Why Everton have been so impressive so far

 

Dominic Calvert-Lewin found the net again. James Rodriguez continues to create an impact. The players at the back and in the center of the pitch maintaining their consistency - Carlo Ancelotti leaves the pitch as a satisfied man. So far, apart from Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool, the Toffees have been the most entertaining side in the Premier League. After nailing the previous three opponents, they have steamrolled Brighton and Hove Albion with sheer intensity, with which the football fans are familiar with the Reds.

There is no magic behind such brilliant displays, but we all know how influential and a great tactician Ancelotti is as a coach. After signing the likes of James Rodriguez, Doucoure, and Allan; he has worked on putting the right player in the right position, who has been well-drilled to dish out the best performances on the pitch and delivered four wins out of four until now.

Why Everton are playing so well?

Firstly, Ancelotti has organized the midfield with players who would not only guard the players upfront but the backline as well. These players are not fluid in nature but concentrate on keeping it tight. Allan or Davies takes the center of the midfield and drops deep whenever the rest advance forward. This allows the Toffees the services of an extra- defender at the back and ensures freedom for others. The game starts to flow from there.

Secondly, Andre Gomes or Sigurdsson, positioning themselves on the left regularly drops down along with defensive midfielders and allows Doucoure to push upwards on the right. Doucoure’s progress to the right creates the space for Gomes or Sigurdsson to exploit that by pushing the ball forward to either Richarlison or Digne on the left. If Richarlison is not on the left then Digne bombards on the left flank to link-up with the attack so that either Richarlison or Calvert-Lewin could deliver.   

Thirdly, Doucoure’s progress on the right, just behind, Rodriguez, allows him enough freedom to express himself. Doucoure’s aggressive press creates spaces in front of the opposition penalty arena and on the right. Rodriguez, being a left-footed player, relies on bait and switch tactic – it usually helps to pass the ball and take advantage of the spaces in front of the penalty area when the opposition tries to stop him and overload the right flank.

Fourthly, James, shielded by Doucoure, progresses in the spaces and with Richarlison coming close to Calvert-Lewin, boosts the mojo of Calvert-Lewin, who looks even better in tandem with an attacker, takes full advantage and the goals rain.  

Fifthly, when the right flank is overloaded and James and Doucoure experiencing the going tough, Gomes, Sigurdsson or Allan play the ball in between them quickly and exploit the space in front of them by passing the ball to the forwards in the center – Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison.

Sixthly, the horizontal and flexible movements, which allow Everton to switch their positions during the attack and transitions – the formation takes various shapes so quickly that it becomes hard for the opponents to overcome that – 4-3-3 switches to 4-2-3-1 or 4-4-2 or 4-1-4-1. The horizontal and flexible movements have allowed the players to understand each other’s roles so well that they enjoy themselves on the pitch.

Finally, all these factors contribute to scoring opportunities, but in front of the goal decisiveness becomes very important, and Everton have been the most decisive unit when the matter is about scoring goals – Ancelotti has made Calvert-Lewin his hit-man, while the contribution of players like Rodriguez, Richarlison and others give the Toffees the additional advantage.

Everton are in a dreamland right now and it would be interesting to see how they maintain such brilliance in the rest of the season – in the middle and later part of the Premier League demands such a level of consistency.   

Note: This article has been posted at Cricketsoccer on 03/10/2020 Why Everton have been so impressive so far

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Faisal Caesar