14/04/2025 06:00
The Toffees win the tactical battle at the City Ground with Moyes prevailing over Nuno Santo
Moyes Wins the Battle of Wits
It cannot be argued that Nuno Espírito Santo hasn't done a fantastic job in driving Nottingham Forest up to within touching distance of Champions League qualification this term, after they'd finished in 17th spot in the Premier League last season. But on Saturday, at the City Ground, the Portuguese watched his side rendered impotent, before being dispatched by Abdoulaye Doucouré's late winner — at a stage where it appeared a goalless stalemate would be the final result. This was one of the more complete tactical displays by David Moyes' revitalized Everton team, since the veteran boss returned to the club.
Watching the visitors control possession in the early going, without overly discomforting Forest, I half expected to see the hosts take the lead with their first real opportunities, around the half hour mark. This is the formula that the East Midlanders have used to propel themselves up to the heady heights of third in the table and it appeared that the Toffees - energetic but lacking a cutting edge in the final third - may be ideal victims for this approach. Although Forest's threat was handled well by the Blues, Morgan Gibbs-White's effort in the 62nd minute did force a good save by Jordan Pickford.
From that point, however if anyone was going to win this game, it was Everton. After Moyes had introduced Beto and Carlos Alcaraz, the Merseysiders dominated, outshooting the hosts by six to zero and generating an xG of 0.74 from then until they scored the winner. Nuno's plan of allowing the visitors the ball, anticipating that they'd lose possession and open themselves up for the counter came to nought, as the Blues played largely mistake-free football. Instead, it was Forest who committed the error — Murillo being robbed by Dwight McNeil, whose pass found Doucouré for the decisive moment in the 94th.
Harrison Watch Part Two
Jack Harrison, subject of some criticism in this column last week, responded at the weekend. Although he had a couple of frustrating moments in the opening half, in which a decision to hold onto the ball, or a poorly-weighted pass killed promising attacks, both times involving Armando Broja, he stuck to his task gamely and improved. After posting shocking pass completion numbers in his last two outings, the winger fared much better here, succeeding with 71% of his passes and nailing four of 14 crossing attempts.
He was definitely moving the ball more quickly and not holding onto it as long — a trait which has made him a frustrating player to watch, since signing for the first of two loan stints with Everton, back in 2023. The opposition does contribute to this, of course and it has to be said that Forest's near total lack of a press allowed Harrison and his teammates ample time to take a touch and assess their options — which will help anyone. Lone striker Chris Wood is having a bumper campaign, with 18 league goals to his name, but he is not active off the ball and serves really as a poacher, rather than a target man.
Still, it would be churlish not to acknowledge Harrison's contribution to what was an excellent road win by the Toffees. He led the team in progressive carries (seven), touches in the attacking third (36) and progressive pass receptions (12) and also produced two key passes. Even so, I do not think the club should be looking at bringing him back next season. There will be better players to use one of only two domestic loan spots on, and his age (28) and reputed high wages at Leeds United make him exactly the sort of player who Everton should not be adding on a permanent basis.
To Doucouré, or Not to Doucouré
The midfielder looked to be tiring as the game headed into its final quarter, as in recent games, but still found the energy to break into the opposition box to win the game for the visitors in added time. At 32, Doucouré is not the running machine he once was, but even if his legs may be going a bit, he showed he can still grit his teeth and make a supporting run late in a match — an invaluable attribute. I'd felt that he should have been substituted off, but Moyes left him on and the Malian repaid his managers' faith in the best way possible — and the manner of his goal celebration left nobody in any doubt that he wishes to stay at the club for just a little longer.
It's well known that Doucouré is Everton's highest-paid outfield player, on around £130k per week and that is a lot of money for a team who has not played continental football since Ronald Koeman's side bombed out of the Europa League in the 2017-18 campaign. Whilst his contributions out of possession are important to how the team sets up, and he is a willing supporting attacker, if the club are to offer Doucouré a new contract, then it must be on significantly reduced terms — around half his current wage.
Branthwaite Shows His Worth
With more speculation regarding Jarrad Branthwaite's future circulating recently and even being addressed by Moyes in his pre-game press conference, the centre half served up a timely reminder of just what a good player he is. The 22-year-old formed a cohesive partnership once again with James Tarkowski, at the heart of the Blues defence, with the veteran putting in an encouragingly strong effort alongside him. Branthwaite, who hasn't quite managed to hit the stellar heights of last term, following an injury-hit opening to the campaign, was on top form against Forest.
The tall defender dominated Wood to such a degree that it was easy to forget that the striker was actually on the pitch; he managed just two touches in the opposition third in 90 minutes. Branthwaite won nine of ten aerial duels, blocked a shot, added six clearances and also completed six of eleven long balls in a complete performance. There will almost certainly be offers made on the player over the summer, but my feeling is that the club should look to hang onto him for at least the debut season at the new stadium, unless a truly mind-boggling bid arrives — around the £80m apparent asking price being quoted in the press last summer.
Broja Evaluation
Sadly, Youssef Chermiti was again overlooked by Moyes at the City ground: as at Goodison Park last weekend, he remained seated on the bench for the duration. That makes it just five minutes of action in three matches for the promising young striker since an impressive cameo against West Ham United, before the international break. Unless there is some lingering fitness issue that's not been made public, I don't understand why he's not seen more game time. However, it was good to see more of Broja — preferred on the day to normal incumbent, Beto. The 23-year-old had a solid 64 minutes, before being withdrawn, getting plenty of touches as he often dropped back in to join in with the play.
He's a nice player with a good array of attributes, though whether he's cut out to play as a lone striker is uncertain. If Moyes is giving him a start at this stage of the campaign, then there must be interest in exploring the possibility of bringing him back next term, or what is the point? If this is true, then there must be a feeling that Chelsea may be willing to negotiate a sale for a low fee; I can't see how another temporary move would be any good for the Albanian international at this stage of his career. He needs a fresh start and maybe there is still a chance that could be at Everton.
Alcaraz Questions
It's a little disheartening to hear some start to question whether the club should sign Carlos Alcaraz at the end of his current loan deal. The reported €12.5m fee is low for a player of his undoubted ability, who only turned 22 in November. I honestly don't understand why Everton are seemingly nervous of triggering the mandatory purchase clause, agreed in the terms of his temporary move from Brazilian outfit Flamengo. The kid is talented, appears to have a great attitude, wants to sign permanently, can play multiple positions and seems to have all the qualities needed to succeed in the World's Best League™.
Even used in a non-ideal position, out on the left, Alcaraz looks the business. He's great at picking up the ball, turning on a dime and driving forward and he also has good timing in knowing when to retain it and when to make the pass. Replacing Iliman Ndiaye, who is not yet back to his pre-injury level, he started making a difference almost immediately. In all four Everton attacks between the 73rd and 92nd minutes, the Argentine was closely involved in the buildup. The club is on 38 points with just six games to go; just start the kid and pay the transfer fee, for the love of Pete.
Statistics provided courtesy of fbref.com and sofascore.com
