Ancelotti puts positive spin on Everton’s draw with Crystal Palace
Carlo Ancelotti has isolated the silver lining as Everton failed to make up ground on the top four following a disappointing draw with Crystal Palace.
The Toffees failed to take chance after chance until James Rodriguez finally found the net in the second half, though Michy Batshuayi’s late strike took the wind out of Everton’s sales.
Subsequently the Blues remain five points off the top four, now with just one game in hand over several of the clubs that sit above them.
Everton failed to take advantage of the copious chances that they created against Palace, with James Rodriguez often at the centre of the club’s attacking movements.
Despite the disappointing result against the Eagles, Ancelotti has highlighted Everton’s improved attacking movement as a positive sign worth praising ahead of the final nine games of the season.
Talking to evertontv following the draw at Goodison Park, Ancelotti said: “We played better in attack, we had more movement and ideas.
“It is true that when James is in the game, he is really important for us. He put a lot of quality in the game and fantastic ability. It is great for us to have him.
“His quality is really high. It is top. He never loses the ball. He always passes the ball with efficiency. This is James Rodriguez.”
“I think we need five or six wins to be in Europe. The fact we played with ability in front [is a positive].
“Apart from the final shots on goal, which were not so good, we were quite efficient to arrive in front of the goalkeeper. We had three or four opportunities one-on-one with the keeper.”
Everton’s draw with Crystal Palace ultimately felt like a loss, because it proved to be a hammer blow to the club’s chances at making the top four this season.
Chelsea and Tottenham both dropped points, giving Everton the best possible chance to keep up with the pack, but following the draw and with West Ham also winning against Wolves, Everton’s chances now look slim.
Still, all season long we’ve looked at individual performances to see signs of improvement. Everton’s evolution under Ancelotti is a long-term game, and positive improvements in the way the Blues attack does suggest that progress is being made.
Of course that progress means little if Everton’s poor conversion of those chances leads to points being dropped, but at the very least there are signs that we’re still heading in the right direction.
Ancelotti will be allowed to flex the club’s financial muscles this summer, and after bringing another handful of players that he personally wishes to move to Goodison Park we can hope to see even more progress under the Italian.
In other Everton news, Carlo Ancelotti has shared an injury update on key Everton duo following the draw with Palace.
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