Just when it looked like Everton would be mounting a serious bid for a European placed finish this season following a fine run of recent form, the Toffees typically went on to undo their good work by suffering a disappointing 1-0 home defeat against West Bromwich Albion on Saturday.
Despite dominating the game from start to finish, Everton were not able to find the back of the net and were punished for some slack defending from set pieces.
While manager Roberto Martinez will feel that his side deserved to win the game, there can be no sympathy for teams which wastes so many chances and Everton will now once again have to start from square one in their pursuit for European football.
Here is an analysis of the performance of the Everton players on the day –
| Player Rating |
Comment |
|
Joel Robles – 5
|
Roberto Martinez kept faith in Joel Robles for the clash despite the return of Tim Howard but it has to be said that the Spaniard did not enjoy the best of games.
Although Robles did not have much to do throughout, he was nowhere to be found during the concession of Rondon’s goal and the error proved to be fatal in the end for Everton. |
| Seamus Coleman – 6.5
|
Coleman was a livewire during the clash and his wonderful link up play with Aaron Lennon caused a lot of problems for the West Bromwich defenders throughout the entire 90 minutes. |
|
Phil Jagielka – 6
|
Jagielka did not have much to do as Everton dominated possession but whenever called upon, the skipper was up to the task. |
| Ramiro Funes Mori – 5.5
|
Funes Mori continued in the starting lineup in the extended absence of John Stones and although the Argentinean put in a solid overall performance, he would have been disappointed at allowing Jonas Olsson to create the only goal of the game from a corner. |
|
Bryan Oviedo – 5.5
|
Fresh off signing a new contract, Oviedo started ahead of Leighton Baines once again but the Costa Rican star did not enjoy the best of outings due to lack of luck.
Oviedo put in numerous crosses into the box but most of them did not find the intended target. |
| Tom Cleverley – 5.5
|
Cleverley hit the post with his cross cum shot in the first half and looked lively throughout the match. However, the former Manchester United man could not match the performances of his previous few games and was subbed off during the hour mark. |
|
Gareth Barry – 6
|
Neat and tidy as ever, Gareth Barry’s presence meant that Everton were able to retain the ball with ease and dominated possession. |
| James McCarthy – 6
|
Alongside Barry, McCarthy put in another assured performance at the middle of the park and the fans would most certainly be pleased with the return of the Irishman to the squad. |
|
Aaron Lennon – 7
|
Lennon has been in fine form for Everton recently and the winger put in another quality performance on Saturday.
He was Everton’s biggest attacking threat and certainly did not deserve to end up on the losing side. |
| Ross Barkley – 5
|
Ross Barkley hit the bar with an effort which could have been a contender for goal of the season but apart from the moment of brilliance, the young midfielder put in a below par performance during the clash. |
|
Romelu Lukaku – 4.5
|
Lukaku was unable to produce his best on Saturday and to make matters worse, he was caught ball watching as Rondon sneaked past behind him to score the winner in the first half. |
Substitutes
| Player Rating |
Comment |
|
Arouna Kone – 5
|
Came on for Cleverley on the hour mark as Everton chased the game but the Ivorian had little to no impact on proceedings. |
| Gerard Deulofeu – NA
|
Did not manage to change the course of the game after coming on in the 74th minute for the dangerous Aaron Lennon. |
|
Leon Osman – NA
|
A late sub. |
