How much will Everton miss Onana?

After joining Everton in August 2022, Amadou Onana has now left the club to join Unai Emery's Aston Villa.

The 22-year-old had grown into a key player at Goodison Park, making 63 Premier League appearances in two seasons and establishing himself as a commanding figure at the base of Everton's midfield.

 Onana excelled defensively, showcasing his strengths in tackles, ground and aerial duels as well as ball recoveries.

But there was more to his game than just being a midfield destroyer, with his 6ft 4in frame being a source of attack for Everton. Indeed, all three of his league goals came via headers.

Exit is less damaging than it seems?

However, there is evidence to suggest that Onana's departure might not hurt Everton as much as you think.

Since the 2022/23 season, the Toffees' win percentage has actually been better when Onana HASN'T started.

In their 24 Premier League matches without him in the starting line-up, Everton had a win percentage of 33.3 per cent. Across the 52 matches that he did start, it was 25 per cent. 

Between 21 April and 11 May last season, Everton went on their longest unbeaten run of the season in the Premier League, spanning five matches. The first four matches of this run, which comprised three wins and a draw, were without Onana in the side, before he returned to the line-up for a 1-0 home win over bottom club Sheffield United.

Among those victories without Onana was a notable 2-0 home win over Merseyside rivals Liverpool, which all but ended the Reds' title challenge.

During this four-match stretch without him, Everton conceded only one goal. And indeed, across the last two seasons, the statistics show the Toffees conceded fewer goals on average and faced fewer shots when he was not the starting line-up.

Offensively, Everton had more shots without Onana and averaged 1.2 goals per match when he didn't start, compared with 0.9 when he started. 

Overall, there is only one metric in the table below where Everton performed better WITH Onana. They averaged 42.1 per cent possession with him in the starting line-up, and that dropped to 38.4 per cent without him.

Everton with/without Onana since 2022/23