Nathan Patterson faces fair criticism over nightmare display v Wolves
Nathan Patterson has been faced with fair criticism following an unusually poor display in a 3-0 defeat for Everton to an in-form Wolves side.
The Scotland international has been deputising at right-back in the absence of Seamus Coleman and has done reasonably well against Burnley, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City and Fulham, even earning the Man of the Match award against the latter in the EFL Cup.
But Sean Dyche was forced to hook the defender off against Wolves just after the hour mark, with the defender carrying a yellow card on his shoulders and struggling with the pace of Rayan Ait Nouri, Matheus Cunha and Hee-Chan Hwang.
Having been cautioned for a challenge on Joao Gomes for stopping a Wolves attack, the 22-year-old was yellow carded for the fourth game in a row and his stats during the game were not much better.
As usual, his tackles were perfect, recording a 100 per cent tackle success against Wolves. But he seemed to struggle in Everton’s change of formation, deploying as a right wing-back in a five-back defence.
He only managed to maintain a passing accuracy of 69 per cent, with a zero per cent crossing accuracy, which halted Everton’s attacks down the right-hand side [FotMob].
Patterson was also dispossessed on one occasion while losing 50 per cent of his ground duels. It was a poor day at the office for the young defender, with some fans suggesting that Coleman should have been the one to start in his position.
Substituted just after the hour-mark, the Royal Blue Merseyside fan page posted on Twitter (30 December): “Patterson going off, about 62 minutes later than he should have been on the pitch.”
However, it may seem harsh to target just one of the Toffees defenders after the whole defence conceded three goals to Wolves, with Michael Keane also receiving heavy criticism for Cunha’s goal.
Many will expect Coleman to start Everton’s next match in the New Year, with a battle with Crystal Palace in the FA Cup upcoming. But it could also offer a chance for Patterson to win the hearts of some Everton fans back after his horror show on Saturday.
In other Everton news, the club are “Very likely” to terminate this loan deal early in January.