According to the Manchester Evening News, Everton striker Richarlison had told Los Desimpedidos that he rejected offers from Barcelona and Manchester United in January.
The ace, who turned 23 in January, admitted that he ‘didn’t want to leave in the middle of the season’, Richarlison has established himself as one of the Premier League’s top attacking talents in recent years.
The MEN report that the Brazil international ‘caught the eye’ of the Red Devils, who were eyeing a striker at the mid-season point. They ultimately opted to sign Odion Ighalo on loan.
The ace has bagged 12 goals and 4 assists in 32 appearances across all competitions this season, Richarlison seems ready to test himself with a club that consistently challenge for trophies.
Here’s what Richarlison had to say on the transfer offers he received:
“There were lots of offers during the season, from Barcelona, from Manchester (United),”
“But the club opted to keep me in the group and I didn’t want to leave in the middle of the season. It’s bad to leave team-mates like this.”
On the links to Barcelona, the 23-year-old had this to say:
“Of course you feel impacted, Barcelona is one of the greatest clubs in the world, but I think happiness plays its part as well.”
Richarlison, who can also play as a wide forward, set the Premier League alight after joining Watford in the summer of 2017, this earned the ace a £50m move, as per BBC Sport, to Everton the following year.
In 101 Premier League outings, the South American talent has scored 28 times and provided 8 assists, his output is steadily improving since being deployed primarily in a central role.
With Richarlison also becoming a more important player for the Brazil national team recently, it’s not surprising to see that the ace has been linked with top sides.