ECHO Everton writers Joe Thomas and Chris Beesley consider how they would address the absence of the suspended centre back
Jake O'Brien reacts to a decision during the Premier League match between Everton and Bournemouth at Hill Dickinson Stadium. Photo by Lee Parker - CameraSport via Getty Images
Jake O'Brien reacts to a decision during the Premier League match between Everton and Bournemouth at Hill Dickinson Stadium. Photo by Lee Parker - CameraSport via Getty Images
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Jake O’Brien’s red card against Bournemouth means David Moyes will have to adjust his defence for the visit of Manchester United next week.
The 24-year-old was sent off as Everton’s night crumbled against the Cherries, who had come from behind to lead after two goals in four second half minutes at Hill Dickinson Stadium.
A miserable eight minutes was then compounded when O’Brien brought down Amine Adli as the attacker threatened to run through on goal. The consequence is the centre back will be unavailable to Moyes on Monday night. Here, the ECHO’s Everton writers consider how they would set up in his absence.
Joe Thomas
The answer, for me, is straightforward: All roads lead to Nathan Patterson. Followers of our coverage and the Royal Blue podcast will know I believe Patterson was unfortunate to lose his place after a series of positive displays when needed in January and I stand by that view.
O’Brien was excellent when playing out of position at right back last season and deserves credit for his application to what was an alien role to him.
He is a centre back, though, and was unlucky to have lost his place in that role - though the return of Jarrad Branthwaite is a real positive for Everton’s season. O’Brien’s return to right back was a risk that did not pay off and that his immense stature - one of the benefits of his inclusion - has not prevented Everton from being vulnerable at set pieces is another reason to revert to Patterson.
I can understand an argument that states Patterson is not the long-term solution to Everton’s right back issue but that his presence helped the team look so much more balanced is further evidence that a specialist right back is desperately needed.
With James Tarkowski, Michael Keane and Branthwaite all available, the only debate is whether to play three centre backs and deploy Patterson and Vitalii Mykolenko as wing backs. This would make use of Everton’s depth at centre back and offer protection for Patterson and Mykolenko. But I would be worried about my wide attacking threat coming from those two defenders and think it would be a waste of the talent Everton do possess out wide - specifically through Iliman Ndiaye but also in Tyrique George and Tyler Dibling (who I want to see get more opportunities).
There is the option to play Seamus Coleman - whose only Premier League start came at Old Trafford and ended after barely 10 minutes - but I think his minutes are being protected considering his injury issues and the importance of Republic of Ireland’s World Cup qualifiers next month.
Chris Beesley
I’m going to go against Joe, Michael Ball and even Everton legend Peter Reid here, but I think there is a case to be made for deploying James Garner at right-back against Manchester United. Normally, I’d be pushing for Garner – who has been one of the Blues’ standout performers this season, going up a couple of levels and fully deserving of his new contract on improved terms – to stay in his preferred central midfield role.
He’s been imperious at times in the engine room this term and would regularly run the show while Idrissa Gueye was away with Senegal en route to winning the Africa Cup of Nations, alongside club colleague Iliman Ndiaye. However, since Gueye’s return, neither of them have quite hit the heights.
Seamus Coleman is Everton’s best right-back of the modern era, but while he’s an inspirational leader and Frank Lampard – a serial winner as a player with Chelsea – went as far as declaring him to be the best man he’d ever met while Blues boss, the Republic of Ireland international’s body just doesn’t seem up to the rigours of regular Premier League football anymore now that he is 37 years of age. We saw that both in Everton’s historic final game at Goodison Park against Southampton and the reverse fixture to next Monday’s clash at Old Trafford – Coleman’s only Premier League start this season – when he was forced off early twice through injury.
To be fair to Nathan Patterson, he’s done ok when he’s been called upon and hasn’t let anybody down, but he’s been largely overlooked by two successive managers now who have preferred to select natural centre-backs ahead of him at right-back and has Moyes admitted recently, the club have been searching – albeit unsuccessfully – for a replacement for some time. Switching Garner to right-back, where he can do an admirable job (he was even competent at left-back and was playing in that role when he scored against Brighton & Hove Albion in Hill Dickinson Stadium’s first competitive game) would enable the Blues to stick in another of their promising young midfielders who are champing at the bit.
After being picked for the previous six games in a row, there was no place in Moyes’ starting line-up for Harrison Armstrong against Bournemouth, while Merlin Rohl hasn’t featured since producing what was arguably his best performance in an Everton shirt to date at Aston Villa.
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