It’s not often you see an Everton player at any level receive a nomination as prestigious as the Golden Boy, but Moise Kean is your average Joe.
The Italian international was named in the 20-player shortlist for the Golden Boy award as reported by BBC Sport, along with the likes of Matthijs de Ligt, Jadon Sancho and Joao Felix, yet as the tweets below show, some Everton fans were a bit confused as to why Kea was nominated…
He's on another shortlist – EFC strikers who look like scoring…
— Ukan Kypuratun (@BlueKypur) October 15, 2019
What for
— robert tuohy (@robbie2e) October 15, 2019
I have a bad feeling in the gut we are going to screw this lads career up.
— steve Jones (@skjones505) October 15, 2019
Indeed, it’s easy to forget the hype surrounding the Italian teenager before his arrival on Merseyside. Kean’s exploits for Juventus last season were well documented and praised, with stats from Transfermarkt showing that the 19-year-old was nearly averaging a goal every other game with six goals in 13 appearances for the Old Lady in the league.
Yet Toffee fans have been quick to forget about this impressive form last season for the Serie A giants, and who can blame them.
Kean is yet to find the back of the net for Everton in all competitions as stats from Transfermarkt show, and further numbers show that Dominic Calvert-Lewin is seemingly Marco Silva’s ideal striker to start in the XI rather than the Italian teen.
Although the Toffees number 9 has managed four goals this season as stats from Transfermarkt show, Kean, who has a Transfermarkt valuation of £36m, is a player who seemingly has a higher celling than Calvert-Lewin, and this latest accolade from the 19-year-old shows that he should be handed a chance in the starting XI.
It is understandable as to why Kean is yet to hit the ground running for Everton with the teenager playing away from his home country for the first time in his career as well as experience a completely new culture that takes time to adjust to, yet if Silva is to put his faith in the Italian star, the goals will begin to flow.