Everton’s midfield could be the key to their Premier League survival

Just when Everton looked to have turned a corner on their inconsistency under Frank Lampard, the same problems reoccurred in their defeat against Manchester United. The Toffees, who flirted with relegation last season but survived by the skin of their teeth, have begun the new campaign in the same vein. The brilliance of Richarlison and passion from the returning Goodison Park faithful was enough to spur Everton through a tough period, but with the Brazilian leaving for Tottenham Hotspur and the crowd continuously frustrated by their side’s lacklustre performances, you wonder how much longer mediocrity can be accepted in the blue half of Merseyside.

Indeed, Lampard’s win record is less than impressive. Having taken over a side in murky waters from Rafa Benítez, he’s spent a lot of money throughout the two transfer windows yet failed to yield any significant results. It shouldn’t all be doom and gloom though.

Currently floating around mid-table, Everton are hardly likely to top Premier League winner odds anytime soon, but the stability provided by their new-look midfield should be enough to help them beat the drop again. While he has come under justifiable scrutiny, Lampard does deserve credit for this midfield construction and profiling.

Shaking up the core of the side, he needed to compensate for the loss of Richarlison, and new summer acquisitions, combined with reinventing some familiar faces, have put the Toffees in a much better position with a quarter of the Premier League already played. Read on, as we look at the crucial cogs of Everton’s massively underrated midfield this season.

Amadou Onana

The star of the show, Amadou Onana arrived at Everton this summer from Ligue 1 outfit Lille and is already displaying maturity beyond his years as the Senegal international is deceptively just 22 years old. A great talker, he is displaying leadership from midfield and his physical presence at six feet, four inches tall, gives a new dynamic to Everton’s triumvirate in the middle third.

His ability to block the ball between the lines brings others into play and his defensive awareness protects a back four that had looked shaky before and has now been exposed further by the injury to Nathan Patterson. Despite his off-the-ball capabilities, it is how comfortable he is in possession that is showing why Lampard shelled out £33 million for his services. His technique is agile for such a big player and his passing range allows Everton to transition more seamlessly through to the forwards.

Alex Iwobi

While he spent the majority of his career as a winger, Alex Iwobi has flourished in his new role as a left-sided central midfielder. The Nigerian’s progressive passing and his synergy with Onana and Demarai Gray out wide allows Everton to create numerical advantages even when they don’t necessarily have a lot of possession. When checking Premier League news, most look at Everton’s inability to see out games after taking the lead, but for them to turn those missed opportunities into wins then Iwobi’s running throughout the game to cover space will be crucial.

Interestingly, it’s his tough-tackling, a trait you wouldn’t expect from a former winger, and his grittiness to commit to challenges and break up play that impressed the most. Usually a personification of Everton’s previous inconsistency, a few stellar performances could be the turning point in Iwobi’s stop-start career, having finally found an identity in the middle of the park.

Idrissa Gueye

Another Senegal international, Idrissa Gueye returned to Everton this summer for a second stint with the club after three years with Paris Saint-Germain in which he played in a Champions League final. Now 33 years old, he’s hardly in the physical shape of his life, but the technical ability he developed in the French capital is there for all to see, and his awareness of space means he has to cover less ground than when he departed Goodison in 2019.

Experienced and a good leader, the tough tackling midfielder popped up on the right of the 4-3-3, able to cover deputising full-back Seamus Coleman, who is also approaching the autumn of his career. The £2 million it took to bring Gueye back to England looks a relative steal, even if he only has a couple of seasons left in the tank.