Everton striker Salomon Rondon's exit from Goodison Park is 'inevitable' after he couldn't even break into the injury-hit striker ranks, according to journalist Pete O'Rourke.

The Lowdown: Rondon struggling for minutes

The attacker has found himself on the periphery of things under Frank Lampard this season, playing just 95 minutes of Premier League action.

Rondon's current Everton deal expires at the end of the season, so unless he moves on in January, he will be allowed to leave on a free transfer at that point.

There appears to be no future for him at Goodison Park and a new update from O'Rourke suggests it is simply a matter of time until Blues fans can wave goodbye to the Rafael Benitez signing.

The Latest: Blues exit imminent

Speaking to Give Me Sport, the reporter said that Rondon will definitely leave Everton after seeing that he couldn't even earn regular game time when the boss had no other senior strikers to call on:

"Even when they didn’t have [Neal] Maupay and [Dominic] Calvert-Lewin due to injury problems, Rondon still struggled to get a place in the starting line-up, so I think that tells its own story.

"I don’t think he’s in Frank Lampard’s long-term plans, so a parting of the ways seems inevitable."

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The Verdict: Time to move on

A January exit would make sense for all parties, potentially allowing Everton to receive a small fee and giving Rondon the chance to earn regular playing time elsewhere.

At 33 years of age, the 91-cap Venezuela captain is now past his best and he is unable to offer the energy that the likes of Anthony Gordon and Neal Maupay can when Calvert-Lewin is absent.