This week, Everton announced three headline-making signings. The acquisition of James Rodriguez, Doucoure, and Allan has added strong favor into the Merseyside side’s midfield. During the last few seasons, Everton had been investing big money in the transfer market. Yet the Blues found themselves hardly making the top half of the table. With Carlo Ancelotti as the head coach and a more balanced squad, Everton might finally fulfill their ambition of becoming one of the top sides in the league.
Carlo Ancelotti’s 4-4-2
Ancelotti is a firm believer in the 4-4-2 formation. Before Everton, the Italian coach proved the efficacy of his 4-4-2 formations at multiple clubs, including Real Madrid and FC Bayern. When Ancelotti was at Real Madrid, James Rodriguez was already the key player in his tactics. Real Madrid’s strong midfield, with Toni Kroos and Luka Modric providing support from deep, allowed James to have a lot of freedom. On the other hand, Ronaldo and Benzema’s presence attracted most of the attention from opposing defenders, giving James space to show his strength of delivering through passes and long shots. Unlike Isco, James is never a player who can dribble in small spaces. Ancelotti’s formation allowed James to avoid such scenarios. As a result, Ronaldo and Benzema were able to receive strong support from the Colombian while Gareth Bale on the other sideline could use his speed to run behind the opposing backline.
Moving the System to Everton
Given the success of the 4-4-2 system at Real Madrid, Ancelotti wants to replicate the system at Everton. The Italian coach gained some success in his experiments last season. The high mobility and explosive impact of Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin highly resonate with the functions of Ronaldo and Benzema. Yet some key factors were missing. After Idrissa Gueye left for PSG, Everton was not able to find a player to fill his position. Jean-Philippe Gbamin was expected to take responsibility. Unfortunately, the former Bundesliga midfielder spent most of his time in the treating room last season. As a result, Gylfi Sigurðsson was forced to drop deep to play alongside Andre Gomes. The two are never considered all-around midfielders. Their strengths can only be shown when they play near the third. Dropping deep did not only limit their opportunities to show their attacking flair but also exposed their weakness in covering the midfield. As a result, the front two never received enough support while the backline was exposed to opposing attacks without sufficient protection from the midfield.
Luckily for Ancelotti, the new signings are perfect for solving the problem in the midfield. Allan and Doucoure are both brilliant box-to-box players who can cover a lot of grounds on the pitch. They can build a moving wall in front of the backline, providing more security to Everton’s defense. Allan showed his ability to deliver long passes and powerful shots from range at Napoli. Doucoure is an all-around midfielder with defensive covering and the ability to carry the ball past the midfield, which reminds me of Yaya Toure at Manchester City. With the protection of the two, Everton’s midfield jumps to a well-balanced level that teams like Arsenal and Tottenham would envy. Moreover, James Rodriguez will find himself in a familiar position where he has a lot of freedom to deliver accurate passes to the front two. We might see him returning to his prime in Everton’s completely reforged midfield.
More Problems to Solve
Although the problem of midfield is highly likely solved, there is still something that Everton needs to figure out before the new season starts. First of all, Ancelotti needs to decide how to use Gylfi Sigurðsson and Andre Gomes. Gylfi Sigurðsson did not have an enjoyable season under Ancelotti. The Icelandic midfielder might have to enter the rotational sheet for the new season as James will take a starting position. As for Andre Gomes, the situation might be better as Ancelotti needs him to carry out transitions in the midfield. It’s up to Ancelotti to decide how to use these two players. Should he decides to adopt a diamond shape midfield, then Sigurðsson might regain his starting position. Anyways, it will be a shame if a player like Gylfi Sigurðsson has to sit on the bench. Oh, I have not even mentioned Tom Davies.
How about wingers? It costs Everton 40 million pounds to acquire Alex Iwobi from Arsenal. Yet the Nigerian was the largest disappointment in last season. As for Theo Walcott and Bernard, “average” is the best word to be used on them. If Everton wants to ensure a top 7 spot, Wilfried Zaha is a good choice. However, Crystal Palace seems reluctant to let their star go. Everton might need to spend over 60 million pounds for the winger from Ivory Coast.
Everton’s backline needs some fixing, too. Michael Keane’s performance last season was less than satisfying, while Mason Holgate is still too young to be trusted with a leading role. Yerry Mina suffered from inconsistency. Lucas Digne is the only stable figure in the backline. Not to mention Coleman’s form has been declining, which means a right-back is urgently needed to fill up his position.
Conclusion
Despite the problems mentioned above, Everton’s squad is good enough to be viewed as a top 7 contender for the next season. The team’s midfield already matches the top teams in the league. If Everton can acquire more signings to fix some of the problems before the transfer window closes, the team might give us a bigger surprise in the next season. As for now, it looks like a UEFA Europa League spot for the Blues.
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