Everton badge and Goodison Park
Everton stadium Goodison Park
Josh Edwards
Tue 3 December 2024 18:40, UK
Michael Ball has claimed that the lack of support Iliman Ndiaye receives on the pitch at Everton is detrimental to his own performances.
Ndiaye has been one of the very few standout performers for the Toffees this season, but hasn’t been able to change the fortunes for Everton.
Sean Dyche’s side have won just twice this campaign and former Toffees man Ball has singled Ndiaye out as someone who needs more help if Everton are to improve.
In his column for the Liverpool Echo (2 December), he said: “[The opposition] know what our threat is – it’s Iliman Ndiaye. So, every time he gets the ball, there are two or three opponents around him and all our other players will stand and watch.
“He needs to improve his final ball, but he’s taken several players on and there’s nobody else helping him. Nobody is getting close to him, doing a one-two, we’re letting him try and do everything himself because nobody else is on the same level.
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“That’s starting to make him look like a poor player because he’s not getting help and is showing frustration. It’s not like he’s Diego Maradona, he can’t do it all by himself.”
Everton need an attacking identity
For too long under the stewardship of Sean Dyche, Everton have looked toothless upfront, simply devoid of ideas and of confidence.
This comes as a surprise when you consider the level of quality they have in their attacking lineup, but it simply isn’t being utilised to its full potential.
As mentioned by Ball, Ndiaye is often required to do it all in the final third and it simply isn’t a feasible way to expect to win games of football – it has to be a team contribution.
While Dyche’s side typically look hard to beat, they aren’t strong enough to hold out against the top teams and with such a lack of attacking intent, results continue to pile pressure on the potential outcome of relegation.
Sean Dyche
Everton manager Sean Dyche [Credit: Imago]
January will be a good opportunity to add attacking quality but simply put, the main focus has to be a plan to utilise the attackers to the best of their ability.
Without that, any additions become largely irrelevant.
In other Everton news, a decision has been made on the future of loanee Jack Harrison.
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