Jake O'Brien of Everton during the pre-season friendly match between Stoke City and Everton at Bet365 Stadium on July 28, 2026 in Stoke on Trent, England.
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Jake O'Brien has been an unused sub for Everton since the season kicked off
Jake O'Brien would have been better served biding his time out of position at Everton rather than find himself in career limbo, according to RTÉ soccer analyst Alan Cawley.
Republic of Ireland defender O'Brien has languished on the bench as an unused sub in the Toffees' first three games of the season, including against Preston North End in the Carabao Cup last week.
It has thrown the Corkman's future on the blue half of Merseyside into serious doubt with manager David Moyes appearing to freeze him out for now.
O'Brien spent much of last season playing out of position at right back - to good effect more often than not - rather than his more favoured centre-half berth.
Moyes did not address the 25-year-old's future directly during a press conference on Friday.
But he did appear to make a pointed message in emphasising how German midfielder Merlin Rohl has shown enthusiasm in filling in at right back without questioning the demands of the position.
Speaking on the RTÉ Soccer Podcast, Cawley said there would only be one winner if O'Brien is insistent about the position he hopes to play in at Everton.
"Taking on the manager, he's not going to win basically," he said.
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"You talk about picking your battles, I think he's chosen the wrong one here to be honest with you.
"Whether you're out of position or not, you have two established players ahead of you.
"You've (James) Tarkowski who's the club captain. Now, (Jarrad) Branthwaite is not established in the fact that he's an experienced player but he's a very talented player and he's always going to play.
"So I think with Jake to be playing right full, Premier League level, I think he should have been snapping their hands off.
"And if it was a case of Moyes wanting him to do it again this year, absolutely do it again this year.
"Tarkowski is obviously a little bit older than him as well, so his days will be coming to an end maybe in the next couple of years and Jake may get his chance then and he's still young."
He added: "We don't have too many (Ireland players) playing regular Premier League football. So you had Jake there playing regularly every week, even if he's out of position.
"Wherever the manager wants to play you, once you're playing Premier League, take it and you'll get your chance at some point.
"So I think it was the wrong move on his part and now he's going to suffer for it."
Also speaking on the podcast, former Dundalk striker David McMillan also pondered where O'Brien could go next if he desires to primarily play as a starting centre-back.
"You're probably going to be down at the lower end of the table," he said.
"Everton are such an established club - I know they have diced with relegation on a couple of occasions - but it's such a big club in the Premier League.
"It's a big call to go now and maybe force yourself out of that club. Where do you go basically?
"I'm sure he will have options in the Premier League. But even at (Crystal) Palace, I was looking at them at the weekend and thinking they could be in big bother.
"I don't think he goes to an established club and if he does, he's probably not a regular starter.
"So I would agree with Alan. You put up with playing right back for even another year which is still an unbelievable experience."
Watch two FAI Cup quarter-finals live on RTÉ 2 and RTÉ Player this weekend - St Patrick's Athletic v Bohemians from 3.45pm on Saturday and Derry City v Dundalk from 3.45pm on Sunday