Everton have not been shy towards the odd transfer blunder, with plenty of managers following David Moyes having contributed to the financial mess they found themselves in.

Arguably the most infamous of those selected by Farhad Moshiri was Ronald Koeman, who was coming off the back of an impressive spell with Southampton.

The Dutchman was the popular appointment and after leading the Toffees to seventh in his debut season, he was handed a transfer war chest by the Iranian shareholder.

Although he spent £175m on nine new faces during that summer, this was more to supplement the exit of Romelu Lukaku.

Of these incomings, few could have been expected to make up for his contribution.

The Belgian remains the club’s all-time record Premier League goalscorer, having offered a physical presence and a consistent stream of goals despite his side’s fluctuating league position.

Even today they are yet to find a true replacement, but just the summer before his departure they could have signed one for just £16m.

Vincent Aboubakar had long been linked with a move to Goodison Park, with his speed and power being of interest to Koeman, who the striker reportedly was keen to link up with.

That deal unfortunately fell through, and the 94-cap Cameroon international would go on to score 19 goals in the season following across both domestic competition and the Champions League for Besiktas. 

This form would instead earn a consistent place in the side for his parent club Porto, where he took his goalscoring to new heights.

Vincent-Aboubakar-vs-Serbia

26 goals in his return season in Portugal would underpin his career at the club, where he notched 58 times and assisted a further 16 in just 125 appearances.

Despite being 30 years old now the 6-foot star is still producing “monster performances”, as claimed by broadcaster Jacob Winneche, as he continues his form into the international stage once more.

Boasting the captaincy of his nation, he added to his goal tally on Monday with a sensational finish to breathe life into the tie.

Beating the offside trap with intelligence and speed, he had the composure to bypass the scrambling defender with a feint, and then the cheekiness to scoop the ball over the onrushing Serbian shot-stopper.

It was a finish labelled “outrageous” by BBC Sport and outlined everything that Everton had been missing this season.

This goal was merely a microcosm of his sensational cameo display in which he scored, assisted, won four ground duels and was 100% successful in his four dribbles (via Sofascore).

Unsurprisingly, he was gifted a match-best 8.5 rating, as he rescued his country from certain defeat.

With Frank Lampard’s side lacking any real focal point this season, even a 30-year-old Aboubakar now would surely star for them.

This missed transfer in 2016 not only marks a blunder for Koeman, but every manager since has suffered because of it. He could have shone on Merseyside.