jordan-pickford-everton
Journalist Greg O’Keeffe has criticised Jordan Pickford for kicking it long during Everton’s win at the weekend while speaking on the All Together Now podcast.
The Lowdown: Goodison Park will be a fortress
It was a highly significant win for Everton last weekend, not just for the three points that they picked up but because of the other results on Saturday, with teams around them also winning.
Everton managed to leapfrog opponents Leeds United and put them into the bottom three in the process as the Toffees recorded their second successive home win and clean sheet under Sean Dyche.
Dyche decided to mix things up on Saturday and afforded Neal Maupay his first start since Frank Lampard was sacked, but he failed to impress with just 29 touches during the game – although the tactics employed didn’t necessarily help his game.
The Latest: Pickford needs to keep his composure
Standing at just 5 foot 8, it will have left many people – perhaps even Maupay himself – baffled as England and Everton No 1 Pickford was pinging long balls to the lone French striker – something that O’Keeffe didn’t understand.
He said: “I just couldn’t believe when Jordan Pickford got the ball and just kicked it long – as he does sometimes early in the game, he’s a bit nervous. He just hit a long ball straight up to Maupay and watching him trying to win a header, against even their [poor] back four, I was just like, ‘really, Jordan? Think about it’.”
The Verdict: Everton must play to their player’s strengths
While picking up two wins from three matches will be ideal for Dyche, he will indeed still be worried by his attacking players, as the two goals that have been scored under him have come from defenders in the form of James Tarkowski and Seamus Coleman.
This worrying form in the final third hasn’t been helped by Dominic Calvert-Lewin picking up yet another injury, with the striker playing just 62 minutes under Dyche, but the former Burnley manager must now look to get the most out of the squad he’s got.
Everton currently have the young and inexperienced Ellis Simms or Maupay, with the latter being a smaller forward – something that Dyche didn’t use all too often during his time at Turf Moor. But he must now adapt his tactics and style of play to get the very best results from the Frenchman as the Toffees continue to fight against the drop.
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