View: Michael Keane is the defender Everton hoped John Stones would become
Michael Keane proved his worth to Everton against Wolves on Tuesday night with a masterclass of a performance.
The England international was impressive at both ends of the pitch and his performance at Molineux was indicative of the form that he is currently in.
While he stole the headlines for his late match-winning goal, Keane’s all-round performance for the Toffees was excellent.
During his last six Premier League outings, he has only recorded one average match rating lower than a 7.07, which shows you the kind of form he is in [WhoScored].
There have previously been doubts about Keane and his potential – back in 2019, he was heavily linked with a move away from the club.
He told the Daily Star that he was trying to play it down as much as he could to try and focus on his game, while he has often been a defender who has divided opinions among supporters.
However, he is now realising his true potential under Carlo Ancelotti and is rising above and beyond the defender that Everton hoped that they would get in the form of John Stones.
There were huge hopes for the now-Man City man when he rose to prominence at Goodison Park, but like Keane previously, he was a player that divided opinions with Roberto Martinez failing to consistently get the best out of him.
Supporters will remember the famous picture of Stones urging fans to calm down when he is on the ball during a Premier League match against Tottenham, while Roberto Martinez did little to help Stones’ long-term development towards the end of his time at the club.
However, in Keane, Everton have a defender who has found the perfect balance of ability on the ball and defensive solidity in a way that Stones never could at Goodison.
As per Wyscout, he boasted an incredible 98 per cent pass accuracy against Wolves and they were not simply sideways passes either.
He completed 12 of 13 long passes and all 12 of his passes into the final third. A look below at his pass map against Wolves shows just how impressive and dangerous he was on the ball.
When you take a closer look at his overall passing map, while it can look a little confusing, it highlights how important Keane is in starting attacking plays for Everton.
As we see below, there was a clear focus from Keane to get the ball out to wide areas quickly, to allow the likes of Alex Iwobi and Lucas Digne to cause havoc in the final third.
While he was brilliant on the ball, and of course scored the winning goal, he was just as imperious defensively too.
As per Wyscout, he made seven interceptions on Tuesday night, seven clearances and he also gave the ball away just six times, which is less than what he has averaged in the Premier League this season.
Consistency at the back is something Everton simply have not had in years gone by, be that through players like Stones leaving or Keane’s current partner Yerry Mina suffering a torrid run of injuries.
However, the quality of the likes of Keane and Mina this season, both offensively and defensively is giving Everton a solid foundation to push for European football.
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