Former Blues defender Michael Ball weighs up the best way for David Moyes to spend the latest international break
Tyler Dibling of England U21s runs with the ball during the win over Moldova. Photo by Vasile Mihai-Antonio - The FA/The FA via Getty Images
Tyler Dibling of England U21s runs with the ball during the win over Moldova. Photo by Vasile Mihai-Antonio - The FA/The FA via Getty Images
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The international breaks keep coming this season - and we still have another one next month too. The interruptions to the domestic calendar often feel like a nuisance to supporters and I completely understand why - the September one certainly felt like it killed some early season momentum for Everton after that great start.
Not everyone feels that way in the game, though. Depending on how you view things, there are positives to take from the stoppages in the Premier League season. I think David Moyes can take that position. While we had that incredible end to the latest run of fixtures with that stoppage time winner from Jack Grealish against Crystal Palace, there was a bit of frustration around parts of the last segment of matches.
What this break does do is provide some players with the chance to rest and recuperate - crucial for the likes of Michael Keane, Jarrad Branthwaite and Merlin Rohl as they address their knocks - and others with the opportunity for useful minutes - including Tyler Dibling and Seamus Coleman.
It also provides Moyes with a chance to stop and assess his options heading into the next set of matches. We have four games before the November international break and I am hoping Moyes learns from what happened when the league resumed after the September one.
Everton had started the season so well that the first break came at a frustrating time. The players had delivered a big win in the first ever competitive game at Hill Dickinson Stadium and then produced that sensational attacking display at Wolves. I think that raised my expectations more than was perhaps fair given the amount of change running through the dressing room - a transition that is still ongoing.
But I do think Everton responded slowly when they returned to action. The five games since ended positively with the win over Palace, and the draws with Aston Villa and West Ham United mean the unbeaten run at the new stadium remains intact. Yet I left almost every match in that period with a sense of ‘what if’.
Against Villa, Everton were the better side. At Anfield the second half push for an equaliser highlighted how costly the first 30 minutes had been. The Carabao Cup defeat at Wolves was really disappointing while the draw with West Ham felt like both a missed opportunity and a lucky escape.
That Everton ended that run with another important comeback win over Palace has made this latest break far easier to handle - it is so nice to see the Blues still sitting in the top half of the table.
I know Moyes will take nothing for granted but I do hope he is giving thought over how to ensure the ‘oomph’ that was lost in the first break does not go missing again. Ensuring that will be tough, the upcoming fixtures are challenging.
They do represent an opportunity too, however. Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur will be good match-ups against which we can get an idea about just where this Everton is at. The trip to the Etihad at the weekend will also give the team a chance to show they are not a one-man show.
Jack Grealish has been excellent in Royal Blue but the terms of his loan deal mean Moyes will be without the playmaker as he returns to his parent club. Can others step up in his place? I would like to see Iliman Ndiaye given a shot on the left wing - the position he scored from as Everton earned a solid point in this fixture last season.
That would give me another chance to look at Tyler Dibling on the right. He was handed his first league start with Everton last time out and while it was not his best performance, the pressure of that milestone has now gone. I thought he looked good in England Under-21s’ 4-0 win in Moldova - now would be a great time to bring that sass to an Everton performance.