He left Goodison Park on a permanent deal back in 2019. In recent seasons, Everton have struggled massively in the Premier League, with the Toffees having issues on and off the field since the 2021/22 campaign.The club have narrowly avoided relegation during the last two seasons, with Sean Dyche’s side once again facing the prospect of an end-of-season relegation battle. Despite lingering perilously close to the drop zone, the Toffees have been much improved during this campaign. However, the club are 16th, just four points clear of Luton Town after receiving a points deduction for breaking FFP rules. Dyche’s side had their deduction reduced from ten points to six last month, with the club occupying 14th place had they not received any punishment. His side have done well considering all the noise surrounding the FFP troubles, but the club might’ve been even better off had they kept one player who left the club as a youngster in 2019. Having joined the club as an 11-year-old, left-back Antonee Robinson came through Everton’s academy with the United States international spending 11 years at Goodison Park. The defender often featured for the club’s U21 side after he signed his first professional deal with the Toffees. However, he suffered multiple setbacks with numerous injury problems which saw him fail to break into the club’s first team.
Robinson eventually received his first chance in professional football, joining Bolton Wanderers for the 2017/18 campaign, where he featured 30 times for the club as the Trotters narrowly avoided relegation back to League One. His successful spell at Bolton saw Robinson secure another Championship loan move to Wigan Athletic, with the left-back impressing once more during his 26 starts for the club. He quickly established himself as a key player for the Latics, with Wigan deciding to make the move to the DW Stadium permanent for an undisclosed fee – ending his 11-year stint at Goodison and failing to make a single first-team appearance.His permanent move away from Everton saw Robinson take his career to the next level, with the left-back very close to another move to a European giant. Robinson’s form at the DW saw Italian side AC Milan agreeing a deal worth £10m for the defender, but the move fell through after the club discovered the left-back had a heart rhythm irregularity, which saw the deal collapse. He subsequently joined Fulham in 2020/21 after Wigan’s relegation, with the Milton Keynes-born talent arriving at Craven Cottage for just £2m – an absolute bargain given his recent achievements.Robinson has since made 141 appearances for Fulham, under boss Marco Silva – joining up with the manager who sold the “electric” defender – as described by writer Alexandre Gangue-Ruzic – from Everton just five years ago. With seven assists to his name in all competitions this season, the 26-year-old has also been linked with a move to join champions Manchester City over the past 12 months or so, further emphasising his impressive recent rise since departing Goodison. That ascension can now be seen by the fact that according to CIES Football Observatory, Robinson is now worth in the region of €20m (£17m), a figure that places him ahead of a host of Toffees stars, including a certain Dominic Calvert-Lewin – who is valued at just €10m (£9m) Wondering where your most loved or hated players are now? Football FanCast’s Where Are They Now series is here to help. While that may speak more to the decline of Calvert-Lewin – who at one stage was touted for an £80m move away from the club – it does represent what a potentially key asset Robinson could have been had he been allowed to flourish on Merseyside. Instead, it is the man who allowed him to depart – Silva – who is reaping the rewards of his fine form at Craven Cottage.
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