Everton lost 3-1 in their final home game of the season against Sunderland – and it was yet another poor outing for Iliman Ndiaye.
The Toffees’ bid for European football is effectively now over, with the club three points behind eighth-placed Brentford with just one game to play.
Everton need to beat Tottenham Hotspur and for Brentford to lose, and there needs to be a six goal swing.
What on earth has happened to Iliman Ndiaye?! 😫
No goal or assist since the win over Chelsea in March… 📉
But that could become bigger if Chelsea win their game in hand on Tuesday and equal Brentford’s points tally.
One major reason behind Everton’s loss of form at a crucial moment is key players not delivering.
Unfortunately Iliman Ndiaye is one such player – and David Moyes’ next move should be clear at this point.
Iliman Ndiaye should be dropped vs Tottenham Hotspur
Ndiaye is potentially Everton’s best player on paper. He is certainly the most naturally gifted and the most technical.
He has proven to be a terrific signing so far, but over the last few months he hasn’t shown the levels we know he can.
It’s possible he’s been affected by fatigue. He did play at AFCON with Senegal, and has featured heavily with Everton.
But just recently Ndiaye’s loss of form has become quite noticeable with the player missing a number of brilliant chances lately.
He had several glorious opportunities against Manchester City and Crystal Palace – had he taken just one, Everton would be going into the final day firmly in contention for European football.
One wonders if the goal that he scored against Liverpool that was disallowed for offside against Jake O’Brien really deflated him.
If it did though, the Ndiaye should have picked himself up, refocused and come back more determined to make an impact for Everton.
He’s been really wasteful lately, but actually, Ndiaye’s form in front of goal has been poor for a while now. In the 15 games he’s played since coming back from AFCON, he’s scored just two goals and made one assist.
He has not been without opportunity, playing every single minute of those games.
David Moyes refused to really criticise Ndiaye after his latest poor showing against Sunderland, despite the winger again being wasteful. The Scot simply pointed out that the goals had dried up, and struck a matter-of-fact tone.
Which Everton player should not be started next week against Spurs? 😬
Simply put, Ndiaye deserves to be dropped for the last game against Spurs.
Yes, he’s a top player on his day. But that day hasn’t come for a while now and there are other players in Everton’s squad – namely Tyrique George – who deserve a chance to start.
Continually starting players that are wasting opportunities and in poor form is sending out the wrong message. No player should be above the axe, even if they are a gamechanger.
Receive a digest of our best Everton content each week direct to your mailbox
