Watford in July, the Portuguese's first signing after taking over at Goodison Park.
Silva was, of course, the man who first introduced the forward to English football after bringing the youngster to Vicarage Road from Fluminense in the summer of 2017.
However, after scoring five goals in his first 12 Premier League matches for Watford last season, Richarlison found things tougher after that good start and went without a goal from November onwards.
Silva, though, had no doubts about splashing out such a hefty fee on a relatively-unknown 21-year-old, having extensively scouted the player during his time in Brazil.
"I saw him and analysed him," Silva told Sky Sports. "Of course, when you sign one Brazilian player to come to the Premier League, sometimes you have doubts about adaptation.
"But Richarlison is a little bit different from the normal Brazilian player. He is a more physical player, he is not just good with the ball.
"For him, it is not important the impact and if the defenders are strong or not. And he is a good footballer for his profile as a player.
"When I did what I did to sign him last season, he is one player I analysed a lot in Brazil. When he was a young boy, he played there.
"We took him to the Premier League last season, he joined us at our club, we did everything we could to sign him.
"The market, of course, is really difficult because now you see you have to spend £60-70m to take a goalkeeper, which means the market is really difficult and sometimes looks crazy.
"It is really difficult here in the Premier League if you want to buy a player from another Premier League club, it is really difficult to achieve that."
Richarlison, however, has already begun to repay his employers after scoring twice on his competitive debut in Everton's 2-2 draw at Wolves on the opening day of the season, before netting again in the 2-1 home win over Southampton the following weekend.
"I think Richarlison has put his price off his back, plays football, works really hard every day to play at this level and to impress his coach and team-mates as well as it is important for him," said Silva.
One blip, though, was Richarlison's needless sending off in Everton's 2-2 draw at Bournemouth in August when the Brazilian headbutted Adam Smith in an off-the-ball incident.
The Toffees did not win either of the two league games their new star missed due to suspension, although he does return from that three-match ban in their Super Sunday clash at Arsenal.
Richarlison has put his price off his back
Silva believes Richarlison has now learned his lesson after that moment of madness and will arrive at the Emirates boosted by his first senior call-up for Brazil, even more so after scoring twice for his country against El Salvador.
"He is doing well," Silva said. "Of course the game against Bournemouth was not the best for him. He has reacted well and it is important that he made his debut for the national team as well.
"Now he is able to play again to help our squad."
Watch the full interview with Richarlison ahead of Everton's game at Arsenal from 3.30pm on Sunday on Sky Sports Premier League
