Everton: Jean-Philippe Gbamin return date revealed and what he brings to the team

Everton midfielder Jean-Philippe Gbamin is set to return to the team soon.

Jean-Philippe Gbamin’s move to Everton was full of promise and potential. The club felt Gbamin was the right player to fill in the shoes of Idrissa Gueye who left for PSG. However, his awful injury record since joining the Toffees meant that the fans could never really see whether he’s an ideal replacement to Gueye.

Two horrific injuries in form of a hamstring problem and Achilles tendon rupture has restricted the Ivorian to just 135 minutes of footballing action since moving to Goodison Park.

At the time of writing, Gbamin is in the last phase of his recovery and rehab from the Achilles injury with his return date expected around post the turn of the year. Gbamin last played a game on 17th August 2019 meaning he hasn’t stepped onto the field in a match for over a year.

He is as new as a fresh signing waiting to show his true potential. Carlo Ancelotti provided an update of Gbamin’s return and hopes that he has a fantastic year after long suffering.

"I’m waiting and the player is desperate to come [back]. I think today we have a talk with him and the doctor and I think we can start to look for him for the next year. We hope that it can be a different year because the guy has had a lot of problems; he has suffered a lot and we hope that 2021 will be fantastic for him. I don’t think [we will see him before the end of this year but the important thing will be for him to start to train with the team. (via Toffee Web)"

What does Jean-Philippe Gbamin bring to the team?

The return of Gbamin is a huge positive especially when injuries are piling up. Coming back after over a year, it would be criminal to expect Gbamin to be fully sharp. The 25 year old will be rusty and will definitely take time to settle, hence, we may not see him go directly into the starting eleven.

In terms of the position, Gbamin is a direct competitor to the ever outstanding Allan. Even though the Brazilian is out due to a hamstring injury, Gbamin by no means would displace Allan. Instead, the 25 year old can partner the former Napoli man to form a double pivot, releasing Abdoulaye Doucoure in a more forward role, putting his typical box-to-box character to full use.

Gbamin has a towering figure with imposing physical presence and technical skills to be a part of the buildup. The Ivorian provides a number of options and covers a range of positions. He may have endured a tough start to life at Goodison but his future looks full of potential.

How important will Jean-Philippe Gbamin be to the team?