05/10/2023
So there we were on Saturday, 2-1 down at half-time to Luton. We had controlled the midfield, we had missed chances and had conceded two sloppy goals.
The good news was, after the VAR tried to find a reason to disallow our goal, it had been given so the momentum was back with us. So keep the good work going, keep pressing and a second goal will come.
Enter, self-professed “I’ve been in this game all my life” Dyche. He took Gueye off who was playing his usual game and getting slagged off as usual for his passing, but as usual it turns out, according to the stats, that in fact he was our most reliable passer.
Dyche puts his faith in Onana, he played well against Villa reserves in the week, this is his time, we are up against it but he will now show us what he can do. The outcome was the only one it could be. He did nothing, we did nothing, zero, the game ended at half-time. The guy who ‘has been in this game all my life’ masterminded a total surrender of the game by taking off a crucial member of the midfield.
For good measure Dyche also bought into the recent bandwagon of playing Beto with DCL together, failing to realise that if your midfield is too weak to get attacks going and the forwards receive no service it won’t work. Our other midfield engine who is one of our best assets for a goal was taken off for Beto. And of course the one chance we did get Beto didn’t put away.
I want to say at this point. This is no attack on James Garner. He is our best orthodox centre midfielder and should be one of the first names on the team sheet.
Back to Onana, the new no.6. He hardly ever tackles, he has no engine, he does not cover the ground, he does not pick up the runners. He drifts about, treats the ball like it’s a hot potato with his sideways or backwards 4-yard passes and creates a massive hole in the midfield. But some people including Dyche now think Onana is the answer to our problems. It is the latest insanity.
And it is insanity. We have a Derby looming and we are toying with the idea of playing someone who is no more of a No 6 than I am. But at least I know what a number 6 should be doing.
We do have a no.6 who wins the ball, constantly hassles opponents (he will make opposing players rush their pass so they lose possession), covers a lot of ground, never stops working, does have an engine, but is totally unappreciated by some supporters and now presumably Dyche. He clearly needs the right person next to him so he can get on with doing his job properly.
I have been watching Everton all my life and I know what a No. 6 should be doing. Yes there is a mistake in Gueye but let’s clear a few things up.
The team is struggling so we are always up against it and because of this the odd mistake will happen, it is bound to happen. Gueye does not hide. If you hide you can avoid making mistakes but Gueye gets in there and does his best. The modern high press is designed to force an error from an opponent. It is not just Gueye who has been caught in possesion.
But the biggest point is that without Gueye we would be in a bigger mess and Saturday proved it once again.
Some people love stats. So I am going to mention one simple and obvious fact:
Brighton 1 – 5 Everton – midfield consisting of Gueye, Garner and Doucouré.
Everton’s fate was almost sealed last season when they went to in-form Brighton and against the odds shocked the Premier League.
Onana was only just back from injury so Dychye stayed with the midfield that had done well away to Palace and Leicester and Everton showed what they could do with the right balance.
Gueye was excellent with Garner, Doucoure was terrific with the excellent Calvert-Lewin up front, capped off by a great performance by McNeil. Freed from the inconsistencies of Onana the team put in a perfect performance. Once the game was won, Onana came on and played in McNeil for the 5th. It all worked perfectly. If you set things up right, this is what happens. If you set things up wrong, it is uncanny how it all works against you.
So why the hell is ‘I’ve been in this game all my life’ Dyche not referring back to this? This season only against Brentford when Onana went off injured have we seen Garner and Gueye together. We finally looked comfortable in that game and put that game to bed. Wouldn’t you think Dyche would go back to the winning formula instead of trying something new.
Dyche says Everton’s inconsistency drives him mad. Well, let me tell you, Mr Dyche, you drive me mad. You have a winning formula so use it and stick with it.
With Harrison instead of Iwobi, we can now go with the Brighton set up so why would anyone toy with new ideas of Onana at number 6, Beto & Calvert-Lewin up top together. Just go with the common sense obvious and simple, the tried and trusted and barring injuries and suspensions stick with it.
Some kind of madness came over Everton years ago. I remember some Evertonians suddenly having a go at Arteta (one of the reasons he left early), Barry and McCarthy were terrible sideways passers, Jagielka, Baines and Coleman were finished (years before they were and, in Colemans’ case, still not), some of our best homegrown talent always getting slagged off, cries for a clear out (lost count how many we have had since Koeman) and it has led us to here.
Now we have people slagging off Gueye. He is not just important to the team he is essential. He was one of our unsung heroes last season. In that last game against Bournemouth he was still there putting in a challenge in the last seconds of the game, ensuring our safety. Last person appropriately to touch the ball and I for one would like to thank him for all his effort in very difficult circumstances.
Can we now just drop the madness, do the sensible simple and obvious things. We do have a decent first eleven that we can field right now so please please please Mr Dyche don’t make things hard for yourself and the team just do the simple and obvious thing. The near as damn it Brighton XI:
Pickford, Patterson (or Young or Coleman), Branthwaite, Tarkowski, Mykolenko, Harrison (or Danjuma), Gueye, Garner, Doucoure, McNeil, Calvert-Lewin.
Onana and Beto on bench.
Is it too much to ask for sensible simplicity?
Garner must start in centre midfield every game and Gueye must start with Garner, not Onana!
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