Everton's Older Heads Step Up | OneFootball

Plenty of Everton players have come in for criticism at different points of this campaign.  And there has been plenty of criticism directed at Everton’s older heads, and at David Moyes for playing them so regularly.

Not that Moyes has not played youngsters. He certainly has. But he is certainly more naturally inclined to trust players with experience and proven quality — a bit of a Catch-22 situation, of course, given the only way younger players can gain more experience is by playing.

An Opta Analyst article, published prior to this week’s Premier League fixtures, examined how each of the teams in England’s top flight manage their squads in terms of the age of players utilised.

Opta split players into three categories: Pre-peak (aged 23 and under), Peak (aged 24-28) and Post-peak (aged 29 and over).

Now that is not to say players who are ‘post-peak’ are bad, but a split has to be made somewhere, and it’s fair to say players who are 29 and older are, in football terms, getting on a bit.

And perhaps to be expected, Moyes has called on ‘post-peak’ players to play 37% of the available minutes in the league this term. Only Aston Villa (42%) and Fulham (50%) have handed a higher rate of minutes to the players in that category than Everton.

This perhaps shows just why some of Everton’s thinking was slightly muddled last summer, and going forward the club must be aligned on its vision, and that means the manager has to buy into that too. But that is for another day — getting European football would certainly help, given it would enable Moyes, or any other manager, to rotate the squad and dish out even minutes.

However, it appears now that one thing is clear: In the run-in, Moyes is going to call on the tried and trusted as he looks to get Everton over the line.

And on Tuesday, as Everton snapped their long winless run at Hill Dickinson Stadium by beating Burnley 2-0, the old guard stepped up.

James Tarkowski, much-maligned (unfairly so, in this writer’s view) this season, scored the opener and delivered another fine performance, on top of an excellent display at Newcastle United.

Tarkowski has his flaws, but he is an excellent organiser and as the captain (unless Seamus Coleman is playing), is always going to be one of the first names on the team sheet.

It is absolutely no coincidence that Tarkowski’s best displays have come when he has featured next to Jake O’Brien or Jarrad Branthwaite, either — both of whom simply complement him more than Michael Keane.

At 33, Tarkowski should not necessarily be a constant figure in the starting XI next season. The hope is Everton can begin to transition away from him and to a regular pairing of O’Brien and Branthwaite, but Tarkowski will no doubt continue to have a vital role to play. He has shown weaknesses this term, but right now, he is part of Everton’s best defence.

Ahead of him, Idrissa Gueye delivered another superb performance. He finally looked back to his old self against Newcastle, and while it can’t be doubted, he has lost that little yard of pace to close the gaps like he once did, he still, even at 36, has plenty of energy.

There were few signs of rustiness on Tuesday, as Gueye linked up brilliantly with James Garner and Iliman Ndiaye on the ball, and off it, was his usual, bustling self. Moyes just needs to be a bit more careful with his minutes, perhaps, but it is worth noting Everton are now very much into one game per-week territory.

Further upfield, Dwight McNeil turned in his best display of the season. It’s a low bar, but the former Burnley winger finally seemed to click. He didn’t look too uncomfortable, playing on the right, and played a key role in Everton’s decisive, second goal.

McNeil, by all rights, shouldn’t be an Everton player anymore, and it still isn’t ideal that he is getting so many minutes ahead of the likes of Tyler Dibling and Tyrique George.

But, fairly or not, he has earned Moyes’s trust, and in the last two games he has stepped up, too.

McNeil needs to be offering the effort and workrate to get into this team. If he plays like he did against Leeds United in January, just before his failed move to Crystal Palace, then he will come in for criticism. But if he applies himself like he did at St. James’ Park and then again against the Clarets, he has a role to play in the final few months of the campaign.

And finally, there’s Beto... Perhaps Beto just needs it to get to February for him to come good, like he did last year.

He capped off January with a poacher’s finish to snatch a last-gasp equaliser at Brighton, and then he displayed similar striking instincts to nudge Everton back ahead at Newcastle on Saturday, dovetailing that with a tireless all-round display.

Moyes stuck with Beto against Burnley, and once again he put himself about and engaged the defenders. He did not get a true chance to score, but his movement and energy was crucial to opening up space for others to exploit.

Beto and McNeil are different to Tarkowski and, probably, Gueye, in that they do not seem long to stay at Everton beyond the summer. Both will be entering the final years of their deals and it does not seem likely they will be offered new ones, so it will be time to cash in as the Toffees aim to evolve.

But if Everton can continue to be a bit more direct and less pedestrian, then both of them can have an impact in the push for Europe. As long as Moyes is not unwilling to mix things up when required in-game.

In the last couple of games, the old heads have prevailed, and with a tough run-in coming up, that know-how could be vital.

I've said it before but I'd like to see Moyes using partnerships and players in positions that he might/should play next season. O'Brien and Branthwaite as the central defence, Armstrong in hid best position, George as winger or striker and whoever is given priority in Gana's position.

While the push seems to be on to qualify for European competition, what currently is the position of Roma and the likelihood of both qualifying for the same competition, particularly the lowest rated one, and are Roma higher seeded?

Patric Ridge 4 Posted 05/03/2026 at 15:27:47

#2 Alan

Roma at the minute look more likely to qualify for Champions League, though it is tight in Italy.

TFG simply need to ensure that everything is in order with the paperwork to enable both clubs to play in the same European competition.

Everton would probably need to then go through a qualifier to get into the Conference League proper, but that's nothing to do with Roma.