Richarlison vs Cornet… is the Burnley man a good replacement for the Toffees?

Cornet

Everton recently parted ways with their top scoring, fan-favourite player Richarlison, selling him to Spurs for £60 million. But could Burnley’s Maxwel Cornet be the ideal replacement for the Blues?

Both Richy and Cornet can play on the wing or as a striker and both were stand-out players in two poorly performing sides last season. 

Check out these stats from their respective league performances to see if Cornet will be able to fill the void in Frank Lampard’s team heading into the new season. 

 

Shooting 

As mentioned, Richarlison and Cornet played similar roles for their teams in the 2021/22 season. Both can play on the wing and upfront as central strikers, can score goals and they were monumental for their respective clubs (despite Burnley being relegated). Richarlison scored 23% of Everton’s goals last season and Cornet scored 26% of Burnley’s. The fact that both can score a decent number of goals with undeniably poor service is a testament to their quality. 

In terms of their shooting stats, both players were very similar. Richarlison scored slightly more with 10 goals in 30 league appearances for the Blues, whereas Cornet netted nine times in 26 games. This makes Cornet a more prolific goal scorer than Richy. With four fewer appearances, the Ivorian averaged a goal every 197 minutes compared to the Brazilian’s 253 minutes. Cornet also scored slightly more goals per game, with 0.35 compared to Richy’s 0.33. In that respect, Frank Lampard will be happy to have a player to replace Richarlison’s goals, if the deal does go through as reported. 

However, where Richarlison does stand out is in the importance of his goals. Brazil’s number 9 scored five goals in Everton’s last 10 games, which of course were vital to them avoiding relegation. 

Cornet did score some big goals too: for example, the winner in Burnley’s 3-2 victory over (ironically) Everton towards the end of the season. But he also missed some sitters; including one howler from two yards out against Norwich, which could have made the difference between relegation and survival. 

Both players are also versatile in the goals they score. In 2021-22, Richarlison netted five times with his right foot, two with his weaker left foot and three with his head. Cornet on the other hand scored two with his right, five with his weaker left, one with his head and scored a free kick, showing he can be effective at set pieces, too. 

So, Cornet could be the perfect alternative to Richy for Frank Lampard in terms of attacking play. He will also cost just £17.5 million to sign because this fee is his release clause, giving Everton a £48 million net profit from Richarlison’s Spurs move. 

Richarlison:

Played: 30
Shots per game: 2.4
Goals: 10 
Goals per game: 0.33
Minutes per goal: 253’

Cornet:

Played: 26
Shots per game: 1.8
Goals: 9
Goals per game: 0.35
Minutes per goal: 197’

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Passing

An area where both players could perhaps do better, Richarlison and Cornet are not exactly known for their slick passing. Richy has a particularly poor pass success rate at just 63.4%, suggesting he gives the ball away often. Cornet on the other hand has a success rate of 70.6%, so in that sense, Frank Lampard is actually making an upgrade. 

Both players have relatively low passes per game averages, with Richy making 17.5 and Cornet with 14.5. Both also do not make many successful crosses per game, with the Brazilian making 0.2 and Cornet with 0.4. These stats suggest both players are not as involved in the game as they should be, but perhaps this is a case of their respective clubs doing more defending than attacking last season? With Richarlison now at Spurs, you can expect him to receive the ball more often. 

However, one area where there is a clear difference is creating clear chances. In terms of key passes per match, Richy is superior, making 1 per game compared to Cornet’s 0.4. As for assists, Richarlison made five during the 2021-22 campaign while Cornet managed just one. This is something the Ivorian will have to improve if he is going to be a regular at Goodison Park. 

Richarlison:
 
Passes per game: 17.5
Pass success rate: 63.4%
Key passes per game: 1
Crosses per game: 0.2
Assists: 5
Assists per game: 0.17

Cornet:

Passes per game: 14.5
Pass success rate: 70.6%
Key passes per game: 0.6
Crosses per game: 0.4
Assists: 1 
Assists per game: 0.04

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Defending 

One part of Richarlison’s game which is overlooked is his defensive ability and with high-pressing football being so important in the Premier League, this must have been an attractive part of the Brazilian’s game for Antonio Conte. 
Richy has a reputation for being somewhat lazy and someone who rolls around on the floor a lot, but his work rate off the ball is excellent. 

He makes plenty of tackles, with 40 in 2021-22, an average of 1.3 per game, way above the norm for a winger. He also made 12 interceptions and helped his side to seven clean sheets. In fact, he was playing for all of the games Everton kept a clean sheet except one.  

However, his defensive work rate also means he has more of a tendency to make fouls. He made 36 in total in 2021-22, accumulating eight yellow cards across the season. He also threw a punch in his first friendly appearance for Spurs (albeit in self-defence), so he can be a bit hot-tempered at times. 

Cornet’s defensive ability is very poor in comparison to Richarlison’s. He made just 16 tackles across his 26 appearances: an average of 0.6 per game. He also made fewer interceptions, with 10. This lacklustre defensive contribution is arguably a factor in Burnley keeping only four clean sheets while he was on the pitch for the Clarets. Predictably though, as a result of tackling less, he made fewer fouls, making just 21 and picking up two yellow cards. 

Thus, Everton would lose out defensively in the tradeoff between the two players; missing out on Richarlison’s willingness to run all day and make challenges for his team. Frank Lampard, if he does sign Maxwel Cornet, will have to find other ways to cover for Cornet, given he has much less of a defensive impact on the game. 

In terms of attacking play, Cornet for Richarlison isn’t a bad switch, but it is the lack of the Ivorian's defensive work rate where Everton will suffer. 

Richarlison:

Tackles: 40
Tackles per game: 1.3
Interceptions: 12
Fouls: 36
Yellow cards: 8
Clean sheets: 7

Cornet:

Tackles: 16
Tackles per game: 0.6
Interceptions: 10
Fouls: 21
Yellow cards: 2
Clean sheets: 4