Frank Lampard has discussed the importance of Everton's transfer plan following the exit of Richarlison, and admitted it was a shame to lose the Brazilian.
The forward brought a four-year spell at Goodison Park to an end earlier in the transfer window as he confirmed a big-money move to Tottenham Hotspur. The Blues have not yet oved in the market to replace the outgoing star despite links to numerous players, with the only arrival of the summer so far being James Tarkowski on a free.
However, the manager is fully aware of the task at hand facing him, and believes it is his job to address an "imbalance" in the squad before the 2022/23 campaign gets underway. Speaking to the Sound Of The Loons podcast, Lampard addressed why Richarlison left with the best wishes of everyone at Everton, and the crucial nature of what comes next.
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He remarked: "Firstly on Richy, it was a real pleasure to manage him for four months. He was such a wholehearted player and a quality player.
"A quiet lad, not a huge communicator - that's just how he was. But when he played for Everton, and I think that's why the fans had such a link to him, he showed it and wore it on his sleeve - he'd give everything for you.
"So it's a shame to lose him in that sense, but the reality was that Richy wanted to play in the Champions League, he made that pretty clear. The opportunity came for him to do that, so at that point I think it was a situation that certainly he was pushing for, and I think everyone at Everton kind of shakes his hand wishes him well for the way he's performed here.
"He even came back to the training ground at the start of our pre-season to say goodbye to everyone and he had a real emotion in his face, tears basically, to leave the club. But the club moves on and now it's important that not only do we replace Richy in some form in attacking areas of the pitch, which we're certainly looking to do, but also look at other areas of the team that we need to strengthen.
"Maybe that will help us in the future, that now we look and say - ok, is the squad slightly imbalanced? Yes, for sure, in terms. And it's my job to see that and make that right.
"So we wish Richy well at Tottenham because he was such a good lad. But now it's important we get our moves right."
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