Ben Dinnery has provided an injury update on Everton star duo Abdoulaye Doucoure and Amadou Onana ahead of the Premier League clash against Manchester City.
The injury expert, who has worked with The Athletic, shared via his Premier Injuries website [6 February] that Onana has a 50 per cent chance of playing, while Doucoure’s chance is rated at just 25 per cent.
Sean Dyche’s side travel to The Etihad for an early kickoff on 10 February, and fans will have their fingers crossed that at least one of the two midfield stars can return.
Onana underwent a late fitness test ahead of the clash with Tottenham on 3 February but wasn’t deemed fit enough to play, while Doucoure was labelled a “longer-term” absence by Dyche.
While it will be tempting to throw either Doucoure or Onana straight back into the starting XI when they return to availability, due to their importance to the deal, the boss must avoid rushing them back.
No game is a free hit, and they should all be treated with the same respect, but a game against Manchester City away from home is the one you can feel you’d be better off resting your important players for rather than rushing them back and risking aggravation.
Relegation rivals Crystal Palace made that mistake with their star player Michael Olise who was rushed back from injury only to go off within ten minutes, and could now miss two months of action [Sami Mokbel, 5 February].
Given both Doucoure and Onana’s importance to this side, Everton cannot risk that same situation in the midst of a relegation battle, so it would be wise to wait until they are 100 per cent fit to throw them back into the action.
Doucoure in particular is a notable absence when not selected, with his six goals so far this season putting him at the top of Everton’s scoring list.
