Everton to ‘reap the benefits’ of patient Dominic Calvert-Lewin approach
Everton have been extremely cautious with the injury return of Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Michael Ball is very happy to see that.
The England international has been out of action for the vast majority of the season so far and prompted Frank Lampard to go out and buy Neal Maupay from Brighton to cover for him.
Maupay has led the line excellently since his arrival which has allowed the Toffees to remain patient with Calvert-Lewin to hopefully be beneficial for them in the long run.
“I think Frank Lampard has done the right thing in not forcing Dominic Calvert-Lewin back to play for Everton,” Ball said to the Liverpool Echo.
“It’s been disappointing that we’ve not been able to see him this season but these muscle injuries can cause bigger issues in the future so hopefully, we can get it right now and we’ll reap the benefits over the rest of the season.”
Over-reliance
There is no questioning that last season, Everton were massively over-reliant on Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison and Lampard had to do something to change that rapidly.
The latter’s exit for Tottenham Hotspur over the summer will have accelerated those intentions drastically but that has turned out to be a superb move for the club.
Maupay has come in and been a revelation up front in being able to link the midfield and attack together in one cohesive group no matter the personnel around him.
He bagged his first goal against West Ham prior to the international break and looked good again at Southampton on Saturday to ease the pressure on Calvert-Lewin’s return.
After so many setbacks over the past 12 months, the last thing he needs is to get another injury so he now needs to focus entirely on himself until he can contribute to the first team with the World Cup very far out of reach.