Football News: Team Review - Everton

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Team Review - Everton

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League Position: 11th

Ins And Outs

Ins:
Demarai Gray from Bayer Leverkusen
Andros Townsend from Crystal Palace
Salomon Rondon from Dalian Professional
Asmir Begovic from Bournemouth
Andy Lonergan from West Bromwich Albion

Outs:
Moise Kean to Juventus (loan)
James Rodriguez to Al-Rayyan
Bernard to Sharjah
Joshua King to Watford
Theo Walcott to Southampton
Niels Nkounkou to Standard Liege (loan)
Yannick Bolasie to Caykur Rizespor
Muhamed Besic released
Beni Baningime to Heart of Midlothian

Goalkeepers:

Jordan Pickford
Asmir Begovic
Andy Lonergan

Pickford has certainly improved his game in the last season or so, certainly in terms of his temperament and losing his tendency to lose his head and make ridiculous errors. However he is still some way off the best keepers in the league, his positional sense is erratic and he lacks reach to make up for it. He is also not the most agile, which is probably down to his physique, though that has also improved due to his more professional lifestyle nowadays (which is also almost certainly why his errors have lessened too). Lonergan is a solid enough 3rd choice, but Begovic is a worry, a short spell as a top class keeper has been followed by an alarming loss of way. If he could return to the level of his Stoke City days, then he would be pushing Pickford aside to be number one, as it is, you would not be confident in him if Everton were forced to field him for an extended period.

Defenders:

Michael Keane
Ben Godfrey
Mason Holgate
Yerry Mina
Jarrad Branthwaite
Lucas Digne
Jonjoe Kenny
Seamus Coleman

Clearly in need of cover at left-back (odd that they allowed one to go out on loan when that is the case) and a replacement for the ageing Coleman on the opposite side, that could become a problem during busy periods. In the centre there have to be worries over the form of Godfrey and Holgate, who both showed promise but now look out of their depth. There is a genuine lack of overall quality in the defence, something which an in-form Godfrey at least goes a long way towards improving. It is certain that the club will need to find a way to generate funds to invest in the defence though if they are to move forward.

Midfielders:

Jean-Philippe Gbamin
Abdoulaye Doucoure
Allan
Andre Gomes
Tom Davies
Fabian Delph
Gylfi Sigurdsson

If everyone was fit and available, there is a solid, workmanlike group in the centre of midfield. But it does lack mobility, other than Doucoure, and creativity with Sigurdsson sidelined indefinitely. It really needs an injection of energy, which will probably have to come from the youth ranks with the lack of funds available to spend due to FFP. With the age of the current midfield, it is probably a good idea to integrate some youth anyway, as otherwise they are an ageing bunch overall.

Forwards:

Alex Iwobi
Demarai Gray
Anthony Gordon
Andros Townsend
Richarlison
Dominic Calvert-Lewin
Salomon Rondon
Cenk Tosun

The injury to Calvert-Lewin has highlighted how desperately they need goalscorers, despite the early success of the two bargain basement signings Gray and Townsend. Iwobi is a player that should be nowhere near the first team and Rondon looks like a player whose best days are long behind him. The bright spot is the emergence of Gordon, who looks like he is good enough to hold down a regular spot in the first team.

Manager: Rafael Benitez

The initial optimism has been dampened down as reality has hit home and the weakness of the Toffees' squad has been exposed by injuries. Added to Rafa's insistence in sticking with Rondon as Calvert-Lewin's replacement, the grumblings from the fans could become a problem due to his Liverpool past if he is not careful. Any kind of poor run will lead to a large section of the Goodison Park crowd turning on him and, if that does happen, it will be hard to come back from.

Conclusion:

If the first eleven are fit, then there is a team there capable of giving anyone a good game, but the squad lacks depth due to poor recruitment in recent years. That poor recruitment has left them struggling to raise funds for the further investment in players that is badly needed. They badly need a crop of youngsters to emerge who can fill the squad places and fix their financial issues. Until those FFP problems are resolved, whether through selling the family silver or just waiting them out, they are a club that is just treading water and hoping for a bit of luck with injuries which will allow them to push for a European place and increased income.

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Written by Tris Burke November 20 2021 00:41:47