Arnaut Danjuma may have started last Everton game for a while after what Sean Dyche said on Thursday
Everton forward Arnaut Danjuma may well have started his last game for a while after what Sean Dyche told the media on Thursday 2 November.
The Toffees comfortably beat Burnley 3-0 on Wednesday night (1 November) to reach the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup on a poignant night at Goodison Park after paying tribute to late chairman Bill Kenwright.
Goals from James Tarkowski, Amadou Onana and Ashley Young sent Everton on their way to their second successive victory in all competitions and Danjuma was handed a rare start.
Jack Harrison and Dwight McNeil have been Dyche’s go-to options out wide while James Garner has been deployed there on occasions too this season.
The Dutchman has been afforded just four starting opportunities in the league this season, including the unfortunate defeat to Wolves, their 2-2 draw to Sheffield United where he scored and their defeat to Arsenal.
Not particularly a fan of rotation, Dyche did look to give Danjuma a rare chance – who started in behind striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
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However, the Netherlands international did not make the impact he would’ve wanted.
In his 68 minutes on the pitch, the former Villarreal man was largely underwhelming.
According to Sofascore, he made just 17 touches in the game and his pass accuracy was only 71 per cent.
He also lost the only ground duel he attempted and offered nothing out of possession for Dyche’s side.
The Everton boss, speaking in his press conference ahead of Saturday’s game against Brighton, as per Liverpool ECHO (2 November) gave the excuse that Danjuma’s struggles were understandable given his lack of minutes.
However, Dyche’s praise of trusted lieutenant Dwight McNeil who plays in his position on the left wing may well have pointed to the Dutchman struggling to start again for Dyche.
He said: “‘He is certainly working hard, he is working hard in training.
‘We wanted to try and free him up in the role we played him in last night, but it is not easy when you are in and out of the side and you get put back in. But he is certainly working hard to adapt to the team.
“We feel and certainly he feels that his best position is coming in off of the left, but for everyone who watched it, I thought Dwight McNeil was excellent last night, especially in the second half, so there is a challenge there.”
Indeed, Danjuma’s challenge is to usurp McNeil who has been a long-time favourite of Dyche while they were at Burnley together and after Dyche’s comments, it’s incredibly hard to see Danjuma start in McNeil’s place unless he’s out injured.
The Toffees boss is used to having Abdoulaye Doucoure’s work rate in there and the midfielder can also chip in with crucial goals.
As of now, it remains to be seen where Danjuma will into the manager’s system right now and he certainly faces a dicey future at Goodison Park. When he starts again, that is very uncertain.
