Everton’s stunning performance surprises every team in the English Premier League. They are now ranked 1st on the table. Richarlison is one of the contributors to this. He now scores four goals with one assist in six games, helping the team reach the top. His role under Carlos Ancelotti is quite intriguing and we’ll dissect it in this scout report.
In this tactical analysis, we shall examine Richarlison’s role under Everton’s tactics over the course of the 2020/21 season. In the analysis, we shall also introduce the concepts beneath his role.
False winger and a real finisher at half-spaces
Everton utilised a 1-4-3-3 system and on the paper, Richarlison is deployed as the right-footed left-winger. His roles, however, are not typical ones as those inverted-wingers in modern football to link the play or create final passes in the final stages. Also, he doesn’t occupy the sideline to create width to release crosses in the final stages. Instead, in the final stage, he will be deployed as a finisher/striker on the left half-space, as implied from the heat map:
When the play comes into the final stages, he will initially position himself at the shoulder of the defensive line. Then, he will recognise the cue for releasing the final pass and run in behind the defensive line, serving as a direct final pass option. As he latches onto the pass, he will have the chance to directly finish and score. In this case, therefore, the front line of Everton will encompass two strikers: Richarlison and Dominic Calvert- Lewin. Thus, Richarlison is a false winger and an actual striker on the left half-space along with Calvert-Lewin. This can be supported by the average position map against West Ham United:
