As the transfer window edges a little nearer to closing, David Moyes continued to bolster Everton’s attacking options with the purchase of Belgian international Kevin Mirallas from Olympiacos on a four- year contract. The 24-year old arrives at Goodison Park in a deal rumoured to be around £5m and is the Toffees’ third acquisition of the summer, following the signings of Steven Pienaar and Steven Naismith:
David Moyes has wasted little time in his quest to re-invest the cash acquired for the sale of Jack Rodwell to Man City and the Everton boss was delighted to clinch Mirallas’ signature after a host of clubs were linked with a move for the player. Speaking to the club’s official website upon completion of the move, Moyes explained:
We’re really pleased to get Kevin. He’ll hopefully add a bit of quality to the squad, give us some more options and we need him. We’ve lost one of two players so we’re delighted to get Kevin in.
The Statistics
Mirallas’ career began as a youth in his native country with Standard Liege but he was snapped up by French outfit Lille before he could make a single first-team appearance. Mirallas struggled to establish himself as a regular over his four seasons at the Ligue 1 club, however, and, although he finally nailed down a place in his final campaign, a return of 10 goals and seven assists in 76 appearances saw him sold to St Etienne in the summer of 2008.
The Belgian continued to struggle during his time in France, however; over two campaigns with “Les Verts” he managed a mere three goals and three assists in 53 league matches before making his way to Olympiacos on a one-year loan deal. Mirallas was an instant impact in his new surroundings –14 goals and a trio of assists in 27 games saw him fire the club to the league title and earn a permanent contract at the Greek outfit. Last term he was even more clinical, with 20 goals and seven assists in 25 matches helping the club retain the title. Mirallas has represented his country at every level from Under 16 to Under 21 and has scored five times in 26 appearances for the Belgian senior side.
The Prospects
There’s no doubt Mirallas will add a much-need attacking threat to a Toffees side that struggled to find the net last term until the January arrival of Nikica Jelavic from Glasgow Rangers. His versatility could be key in assessing the 6 foot Belgian’s game time – he can play on either wing, in “the hole” or also lead the line. At the moment, it’s a case of “wait and see” and bearing in mind he was signed after the deadline to be eligible for last night’s United match, we could see our first glimpse at the weekend away to Villa.
Intriguingly, Mirallas was used to great effect as an inverted winger on the left by Olympiacos, cutting inside on to his favoured right foot to devastating effect. Such a move could see Pienaar used more centrally – it’s worth noting that the South African briefly featured in “the hole” in a pre-season match and with Moyes keen to ease Naismith back into fitness after the summer signing spent much of last season injured at Rangers, it’s certainly an option. Alternatively, Mirallas could tuck in behind Jelavic in Moyes’ preferred 4-5-1 – a move which would see compatriot Marouane Fellaini drop into a deeper role – or he could move to the right, where his arrival could well impact on the likes of Leon Osman.
Mirallas has yet to be added to any of the Fantasy games, with his classification key to how we assess him. A price between 6.5 and 7.5 perhaps seems the likeliest of outcomes in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) regardless of classification, though with Pienaar at 6.5 and Jelavic 8.5, he’ll face a struggle to oust either in many a Fantasy managers’ estimations.
With their home clash against United now out the way, Everton now face a tricky schedule that sees them hit the road in five of the next seven Gameweeks. Bearing in mind that one of their two home matches is against Newcastle, Fantasy managers will be content to keep their distance, holding back any major investment in Mirallas until his place within Moyes’ plans becomes far more apparent.
Further Reference
Kevin Mirallas Wikipedia
Kevin Mirallas Statistics
Kevin Mirallas YouTube
