Ndiaye did leave Everton. But he joined Manchester City, who had offered around £5 million more. Although Spurs had accepted an offer from Everton for Richarlison, the player never gave the green light.

Richarlison later hit out at people deciding his future for him, and left the door open for a move. But it didn’t happen.

Two months on, Richarlison finds himself out in the cold at Spurs, and Duncan Ferguson would love nothing more than to see the Brazilian back on Merseyside.

“He scored my first goal in management. Never forget it. Corner, bang header against Chelsea. Great player, great work ethic.

“My advice to the Tottenham manager is to get him back in your team and put your arm around him, kiss and make up. That’s all you need to do. Kiss and make up. Before you know it, it’s all better.

“Me personally, as an Evertonian, I’d love him back at Everton.”

The Richarlison ship has sailed for Everton

While the notion of Richarlison donning an Everton shirt again is still a nice one, there are a number of reasons why the ship has probably now sailed for the Toffees in terms of a January move.

The fact that Richarlison failed to agree personal terms with Everton is a difficult thing to move past. It was claimed that Everton’s offer ‘didn’t really make much financial sense for him’, suggesting the club needed to offer more. With Jack Grealish having come in on very high wages, it doesn’t seem feasible to also have Richarlison.

There is also the notion that he is not currently playing for Spurs, after Roberto De Zerbi left him out of his Premier League squad. He did play the other night for Spurs in the EFL Trophy, and scored. But he will not be playing for the next couple of months and it will take time to build his match sharpness once he moves clubs. Everton need someone who can hit the ground running immediately.

Richarlison can play as a centre-forward, but arguably he’s not an out-and-out striker, which is what Everton really need.

There is the possibility that if he came in, he could potentially be deployed out wide at times, which could further limit opportunities for young players like Tyrique George and Tyler Dibling.

Undoubtedly, there is a romantic element to Richarlison playing for Everton again. He was so brilliant during his first spell at the club and fans adored him. And the relationship has remained strong since he left the club.

But between his current situation, reasons for not joining in the last window, lack of football at the moment and less-than-perfect injury record, it doesn’t seem wise for Everton to explore a January move, as much as Ferguson wants it.