Everton's business in the transfer market in recent times has come under fire, with the club wasting a lot of money on players who haven't reached their potential.
The club spent over £20m on players such as Yerry Mina, Jean-Phillipe Gbamin and Yannick Bolasie, with all three players leaving the club on free transfers at the end of their contracts.
Such dealings in the transfer market contributed to the club breaching FFP rules, before being deducted six points earlier in the campaign, putting the club's Premier League status at risk.
The Toffees have since had to operate on a shoestring budget, with boss Sean Dyche doing a great job at Goodison Park given the circumstances he's found himself in.
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However, the club conducted sensational business in selling a former fan-favourite with his career taking a turn after his departure back in 2017.
Romelu Luakaku's stats at Everton
Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku originally joined the Toffees on loan in 2013, before joining the club permanently in the summer of 2014 for a then club-record fee of £28m.
No Everton supporter could've envisaged the impact the forward would have had at the club, with Lukaku being the club's star for multiple years.
During his first permanent campaign with the Toffees, the former Chelsea man scored 20 times in 48 appearances, with the striker catching the eye for his goalscoring ability.
His next couple of campaigns for the Toffees would go from strength to strength, with the Belgian finding the net 51 times in his 85 games for the Merseyside outfit – a record that caught the eye of multiple clubs in the Premier League and all over Europe.
2013/14 (loan)
33
16
2014/15
48
20
2015/16
46
25
2016/17
39
36
He decided to leave Goodison Park, swapping it for Old Trafford in a deal worth £75m – a transfer that saw the Toffees make £47m profit in just three years. Brilliant business given his career after departing Everton.
Romelu Lukaku's stats since leaving Everton
The "beast", as dubbed by former Liverpool striker Stan Collymore, failed to recapture his Everton form at Manchester United, lasting just two seasons at the club.
Although he produced a decent goalscoring record, with the Belgian scoring 42 in 96 games for the Red Devils, he came under fire resulting in the club shipping him to Serie A, joining Inter Milan for £73m – just £2m less than the club paid for him two years prior.
His move to Italy reignited his career, with the striker moving back to England's top flight to rejoin Chelsea – the club Everton bought Lukaku from way back in 2014.
The Blues forked out a whopping £97.5m to re-sign the Belgian, with the forward flopping at Stamford Bridge and failing to prove any sort of value for the fee paid for him.
He only managed one full campaign at the club, scoring 15 times before an explosive interview that would ruin his Chelsea career.
Lukaku blasted then-boss Thomas Tuchel for his tactics, claiming he was "not happy" with the role he was playing, with the striker shipped back to Inter Milan on loan – with the forward unlikely to feature for the Blues again.
He's since moved on loan to Roma, reaching double figures once again this campaign, but looking a shadow of his former Everton self.
The forward's market value has since plummeted to just £25m as per Transfermarkt, with the current Roma loanee now worth less than international teammate Amadou Onana, with the ever-improving midfielder now worth £42m according to the same source – £17m more than Lukaku.
After everything that has transpired since he departed from Goodison, the club made the right decision by selling him in the summer of 2017 with the Belgian unable to reach the heights he hit under Roberto Martinez.
Market Movers
Football FanCast's Market Movers series explores the changing landscape of the modern transfer market. How much is your club's star player or biggest flop worth today?
