Everton manager Marco Silva believes £50m record signing Richarlison can 'score at any moment' after his debut double earned his side a point at promoted Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Brazilian Richarlison twice put 10-man Everton ahead only to see Wolves peg them back through Ruben Neves's stunning free kick and Raul Jimenez's header.
“He showed fantastic workrate, fantastic behaviour, he's a fantastic talent and he's showed he can score at any moment,” said Silva, who managed the 21-year-old at Watford last season.
“He scored two goals which is fantastic but it's important that he works hard again.
“I don’t have doubts. Even when he doesn’t score he works really hard to help his team. I’m sure the fans will be proud of him. He did very well. He worked hard, which is what I expect from him."
Silva has no worries about the huge fee resting uneasily on Richarlison's shoulders.
“For me the money is not important and it's not important to talk about the money,” he added.
“A club like us paid that money because that is his value in the market. It's not only our club paying that money for one player.”
Everton star Richarlison indebted to Marco Silva
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Having netted a brace on his Everton debut, the winger spoke of his deep gratitude for his manager
Two-goal Everton hero Richarlison has expressed thanks to "father figure" Marco Silva for giving him a platform to shine in the Premier League.
The Brazilian winger netted both of his new side's goals in the 2-2 draw with Wolves at Molineux, the second coming despite Phil Jagielka's earlier dismissal.
It was a performance befitting the £40 million ($51m) the Toffees reportedly paid to sign the 21-year-old from Watford, for whom Silva originally signed him 12 months ago.
The pair are now reunited at Everton and Richarlison was quick to thank his Portuguese manager for providing him with a Premier League opportunity.
"I'm very happy for the two goals. It was a very difficult match because we had to run double," the former Fluminense man told BT Sport.
"We played with one less player after the red card and it was very difficult, but one point away... it's a very important debut for me.
"I know my responsibilities and I know also the coach has given me freedom to play my football in attack, so I know what I have to do on the pitch. I'm very happy.
"I look to Marco like a father. He came to Brazil to bring me to England and I know I will be grateful for my life to Marco."
2 - Richarlison is the first Everton player to score a brace on his Premier League debut since Jo in February 2009 (v Bolton Wanderers). Samba. pic.twitter.com/NBKoEjnqTG Article continues below — OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) August 11, 2018
Silva, meanwhile, insisted the hefty fee attached to Richarlison's signing should have no bearing on the judgment of his performances.
"When a club pays money it's because it's his value in the market," he said. "Like all the other players we sign it's not because they are [worth] more or less money. We believe in all of them.
"He performed well like all of the squad. It's important for him to score in our first match, his first official match in the shirt."
The rain tumbled down and Led Zeppelin blared over the tannoy in honour of local hero Robert Plant, but everything else at Molineux has a Latin feel to it these days - and you won't hear a dissenting word after a hugely-entertaining return to the Premier League after six years away.
With two Portuguese men-o-war in the dug-outs - Nuno Espirito Santo and Marco Silva - Wolves and Everton underlined precisely why they've both spent big in this summer's transfer window.
Everton twice led through their £44million arrival Richarlison who incredibly hadn't scored at all in his last 28 matches for Watford. However Wolves, encouraged by the dismissal of Everton skipper Phil Jagielka shortly before half-time, twice fought back, with their 21-year-old midfield genius Ruben Neves scoring the first with a spectacular free-kick and then assisting Raul Jimenez for a final 80th-minute equaliser.
Richarlison was Everton's hero on Saturday night as he hit two goals on his debut against Wolverhampton Wanderers
But former Watford star Richarlison's debut double was not enough for Everton to take maximum points from their opener
Wolves debutant Raul Jimenez, signed on loan from Benfica for a season, hit a late equaliser for the Premier League new-boys
Set-piece specialist Ruben Neves found the net with a breathtaking free-kick in between Everton's two goals
The free-kick had been awarded just before half time for a foul by Everton captain Phil Jagielka, who was sent off
PLAYER RATINGS, LEAGUE TABLE AND MATCH ZONE Wolves (3-4-3): Rui Patrício 7; Bennett 6.5, Coady 6, Boly 5.5; Doherty 6.5, Moutinho 6.5 (Gibbs-White 85), Neves 8.5, Castro 6 (Vinagre 76); Jota 6, Jimenez 6.5, Costa 5.5 (Bonatini 71, 6) Substitutes unused: Ruddy, Enobakhare, Saiss, Hause Goals: Neves 44, Jimenez 80 Everton (4-2-3-1): Pickford 7; Coleman 6, Jagielka 5.5, Keane 7, Baines 6.5; Schneiderlin 6.5, Gueye 6; Walcott 5.5, Sigurdsson 5.5 (Holgate 43 6), Richarlison 8 (Digne 86); Tosun 7 (Niasse 81) Substitutes unused: Stekelenburg, Davies, Sandro, Calvert-Lewin Goals: Richarlison 17, 67 Booked: Richarlison Sent off: Phil Jagielka Referee: Craig Pawson 6.5 Season at a glance Live tables
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Richarlison touched the ball 53 times and mostly stayed out on the left flank during his 85-minute outing— as his heat map shows See more stats and maps with Sportsmail's brilliant Match Zone.
