Best to worst Everton defence now part of the problem as Frank Lampard sack pressure rises
Frank Lampard’s Everton defence must now be brought into the firing line after conceding another hatful of goals in their 3-1 loss to Manchester United in the FA Cup.
Goals from Antony, Marcus Rashford and a Conor Coady own goal meant the Toffees crashed out of the domestic competition at the earliest stage and extended their winless run in English competitive football to almost two and a half months.
The most worrying fact is that Lampard’s defence, which started the season strongly, has been breached far too easily in recent weeks, having now conceded 19 goals in their last seven outings.
The blame cannot placed solely on Premier League-proven duo James Tarkowski and Conor Coady at the heart of the defence, but more on the system that the English manager is deploying.
Football scout Ryan Williams did not mince his words as he took to Twitter on Saturday (7 January) to discuss Everton’s dire defensive record.
He said: “I’m also shocked at how many Everton fans don’t think the defense is that bad. 19th in xGA (by .01), 20th in shots against (by a lot), 20th in aerial win rate, 20th in touches in the PA against, etc.
“It’s the worst defensive record and probably the worst backline in the PL.”
As the Toffees slipped into the relegation zone following their calamitous 4-1 defeat to Brighton on 3 January, fears within the fanbase will be amplified by their extremely leaky defence.
Nathan Patterson struggled to match the intensity of Kaoru Mitoma during the Goodison Park thrashing, while Vitalii Mykolenko offers next-to-no attacking output, which is especially worrying when tasked with playing as a wing-back in a back five.
But Lampard has next-to-no alternatives to play with. His squad simply doesn’t have the depth of other club’s around him in the league, and the likes of Seamus Coleman and Mason Holgate are the only players available in his armoury.
With relegation six-pointers against Southampton and West Ham awaiting in the coming fortnight, Lampard must get his house in order and find the root of his side’s defensive vulnerabilities.