Oumar Niasse has sent a heartfelt message to Everton after ending his four-year stay with the Toffees and donated part of his final week’s wages to a Liverpool charity.
The forward joined the Goodison Park outfit from Russian club Lokomotiv Moscow for a fee of £13.5 million in February 2016.
The Senegal international made his debut against Bournemouth on February 20, replacing Belgium international Romelu Lukaku.
The striker made 35 Premier League appearances for the Toffees and scored eight goals before his departure from the side.
The 30-year-old also had short loan stints with Championship sides Hull City and Cardiff City during his time with the Merseyside outfit.
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Niasse, who is now a free agent, has appreciated the Toffees and former manager Roberto Martinez for giving a chance to feature in the English top division.
“I would like to take this opportunity to thank Everton FC for giving me the opportunity to compete in the English Premier League,” Niasse told Echo.
"In particular a special thank you to Mr Roberto Martinez and the Everton Board for making this possible.
“Although my circumstances were public and personally challenging, I leave Everton FC with a record of a goal every three games of playing time for the club.
"And I will always incentivise any young black athlete to come to England and perform at the highest level, no matter the difficulties, no matter the challenges.
"The Everton backroom staff, the fans and the North West of England welcomed me with open arms and I can only say again, thank you.
“Finally, I have decided to donate a percentage of my final week’s salary to the St Andrew’s Community Network who operate the North Liverpool Foodbank.
"They are doing extraordinary work in very challenging circumstances and they are a reminder that together we can all contribute and play an active and positive role in society.
"I now look forward to my next challenge in football.”
Niasse started playing professional football with US Ouakam in his home country club and then joined Turkish Super Lig side Akhisar Belediyespor before signing for Lokomotiv Moscow in 2014.
