Sky Sports pundit wants to see more James Garner in Everton team, he has what others do not
We’re delighted to welcome former Everton striker Kevin Campbell as our exclusive columnist. Each week the former Toffees captain will be giving his views on the biggest talking points at Goodison Park…
James Garner has “traits and attributes” that some of his Everton teammates don’t have so Kevin Campbell is hopeful that he features more, having made his debut against Manchester United.
The midfielder came on as a late substitute against his former side on 9 October, going close to a stunning equaliser in his first competitive action in a Toffees shirt.
Ex-Everton captain Campbell, a Sky Sports pundit, is a big fan of the 21-year-old and would like to see him feature more often now that he has made the breakthrough, as he believes he is a player for the here and now, not just the future.
Speaking exclusively to Goodison News he said: “I like James Garner. I watched him quite a bit at [Nottingham] Forest last season. Obviously he went back to Manchester United and they were having a look at him.
“Everton got in there when [Erik] Ten Hag decided he’s not for him, which is fine.
“I like Garner, good young player. Very, very skilful, got an eye for goal, good passer.
“So hopefully we might see some more of him, because I think he’s got traits and attributes that some of the others don’t have.
“But again, it’s picking the right moments to bring him in, in the games where he can affect it.”
Garner has a particularly crowded group of midfield competition to get through to find the pitch, especially with Abdoulaye Doucouré back in the squad and Tom Davies often used by Frank Lampard.
But with Idrissa Gueye making some high profile errors of late and Garner possessing arguably more creative skills than both the sure starters in Alex Iwobi and Amadou Onana, he could become the go-to option when the manager needs a defence unlocked.
He will need to take his opportunities when they come to prove that he is capable of that, but there were encouraging signs in his first action and Lampard spoke in his pre-match press conference for the Tottenham games on Thursday (13 October, 1min 10sec) of being impressed by how he dealt with the pressure.