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Everton U23 PL2 Champions – Which Players Can Get Into Senior Squad?

By Robert Hunter

5 Jan 2002: David Unsworth of Everton celebrates victory after the AXA sponsored FA Cup third round match against Stoke City played at the Britannia Stadium, in Stoke, England. Everton won the match 1-0. DIGITAL IMAGE.\ Mandatory Credit: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
5 Jan 2002: David Unsworth of Everton celebrates victory after the AXA sponsored FA Cup third round match against Stoke City played at the Britannia Stadium, in Stoke, England. Everton won the match 1-0. DIGITAL IMAGE.\ Mandatory Credit: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images /
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When Liverpool U23’s beat Manchester City 3-2, it secured the Everton youth squad as Premier League 2 Champions of 2016/17. Let’s take a look at the standout figures of this season, and guess where the futures of our young champions lie.

Hewelt
Hewelt /

Starting with the goalkeeper and the two centrebacks that have started most of this season, we give them huge credit for making Everton the only team to concede less than 20 goals this season. So far, only Manchester City and Liverpool have conceded less than 30. Hewelt has been pivotal this season, it’s always huge indicator that a goalie will develop when they are earning you points from a young age. Centrebacks Pennington and Feeney formed a great partnership this season, Pennington known for his intelligence and can frequently be seen organising the team defensively on set pieces, while Feeney is very much a no-nonsense defender. I don’t think Feeney or Hewelt will progress into the first team based off what I’ve seen so far, not due to a lack of talent, just because these positions are notoriously hard to break through at Everton. Pennington has already scored at Anfield, and Koeman seems to have taken a shine to him, which isn’t a surprise as he often favours smart players.

Related Story: Koeman's tactics for next season

PL2 Cup
PL2 Cup /

Just as in the senior squad, the Everton U23 fullbacks are features of the squad. Kenny is a natural leader and has captained the England U23 squad, he is sharp and arguably the most dangerous fullback in the PL2. To say Robinson is fast is like saying Ross Kemp is bald. No, Kemp is aggressively bald, and Robinson is an absolute pace merchant. I honestly think both of these players can make it into the senior squad one day, Kenny has already successfully earned a senior assist against Norwich last season, but I’m not as certain about Robinson.

Previous Everton U23 articles by FanSided here and here

A common issue for players as athletic as Robinson, is that they go past players so easily at the youth level, that they never develop the technical side, since it isn’t necessary. Later on this can cause problems when the player lacks finesse, or results in an instant defeat in 1v1’s if the opposition player they face most throughout the game happens to be more athletic than they are (think players like Ibe or Adama Traore). Robinson is skillful and can be dangerous around the opposition box, but there’s still work to be done there.

:p
:p /

Again, just like the senior squad, the U23 midfield has been truly outstanding this season, with too many to mention; the standouts being Walsh, Dowell and Charsley who are all local lads. Walsh is known as the Huyton Iniesta, despite being small he can tackle strongly and is technically gifted, known to run games from the dead centre of the pitch. Charsley has enjoyed his best season yet, after Unsworth took a real shine to him after seeing his work ethic. He’s a unique player with the much coveted ‘eye for goal’.

Dowell was head of the pack of Everton’s top youth players until Davies was favoured by Koeman and truly rose to the test, it could be time for a loan to a lower league team so he can develop from a boy into a man. Dowell’s first touch is beyond silky, it is a blend of satin and lubricant, there are rumours that his first touch is the primary source of baby oil. Seriously though, all of these midfielders have the potential to follow in the footsteps of Davies, and start for the senior team one day. Unsworth has excelled in getting the most from them, and their ceilings are outrageously high.

Little Viking
Little Viking /

We have a good selection of forwards, but apart from Niasse, the standout striker has been Sambou. He is highly composed and dangerous, two qualities that top strikers have. One issue is that he is usually used as a sub, I’m not sure if that is because of inadequate fitness levels or if Unsworth just utilises him as an impact sub, successfully I might add, but some fans are already asking for his call up. I’m unsold personally, he has the potential, but still has a long way to go before he can make it into the Everton senior squad.

The future is bright, the future is blue, the future is filled with applause for David Unsworth.

Up the Ev.

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