Don Hutchinson delivers verdict on Everton goalkeeper situation after draw v United
Everton took a point away from Old Trafford but despite the positives, former player Don Hutchinson pointed out two weaknesses in the side.
Robin Olsen deputised for Jordan Pickford once again in goals but according to Hutchison, Carlo Ancelotti needs to strengthen that area of the squad and also suggested that Mason Holgate looked out of place at full-back.
“Couple of things from this. Carlo needs to buy a top-class number one and Mason Holgate isn’t a right back,” he said on his personal Twitter account on Saturday night.
Olsen performed well against Leeds in mid-week, making six saves and achieving a SofaScore of 7.6.
He failed to replicate that performance at Old Trafford though with a rating of 6.2.
Stick with Pickford
The England international is a player pundits and fans like to criticise.
He has made mistakes this season but his performances are always put under greater scrutiny due to his England role.
When he is compared with Olsen, there is clearly a huge difference in quality.
Olsen was poor on Saturday.
He should have done a lot better with Bruno Fernandes’ chipped effort as his starting position was awful, and he could have saved Scott McTominay’s header too.
Pickford probably would have kept those shots out, so we may have won the match if he played.
In terms of his performances this season, the England no.1 has made 48 saves in the Premier League.
That is the 3rd highest out of teams in the top seven, ranking him higher than Alisson, Ederson and David De Gea.
He may have made mistakes, with errors against Leicester and Brighton costing goals, but it is difficult to see us buying better.
Liverpool and Man City spent £67million and £34.7m on their goalkeepers, while Chelsea splashed out £71m on flop Kepa Arrizabalaga
It could cost a lot to get a better alternative than Pickford, therefore, so such a deal would carry a big risk.
Pickford is still young and developing his game, and mistakes are always going to happen.
We should be building him up instead of knocking his confidence, as some keepers show their best form later in their careers like Lukasz Fabianski and Kasper Schmeichel.
What we need is an excellent number two who can put pressure on Pickford’s starting place.
That should help to bring the best out of the 26-year-old.
In other Everton news, View: 3 tackles, 90% pass accuracy – Underrated Everton ace proved his worth v Man United.