Everton once again were deployed in a three man defence.
Defence:
Ben Godfrey – 6
Ben Godfrey made a goal line clearance save in the first half and seemed to be a bit more settled than last week. The 22 year old may be upset with himself for not being able to close down on Raphinha’s shot that eventually lead to a goal. Nonetheless, he was one of the better performers in the defence line. Ancelotti is likely to stick with Godfrey in a three man defence. There were spells where he looked confident on the ball and made some solid tackles and defending but there were also spells where he was caught out and made errors.
Michael Keane – 5
Clearly had a bland game. Obviously, not a notable game for him with the Englishman losing the ball and making a couple of mistakes when pressurized by the Leeds attack. Keane has been in the team for every game that Everton have played this season and has somewhat become the mainstay in the defence. However, his displays seem to be dropping lately and with a tightly scheduled December coming, Keane needs to be rested so that he can recharge his batteries.
Mason Holgate – 4.5
Mason Holgate, for some reason, still looks out of touch and not completely recovered. Even if he is physically fit, he lacks the astuteness that is required in the games. The best solution to regain that lost touch is to play a string of games and put up formidable performances and all Everton fans are hopeful that the young defender can achieve last season’s levels.
Holgate was probably the worst defender for the Merseysiders yesterday and was rightly taken off after the goal. Nonetheless, Holgate will be proud for wearing the captain’s armband but dejected that his individual performance wasn’t up to the mark.