Michael Ball faults lack of pace in defence as huge Everton hindrance
Former Everton defender Michael Ball has blamed the Toffees’ defensive issues this season on their lack of pace at the back.
The Blues have been wildly inconsistent throughout the Premier League campaign, defending resolutely one week and then conceding due to avoidable errors the next.
Michael Keane, Yerry Mina, Mason Holgate and Ben Godfrey have all lined up in the centre of defence, with Carlo Ancelotti often mixing and matching defenders as he continually rotates his options.
Speaking to Football FanCast, Ball isolated Everton’s lack of pace in defence as a key issue that has caused problems this season, name-checking Keane and Mina as two of the players culpable.
Ball said: “I think Everton’s failures this season is how deep we have played because of the lack of pace of Michael Keane and Yerry Mina.
“They play very, very deep, which is okay to defend as a unit, but it makes it difficult for our midfield, and our legs in midfield; other opposition teams can billy us in those areas and cause us a lot of problems.
“We’ve had to play so deep because of the lack of pace.”
Difficult conundrum
Neither Keane or Mina boast spectacular pace, that much is true, but we think the club’s defensive issues are a combination of small problems that need addressing.
Everton have played Godfrey and Holgate together in the centre of defence this season, both of whom possess considerable pace at the back, and that has also proven to be a disastrous combination.
Pace alone doesn’t quite fix the issue, and ultimately Ancelotti still has yet to determine what his best line-up is. He rotates his options to avoid injuries from fixture congestion, but also to help him form a long-term plan.
Godfrey has been Everton’s standout player this season, let alone their best defender, and he now needs someone to partner him in the long-term.
Keane has organisation and leadership ability, Mina has strength and aerial prowess and Holgate has ability on the ball – they all possess something that makes them stand out.
If Ancelotti is to explore the transfer market for a centre-back this summer, as trusted transfer expert Fabrizio Romano claims to be the case, the Italian should try against all odds to find someone who possesses all of the above attributes to partner Godfrey going forward.
In other Everton news, a Sky Sports pundit blasted this out of control Blues player in the draw against Villa.
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