This article is part of Football FanCast’s In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets…
Everton have fallen into the relegation zone after their fifth defeat of the Premier League season left them on seven points after eight games, with many questions asked of some big-name players, such as Morgan Schneiderlin.
The Frenchman played just 14 times in the Premier League for the Toffees last season and has failed to stamp his name on Everton’s midfield since joining the club in 2017. That said, due to the injuries to Andre Gomes and Jean-Philippe Gbamin, the former Manchester United man has been forced into the midfield, playing in six of the eight league games so far.
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Against Burnley, however, the £24m Schneiderlin was once again poor and further justified the importance of Gbamin’s return from injury. In the last two games prior to the Turf Moor trip, the midfielder scored a 4/10 from the Liverpool Echo in the defeat to Sheffield United and a 5/10 for his display against Manchester City, and against Burnley, he registered another 4/10.
During the fixture over the weekend, Schneiderlin failed to make a tackle and instead made three fouls, whilst he made one error which led to an attempt on goal for Burnley.
Going forward, the 29-year-old failed to dribble past a single player and could not get a shot away on the opposition. In fact, throughout the last three games, the ex-Southampton man has not offered much both in defence and in the Everton attack and is fortunate to still be in the starting XI.
However, Gbamin was spotted training at Finch Farm prior to the weekend’s action, and his return from injury is a very timely one given his teammate’s poor displays.
Over the last two seasons at Mainz, the Ivory Coast international averaged a WhoScored rating of 6.70 and 7.04, whilst completing on average 1.6 and 2.6 tackles 2018-19 and 2017-18 respectively.
There is also the return of Andre Gomes, who entered the fray on the 84th minute against Burnley. But with Gbamin’s physicality and proven defensive qualities, his return to the squad in replace of Schneiderlin can’t come quick enough.