CONFIRMED: Everton sell Bernard to Sharjah FC

The highest-earning member of Everton’s wage bill has left the club, with the confirmation that Bernard has joined UAE club Sharjah FC for an undisclosed fee, rumoured to be in the €1m compensation fee range. The Toffees are yet to confirm the transfer even though the Gulf side’s social media have already announced it.

The 28-year-old joined the Toffees in the summer of 2018 from Shakhtar Donetsk as a free agent after his contract with the Ukrainian side expired. He currently has one more year left on his four-year deal.

The Brazilian winger joined the club with a lot of promise but has failed to live up to expectations. He struggled to impose himself physically in the English game, and though he is capable of incredible wizardry with the ball at his feet, has not shown enough consistency to be a part of Carlo Ancelotti’s plans going forward.

After being previously linked in January with Al-Nasr in the Arabian Gulf League, he now joins local rivals Sharjah FC. There had also been some interest in the Brazilian from Italian side AS Roma coached by his former Shakhtar manager Paulo Fonseca both over the summer and winter transfer windows, with the Italian side eventually giving up trying to reach an agreement with the Toffees and Fonseca replaced by Jose Mourinho.

The forward thanked the Blues for their support in a post on Instagram -

Bernard leaves Everton having made 84 appearances in all competitions for the Blues, scoring eight times and assisting another seven. His departure was almost inevitable with the Blues confirming the signing of Andros Townsend and Demarai Gray expected to follow. The Merseyside outfit are also reportedly interesting in bringing in Dwight McNeil.

Thank you for the good times Bernard, and here’s wishing you well.