Charlie Nicholas wowed by ‘class’ Everton ace
This is an Everton team that under Marco Silva, despite his reputation for offensive excellence, failed to truly click in the final third.
One of the many tasks facing current manager Carlo Ancelotti is fixing the team’s attack, and he’s made a decent fist of it so far.
However, there remains plenty of room for improvement. Much of that improvement could come, though, from talented players finding more consistency.
That’s what Sky Sports pundit Charlie Nicholas believes, while he also thinks the Toffees will draw 1-1 with Newcastle United on Tuesday night.
“I thought Everton were fortunate to get a draw against West Ham – their team does not seem right,” he wrote on the Sky Sports website.
“I am a fan of Bernard, although he does not get through the 90 minutes with consistent class. He is like Joao Moutinho, he has a lovely balance to find the pass but does not do it often enough.
“Anthony Gordon came on and played well on his debut, while Dominic Calvert-Lewin scored again. Carlo Ancelotti is not afraid to make changes, and showed an aggressive side to make those during the game. I am never overly convinced by Everton and for that reason I am going for a draw.”
Is Bernard the main man for Everton?
Nicholas is right, Bernard hasn’t been able to provide consistent quality across a full game for a while now. He’s got huge ability, but he needs to produce it on a regular basis.
If he can get that consistency sorted, which he is undoubtedly capable of doing, he could help this Toffees attack burst into life.
He has more creativity in the big toe of his left foot than the likes of Gylfi Sigurdsson and Theo Walcott have in their whole bodies, so he could be vital down the stretch this campaign.
In other Everton news, a Blues regular looks set to be awarded an international call-up after impressing of late.