View: Who should start at centre-back for Everton?
After 10 matches Everton have the joint-third worst defence in the Premier League, with only West Brom and Fulham having conceded more goals.
Manager Carlo Ancelotti has switched between a back four and three already this season, while he has yet to decide on the best combination of centre-backs he has at the club.
So far this season, Yerry Mina, Mason Holgate, Michael Keane and Ben Godfrey have all played significant roles in the league, but Ancelotti is yet to fully commit to one set up.
Keane has started all 10 of Everton’s league matches so far, but otherwise, the places in defence are very much up for grabs.
Against Leeds United, Ancelotti selected a back three of Keane, Holgate and Godfrey, but they were unable to keep a clean sheet, while the Whites were generally on top. Marcelo Bielsa’s side took 22 shots over the 90 minutes and generated 2.9 expected goals (via FBRef).
Defensive statistics are difficult to draw concrete conclusions from, but there is very little separating the four options at Ancelotti’s disposal when you take them into account. Mina is the most accurate passer, with a 91% completion rate, and registers more blocked shots per game, but he is also the least consistent tackler and makes more fouls per game than any of the other options (via WhoScored).
Godfrey meanwhile makes the most tackles, two per game, but produces the fewest interceptions and has been the most inaccurate passer. He is a young player that remains slightly raw, and that showed up against Leeds for their goal where he was late to notice the danger posed by Raphinha.
Holgate, who is an engaging defender, has produced two tackles, 1.5 offsides and 4.5 clearances per game this season and has been impressive in his two appearances (via WhoScored). However, injuries have held him back and he has only just come back into the team.
Finally, Keane’s passing ability shows up clearly in the statistics, with 73.8 passes per game at an 89.4% completion rate and 4.8 long balls per game. However, he averages just 0.8 tackles and 0.5 blocks per game, highlighting one on ones as a weakness in his game (via WhoScored).
Overall, it is clear that there is no ideal solution for Ancelotti and it is little surprise that he has switched between formations. Mina came out of the side against Leeds and given the relative youth of Holgate and Godfrey, it is worth continuing to invest in their development. What this highlights though it that there is no outstanding presence at the heart of the Toffees defence.
In other Everton news, here are three things we learned from the Toffees’ 1-0 defeat to Leeds United