View: Davies must return to starting line-up as Everton face Aston Villa
Andre Gomes marked his return to action against Arsenal last week after having missed recent clashes against Brighton and Tottenham for Everton.
The Portugal international lasted over an hour before being withdrawn in place of Fabian Delph, himself making a long awaited return to fitness.
The 27-year old had little impact on the game at the Emirates, with the Liverpool Echo awarding him the lowest match rating of Everton’s starting line-up after the game.
Delph’s appearance off the bench marked his first taste of first-team football since early December, with the former Manchester City man suffering through a number of injury issues in recent months.
In handing Delph minutes on the pitch however, Carlo Ancelotti kept Tom Davies on the bench until five minutes from time, with the midfielder replacing James Rodriguez in the 86th minute.
Davies has arguably been one of the Blues’ best performing players over the past few months, having stepped up admirably during Allan’s injury lay-off, while offering the Brazilian strong support upon his return.
When Everton face Aston Villa on Saturday evening they must introduce Davies back into the fold, with European football in touching distance should the Toffees overcome the Midlands outfit.
Gomes hasn’t shown the urgency or energy that Everton require as they face Villa, a team who play at a fairly high tempo, while Delph hasn’t shown anything to suggest he should be part of the club’s future.
Davies though has enjoyed a successful season of personal improvement, with BBC Football’s Phil McNulty recently declaring that his “re-emergence continues to be a standout element Ancelotti’s Everton renaissance”.
Everton cannot afford to slip up against Aston Villa if they wish to qualify for Europe, with the Toffees needing to claim every point that they can before the end of the season in six games time.
In order to do that, Ancelotti must make the correct personnel choice and drop Andre Gomes for the England Under-23s international.
In other Everton news, View: Ancelotti to give 29y/o ace full Blues PL debut – 3 things to look for in clash v Villa.
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