The groin injury to Jordan Henderson would really hurt Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp, who has had to call on his captain to fill the void left in defence by the injuries to important players like Joe Gomez, Joel Matip and Virgil Van Dijk.
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In a report covered by Goal.com, Sigurdsson said: “He is a very good player. Hopefully got a very bright future ahead of him. He is very talented. He probably felt he was that stage where he wanted to play. Of course it is difficult – the club probably wanted to keep him because of his ability but it is a good deal for the club and everyone here wishes him the best.”
Lookman had an impressive loan stint with Leipzig during the backend of the 2017/18 campaign where he contributed five goals and three assists from just 11 matches. He was thereafter linked with a permanent move to the German giants last summer, but the deal did not go through with Silva wanting the youngster to stay put with the Toffees.
However, the 2018/19 season did not go as planned with the restricted gametime and he ended the campaign with just three league starts. At Leipzig, Lookman has now been offered with another chance to redeem himself and hopefully, he can find the purple patch from the previous stint such that he can knock the doors of the national team.
Meanwhile, the Toffees have made good business for the attacker with around £22m recouped from the sale and it remains to be seen whether they can make the best use of the money gained. Of late, the club have been linked with a £60m swoop for Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha whereby Cenk Tosun could be used as a makeweight.
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In a report covered by TalkSPORT, Cascarino highlighted that the Toffees have lacked the leadership in their ranks barring Seamus Coleman and this has hampered them despite the likes of Gylfi Sigurdsson and Richarlison impressing in the attack front, he said: “Everton have been a bit of an enigma. Watching them last week at Millwall I thought they were disappointing. You talk about leadership in the team, they didn’t look like they had any of that apart from Seamus Coleman. I just don’t know why Everton have not been better because they’ve got some – Richarlison is a handful. Sigurdsson is another player who can create a moment – just haven’t done it enough.”
Everton were at one stage occupying the seventh position in the standings after gathering a winning run but they have since dropped off one place amid the inconsistent form. The Merseyside outfit are currently eighth on the standings with 33 points but they have the opportunity to jump back to the seventh spot, should they get the better of Wolverhampton Wanderers this weekend.
Nonetheless, the challenge won’t be easy, given the Wolves have been building up momentum of late and they have an in-form striker in Raul Jimenez leading their ranks. Meanwhile, the Toffees are currently facing a potential crisis in the left-back position and it remains to be seen who could feature, should Leighton Baines miss out. The veteran is currently doubtful with a rib problem while Lucas Digne remains out of contention after a straight red card against Huddersfield in midweek.
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Speaking after the game, Sigurdsson admitted that the match was probably the toughest of his career after he spurned the chance to bring Iceland back into the game via the penalty spot. With just seven minutes of normal time left, Alfred Finnbogason was fouled in the box which allowed Iceland a route into the match but Sigurdsson could only hoof the opportunity over the bar.
“It’s tough to take. It’s probably the toughest moment of my career. Hopefully, I can put it right and score in the next game. It was a game of two halves. We were good in the first half and very organised defensively. I don’t think they had any shots in the first half. We created numerous chances in the first half that we probably should have scored from. In the second half, we were unlike ourselves. We were very open, especially after the first goal and we had to go and get something out of the game. Overall it’s very disappointing.”
With the defeat to Nigeria, Sigurdsson and co. need to pick up a win over Croatia in the final group stage game but even that may not assure them of qualification for the knockouts, should one of Nigeria or Argentina pick up a positive result in the other game. As things stand, Nigeria could progress even with a draw against Argentina, though the South American nation are unlikely to give up on their World Cup quest. The Selecao have underperformed with just one point from their first two matches but they can still progress with a victory over their African counterparts.
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Speaking on the club’s official website, Sigurdsson went through the programme which he has been placed on, he said: “It is going well and I am steadily making progress each day. I have not had any setbacks, I am off the crutches and out of the brace and almost back to walking normally. I have to get through a lot of exercises with the physios and on the machines – and the hands-on treatment as well. I have been very lucky with injuries in my career and, hopefully, I will come back stronger and fitter than ever.”
Initial reports from Iceland suggested that Sigurdsson could miss the start of the FIFA World Cup in Russia which would mean that he would miss the remainder of the season with Everton. However, Toffees boss Sam Allardyce was quick to rubbish the claims by suggesting that the former Swansea man would be deemed fit to feature prior to the final weeks of the Premier League campaign.
Sigurdsson is more of a necessity for Iceland ahead of the global tournament in Russia, and his recent recovery progress suggests that he is on schedule to return by the end of April at the least. At club level, the Toffees have plenty of players who can slot into Sigurdsson’s position, but his set-piece taking abilities would no doubt be a huge miss.
Everton are currently just three points behind seventh-placed Burnley, and Allardyce will be hopeful that the club can catch up to the Lancashire outfit, considering the position offers them the probable chance of playing Europa League football next term. For this happen, one of Chelsea, Manchester United, or Tottenham Hotspur need to win this season’s FA Cup.
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