Sean Dyche has a massive absence to contend with this weekend, with Dwight McNeil expected to miss out for Everton against Aston Villa.
Dwight McNeil picked up what looked to be a serious injury against Crystal Palace in the FA Cup last week he was stretchered off. His absence was expected to be a long one as it didn’t look good, and he’d have been a massive miss for Everton.
But good news came on Friday as Sean Dyche explained that it wasn’t as serious as first feared – although he’d miss the visit of Villa on Sunday.
So with such a massive player out – attention turned to who could replace him in the line-up to minimise the impact.
We’ve identified three potential players who could start in place of McNeil so here they are…
Lewis Dobbin
One option for Everton to replace McNeil is Lewis Dobbin who has been working his socks off this season as he earns his place in the side.
The 20-year-old has been used sparingly by Dyche this season – with just six Premier League appearances – but has impressed on the main in his chances.
Scoring one goal – against Chelsea non-the-less – despite playing just 165 minutes is impressive and should demonstrate that he deserves more chances.
Capabale of being deployed across the front three, Dobbin could easily rotate with the likes of Jack Harrison throughout the game to keep Villa guessing.
Arnaut Danjuma
The clear and obvious answer to Dyche’s injury woes is Dutchman Arnaut Danjuma who will be desperate to take his chance to impress.
The 26-year-old has been linked with a departure all season with Lyon said to be very keen on signing him.
That being said, Dyche has since rubbished these reports and emphatically declared that Danjuma is in his plans this season.
Danjuma could be perfect to play against Villa given his direct running and goal threat as Villa will give the Toffees opportunities to run at them.
Now his future is clear, we expect Danjuma could be the favoruite to replace McNeil and he could thrive too with the public backing of Dyche.
James Garner
A slightly different one, but James Garner could be an option for Dyche if he intends to select a more defensively rigid 11.
Garner has featured on the left before this season, notably in a 2-0 win over Burnley which should tell Dyche that it’s not an awful idea.
Garner would offer a vastly different player to the other two suggestions as the £15m man isnt a winger, and could instead add numbers into the midfield.
That being said, we hope Dyche goes with a more traditional winger to offer some real threat to Unai Emery’s side.
Receive a digest of our best Everton content each week direct to your mailbox
