Carlo Ancelotti must bite the bullet and urge Marcel Brands to cash in on Bernard in the January transfer market with the Everton outcast bleeding Farhad Moshiri dry.

What’s the word?

Bernard joined the Toffees as a free agent in 2018 when signed by Marco Silva following his release by Shakhtar Donetsk, with the Portuguese coach playing a key role in convincing the Brazilian of a move to Goodison Park.

Silva’s presentation of life on the blue half of Stanley Park made Bernard feel comfortable with putting pen to paper on a £120,000-per-week contract, that makes the 28-year-old the joint-highest earner at Goodison Park alongside former FC Barcelona defender Yerry Mina.

Silva, for his part, was delighted to have secured Bernard’s signature late in the summer market, noting how the midfielder was “very good technically” and how he would bring a versatile offensive threat with Champions League experience in behind striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

Everton fans have rarely seen that threat return results in person with Bernard penning just four goals and five assists in 46 games under Silva, before striking a mere three goals and recording two assists in 23 appearances following Ancelotti’s arrival at the helm last year.

With his vastly lucrative contract bleeding majority owner Moshiri dry week after week, the Blues supremo and Ancelotti must urge Brands to find Bernard a new home in January after snubbing a potential deal with AS Roma this summer, despite the playmaker and his agent striving to secure a move.

Time to go

Bernard has been named in each of the Toffees’ 14 squads so far this season across all competitions, yet Saturday’s draw with Premier League relegation-threatened Burnley once again saw Ancelotti opt against introducing the Brazilian at any stage.

The Italian tactician has only felt fit to field the 28-year-old in six fixtures to date, whilst starting the former Shakhtar Donetsk playmaker just once in the top-flight and in two of his side’s EFL Cup ties.

Bernard’s starts in the Carabao Cup were each against lower-tier opposition in League Two side Salford City and League One outfit Fleetwood Town before he fell back to the bench when Everton hosted and beat top-flight rivals West Ham United 4-1 in the Fourth Round.

Ancelotti may not have fielded the 14-cap Brazil maestro in his initial line-up against Manchester United last month, too, were it not for Richarlison’s suspension, with even netting the opening goal against the Red Devils proving insufficient to see Bernard feature at any stage next time out at Fulham.

Gylfi Sigurdsson and Cenk Tosun being called on at Turf Moor on Saturday must now serve as the final straw in deciding Bernard’s Goodison Park future, as Ancelotti clearly does not have confidence in the £13.5m-rated man’s ability to inject a creative spark when needed.

AND in other news, Everton’s “magnificent find” has every right to fume with Carlo Ancelotti.