Everton centre-back James Tarkowski has been named in Troy Deeney’s Team of the Week following his performance in Sunday’s 1-0 win.
David Moyes‘ side put in another superb away display at Villa Park, with Thierno Barry’s deft chip seperating the two sides.
Indeed, it was a maginificent team perfomance against top opposition. However, Deeney insists one Everton player stood out for his efforts.
The BBC pundit states defender James Tarkowski put in a ‘wonderful performance’ at the back for the Toffees.
He said: “Wonderful performance in Sunday’s win at Aston Villa. He (Tarkowski) gets in both for his attacking threat and also because defensively, he was a monster.
“I think he’s one of the most underrated players in the Premier League. He’s fantastic with the way he approaches the game and what he delivers.”
TARKS DID WELL, BUT O’BRIEN THE STANDOUT DEFEDNER. HE HAS TO START IN CENTRAL DEFENCE FROM NOW ON
Tarks put in a brilliant shift and was a reassuring presence at the back after an inconsistent period for the 33-year-old.
However, his partner Jake O’Brien deserves his fair share of praise. The Irishman started in his natural position at centre-back, with Nathan Patterson at right-back.
Indeed, it gave the starting XI much more balance. The Blues looked solid in defence and comfortable in possession.
While he’s done an admirable job covering at full-back, he has to start in central defence from now on. In a sport now obsessed with statistics, Everton’s are considerably better with the 24-year-old in the heart of defence.
O’Brien featured at centre-back this season against Bournemouth (a), Forest (a) and Aston Villa (a). Everton won all three games without conceding a single goal.
He was also in his natural position for the 2-0 win over Southampton and the 1-0 victory at St James’ Park last season. That’s a total of 15 points from a possible 15 with no goals conceded in five games.
It’s an outstanding shift, and surely can’t go unnoticed by Moyes and his staff. Of course, the long-term situation at right-back is yet to be resolved, but Patterson did a terrific job on Sunday.
The Scottish international deserves a lot of credit for the proffesional manner of his recent performances. He’ll likely have one eye on a place in the World Cup sqaud, however, for a player who’s been out for some time, he’s done very well.
With Leeds up next at home, Moyes has to find a way of replicating our stellar away form.
