Why Everton’s Leaky Defence Is The Reason Behind Most Of Their Problems
Everton are enduring a terrible phase in their Premier League season this time. Their performances were drab and did not yield results, which led to Ronald Koeman getting sacked from the job. They are yet to appoint a new manager and David Unsworth is in charge temporarily but their form does not seem like it will improve anytime soon.
At a time when Burnley, Brighton and Newcastle United are playing so well, the Toffees are far from being even average. Sitting at 16th spot with just 12 points so far, Everton are in dire need of doing better to try and salvage the rest of their season.
As of now, their lack of power was understood to be due to the departure of Romelu Lukaku to Manchester United. The prolific Belgian striker was the strength in their attack and ever since he left, Everton have come out on the field with a seemingly blunt attack which is incapable of causing trouble against any team. While the attack is an issue, it seems like the club needs to fix their defence first.
Alarming numbers show that Everton are shipping in too many goals this season and it only appears to be worsening with time. In their last 7 games across all competitions, the Toffees have conceded a minimum of 2 goals.
Crystal Palace 2 – 2 Everton
Everton 3 – 2 Watford
Lyon 3 – 0 Everton
Leicester City 2 – 0 Everton
Chelsea 2 – 1 Everton
Everton 2 – 5 Arsenal
Everton 1 – 2 Lyon
While there is no denying that Wayne Rooney, Nikola Vlasic and Sandro Ramirez have failed to do much Everton up front, the fact remains that the team’s troubles are largely stemming from their leaky defence. Ashley Williams has been at the receiving end of a lot of criticism for his lack of effectiveness at the back. To further illustrate the point, Everton have maintained only one clean sheet so far, which was in the opening day game against Stoke City.
To be fair, Everton have been missing the services of Seamus Coleman. The player suffered a terrible leg break injury which has seen him be sidelined for about 9 months. Michael Keane has failed to come close to replicating his last season’s form and that is one major reason behind Everton’s shortcomings at the back. That said, it is truly astounding for a defence to fall apart so badly due to the absence of one player.
Koeman spent a lot over the summer to bring in new recruits but unfortunately for the club, they have not really worked out. They cannot continue like this and are in desperate need of reinforcements. So perhaps the January window will present them with a chance to land players they truly need.