Everton: Marcel Brands pulled off a masterclass over Henry Onyekuru | OneFootball

Everton have rarely been too successful or astute with their dealings in the transfer market, but their handling Henry Onyekuru was one of the few occasions where they came out on top.

The Toffees stumped up £7m to prise the winger away from Belgian outfit KAS Eupen back in the summer of 2017 before immediately loaning him out to Anderlecht.

Onyekuru had just lit up the Belgian First Division, bagging 24 goals and providing a further nine assists in 41 outings in the previous campaign, attracting the attention of several European heavyweights.

It’s believed that Everton beat the likes of Arsenal and West Ham United to the Nigeria international’s signature, and it’s a battle that they’ll have been pleased to have won.

Over the next two seasons, Onyekuru enjoyed loan spells at both Anderlecht and Galatasaray, scoring a combined 26 goals in 72 appearances across his two spells.

The versatile forward played a pivotal part in Gala’s domestic double in 2018/19, ensuring he became part of the Instanbul giants’ illustrious history.

His impressive exploits prompted Monaco to splash out £12m to secure his services at the end of the season, ensuring Everton secured a healthy £5m profit on a player who never kicked a ball for them.

Despite his lack of action for the Blues, Onyekuru was still grateful for the opportunity that the club had given him.

Upon his exit, he tweeted: “I want to thank Everton for the opportunity and making it possible for me to experience the best year of my career at Galatasaray. My time in Turkey was nothing short of amazing. The supporters, the club and my team-mates made me feel at home from day one.”

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Onyekuru added: “Enchante Monaco. New League, New Challenge! I’m excited, let’s get started!”

However, the 24-year-old has struggled to rediscover his best form since departing Goodison Park on a permanent basis.

Another two loans to Gala failed to reignite the forward’s career as he found opportunities limited at Monaco, failing to find the back of the net in just eight outings for the Principality club across his two-year spell.

A move to Olympiacos followed in the most recent transfer window, but the Greek outfit are also yet to see the best of Onyekuru.

Therefore, it appears as though Everton’s director of football Marcel Brands pulled off a transfer masterclass with the attacker, banking a sizeable fee for a player who wasn’t good enough to succeed in the Premier League and never featured in a competitive fixture.