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Andy Gray is over the moon that Everton defender Conor Coady is proving naysayers wrong
Andy Gray has been singing the praises of Everton defender Conor Coady after the 29-year-old’s terrific start to the Premier League campaign.
Coady has become a focal point of everything Frank Lampard’s side does well and has struck up a sublime partnership with fellow summer signing James Tarkowski.
Gray admitted he is “so pleased” that Coady is proving the naysayers wrong, stating that everyone told him the defender couldn’t play in a back four.
“Everyone told me that Conor Coady can’t play in a four. He is not quick enough. He is not mobile enough. He will get caught out,” he said speaking on the Keys and Gray podcast.
“That was the school of thought that followed Conor Coady. At Wolves, he played in a three, pretty much every game he played for them.
“Then he came here and started in a three and Frank changed that and I am so pleased that he has and I don’t think it is a coincidence that Everton’s results have got better. They haven’t conceded goals. They have one of the best defences in the league, if not the best.
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“It was a great decision and it just shows that Conor Coady can quite easily play in any back four.”
Exceptional.
Coady has been nothing short of exceptional since joining the Toffees on a season-long loan deal in the summer and has earned himself the right to be called one of the Premier League’s top defenders.
The defender seems to be a nice guy on and off the pitch and has everyone rooting for him to succeed, something that says a lot about him as a professional.
Everton’s steady start to the season has been nice to see and a lot of credit has to go to Coady for cleaning things up at the back for the Blues.
Before Sunday’s defeat to Manchester United, the Toffees had conceded the least goals in the league (7), Coady and Tarkowski had a big part to play in that.
Hopefully, Lampard and the Everton hierarchy get Coady tied down to a new and improved deal sooner rather than later, he’ll be needed if the Blues want any shot of getting a higher position in the Premier League.