Vitalii Mykolenko stinker, Amadou Onana redeems himself – Everton player ratings vs Newcastle
Everton endured a frustrating night at St James’ Park as they lost 1-0 to Newcastle on a game where they never quite got up to top gear.
An angry first half saw some encouraging signs before Miguel Almiron curled the home side ahead in the 31st minute, while Anthony Gordon was denied a penalty late in the half.
A much improved performance after the break saw Everton grow into the game and look the more likely to create something, but didn’t actually threaten the goal enough, on a frustrating night.
Here, Goodison News rates the Everton players out of 10 for the performances on Wednesday night (19 October).
Jordan Pickford – 5
Couldn’t do anything about the opener being curled just out of his reach and rarely involved otherwise on what will have been a frustrating evening for him.
Seamus Coleman – 6
Started well but as the pressure increased his performance became more uneven. Made one excellent clearance in the first half, but also skewed a ball straight back into the danger area in the second. Feels like he is playing at his absolute limit at times. Sometimes the old quality shines though, but sometimes he can’t quite pull it off.
James Tarkowski – 7
Some of his most important contributions in the first half was sticking up for teammates during bouts of pushing and shoving. Was more imposing after the break as the team gradually increased the pressure, and was the pick of the back line. Poor foul that could have seen red late on though.
Conor Coady – 6
Important last line of defence at times but a quiet game otherwise and no chance to pop up in the opposition area.
Vitalii Mykolenko – 3
Not a brilliant game. Quiet offensively and gave the ball away too often. Didn’t get tight enough to Almiron cutting in from the right more than once.
Idrissa Gueye – 4
Not a great game. Unable to break up opposition attacks too often and gave away possession on a number of occasions. Was flattened by Joelinton in the first half which somehow didn’t draw a second yellow. Was booked himself for dragging back Callum Wilson midway through the second half, after being caught on the ball in a worrying echo of the mistakes that led to goals against Southampton and Manchester United.
Amadou Onana – 8 Man of the Match
Game of two halves. Rubbish in the first, spending the majority of it on the turf after going down repeatedly and being ignored by the ref, sometimes harshly. Much better after the break and redeemed himself, and looked the best player in the midfield on either side, winning possession, showing composure on the ball and linking up well with players ahead of him.
Alex Iwobi (off for Garner ’73) – 7
Willing as always but unable to have much impact early. Improved a lot after half time and was central to most attacking moves, but not up to the level that he sometimes reaches. Still slightly surprising he was replaced.
Anthony Gordon – 6
Busy up and down the right hand side, both offensively and defensively, but should have had far more success up against the massive Dan Burn down the flank. Ultimately made more noticeable contributions when tracking back and didn’t really threaten Nick Pope’s goal.
Demarai Gray (off for McNeil ’79) – 7
Wasn’t in the game in a meaningful sense for the opening half but looked much more controlled at the start of the second half. Had Kieran Trippier on toast a couple of times and combined well with his fellow attackers in build up play, although the end product was once again lacking. Looked more likely to create something than Gordon before he went off.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin (off for Maupay ’73) – 5
An unexpected Everton starter and perhaps unsurprisingly didn’t look at peak sharpness, which was particularly difficult when trying to hold the ball up alone or timing his challenges. Went close with a header from a corner at 0-0. Was more involved after the break but could get little going.
SUBSTITUTES
Neal Maupay (on for Calvert-Lewin ’73) – 5
Chased after some loose balls but made very little impact.
James Garner (on for Iwobi ’73) – 4
Easy not to notice he had come on.
Dwight McNeil (on for Gray ’79) – 4