Everton v Luton Town player ratings: Abdoulaye Doucoure, Ashley Young terrible
Everton and Luton Town shared the spoils in an entertaining 1-1 draw at Kenilworth Road in the Premier League on Friday, 3 May.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin opened the scoring for the visitors but Luton soon equalised courtesy of an Elijah Adebayo strike.
The English striker returned to the starting eleven as he recovered from an injury.
Here are our player ratings for the game:
Jordan Pickford – 4
According to Sofascore, while he made four saves, he was a bit awry with his distribution and that was reflected in his pass accuracy which was close to 50 per cent. He even ran out of his box without actually winning the ball and that could’ve been trouble had the team not regrouped. He even made a poor clearance when he was off his line in the 91st minute. It wasn’t an error-prone game for the England number one but certainly, there is plenty of room for improvement.
Ben Godfrey – 5
Made a few errors in possession which could’ve proved costly against a better side. However, defensively, was as seamless as it gets and he has shown plenty of improvement this season under Dyche. He won some important tackles and most importantly, a high proportion of his duels, ensuring that he gave very little away down Luton’s left side.
James Tarkowski – 7
Captained the side well and was an absolute rock at the heart of the defence along with Jarrad Branthwaite. He made eight clearances and always took the safety first approach – ensuring that Pickford was seldom put under any pressure.
Jarrad Branthwaite – 8
Did well to earn a penalty as he proved to be a menace in the opposition box during set places. Defensively too, made a few important interventions throughout the game. He won the majority of his aerial duels and was comfortable with the ball at his feet whenever he carried it out of defence. He also made a huge block at the end to deny Luton a winner with the ball heading into the back of the net. The penalty incident will rightly make the headlines, but he’s been putting in these kinds of 8/10 performances for the club constantly this season.
Ashley Young – 4
Got bullied for the Luton goal and his limitations as a defender were highlighted pretty evidently. Could have done better to put off Adebayo as he was never beating him in the air. For someone who’s 38, he may be doing a decent job, but he cannot be a regular starter next season. He was constantly bullied in the air and failed to complete a cross during the 67 minutes he was on the pitch.
Jack Harrison – 6
Kept cutting inside in the right half space hoping to combine well with Godfrey. While that did not pay off more often than it did, it was a sign of them being on the same page. He did get into threatening positions, which was refreshing but the end product was what was lacking. He then made a crucial block in the dying stages of the game to deny Luton a winner.
Idrissa Gueye – 7
Gueye had another good evening in the heart of the Everton midfield. He completed 95 per cent of his passes as he kept things ticking in the middle of the park. He also won the majority of his ground duels and offered the solidity Dyche would’ve wanted him to. Once he was withdrawn, it was evident just how much the side was missing his presence.
James Garner – 7
Much like Gueye, was efficient with his distribution and the only three times he misplaced a pass was when he looked to cross the ball into the penalty area. Offered an important shield to the defence and Dyche will have been impressed with his improvement since the Chelsea loss.
Dwight McNeil – 5
Worked hard off the ball but struggled to offer much on it, leaving Calvert-Lewin a peripheral figure for large parts of the game. There were occasions where he could’ve been more adventurous and given the defenders a run for their money but he took the safe route.
Abdoulaye Doucoure – 2
The Mali international has significantly dropped off form and the game against Luton was another example of him just not being at it. He struggled to find the right passes and could only achieve an accuracy of 74 per cent. He even lost the majority of his duels and was rightly taken off by Dyche in the 54th minute. He’s got to be offering more than his work-rate and Everton need to find an upgrade on him for next season.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin – 6
Sent the goalkeeper the wrong way for his penalty as he decided to mix it up. The Englishman prefers going bottom left, but decided to go straight down the middle this time. However, from open play, he struggled to get involved as there weren’t enough long balls played to him in the second half. He’s got to offer more but he’ll still be delighted with his goal.
Subs
Andre Gomes – 5
Amadou Onana – 5
Seamus Coleman – 4
Beto – 4
Youssef Chermiti – 5
In other Everton news, an administration claim has emerged as the 777 Partners continue to botch the takeover.
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