Sandro Ramirez’s early season form is nothing to worry about

Everton has a great fan base, and here at Royal Blue Mersey we never hesitate to celebrate that fan base when they’re doing well: fundraisers for the homeless, support for Bradley Lowery, giving hard luck academy grads a second chance - the club and its fans usually embrace the good.

That’s a large part of why it’s been frustrating to see the fan reactions to Sandro Ramirez over the last couple of days. A poor performance against Chelsea led many to write him off entirely, even to the extent that the criticise not only him but the entire league he excelled in last year, so much so that you would think he couldn’t even compete at this level.

Last year as a 21 year old, Sandro Ramirez dropped 14 goals in what is indisputably a top two league in the world, if not the very best league in the world. Everyone should know that already, but it bears reminding. He’s young, he’s talented, and he’s got a lot of ways in which he can grow.

He also hurt himself during the Stoke game and decided to give it a go in the Chelsea game anyway. Why? Because we needed him. It didn’t come off, but we owe it to our players to appreciate their willingness to play through pain and sacrifice himself for the sake of the badge. That’s just basic decency.

Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images

In an interview now on Everton’s website, Sandro said:

It has been frustrating, the injury happened at the beginning of the match against Stoke, so I could not play at one hundred per cent of myself in that game. I have had problems with my ankle for two weeks but I was looking forward to the game at Chelsea.

Fortunately, Sandro will not have any obligations with Spain during the international break, so he will be 100% ready to face Spurs at home, which is great because the Blues will need him. Even if Everton sign another striker as expected, the futures of Kevin Mirallas and Aaron Lennon are unsettled - Ramirez’s movement out wide will be a tremendous asset.

In truth, Sandro has better things to say about the fans than many of the fans have had to say about him:

It has been very good… with the Club, my teammates and the technical staff. And with the fans it has been very, very good. We always feel the support from them, even when things do not go well. Everyone is helping me settle in very quickly.

Give the man some time, and appreciate his commitment. Sandro Ramirez’s quality will show through, and Everton will be all the better for it.