The agent of new Fiorentina signing Amir Richardson said the young midfielder discussed signing for Everton with Sean Dyche but ultimately chose the Florence side.
Everton were rumoured to be interested in the rangy Moroccan midfielder, who impressed during the Olympics and eventually moved for just £10m to the Serie A side. However, his agent has now revealed Everton were one of three clubs whose managers spoke to him to convince him to join, according to an interview in TuttoMercato.
He says: “”Everton, Ajax and Fenerbahçe were monitoring his situation with great interest, which is completely understandable given his young age and considerable potential. Amir had discussions with all the coaches of the interested clubs, but the first to contact him was Raffaele Palladino, with whom he had a video call. From the very beginning, his strong interest was clear.”
However, it seems Dyche failed to convince the player that a move to Everton was the best option for him, with the player instead deciding to stick with Fiorentina as they had shown interest at an earlier stage.
The agent added: “After that conversation, Amir confided in us that he felt at ease and that they had discussed, in addition to his use on the pitch, other aspects as well. The interest of the other clubs manifested itself later, but Amir wanted to keep his word to Palladino.”
The agency said Richardson is confident of a bright future in the game, describing him as: “”a very atypical player. As we said before, it is difficult to find a player with his height and his technique, which is certainly above average.”