Everton’s director of football Marcel Brands has admitted the Toffees paid more than the market value to sign Richarlison from Watford.

The Hornets accepted a club record fee which could rise to £44 million for the Brazilian winger, who starred early on last season but found it hard to maintain his form as the campaign progressed.

His failure to impress throughout the entire season led many to question the fee paid by Everton for the 21-year-old who scored twice on his Everton debut on Saturday.

The ill-feeling between Watford and Everton, which started when the Goodison Park club allegedly made an unwarranted approach for then Watford boss Marco Silva in November, made securing Richarlison’s services challenging, Brands admits.

“We thought it would be a very difficult one because of the history of the clubs,” Brands told the Guardian. “We were convinced with him but I think with the situation with Watford we had to pay a little more.

“I think maybe the market value was a little bit lower but, at the end, we are happy with him. We think he can be very special.

“He has a lot of speed, the capability to work; he is strong and he is tall. There are a lot of qualities for all the competitions in Europe. They are important qualities.”