Everton FC correspondent Joe Thomas on the departure of Youssef Chermiti, a player whose potential went unrealised amid struggle and misfortune on Merseyside
Joe Thomas is the Everton FC correspondent for the Liverpool ECHO. He follows the Blues home and away, providing match reports, analysis and insight into events at Goodison Park, Finch Farm and beyond. Joe spent more than a decade covering news on Merseyside, working on award-winning investigations and extensively covering matters related to the Hillsborough tragedy - including the recent criminal prosecutions. Always grateful for tips and feedback, he can be contacted at joe.thomas@reachplc.com and on Twitter via @joe_thomas18
Youssef Chermiti shoots during the Premier League match between Everton FC and Sheffield United at Goodison Park on May 11, 2024. Photo by Lewis Storey/Getty Images
Youssef Chermiti shoots during the Premier League match between Everton FC and Sheffield United at Goodison Park on May 11, 2024. Photo by Lewis Storey/Getty Images
There are few players whose experience at Everton has better encapsulated the recent years of struggle than Youssef Chermiti.
Signed two summers ago - after successive relegation fights that went to the final week of the season - he arrived at a time when there was hope Everton could start to do more than simply fight for their lives.
It was a miscalculation, with points deductions turning what should have been a campaign of relative serenity into another desperate battle against the world. And Chermiti suffered as a result.
The deal that brought the Portugal youth international to Merseyside came out of the blue. At a time when the squad was threadbare and money was tight, committing £15m to a young forward with limited first team exposure felt a particularly ambitious one.
There was a wider context, of course - the regime at the time was keen to invest in youth and limited in purchasing power, only capable of deals on payment terms that favoured the Blues. Chermiti did have big game experience too, most notably for Sporting against Arsenal in the Europa League. Even then, it was tough to see where Chermiti would fit in behind Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Beto.
That proved to be the case and a tough campaign followed. He was able to amass 18 appearances but 17 were from the bench and few came with the time to bed himself in. It could have been different - senior figures at the club later conceded a loan may have suited both parties best that season and there was interest in the January transfer window of that campaign.
The squad was so limited, however, that Sean Dyche felt he needed to retain the forward. This was, of course, a year in which PSR troubles plunged the club into a relegation fight it would otherwise have avoided.
Still, there was that afternoon at Goodison Park in the April, the third game of a landmark week in which Everton overcame Nottingham Forest, Liverpool and then Brentford to pull clear of the bottom three. Chermiti started the final one of those games and produced a promising display - as he often did when the chances came his way.
The season was not a complete loss to him, then, and the momentum gained from his first start for the club carried into the summer. At Sligo Rovers, where Everton’s 2024 pre-season began, he created one goal and scored twice to spare his side from defeat on the west coast of Ireland. He followed that 3-3 draw with a useful second half at Salford City in which he won the free-kick that James Garner scored from.
With Dominic Calvert-Lewin injured and Beto inconsistent, an opportunity appeared to be emerging for a lively player with good feet and genuine football intelligence.
And then injury struck. There had been an expectation Chermiti would get another chance to impress at Coventry City a few days after Salford but, in the days between, he picked up a serious foot injury in training.
Chermiti smiled in the picture he shared from his hospital bed but beneath the surface he must have been devastated. Only more disappointment would follow.
When David Moyes took charge the following January, Chermiti should have been on the brink of match fitness and ready to seize the opportunity as Armando Broja and Dominic Calvert-Lewin were struck by serious injuries that month. There was no guarantee Beto would be given the spotlight under which he ultimately shone and, even if he had, Chermiti would have been a useful presence on the bench as Moyes led the team away from trouble.
Instead, he was deprived of that by another knock. A few substitute appearances late in the season again showed his promise - his snapshot helping to build pressure ahead of the stoppage time equaliser against West Ham. But that was it.
This was always going to be a make or break summer for the 21-year-old at Everton and, after the club chose to splash £27.5m on another raw, young striker - though one who was older and more experienced than him in Thierno Barry - his future was set to be somewhere else. That could have been on loan, with Everton then reaping the benefits of him returning after a breakout year in senior football. But when loan talks turned into a permanent move to Rangers last week, the £8m deal was too good to turn down.
On Monday night, Chermiti took to social media to state: “I want to leave a message to everyone who was part of my journey at Everton. It was a short chapter, but a very important one for me, where I grew not only as a player but also as a person. I’m truly grateful to the fans who always supported me and believed in me, both on and off the pitch. Your passion and commitment are something I will always carry with me.
“I leave with good memories, lessons learned, and moments that will stay with me. Now it is time to move forward with the same dedication and hunger to keep improving. Thank you, Everton.”
It was a mature, heartfelt statement and he no doubt learned a lot during his time at the club. Beneath the sentiments there would likely have been a degree of hope a fresh start will rejuvenate his career after two miserable years in which relegation fights and injury held him back. He did not score a single goal for Everton, but he barely received a chance to break through. It is easy to write him off as a bad signing but the truth is circumstance prevented him from ever giving us a chance to make a judgement either way - hopefully his luck will improve in Scotland.