Everton picked up a point against Leeds United on Monday evening, with Thierno Barry cancelling out James Justin’s opener.
Thierno Barry was the standout performer once again, netting his fourth goal in his last five Premier League games.
Idrissa Gana Gueye was solid on his return from the African Cup of Nations, and Jarrad Branthwaite looked good after a long injury lay-off.
Everton fans, who was your standout performer in the 1-1 draw with Leeds? 🤔
But ultimately, Everton will be disappointed with the draw, as Leeds are one of the teams in the mix to go down this season.
That said, the Toffees did play really well in the second-half and James Garner has just revealed what Moyes said at half-time to change the game.
David Moyes wanted more tempo in the second-half
Speaking to Sky Sports after the game, Garner explained that Moyes demanded more tempo during the half-time team talk, and that was certainly evident in the second period.
“The first half we were sloppy,” the Toffees midfielder admitted.
“We weren’t quite at the races so we had to change something in the second half. The manager did, brought on two subs and you’ve seen we were much the better team and probably should’ve won it.
Dwight McNeil surely has to be dropped after his display vs Leeds doesn’t he, Everton fans?! 🤔
The winger was hooked at half-time as David Moyes changed the system…
“He wanted a little bit more tempo. We were losing a lot of second balls in midfield so we changed the formation. He wanted an overall better performance.”
Jamie Carragher also praised Moyes for his tactical change at the break: “Everton had to improve, they were so poor in the first half. Credit to the manager, he changed the system and matched Leeds up in the second half.”
Everton remain in the European chase
Whilst a point against Leeds at home isn’t a great result on paper, it does lift Everton back into the top half of the table.
The Toffees are now residing in 10th place, just five points behind fourth-placed Manchester United, quite remarkably.
How impressed were you with Thierno Barry vs Leeds United? 👏
Moyes is aiming for European qualification this season, so they’re well-placed to achieve that goal at the midway point.
Next up is a trip to Brighton and Hove Albion, who are currently languishing in the bottom half on 30 points.
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