Everton 1-3 Manchester United: 3 things we learnt from Manchester United loss

Everton suffered their third-straight loss as the Toffees fell to Manchester United, 3-1, Saturday afternoon at Goodison Park.

So what three things can we take from the match?

1. How important is Richarlison to Everton?

Evidently, very! The Royal Blues have yet to win a game in the Premier League without their Brazilian talisman. After Saturday’s loss, the streak has extended to eight games. So how does Richarlison contribute to the Everton cause?

First of all, goals. He’s been Everton’s joint-leading scorer since joining the club from Watford, two seasons ago, notching 13 in each season.

However, what he gives the Toffees goes beyond the goals he scores. For example, Everton has only scored twice in the three matches he has missed. In comparison, in the five league games he has played. Everton have scored 14 goals.

Carlo Ancelotti knows how important Richarlison is to his team. He told the Liverpool Echo,

"We have 22 players and we have covered all the positions. Of course we have to… it is impossible to replace Richarlison. There is no player in the world like Richarlison. So we have to replace him with another player with different quality."

His former head coach at Fluminense, Abel Braga told  lnews.com 

That people didn’t pay enough attention to Richarlison’s hard graft when his team doesn’t have the ball.

"We don’t hear people talking about a lot”, namely his defensive contribution. Richarlison is a willing worker, physically capable enough to press high and committed enough to track back when needed. In modern football, it’s a tool. It’s a characteristic that all coaches want to have."