Andy Hunter's match report
Claude Puel was supposedly the manager under pressure at Goodison Park yet Leicester City look in rude health in comparison to Everton under Marco Silva. The hosts were booed off following another dreadful display and a fifth defeat in eight games inflicted by Jamie Vardy’s clinical second-half strike. Silva starts the new year in need of new ideas.
Read on below …
I’m off now. Thanks for sticking with me, if you did. Football can only get better in 2019.
What a strange team Leicester are. In their last five they have lost at Palace and at home against Cardiff and won at Chelsea, at home against Manchester City and away at Everton. Graeme Souness on Sky offers a defence of Puel, who he calls a “football man” who doesn’t have “the waffle and toffee that seems to be around so much these days”. He’s a “common-sense football person”, he says. He may have a point. The one thing I would say that probably works against Puel is how quiet he is. I wonder if that’s why Vardy had to run over to the touchline to get instructions off him. Maybe the whispering Frenchman should be given a megaphone to get his in-match tactical tweaks across to his players.
Jamie Vardy, the matchwinner, speaks: “I think we needed to put the last performance behind us. To come away in new year and get three points was a great start.” On what he said when he spoke to Puel on the touchline in the first half: “I just asked the manager what was the plan in stopping them in the build up from the back. The boss told me to get some information on to [his teammates] and in the second half we pressed better. Ricky [Ricardo] found me with a great pass and thankfully it went in.”
Claude Puel must be mightily relieved to have won that. Even if the owners aren’t happy with him, while Leicester sit in seventh it’s hard for them to sack him. His tactical switch in bringing Albrighton on for Ghezzal helped to win the game. Digne could not get forwards in the second half and Albrighton’s wing play gave Everton’s defence more to think about and afforded Vardy just al little more space. Jonny Evans was a rock at the back too and Ben Chilwell impressed as ever. But Puel’s so lucky to have a striker who is as lethal as Vardy. One half-chance, one goal.
Full-time: Everton 0-1 Leicester
Peep! And that’s that. A really poor game is brought to an end. Leicester move up to seventh after a deserved win thanks to an improved second-half performance in which Albrighton helped spark snappier forward play. Everton are booed off. They were awful. They had zero creativity until Bernard came on and Keane’s horrific touch at the back cost them the game. They’re down to 10th and Silva has some thinking to do about how to get his side back on track.
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90+2 min: Vardy, who was lethal when it most mattered, is replaced by Gray.
90+1 min: Everton almost score! Bernard whips a great corner in that Keane heads back across goal. Tosun nips in at the back post and heads across Schmeichel, who spreads himself starfish-style, like his dad, to claw the ball away. That’s the first proper save he has had to make. It looks like he’s won the three points for Leicester.
90 min: A dire match will have another three minutes added to it. And Everton have won a corner. Could they?
89 min: Tosun has a speculative shot from the edge of the area blocked and Leicester look like they’e going to go clear in seventh. Unless Everton get the ball to Bernard it’s hard to imagine them creating another chance.
86 min: Bernard dances inside Chilwell brilliantly and drills a low cross into the six-yard box but no Everton player bothers their behind to get on the end of it. The fans in the Gwladys street are up in arms. That was wonderful wing play.
85 min: Kenny wallops a cross into the stands. that kind of sums up Everton’s performance. They’ve been abysmal. Kenny has in fact been one of the few has done OK.
83 min: Chilwell whips in a delicious free-kick to the back post, where Maguire nips in ahead of Zouma and sidefoots over from six yards. That’s a really poor miss. He holds his head in his hands. And that’s no mean feat considering the size of it.
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81 min: Tosun clatters Mendy and is booked for his trouble. The free-kick is swung to the backpost by Albrighton (who has impressed since coming on) where Maguire heads the ball on to Keane’s arm. Keane did not handle it intentionally but his arm was in an unnatural position and penalties have been given for less. The irate Leicester fans and Maguire certainly think so.
