Everton saw numerous players leaving or coming to Goodison Park during the summer transfer window.
One player who joined the Merseyside club during this period and who will have been very familiar with Toffees fans is Idrissa Gueye.
After spending just short of three years at the club between 2016 and 2019, the midfielder returned to Everton towards the end of the recent transfer window on a two-year deal from Paris Saint-Germain.
Having made his first Everton appearance of his second Goodison Park spell in the 0-0 draw against Liverpool last month, the 33-year-old has completed the full 90 minutes in each of the Toffees’ two subsequent league games against West Ham United and Southampton, both of which his team won.
This shows how little time it has taken the Senegal international, who was picking up £99k-per-week at PSG, to make himself an important figure for Frank Lampard. Indeed, Gueye now has the highest percentage of successful passes (86.6%) and the highest percentage of aerial duels won (83.3%) of any player at Goodison Park.
His overall performances have earned the midfield powerhouse a solid season rating of 6.98/10 from WhoScored, making him the second-highest rated outfield player in the Everton squad.
Gueye’s performance against West Ham in particular was described as “tremendous” by journalist Peter Guy, which shows just how quickly he has managed to get back into the rhythm of the Premier League.
Speaking after the Senegal star’s substitute appearance against Liverpool last month, Lampard shared his praise for the player by saying: “Idrissa Gana Gueye immediately displayed the experience and quality he will give us in his substitute appearance. He’s fitted in like he’s never been away and will be a big player for us.”
This all shows how great a bit of business it was from the club to bring the 33-year-old back to Goodison Park after his spell in Paris, and why director of football Kevin Thelwell should be patting himself on the back for making it happen.
