Everton didn’t have an ideal start to their Premier League campaign at Goodison Park yesterday with a 1-0 defeat to Chelsea, but it wasn’t just the score-line that will leave Frank Lampard with a headache today.
What’s the latest?
Ben Godfrey suffered a nasty looking leg injury in the early exchanges of the game at Goodison on Saturday evening and was stretchered off while given oxygen during a lengthy stoppage.
However, he wasn’t the only Toffees defender to pick up an injury.
Indeed, Yerry Mina also suffered an issue during the game against Thomas Tuchel’s side, and in his post-match interview, Lampard gave an update on the current situation of his defensive duo.
The Everton boss told reporters after the game: “It [Godfrey’s injury] feels like it is a small fracture of his leg.
“We are assessing that. He will be out for a while, Mina is an ankle injury and could be out for a while.
“When it rains, it pours.”
Lampard should be frustrated
As Lampard says, when it rains it well and truly pours. Everton have had a tough summer and after failing to bring too many players to Merseyside, there is no doubt that he will be incredibly frustrated with the news that two of his centre-backs could be out of a while following the first game of the season.
We are only a match into the new campaign but it looks like the problems of 2021/22 are presenting themselves once again and Everton cannot afford to face another relegation scrap.
The pair of defenders join their teammate Dominic Calvert-Lewin on the injury table, with the striker currently out for six weeks with a knee injury weakening the forward line with Lampard having to start Anthony Gordon in the centre-forward role for the Chelsea clash.
As well as having very few offensive options, Lampard is also now rather crippled at the back with Godfrey and Mina’s injuries leaving James Tarkowski, Michael Keane and Mason Holgate. Considering the final two were part of a defence that was dubbed “Championship level” last season, it’s easy to see why Everton’s start to the season will frustrate Lampard.
There is a silver lining though as despite the injury complications the transfer window is still very much open for the next few weeks, and the Toffees are already linked with a move for a new centre-back, a move that will likely accelerate exponentially following the injuries to Mina and Godfrey.
It was reported that Wolverhampton Wanderers captain Conor Coady is of interest to those at Goodison, and the speculation surrounding a move has only further heightened after Bruno Lage left him on the bench against Leeds United yesterday.
Lampard likes to deploy a back three, a defensive set up he presented against Chelsea last night and a set up that Coady has thrived in at Wolves over the last few seasons, but now that Lage has opted for a 4-3-3 formation, it could be that the club captain does not fit into his plans for the future of the team.
With that being said, the powers at Goodison Park must start addressing the areas with little to no depth as Lampard will be desperate to start tallying up points and putting out a team he can trust in the Premier League.