79 min: Chilwell strides through the Everton defence like a latterday Lothar Mattheus. He almost looks embarrassed to find himself on the edge of the box, from where he hits a tentative right-footed shot straight at Pickford.
77 min: Mendy gets the btter of Bernard in a midfield tussle and pings a diagonal ball towards Albrighton, but Zouma stretches out a long limb to get an important touch on the ball ahead of the Leicester winger, who was waiting to pounce.
75 min: Everton are building a head of steam. Bernard twists inside and out just inside the box and then dinks a ball across to Richarlison, whose shot from 12 yards is blocked. Then Everton gain possession and win a free-kick 25 yards out after a late tackle from Evans for which the defender is booked. Sigurdsson’s free-kick clips the wall, though. That was poor for a player with such an impressive dead-ball game.
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72 min: Ricardo Pereira fizzes a cross into teh near-post that causes Pickford all kinds of problems. Whether he was put off by the ball being so close to his near post or not, I’m unsure, but the England goalkeeper should have kept hold of it but instead spilled it to Ndidi. The Leicester midfielder is so close to the byline that he can’t turn and find a teammmate, though.
70 min: Chilwell stretches his legs and skidaddles up the left wing and wins a corner. Albrighton swings it in, but it drifts out of play on the back post before Maguire can head it back into the box.
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69 min: Walcott, who has done a great job of hiding in plain sight this afternoon, is replaced by the barrel-chested Cenk Tosun.
68 min: Vardy is becoming a growing threat on the inside-left channel. He has the beating of Keane or Zouma for pace every time the ball is zipped into that channel. As Everton push forwards, they will leave more space in behind for Vardy to exploit.
67 min: It’s wasted by Digne though, slammed into the wall when a cross was the much better option.
64 min: Vardy is wasteful in possession after Leicester broke promisingly. He was trying to find Ricardo Pereira inside him but his pass went awry and almost landed at Albrighton’s feet instead. As it happens, Everton clear. Silva really has to work out what his best defensive line up is. It was three at the back in the past two games with a return to a back four today. This formation has not helped them much defensively nor in an attacking sense. They have a free-kick now 35 yards out on the left in a good position for an inswinging cross.
62 min: Sigurdsson has a pot-shot that is touched over by Schmeichel. Leicester defend the corner well. Evans has marshalled the Leicester defence with authority this afternoon.
61 min: Tom Davies, who was stripped and ready to come on, has been stood down by Silva. Bernard, a zippy attacking player, is now getting ready to come on. He replaces Gomes. So Everton may play with only one holding midfielder instead of two now.
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59 min: This is a horrible moment for Keane. Schmeichel clears and the ball is headed back to Keane from Walcott. But Keane’s touch is horrific, bouncing not once, but twice, off the centre-back and landing at Ricardo Pereira’s feet. he plays a first time pass into the channel for Vardy, who beats Zouma in a foot race before drilling a left-footed shot into the corner. A brilliant finish. He’s not had a scrap all afternoon until that chance.
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Goal! Everton 0-1 Leicester (Vardy 58)
A goal. At last!
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55 min: Gomes finds Digne again with a lovely, disguised pass. This is a brilliant attempt to stave off a substitution. Digne’s cross is deflected for another corner. Another corner that is cleared, this time by Vardy.
54 min: Gomes, perhaps owing to the knowledge that he is about to be hooked, wins the ball back in midfield like a terrier and finds Digne on the left, who wins a corner. It’s cleared at the near post, though.
53 min: Silva’s had enough already. It looks like Tom Davies is going to come on for Gomes. He should at least raise the tempo in midfield.
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51 min: Even the cultured Gomes has caught the bug. He’s booked for hoofing Mendy in the air for no good reason whatsoever.
49 min: Leicester have started the half better than Everton. They work the ball forwards with a series of short, simple accurate passes. Albrighton curls a teasing cross in from the right that Pickford struggles to catch and claws to the back post. Ricardo Pereira picks up possession and is ushered away from goal but his cross back into the box is cleared.
