Chelsea attacker Willian has admitted that he has been surprised with the impact from compatriot Richarlison at Everton this term. The Brazilian only made the switch to the Toffees from Watford during the summer but he has since quickly adapted to the new surroundings to contribute six goals from just 10 Premier League appearances.

As such, he has managed to become a regular with the Brazilian national side and Willian is surprised by the progress of the former America Mineiro graduate, he told Sportsbeat: “Richarlison is doing very well with Everton. He is one of the greatest surprises of the Premier League at the beginning of the season. Scoring goals, being a key player for his club.And in his first call up with Seleção he scored twice and did a great job. He has a lot of quality, knows how to score goals and has a lot of potential to help the Seleção.”

Richarlison initially made the move to the Premier League with Watford last year and he made a quick impression by scoring five goals from the opening two months. However, his form thereafter nosedived with no contributions during the backend of the campaign and many attributed that to the sacking of manager Marco Silva.

When Silva was appointed as the new Toffees boss, he had no second thoughts about signing Richarlison despite the huge outlay required and the move has certainly paid dividends with the attacker now indispensable from the starting XI. Nonetheless, Richarlison’s showing would no doubt have caught the eye of some of Europe’s elite and a consistent run could potentially enhance his prospects of taking up a better challenge in the future.

Everton have made a decent start to the Premier League season with five wins from their opening 12 games and they are currently placed ninth on the table with 19 points. Their most recent outing saw them secure a hard-fought 0-0 draw against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.