Everton failed to make it a happy homecoming at Goodison Park for David Moyes on Wednesday night as they were beaten 1-0 by Aston Villa.
It was the Scottish manager’s first match in charge of the Toffees since he came in to replace Sean Dyche earlier this month, and his side lost whilst failing to score.
Ollie Watkins scored the only goal of the game for the away side, racing clear of James Tarkowski before calmly slotting past the onrushing Jordan Pickford.
There were a number of players on the pitch who did not do their chances of further starts under Moyes any favours, including right winger Jack Harrison.
Jack Harrison's performance in numbers
The Leeds United loanee was selected to start on the right side of the attacking midfield trio behind Dominic Calvert-Lewin for the Toffees in this clash.
Unfortunately, though, the left-footed dud struggled with most of his work in and out of possession throughout the game, in what was an ineffective display from the Englishman.
Harrison did create one ‘big chance’, with his only key pass of the night, but also failed to register any shots on goal and did not complete any of his three attempted dribbles.
The Toffees flop also lost ten of his 12 duels against Aston Villa and this shows that he was incredibly weak out of possession, as the away side found it far too easy to get the better of him in physical battles.
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Harrison was not, however, the worst player on the pitch for Everton on Wednesday night. Calvert-Lewin endured a torrid evening and must be instantly ditched by Moyes.
Why Calvert-Lewin should be dropped
The former England international should be dropped from the starting line-up after a dismal showing at the top end of the pitch for the Blues against Villa.
Calvert-Lewin was even worse than Harrison, who at least created a ‘big chance’, as he failed to find the back of the net with any of his three shots on goal, missed two ‘big chances’, and failed to create any chances for his teammates.
As you can see in the clip above, the experienced marksman spurned a huge opportunity to equalise for his side in stoppage time, firing well over the bar from close range.
It was not only his finishing that was an issue for the Toffees against Villa, though, as Calvert-Lewin’s all-round performance left plenty to be desired.
Minutes played
90
Big chances missed
2
Key passes
0
Pass accuracy
50% (7/14)
Duels won
3/9
Possession lost
17x
As you can see in the table above, he only completed 50% of his attempted passes on the night, which is – simply – not good enough as he consistently gave the ball back to the opposition with his loose touches and passes.
Calvert-Lewin, who has scored nine goals from 18.26 xG in the Premier League since the start of last season, did not offer quality finishing, physical prowess, or technical security in the number nine position.
Therefore, Moyes must ditch him from the starting XI and should, as Football FanCast suggested on Tuesday, push for the club to sign Evan Ferguson on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion to replace him.
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