46 min: Thud! Donk! Whack! Clonk! The low winter sun may be one excuse for the inability of players to play a simple pass to a teammate. They are all much better than this. Ndidi is the latest to give the ball away.
Peep!
45 min: The second half is under way #prayforthesecondhalf
Ghezzal, who did the square root of sod all in that half, is replaced by Albrighton.
The Everton soundsystem appears to be playing some banging house music. They should leave it on throughout the game. It could help raise the tempo.
Some thoughts on a classic half of football at Goodison
Both Walcott and Calvert-Lewin were better at 18 than they are now @GreggBakowski.
— Gary Naylor (@garynaylor999) January 1, 2019
@GreggBakowski It’s one of those games where the police might consider taking the ball into protective custody. #thudandblunder #EVELEI
— Roy Allen (@Roy_Allen) January 1, 2019
Vardy had nine touches in that half. I’m surprised it was as many as that. Anyway, here’s an email: “Happy New Year!” whoops Adam Kline-Schoder. “Since nothing much seems to be happening in this ‘intriguing tactical battle’ besides weak passes being sent generously straight to the opposition, I’ll take the opportunity to ask: if Man City need a defensive midfielder, why aren’t they looking at Gueye? Skilled on the ball, good eye for a pass, positionally disciplined … his height, maybe? Or perhaps being 29 they don’t see him as a long-term replacement?” Pep being Pep, I suspect he is looking to buy a full-back who he can convert into a holding player. Seriously though, Gueye is good in that role but I think Guardiola would want a defensive midfielder with more variety in his passing. And, as you say, one who may be a year or two younger.
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Half-time: Everton 0-0 Leicester
I hope this game isn’t an indication of the kind of year we can expect in 2019. I’m getting a tea. I’d get something stronger if I could. Back shortly.
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45 min: There will be one minute of added time. Added time that no one wants. Not even the players – and definitely not the poor fans at Goodison.
43 min: Ricardo Pereira cuts inside Gomes and fires a right-footed shot a yard wide. It was a poor effort but compared to some of the dross that we have seen in this game it was one of the better poor efforts. Everton then break and win a corner after a Walcott cross is deflected wide. Digne curls a testing ball in in and Schmeichel punches clear with authority.
40 min: Vardy pushes Zouma in the back over near the byline and the Everton defender slips and then clatters into the hoardings while conceding a corner. He looks like he’s in trouble but thankfully clambers back to his feet after catching his breath. Ghezzal’s corner is defended well at the near post by Zouma. But the ball lands back at Ghezzal’s feet. He fizzes another cross in that is turned behind for another corner. This one is played in deep, headed back by Vardy to Maguire, who nods a header up into the air towards goal that Pickford collects comfortably.
37 min: Pereira stretches his legs down the left flank. It’s a pacy run but Kenny sticks to his task and concedes a throw. Ghezzal then picks up possession (it may be one of his first touches) and punts the ball into the Gwladys Street end. The top six have nothing to fear from these two on this evidence.
34 min: And now Simpson fouls Richarlison. The Everton forward could put in a bullying claim here. Everton probe around the edge of the Leicester box and get nowhere so Zouma wallops a shot well over from 30 yards.
31 min: Digne’s delivery is fizzed in with rare quality but Calvert-Lewin’s header bounces off the floor and straight into Schmeichel’s hands.
29 min: Choudhury body-checks Richarlison and is booked by Atkinson. This is dire stuff. Free-kick to Everton near the left touchline.
26 min: Simpson steams into Digne and gives a free-kick away. Everton quickly concede possession. Maguire gives the ball away and then Richarlison’s scream can be heard as Evans slides into the Brazilian, winning the ball but following through on the Everton forward, who was side on and left his left leg at the mercy of Evans’s studs. That should have been a yellow card. Maybe Martin Atkinson is as sleepy as the crowd and players. He didn’t even give a free-kick. Thankfully, the magic sponge has worked and Richarlison is able to continue.
