Persistent Niasse returns from the shadows to shed some light on Everton's woes

With 35 minutes left and his Everton side trailing 1-0 at Goodison Park to Bournemouth in a thoroughly turgid display by his side, Ronald Koeman turned to his bench and threw on Oumar Niasse for the bloodied Wayne Rooney as the home side chased a game that had been threatening to get out of their hands before they even got a chance to respond. Ordinarily a manager calling on a £13.5m striker in his search for a goal and perhaps a first league win in five games wouldn’t cause any raised eyebrows but this was no ordinary situation. As Niasse made his way onto the pitch it was his first Premier League appearance for Everton since playing for an hour against Leicester on May 7 2016, a day more fondly remembered for the Foxes coronation party.

Niasse scored twice as Everton came from behind to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, making it his third goal in four days after his late strike rounded off the 3-0 win in the Carabao Cup against Sunderland. Naturally he won the Man of the Match award for his contribution against Bournemouth wearing an Everton tracksuit. Again, nothing out of the blue here until you read a remarkable report in the Guardian: Niasse was wearing a tracksuit because he had been frozen out by Koeman to the extent he was left out when the players were measured for their club suits during pre-season. Unsurprisingly a new one has been ordered for the striker in time for Burnley’s visit on Sunday.

It’s testament to Niasse’s mental strength, perseverance and continuous hard work that he remains an Everton player despite Koeman’s best efforts to the contrary. Koeman matter-of-factly told Niasse he was not in his plans after just one pre-season appearance that lasted a total of 45 minutes at the start of last season. The striker was taken aback as to how a new manager could decide his fate based on little evidence but that was only the start. He was stripped of his squad number, ordered to train with the U-23s where he didn’t even have a locker to put his stuff; it was the complete humiliation. Yet Niasse’s troubles at Everton pre-date Koeman’s arrival, indeed he felt out of place the moment he joined from Lokomotiv Moscow as the last significant signing of Roberto Martinez’s reign.

Niasse arrived for a £13.5m fee, then Everton’s third most expensive signing behind Romelu Lukaku and Marouane Fellaini, but was dogged with headaches right from the start. First there was a delay with his work permit and then after overcoming bureaucratic issues that allowed him play, he was sidelined with a wrist injury. When he was finally passed fit he made his debut against Bournemouth with only nine minutes to play. Martinez who was in an ultimately futile fight to keep hold of his job could only offer Niasse a smattering of fleeting appearances and the nadir came when he replaced him for Aaron Lennon with Everton leading 2-0 against West Ham with only 14 minutes still to play. West Ham fought back to win as they exposed Everton’s soft underbelly, and for some reason, Niasse caught most of the flak.

From then on he was mostly out of the squad, and there was a feeling that Everton had perhaps been conned into signing a dud. Not exactly Ali Dia-type but it was hard to shake the notion he probably wasn’t as good as the club expected. Yet Niasse wasn’t a panic signing made in the dying embers of a transfer window as the club became increasingly desperate for his goals. Lukaku was still an Evertonian and was scoring regularly, and more importantly the club did their due diligence before signing Niasse. The Senegalese striker scored 12 goals in 21 games for Lokomotiv in his final season, with a number of English clubs including Tottenham showing an interest in him. If Jose Mourinho had not been sacked by Chelsea following a disastrous title defence, there’s a good chance Niasse could have ended up at Stamford Bridge. In total he only played 152 minutes of first team football in his debut half-season, and with Martinez losing his job afterwards, Niasse’s Everton career looked over before it even began.

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With opportunities nonexistent Niasse joined Marco Silva at Hull last January as one of a raft of loan signings made by the Portuguese in an attempt to stave off the threat of relegation. Lacking match fitness he started slowly and understandably so but on his third start he scored as Hull won 2-1 against Manchester United in the second leg of their EFL Cup semifinal. It wasn’t enough to secure a place at Wembley as United won 3-2 on aggregate but it was the start of a fruitful spell at the KCOM Stadium for the Everton outcast. He would go on to score four more times although his goals weren’t enough to save Hull from the drop. However he demonstrated his qualities and showed why Everton were keen in the first place. Blessed with pace and unbridled energy, Niasse has a dead-eyed precision for goals and makes timely runs in behind opposition defences. Perhaps not the most technically proficient especially with his back to goal or the ball at his feet but when it comes down to the timeless art of putting the ball in the back of the net, it’s meat and drink for him.

Lukaku’s departure and Everton’s failure to adequately replace him meant there was always a place for a striker within the club to make the position their own but for Niasse this was a non-starter, he was never in a position to be considered. The only reason he’s an Everton player now is because a last minute move to Crystal Palace fell through reportedly over agent fees’ negotiation. When Koeman turned to him on Saturday it was more in hope than expectation, a last roll of the dice from a desperate manager now coming under increasing pressure. Niasse has taken the chance afforded him with both hands, working hard and refusing to say a bad word against Koeman, and with Everton decidedly one-paced and predictable in attack, now is the time for him to trust a player he so unfairly sidelined last season. The opportunity won’t come against Apollon Limassol this Thursday in the Europa League, however, as Koeman left him out of his 25-man squad. Burnley’s visit on Sunday will be Niasse’s first chance to try on the Lukaku-shaped void and his new suit for size.