Though drawing is never fully satisfying, there will be plenty of positives to take out of this one. Everton fought hard with ten men without any of their four deadline day buys featuring.
The last top-flight match Wolves played ended in a 3-2 loss at Wigan. This was definitely an upgrade. It's all very 2018 when Santo's Wolves starting line-up contained five Portuguese players - a Premier League record. One of four debutants, Rui Patricio, even chose to wear the No 11 jersey in goal.
Such changes can offend traditionalists but the truth is the next 90 minutes entertained in the same way that Billy Wright, Derek Dougan, Dixie Dean and Alan Ball would have done in days gone past.
The action began in earnest with the opening goal after 17 minutes which could be dubbed Richarlison's revenge. Reunited with Silva, the 21-year-old Brazilian was aggrieved to receive the game's first booking for a foul on Joao Moutinho and his mood further darkened when he was flattened by Matt Doherty, who wasn't cautioned. After receiving treatment, he got up and delivered the perfect payback from the resulting free-kick.
Leighton Baines swung in the ball from the left and when Michael Keane headed into the ground, Richarlison was quickest to react to prod the rebound home from close range. It was his first goal since November when Silva was still his manager at Vicarage Road.
Richarlison entered ref Craig Pawson's notebook less than a quarter of an hour into his debut as he was shown a yellow card
Brazilian Richarlison protested his innocence but deserved his booking after fouling Wolves midfielder Joao Moutinho
Moments later Richarlison netted his first goal for his new club when he poked home after Wolves failed to clear a free-kick
Richarlison celebrated in front of a group of Wolves supporters who did not appear to be impressed by the 21-year-old
Wolves initially looked pretty but powderpuff in response. Jordan Pickford, England's World Cup goalkeeper, made two decent saves from Joao Moutinho and Helder Costa but it was a dribble into the box by on-loan Mexican Raul Jimenez that lifted the crowd.
With the volume raised, the pace quickened, and it proved too quick for Everton's 35-year-old captain Phil Jagielka.
After taking a poor first touch just outside his own penalty area, he stretched to make amends with a tackle on Diogo Joto. His studs were high and it caught the Wolves player on the ankle who fell to the turf in agony.
Referee Craig Pawson took a moment to assess the situation before giving Jagielka a straight red. You could see why though you also see why Silva was unhappy in the dug-out as Jagielka was making a genuine attempt for the ball and his foot barely high. 'I saw it. It looked a really harsh decision,' was his post-match verdict.
After Silva had been calmed down by the fourth official, he decided to sacrifice Gylfi Sigurdsson in order to send on Mason Holgate to shore up the defence.
But Holgate barely had time to take his position when Wolves levelled with the free-kick. Neves earned a reputation in The Championship last season for scoring spectacular goals and a dozen Pickfords would have struggled to keep out his cracking strike into the top corner from 22 yards. The eruption of noise inside the old gold stadium was fabulous.
The game changed shortly before half time when Everton defender Jagielka brought down Wolves forward Diogo Jota
A bad touch by Jagielka saw him lose the ball and, as he attempted to win it back, he hurt Jota who would have been in on goal
Referee Pawson showed Jagielka a straight red card, leaving Everton to play more than half the game with just 10 players
Former England international Jagielka looked dejected as the central defender walked off the pitch following his dismissal
Everton were punished from the resultant free-kick as Neves curled a stunning shot into the top corner of the visitors' goal
'Ruben has this talent. We asked a lot of him in The Championship and I wasn't worried about him in this league. He has played in the Champions League and was a captain of a big club at 17, that tells you something. But he's still 21, he has a lot to improve on, hasn't he,' said Santo.
Wolves pressed in the second half to make their man-advantage count but credit to Everton, they also showed ambition on their rare forays forward.