25 min: Has there ever been a good early kick-off on new year’s day? And I don’t mean lads going at each other outside pubs. Everton are doing most of the attacking here but most of their attacking involves getting to the edge of the box and giving the ball away. Kenny, the best player on the pitch so far (not saying much), crosses towards the front post,where Calvert-Lewin heads wide from a difficult angle.
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22 min: “I know it’s only been 19 minutes, but this is the worst thing I’ve ever seen on a football pitch,” writes Rob Edwards. “I wouldn’t be surprised if both managers are fired before half time and have their coaching badges ripped up by Yorkshire terriers.”
19 min: A chance at last! Kenny cracks a first-time shot at goal almost as fiercely as he contested the tackle with Mendy and watches the ball thud against the right angle of post and crossbar. That’s lifted the home crowd. It was a thunderous hit that came after Leicester failed to clear a routine low cross from the left.
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17 min: Kenny thunders into a tackle on Mendy that must leave the Leicester player’s bones rattling. No foul is given. He did win the ball but he also followed through a bit and left Mendy on the deck. He gets back up gingerly.
16 min: A corner for Leicester. A corner that is cleared easily. Deary me. Does nobody want seventh place and A Europa League qualifier? Ah, maybe that answers a few questions.
14 min: “Gregg, I’m watching the game with my 10-year-old daughter and we’re having a hard time telling the teams apart. Also, the players keep passing the ball to the other team. She thinks the players can’t tell blue from bluish-gray either … is our television off or is this a really poor choice of away colours?” Not a great choice of away kit no, but that’s still no excuse for the poor quality of this game. They both look like a pair of teams with actors pretending to be footballers. There are so many mistakes being made.
12 min: Maguire gifts a sloppy pass out of defence to Sigurdsson, mid-way inside the Leicester half. Sigurdsson pounces on it and drills a pass to Richarlison, lingering in the box, but his right-footed shot at goal slams into Evans’s chest and is eventually cleared.
10 min: Vardy smashes a wild shot into space. Not a classic this one. The year 2019 can do much, much better than this.
8 min: Everton have raised the tempo at last. Digne has a couple of plucky runs down the left that cause Leicester some mild concern and then Sigurdsson intends to play Walcott in behind the Liecester defence but it’s overhit and runs through to Schmeichel.
6 min: Gueye fouls Pereira in the middle of the pitch – and that’s about the most exciting thing that has happened so far. Both teams are moving about like the New Year zombies I saw paroling the streets of Kings Cross at 7.45 this morning.
4 min: “How would Benítez do at a big, league-winning club like Leicester?” asks Rowan Sweeney. “Aside from a short (and largely forgettable, Europa League aside) stint at Chelsea he’s an unknown when managing the elite.” I’m guessing this is a joke Rowan but maybe not. Are his two La Liga titles, FA Cup and Champions League asides too?
2 min: It’s quiet at Goodison. An early start on new year’s day isn’t conducive to creating a good atmosphere. Everton have had most of the ball so far but it’s mostly sterile possession in deep areas.
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Peep!
1 min: We’re under way at Goodison. Everton, in royal blue, are shooting from right to left on my screen. Leicester, in their grey away strip, are shooting the other way.
There’s a minute’s applause for Evertonians who lost their lives in 2018. It’s a poignant moment for Leicester fans too, who had a traumatic 2018.
From what I’ve seen of André Gomes this season, he’s a very good player, but there are doubts about how fit he is and how he is coping with the heavy workload of games. If he’s fit I fully expect him to dictate play with Gueye doing the running alongside him as one of two holding players. Getting Gueye fully fit after injury will help Everton’s cause no end too. The two of them seem like a perfectly balanced midfield duo.
The theme tune from Z-Cars quivers through the chill early-afternoon air at Goodison, which means the teams are trotting out of the tunnel. We’ll have football soon. Who will win the first Premier League match of 2019? Stay tuned to find out.
