da bwin： Everton’s Europa League qualifier with Hadjuk Split on Thursday night will mostly be remembered for two delicious goals either side of half-time, one from Josip Radosevic and the other from the Toffees’ latest club-record signing Gylfi Sigurdsson.
da dobrowin： But away from the 50-yard lobs, Morgan Schneiderlin’s individual display really stood out amid a difficult night in Croatia, asserting his control over the middle of the park both with and without the ball.
Perhaps fearing how well a team-mate could perform in his absence against Chelsea at the weekend after being sent off in the 1-1 draw with Manchester City on Monday night, the 15-cap Frenchman brought his best form to Split.
Indeed, the 27-year-old completed the most interceptions and the most dribbles of any Everton player, while producing the best passing accuracy of any Toffees starter. Also tellingly of his involvement in the match, Schneiderlin ranked third throughout both teams for touches of the ball.
After the 1-1 draw at the Etihad Stadium, Schneiderlin’s presence in deep midfield could have played a key role in Everton grinding out another decent result away from home against one of the Premier League’s top sides.
That doesn’t mean Everton can’t claim a draw or better in west London this weekend, but Schneiderlin will be sorely missed by Ronald Koeman.