The 4 things we learned from Southampton 4-1 Everton

The 4 things we learned from Southampton 4-1 Everton
15:28, 26 Nov 2017

Southampton plunged Everton further into the mire while giving themselves a little more breathing space with a 4-1 Premier League win at St Mary’s.

Ronald Koeman’s more recent employers were once again carved open far too easily as a Charlie Austin brace and goals from Dusan Tadic and Steven Davis cancelled out Gylfi Sigurdsson’s reply.

The Toffees have now won just once in their last 12 games and have conceded eleven goals in their last three games. 

Prior to this match, Southampton were suffering their worst start in five years. Everton, ever the perfect remedy to other team’s problems this season, were unable to drag themselves out of trouble and now sit just two points above the relegation zone. 

Here are four talking points from their latest setback against - it has to be said - a team who aren’t known for their eye for goal:

Gylfi Sigurdsson needs his role defined

The former Swansea man levelled things up with a fantastic goal, albeit one which needed a bit of luck as it rebounded in after hitting the crossbar several times. Sigurdsson had taken two Southampton defenders out of the game with a deft turn to remind Farhad Moshiri exactly why he spent £50million on him this summer. If we ignore the market’s inflated prices for a moment, he could have been an astute acquisition, but the way Everton are playing doesn’t allow him to get forward enough. He started on the left but didn’t seem to know what his role was and kept having to track back. It all left Everton horribly exposed down the flank, which was made worse by Leighton Baines’ departure after 26 minutes. They then opted for three at the back, a system which requires much more accomplished wing-backs than Aaron Lennon.

A turning point for Dusan Tadic?

The Serbian international had opened the scoring as he shrugged off Baines and slid the ball with very little power past Jordan Pickford. Tadic has failed to reproduce his best form this season, though it has been difficult for him to be creative given his team’s attacking problems. This was just his second goal of the season, but there were other reasons to be optimistic about his performance. His runs through the middle and down the wing were crucial to putting Everton under pressure, especially in the early stages. Even if Mauricio Pellegrino won’t want to read too much into his performance against a defence so lacking in confidence, this was probably his best display of the campaign so far.

Everton cannot waste any more time on their managerial hunt

If Watford are not going to let Marco Silva go, which it appears they are not, Everton need to stop dithering. David Unsworth has a near impossible job and it’s very difficult to see the club going in an upwards direction until they appoint a permanent manager. Moshiri was on the end of some scathing chants from the away end and rightly so, as his stewardship is proving an utter disaster. There aren’t too many miracle men available who will be able to get them out of this hole. Martin O’Neill, Sam Allardyce, Sean Dyche? God knows.

Dropping Wayne Rooney isn’t the answer

Unsworth surprised a few people by naming Rooney on the bench again, perhaps a statement that even the biggest names aren’t safe from the cull as he tries in vain to arrest their slump in form. However, what Everton need is leaders, and all the more so if they only have a caretaker manager to look to on the sidelines. For all his faults, Rooney has still contributed about as much as anyone this season. Dominic Calvert-Lewin is promising, yet he performs best alongside a more experienced player like Rooney – the responsibility on the youngster’s shoulders is weighing heavy at the moment.

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