According to Liverpool Echo, Kevin Mirallas, who is currently on loan at Serie A club Fiorentina, has made it clear that he doesn’t want to return to Everton.
The 31-year-old Belgian wants to ply his trade in the Serie A and hopes to convince Fiorentina to make the deal permanent by the end of the season. (h/t Liverpool Echo)
Mirallas started his career at Lille in the Ligue 1 and had a brief stint at Saint Etienne but it was his prolific goalscoring form at Olympiacos that caught the eye of Everton. He moved to Goodison Park back in 2012 and has made a total of 186 appearances for the Toffees across all competitions, finding the back of the net on 38 occasions.
He was an instant hit when he moved to the Premier League and regularly contributed with goals and assists. He was one of the first names on the teamsheet in his earlier days at the club but a rather barren spell in the 2016/17 season, followed by another disappointing start to the 2017/18 campaign, saw him getting loaned out to his former club Olympiacos. He discovered his lost form to some extent but the Greek outfit did not have the option to buy him.
However, Fiorentina do have the option to buy him when the loan deal expires at the end of the season. But the Belgian will have to make an impact to convince them to do so. So far he has made only 4 appearances and he will have to put in some consistent performances to catch the eye.
To be honest, new manager Marco Silva did the right thing by sending him out on loan at the beginning of the campaign. The Toffees bagged big scalps in the transfer window by signing Richarlison and Bernard and quite clearly, Mirallas was surplus to the club’s requirements.
Everton have made a lacklustre start to their Premier League season and the Toffees currently sit 11th in the standings with 3 wins and 3 draws from their first 8 games. The stats might not be overwhelming but they have shown a lot of promise, particularly in the final third. They are not short of goals either, having already scored 13 so far.
After a mediocre start, the Toffees finally seem to have gained some momentum with back-to-back wins over Fulham and Leicester City before the international break. With their newly found form, the fans should have every reason to expect better things from an immensely talented unit.
Richarlison has been the standout performer so far and the Brazilian has justified his huge price tag so far. He has been a key figure in the final third for Everton and was very influential when backed by Silva to spearhead the attack against Leicester City.
Bernard, on the other hand, has been a bit short of playtime but he was shown his ability to make things happen in the limited time that he has been given. Theo Walcott is another player who has done really well this season for the Toffees.
To put things into perspective, Everton can definitely do without the services of Kevin Mirallas. At 31, he might have a fair bit of football left in him but given his current form, he would find it difficult to break into the first-team.
That said, Everton should not hesitate to offload him permanently if Fiorentina does come up with an offer next summer.