Perfect 10: Dwight McNeil’s move inside gives Everton vital potential | Everton

Edisplays are finally over. After twice throwing away a two-goal lead in the Premier League and capitulating to successive defeats to Bournemouth and Aston Villa, the Toffees claimed their first win of the season and moved from the foot of the table to 15th. The win would have been a huge weight off the shoulders.

After a solid end to the previous season – Sean Dyche oversaw a run of four wins in the final six games of the season to ensure Everton’s safety despite an eight-point deduction – Everton were expected to enter another relegation dogfight would avoid their final season at Goodison Park. The start was far from ideal, and certainly not what the supporters expected.

However, in what was a dismal start on the blue half of Merseyside, there was a ray of sunshine in the form of Dwight McNeil. Dyche, who was nominally a winger, decided to move McNeil into the number 10 role after successive heavy defeats to Brighton and Tottenham, with summer signing Iliman Ndiaye starting on the left.

Ndiaye’s hard work without the ball certainly contributed to the decision to move McNeil into the infield, and it is one that has helped Everton in the final third. Dyche’s side were by far the biggest xG underachievers in the Premier League last season, scoring 19.34 fewer goals than expected. In comparison, they have only underperformed their xG by 0.15 in the current campaign.

While it is not to say that Everton’s goalscoring problems have been completely resolved – they have only scored seven league goals this season – McNeil is now deployed in a position that maximizes his eye for a defense-splitting pass in the team’s favor. It is no coincidence that the 24-year-old is top for key passes (21) in the Premier League this season, with 14 of those achieved in the four games in which he started at number 10.

Of the 11 shots he managed, 10 came from inside the field, while a brace against Palace on Saturday means McNeil has equaled his goal tally from last season after just six games. Crucially, his defensive work has clearly diminished with the introduction of Ndiaye on the left. This is evident from the fact that McNeil has made the same number of tackles in the number 10 role as on the left flank (three), while the number of interceptions (three to zero) and errors (two to one) have also fallen.

This now puts more pressure on McNeil’s ammunition for team-mates – he is top for accurate through balls (five; he had made eight in the previous two Premier League seasons combined) and third for big chances created (six). in the English top class. this term – or at least go for the goal itself. Furthermore, Dyche has given McNeil more freedom to drift across the final third rather than requiring the former Burnley man to stay on the left flank.

As such, McNeil is now popping up in a number of different areas in the final third as teammates look to their creative star to pick apart the defense. While a large proportion of the chances he has created have come from set-piece situations, the increase in accurate through balls suggests the team is benefiting from Dyche’s reshuffling of McNeil.

“Also by playing centrally and being more involved in the game, my stats have gone up,” said McNeil after the match against Palace. Saturday’s win against the Eagles was the first major obstacle Everton had to overcome if they were to enjoy a more fruitful domestic season.

At the very least, and even after such a testing start to the season, Everton can take solace in the fact that they appear to have improved their ability to put the ball in the back of the net, and McNeil, who was directly involved in five of the The seven league goals scored have played a big role in their better finishing this time.

With the arrival of a Newcastle side conceding the third most shots per game (17.5) in the division, Everton fans will now view the clash with the Magpies with optimism. And with McNeil blossoming in a more central role, Everton’s chances of making the international breakthrough after a second successive league win increase significantly as Dyche looks to climb his side’s climb up the Premier League table.