Everton: Nathan Patterson faces surgery after injury news at Goodison Park
Everton defender Nathan Patterson is now facing surgery on his hamstring injury, according to the Scottish Daily Mail.
The newspaper has reported in its print edition (22 April, page 67) that the defender will almost certainly miss the European Championships with Scotland.
Sean Dyche has already confirmed that Patterson will be out for the remainder of the season, but he now faces another blow with surgery on the cards.
Everton to miss Nathan Patterson for Premier League run-in
Everton overcame the three injuries they picked up in their Chelsea demolition by beating Nottingham Forest 2-0 at Goodison Park, with defender Jarrad Branthwaite starting and helping the Toffees to a clean sheet despite coming off previously.
Patterson and Seamus Coleman were not so lucky, both missing out with their respective problems.
Coleman was withdrawn during half-time at Stamford Bridge and replaced by Patterson, but the 22-year-old Scotsman was unable to see out the end of the game.
In the place of his two first-choice right-backs, Sean Dyche started veteran Ashley Young in Everton's defence, who along with Branthwaite, James Tarkowski and Vitalii Mykolenko, formed a solid enough unit to keep Forest at bay.
With Patterson out of action seemingly well beyond the end of the season, Dyche will want to build on the first outright good result and performance for Everton in several months, and thus the back four who started at Goodison may be locked in for the home straight.
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