Sean Dyche must axe sloppy Nathan Patterson after Everton stinker v West Ham United
Sean Dyche will surely axe Nathan Patterson on the back of his performance for Everton against West Ham on Sunday (29 October).
The 22-year-old right-back was drafted into the Toffees starting lineup to replace the suspended Ashley Young following his sending off at Liverpool last week.
The Scotland international played the full 90 minutes against the Hammers, but he didn’t put in the best display despite the Blues recording a 1-0 victory at the London Stadium.
It hasn’t been the best time for Patterson at Goodison Park since he arrived at the club from Rangers in January 2022 in a deal that could eventually rise up to £16million if particular clauses are met.
He missed a large portion of last season with an ankle injury, having made just 16 starts in his 21 appearances in all competitions.
The defender looked set to nail down a regular place in the starting lineup this season after being named in the lineup for the opening four Premier League games of the campaign in the absence of captain Seamus Coleman.
But he quickly lost his place to summer arrival Young, who started in each of the past five matches in the build-up to the clash at the London Stadium.
After the 38-year-old received his marching orders against Liverpool last week, Patterson was handed the opportunity to impress in East London.
The game didn’t get off to the best start for him after he was beaten twice early on down Everton’s right by Michail Antonio and Lucas Paqueta, but fortunately for him, the Hammers couldn’t take advantage of his mistakes.
He continued to struggle against the skilful Brazilian throughout the half as he looked slow to get up to the speed of the game having been sat on the bench for the best part of the past few weeks.
Although the right-back improved slightly as the match on, he still wasn’t entirely convincing in the second half despite the Irons struggling to find any real cutting edge.
The Scotsman was dribbled past four times throughout the 90 minutes, while he won just five of the 12 duels he was involved in and committed two fouls [SofaScore].
He was also sloppy in possession as he lost the ball for his side on 12 occasions, only recorded a pass success rate of 72 per cent and he failed in his one attempted dribble.
Patterson didn’t really do enough to keep his position in the side despite the clean sheet, so it’s likely Dyche will revert back to Young for the Carabao Cup game against Burnley on Wednesday (1 November).
Although it’s the defender’s spot to lose over the long-term, with Young and the 35-year-old Coleman not getting any younger, he could quite easily find himself as the third choice right-back once the latter returns from injury if his performances don’t improve.
In other Everton news, Roy Keane blasted one Toffees star after what he did against West Ham.