Martin Keown singles out Arnaut Danjuma after Everton loss v Aston Villa
Martin Keown is worried for Everton following their heavy loss to Aston Villa, but believes the performance of Arnaut Danjuma provides the Toffees with hope.
Everton went down 4-0 at Villa Park on Sunday [20 August] to slip to the bottom of the Premier League, having also lost 1-0 to Fulham the previous weekend.
The Toffees once again lost Dominic Calvert-Lewin to injury in the first half, but replacement Danjuma caught Keown’s eye with his display in the West Midlands.
Keown wrote in his column for BBC Sport [20 August]: “Without [Calvert-Lewin], Everton lacked a focal point in their attack although I did think Arnaut Danjuma ran the channels well when he came on.
“I suppose if you’re an Everton fan you are scratching around for positives right now – there are not many of them admittedly, but Danjuma is one.”
Time to shine
Danjuma arrived on a season-long loan from Villarreal ahead of the start of the 2023-24 campaign and has been used as a substitute in Everton’s opening two matches.
The Netherlands international has some making up to do to Everton fans after turning down the club at the last minute in January to instead join Tottenham.
Danjuma certainly looked to be making up for lost time against Villa as he registered a game-high four shots – one of those on target – despite starting the game as a substitute.
It remains to be seen if Calvert-Lewin will spend any further time on the sidelines with his facial injury, while Alex Iwobi is also facing a spell out of action with a hamstring problem, possibly opening the door for Danjuma.
Bottom of the table and without a goal so far this season, Danjuma may play a big part in helping to turn around the Toffees’ campaign if handed a start against Wolves.
In other Everton news, Clinton Morrison singled out an Everton player for criticism in the defeat to Villa.