Sean Dyche has now delivered four points from Everton’s previous two league games as they head into the international break in a positive mood.
Everton secured a vital point in the Premier League on Saturday evening as they drew 0-0 against Newcastle.
Despite grinding out a draw, several players failed to live up to their performances from the week before, as Dwight McNeil struggled to create anything aside from a few shots off target.
Last week, the former Burnley man scored twice against Crystal Palace to secure the Toffees their first league of the campaign, and much was expected of him at Goodison Park.
Dyche deployed McNeil in the No 10 slot just behind Dominic Calvert-Lewin, with Dyche expecting him to create plenty of chances for the striker.
He did succeed with both of his dribble attempts on Saturday evening, showing an eagerness to get forward, but his end product was poor. McNeil managed just 38 touches during the match, indicating that he couldn’t get involved as often as he would have liked, yet it was defensively where he was the poorest
Not only did he lose possession 12 times, but the 24-year-old won just three of his nine contested duels, showing a lack of fight in his one-on-one battles.
It wasn’t his best performance, far from it, yet he was still more effective than Calvert-Lewin, who drew a blank in the Premier League once again.
Towards the end of the game, it looked like the Englishman had won a penalty for Everton, but the VAR assistants decided against sending Craig Pawson to the monitor, deeming the centre-forward had kicked the back of Dan Burn’s leg, rather than been fouled by the defender.
The striker did manage two shots on target, yet failed to score, while he could only manage to complete 8 of his 16 attempted passes during the match, the lowest number out of both starting XIs.
Defensively, Calvert-Lewin lost possession a staggering 15 times along with losing 13 total duels, making it a difficult afternoon at the office for Dyche’s main option to lead the line.
The 27-year-old has scored just twice in the Premier League this season, with both goals coming in defeats against Bournemouth and Aston Villa in recent weeks.
On another day, he might have netted the winner for the Goodison Park side, but will Dyche make a change to his starting XI when domestic football resumes in a few weeks?
It is clear the Toffees are fighting their way out of a relegation scrap and this point gained against the Toon could prove to be vital when the season comes to an end.
They travel to East Anglia to face Ipswich Town in two weeks, a tie which represents an ideal chance to secure another win in the top flight. However, both McNeil and Calvert-Lewin must improve during that match.
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