Our pick of the day for the game against Norwich is Tom Cleverley, after a good performance in midfield shows just how valuable he can be to this squad.
It was a case of missed opportunities for the Blues today, but Tom Cleverley’s performance is a silver lining on an otherwise frustrating afternoon. The Englishman played in holding midfield for the majority of the game before Darron Gibson was brought on and he was pushed further forward.
Similar to Barry in recent weeks, Cleverley was pivotal in taking the ball from defence and creating opportunities. Clean and tidy on the ball, he misplaced a few passes in the second half but was often good on the ball, and had the confidence to turn a Norwich player, before driving forward and looking for a pass. Tom also played a part in Everton’s goal, heading the ball onto Stones before he passed for Deulofeu’s cross.
Considering Cleverley isn’t exactly a natural holding midfielder, he still plays that role well. He plays more as a box to box midfielder rather than a ball winning holding player. Not only can he play that role, we have seen him play on the left, in attacking midfield and even at right-back against Barnsley in the Capital One cup.
It is safe to say that the debate that Evertonians had over the summer when Cleverley signed has well and truly been put to bed. As a free transfer, you cannot complain about such a versatile player with good quality, and still with plenty of years left. A great piece of business by the club.
With the imminent return of James McCarthy to the side, we will have to see whether Cleverley will have to bide his time on the bench yet again, or whether his run in the team is set to continue. McCarthy is pivotal to the team, so I would expect the Irishman to be thrust into the team again once he is fully fit, but it is nice to see such strength in depth and competition for places can only be a good thing.
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