Cenk Tosun had been denied by Patricio and Theo Walcott fluffed another good opportunity when Tosun delivered a perfect lay-off to Richarlison.
The youngster took two touches with his left foot to get into the penalty area and then bent a clever finish into the bottom corner from 12 yards to regain Everton's lead.
'The money (transfer fee) is not important for Richarlison. If one club pays the money, it is because of his value in the market,' said Silva. 'Of course it's a fantastic start for him. I don't have doubts about him. With his talent, he can score goals.'
Toffees goalkeeper Jordan Pickford dived high to his left but was unable to prevent the ball flashing past him and into the net
Neves celebrated his first ever Premier League goal by sliding onto his knees and punching the air in the West Midlands
Portuguese midfielder Never was pounced upon by his team-mates as Wolves celebrated their equaliser just before half time
Despite being a man down, Everton came out fighting in the second half and retook the lead as Richarlison scored his second
Richarlison cut inside from the left flank and slotted a fine shot beyond the reach of stretching Wolves stopper Rui Patricio
It would have killed off less spirited teams than Wolves. But Jimenez, a Mexican signed on loan from Benfica, went close when Pickford spread himself well and the home side got their rewards ten minutes from the end.
Not surprisingly, it was the enthralling Neves who played a major part, spinning a cross from the right-hand side onto the head of Jimenez who rose well to power his header past Pickford from six yards.
'It was a tough game. We expected it of course, we were always chasing which requires a lot of energy and we showed a lot of character. There are a lot of positives but at home we can not concede,' said the Wolves manager.
Neves himself was more bullish. 'I think we controlled the game. We deserved a bit more,' he said. These are optimistic days at Molineux. It's the Latin influence.
Everton ace Leighton Baines congratulated Richarlison for scoring his second goal for the Toffees after 67 minutes of play
Richarlison showed off the badge of his new team with a confident celebration after giving Everton a 2-1 lead at Molineux
Wolves rescued a point 10 minutes from time when striker Jimenez headed in at the far post to peg Everton back again
Richarlison scored twice on his Everton debut
We take a look at five killer stats from Saturday’s Premier League fixtures – including Richarlison’s instant impact for Everton.
Richarlison's impact
Richarlison was the hero as 10-man Everton claimed a 2-2 draw against much-fancied Wolves at Molineux. The Brazilian, a £40m signing from Watford in the summer, found the net with his first two shots for Everton having failed to score with any of his last 53 shots as a Watford player.
It was a perfect start after a big-money transfer which raised plenty of eyebrows. Richarlison shone in the first half of last season at Watford but struggled badly after that. The fee seemed high after such a dramatic loss of form, but following a summer off, the 21-year-old looks sharper than ever under his old mentor Marco Silva.
Big win for Sarri
Maurizio Sarri's Chelsea were outclassed in last weekend's Community Shield against Manchester City, but they kicked off their Premier League season with a commanding 3-0 win over Huddersfield. It was the largest margin of victory under a new manager since 2008, when Luiz Felipe Scolari oversaw a 4-0 win over Portsmouth.
N'Golo Kante, new signing Jorginho and Pedro were the scorers at the John Smith's Stadium, with Sarri insisting there is a lot more to come from his side after the game. It seems Chelsea supporters have plenty to be excited about.
Zaha scores again
Wilfried Zaha picked up where he left off last season, putting a summer of transfer speculation behind him and netting his 23rd Premier League goal for Crystal Palace in their 2-0 win over Fulham, making him the club's joint-highest scorer in the competition along with Chris Armstrong.
Brighton's dismal run
Brighton finished last season on a high, beating Manchester United at the Amex Stadium as they clinched survival with two games to spare, but their away form remains a serious cause for concern.
Chris Hughton's side were listless in their 2-0 defeat to Watford, and are now without a win in their last 14 Premier League away games - the longest such run of any side in the division. "We've got a lot of work to do," conceded Hughton afterwards.
Doherty's long wait
Wolves' starting line-up against Everton was dominated by their high-profile signings, but there was still room for long-serving full-back Matt Doherty. It was the second Premier League appearance of the 26-year-old's career but came 2,513 days after his first - as a half-time substitute in a 2-1 defeat to Liverpool in September 2011.
In the history of the Premier League, only two outfield players have had a longer wait for their second appearances. Darren Pratley waited 2,835 days, while Erik Nevland waited 3,667 days. Doherty will be hoping to add to his tally over the course of the campaign.