I wish I could grow hair like Hamza Choudhury. When I was 11 I had a perm. Yes, really. I loved it. Too thin on top these days, alas.
There were reports this morning that Rafael Benítez is a target for Leicester City. What do you make of that Leicester fans? Rafa has done a great job at Newcastle and is a high-profile manager who has been successful but if Puel’s slower style of football is the problem, Benítez’s emphasis on controlling games might not be that different, stylistically.
Here’s Everton manager Marco Silva: “I’m always confident in our squad and the work we are doing but there has not been consistency in the last few games. We know the Premier League is tough and new year is very busy. In this moment we have to use rotation. It is impossible if you keep playing the same XI. The players cannot recover in the right way to be 100%. Of course it’s not good to change five, six, seven players [either].”
And here’s Leicester’s Whispering Claude Puel on the four changes he’s made: “It’s to try and keep a good balance. We need to manage the physical condition of the players. Some players can come into the game from the bench.” Thanks Claude.
Any new year resolutions, footballing or otherwise? Is that something people still do? I’m not one for denying myself something I enjoy if there’s no good reason. My January won’t be dry. It won’t be soaking wet either.
So Everton boss Marco Silva makes three changes to his starting line-up from Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at Brighton. Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Gylfi Sigurdsson and Jonjoe Kenny – whose last appearance was against the Foxes in early October – come into the team, with Bernard, Seamus Coleman and Yerry Mina dropping to the bench. Ot looks like Silva is going to line up with a back four, having started with three men in central defence for the last two games. Leicester’s starting XI shows four adjustments from their 1-0 loss to Cardiff as Rachid Ghezzal, Hamza Choudhury, Jonny Evans and Danny Simpson replace Demarai Gray, James Maddison, Marc Albrighton and Caglar Soyuncu.
Teams
Everton: Pickford, Kenny, Keane, Zouma, Digne, André Gomes, Gueye, Walcott, Sigurdsson, Richarlison, Calvert-Lewin. Subs: Baines, Mina, Tosun, Bernard, Stekelenburg, Coleman, Davies.
Leicester: Schmeichel, Simpson, Maguire, Evans, Chilwell, Mendy, Choudhury, Ndidi, Ricardo Pereira, Vardy, Ghezzal. Subs: Soyuncu, Gray, Maddison, Albrighton, Ward, Okazaki, Fuchs.
Referee: Martin Atkinson (Yorkshire of the western variety)
Preamble
Happy new year readers! And what better way to start it than with the salivating prospect of two teams with ambitions to finish seventh going head-to-head at Goodison Park. Both have had topsy-turvy seasons so far. Everton looked like they were making steady progress until the defeat at Liverpool, in which they played well. Following that they have lost four, drawn two and won only once (heavily at Burnley on Boxing Day). They were beaten by Brighton last time out.
As for Leicester, the two wondrous results against Chelsea and Manchester City were quickly forgotten at the King Power Stadium as boos rang out following the 1-0 defeat by Cardiff last weekend. Claude Puel still very much looks like a manager expecting the chop even if that is ludicrous given their league position. Leicester’s natural home should be somewhere between 10th and seventh – so, exactly where they are now.
Lifting the club back up to seventh today would surely help his case given that to achieve anything better than that would mean usurping clubs with much greater wealth. The miraculous title win really has skewed expectations at the King Power. Puel is a victim of his own mid-table consistency. The French Curbs? Somebody has to deal with the transition of the title-winning side into regular Premier League mainstays, though. The French Curbs? As for Silva, a win would get disgruntled Toffees back on side, not that his job is under threat, but with the talent he has at his disposal finishing Best of the Rest would be a decent first season for him. And the football has improved. Well, it had to, didn’t it Sam? I’ll be back with team news shortly.
My prediction: Everton 2-2 Leicester
And here’s some pre-match reading:
