Everton fell to yet another defeat at the Hill Dickinson Stadium on Monday, a match in which Tyler Dibling was completely overlooked.
David Moyes opted against turning to his £40m summer signing as Everton chased the game against Manchester United, a telling sign he had little faith in the 20-year-old to help turn the tide.
Even despite the fact Tyler Dibling did not feature in the 1-0 defeat, which makes it seven games without a win at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, us here at Everton News noticed exactly why the England U21 international has struggled on Merseyside.
What would your message to David Moyes be after the loss to United? 😡
He cannot find the answer at the Hill Dickinson…
David Moyes reacts during Burnley vs Everton at Turf Moor.
Credit: Getty Images/Richard Martin-Roberts – CameraSport
David Moyes is not helping anybody with his odd full-back selections, let alone the inexperienced Tyler Dibling
The Glaswegian is being far too negative with team selections, particularly in the full-back department where square pegs are often being shoved into round holes.
The latest choice for the defeat to Manchester United saw a central midfielder in James Garner named at right-back, despite the presence of two natural options on the bench in Nathan Patterson and Seamus Coleman.
Moyes also chose Jarrad Branthwaite at left-back, leaving Vitalii Mykolenko on the bench.
Sofascore shows that Branthwaite failed to complete a dribble and lost possession 16 times, which seemed to directly impact the display of Harrison Armstrong ahead of him – who was unable to complete a dribble or a single cross on a quiet night in which he was starved of service.
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The same happened on the other flank, as the incredibly talented Iliman Ndiaye suffered without a natural right-back supporting him. The Senegal international failed to record a shot or a cross, and was forced to embark on eight dribbles as he tried to make something happen all by himself.
Despite the presence of Patterson and Coleman, a central defender typically plays on the right for Everton in Jake O’Brien, who Garner replaced against Manchester United due to suspension. The Irishman is often guilty of being shy to overlap.
There was even a moment during the recent 1-1 draw at Brighton where Idrissa Gueye flicked his wrist to the right aggressively to order O’Brien to overlap and create some space, showing just how unnatural it is for the Republic of Ireland international to charge up and down the flank.
How any winger, let alone an inexperienced young talent in Dibling, is meant to thrive in this system is beyond us.
Everton need to try and replicate the environment which saw Tyler Dibling thrive
Spending £40m on a player in Dibling who was just 19 at the time – and also coming off the back of his debut season in the Premier League – was a bold move by Everton.
While Dibling himself could do more – as Moyes recently told him in no uncertain terms during a press conference – Everton are not replicating the environment which saw the winger thrive at Southampton.
On the south coast, the £40m man had a dynamic, attack-minded presence playing at right-back behind him in the form of Kyle Walker-Peters, who would often overlap and help take a defender away.
When the England international was not available, Southampton would also sometimes use a 3-4-2-1 formation with Dibling playing as an inverted winger closer to goal.
Moyes did actually test that formation out during the recent 1-1 draw against Leeds and it helped Everton find an equaliser.
How can Tyler Dibling actually turn things around at Everton? 🤷♂️
It's going to need some turnaround from the youngster 😫
David Moyes quote on Everton flop Tyler Dibling
Credit: Getty Images/Alex Livesey
If the 62-year-old can be tactically braver on more occasions like he was when Leeds came to visit, and actually start to select natural options in the full-back positions, Dibling may begin to find his feet at Everton.
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