Everton player ratings v Nottingham Forest: Ndiaye terrible, 9/10 ace superb
Everton faced a tough challenge as they travelled to face a high-flying Nottingham Forest team on Saturday afternoon.
David Moyes’ side have successfully navigated away from the relegation zone, and there is little to play for but pride for the rest of the season.
Everton started the day 15th in the Premier League with the chance to leapfrog Tottenham, but with Nottingham Forest third and pushing for a Champions League spot, it was always going to be a difficult game.
It was a stop-start affair, but Everton spoiled the day for the hosts as Abdoulaye Doucoure netted a superb 94th-minute winner to send the away fans into raptures.
Goodison News rates the performance of each Everton player out of 10 at the City Ground.
Tarkowski gets better of Chris Wood battle
Jordan Pickford – 7
Easily dealt with every Forest chance. A rock between the posts on a relatively easy afternoon.
Jake O’Brien – 7
Offered little support to the attack, but was solid at right-back against Callum Hudson-Odoi.
James Tarkowski – 8
Dealt with Chris Wood really well. Played some superb long balls forward. Great performance.
Jarrad Branthwaite – 8
Defended superbly, read the game perfectly. Some vital blocks and interceptions, especially after taking the lead.
Vitaliy Mykolenko – 7
Tidy with his passing but frustrating when pushing higher up the pitch. Very solid at the back particularly at the end.
Gueye star man at City Ground
Idrissa Gana Gueye – 9
Tidy on the ball, bright in both attacking and defensive situations and covered lots of ground. Excellent performance in the middle of the park. Man of the match.
James Garner – 7
Solid at times, but very underwhelming on dead-ball situations. Strong in the tackle overall.
Abdoulaye Doucoure – 7
Poor for most of the game and wasteful in attack, until he scored the vital goal with a superb finish in the 94th minute.
Iliman Ndiaye – 5
Not his best game in build-up, but was still threatening with his shots. Came off too early.
Jack Harrison – 6
Got on the ball in dangerous attacking areas at times, but his final ball was lacking. Decision making questionable. A few bright moments but otherwise frustrating.
Armando Broja – 7
Battled well and created a couple of chances before coming off around the 60th minute.
Substitutes
Dwight McNeil – 8
Fantastic after coming on, helped create the goal.
Carlos Alcaraz – 8
Bright and added a lot of creativity after coming on. Should have started.
Beto – 7
Linked up well and offered more in the air than Broja.