Everton players to step up part 2

Continuing my run down on those Everton players who I believe need to step up when the Premier League season resumes, we look at three more squad members who face a make or break few months.

We’ve looked at those Everton defenders who need to prove to manager Carlo Ancelotti that they can play a positive role in his rebuilding project, so lets move on to the midfield and forwards.

4. Theo Walcott

Walcott is a player who has become to some extent a forgotten individual at Goodison Park. The ex-Arsenal and England forward has struggled to make any consistent impact since his January 2018 transfer to Everton.

He was signed by Sam Allardyce during his temporary interregnum as Toffees boss when the ex-Bolton and England manager was searching for affordable goal-scoring options.

Walcott had flattered to deceive for years at the Emirates, and despite his obvious talent, had been unable to deliver the performances and goals that he should have done. That trend has continued since his move to Goodison Park two and half years ago.

Perhaps to some extent Walcott’s problems stemmed from his being a very young and highly regarded talent who was thrust into the spotlight quickly and suddenly as a teenager.

He was picked for the England squad for the 2006 World Cup at the tender age of 16, although he didn’t get any game time in that tournament.

His move to Arsenal from Southampton seemed a perfect chance for Walcott to deliver on that promise under the astute tutelage of Arsene Wenger.

While there were fleeting moments when he produced some great games, too often he proved a frustrating figure, failing to sustain those occasional performances with any consistency.

He never seemed to be able to find a settled position in the Arsenal team, playing as a winger or a striker, but being unable to deliver enough in either position to cement a guaranteed starting place. As a result his Arsenal career stalled.

Since joining Everton, Walcott has also very rarely produced any kind of major impact or consistent performances. Too often he has been virtually anonymous in many games.

Usually he has played wide on the right, but Ancelotti and the club top brass have made no secret of the fact that this is an area of the team they are looking to strengthen urgently. A succession of players are being linked with the Blues in this position.

So is there a chance for Walcott to still carve out a career at Goodison Park?

I think it’s unlikely that he will have a future going forward, unless he really steps it up massively when the season resumes, which seems very unlikely. I would expect him to be sold or sent out on loan this summer with a view to  a permanent transfer longer-term.

5. Alex Iwobi

Next we look at a former Gunners team mate of Walcott’s; Alex Iwobi. Like Walcott, Iwobi was a promising young talent who has found it difficult to translate teenage potential into regular, quality performances at the Emirates.

He joined Everton on deadline day last summer, as the Blues searched for last minute attacking reinforcements after supposedly failing to secure Wilfried Zaha in a long-running blockbusting transfer saga that rumbled on for days.

Whether or not the Toffees really were in the market for the Crystal Palace winger, the move for Iwobi smacked of more than a little desperation and the price tag was absurdly inflated.

Iwobi has, like Walcott, failed to deliver since his move to Everton, and he has also been often anonymous in games and wildly inconsistent.

He is a player that then manager Marco Silva didn’t seem to be overly keen on adding to his squad. And in fact his arrival might have disrupted a newly established left-sided partnership that was developing quite well between Lucas Digne and Bernard.

Iwobi is a powerful, direct player who can carry the ball well, but again despite flashes here and there of his ability, he hasn’t produced very much since his move to the Blues. He’s mainly played centrally and on the left without ever convincing he’s the complete answer in either position.

Unlike Walcott though, I think that Iwobi might still have a future at Everton. He does have real talent and could play a role providing some of that energy and much-needed creativity in the Toffees midfield.

However, he needs to nail down a starting place through consistent, quality performances when the season resumes as the Toffees have also been linked with moves for players like Hirving Lozano, who would take his likely place on the left hand side.

6. Moise Kean

The final player I wanted to look at is Moise Kean. The young Italian striker has struggled badly since his high-profile move from Juventus last summer.

Kean has had a difficult transition trying to adapt to a new country and league. Again, as with Iwobi, it seemed as though Silva wasn’t that impressed with his new striker and was very reluctant to give him any game time, despite Everton’s struggles in front of goal.

Yes he is young and raw, but having paid almost £30 million for the player, it was a little frustrating that we hardly got to see anything of him for the most of the first half of the season.

Kean had some well-publicised disciplinary issues, (which have continued recently), and this surely contributed to Silva’s lack of faith in the teenage striker.

When Carlo Ancelotti took over, there was a feeling that Kean might get more of a chance under his fellow countryman.

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While he did get more opportunities under Ancelotti, they have also been limited and Kean hasn’t exactly grabbed his chance with both hands, only scoring one goal for Everton.

As with other players in this group like for example Djibril Sidibe, the Blues face a difficult decision whether to keep hold of the player or cut their losses.

I think on balance Kean is worth holding onto, at least for another season.

Given how much the Toffees paid for him, the huge uncertainty in the transfer market and his own poor form, it would be very difficult to get anything close to that price tag if the club tried to sell. Maybe a loan back to Italy might be a possibility to help him regain his confidence.

If the Italian forward wants a future at Goodison Park and stays, he must show more self-discipline and commitment to the cause, and he obviously needs a few goals before this season finishes. That’s assuming of course he gets a chance to do so!