Everton star Amadou Onana has detailed where they’ve improved this season and sent a hint to manager Sean Dyche over his preferred role in the team.
The midfielder has been speaking to DH Net about his time in England so far, after joining Everton in a €30m deal from Lille last summer.
He arrived as a relatively raw, inexperienced player after barely featuring for Lille the season before but immediately established himself as a key player under Frank Lampard.
That continued under Sean Dyche as he played a big part in helping Everton to narrowly avoid relegation on the final day of the season.
The Toffees are looking to avoid a repeat of that this year and after a slow start appear to have found their feet, with five wins in seven in all competitions putting them 15th in the table with 10 points from ten games and in the Carabao Cup quarter finals.
The club appear to be improving under Dyche and Onana believes there has been one clear improvement from last year.
“Progress,” he said when asked for one word to describe Everton’s start to the season.
“Compared to last season which was complicated from the start. We win the matches we have to win. This is a step forward.
“I’ve followed the same pattern. I think I’m cleaner on the ball than last season. We left the pressing aside because we couldn’t find each other on the pitch. Now we’re doing it better. Collectively, we understand each other better.”
While Onana continues to impress and develop this season, there still remains questions about what his best role currently is.
His time at Everton so far has seen him play various roles, featuring as a defensive midfielder, box-to-box midfielder and even further forward on occasion.
He often fluctuate between playing as a number eight and a number six, with different games calling for different roles and that something Dyche has used to his and Everton’s advantage.
Onana is comfortable either way but does insist he doesn’t want to be deployed further up the pitch again.
“It’s (his improvement) linked to my repositioning. I am more on the left side of the midfield and therefore I run more to the left,” he added.
“I like it there and I’m learning new automatisms. During construction, I have to move a little further to the left to make the play. And then, the coach leaves me free.
“I am most comfortable in the center of the field. Not like at Chelsea where I almost played striker. I had one of the worst matches of my career. It’s like putting Kevin De Bruyne on the left, it doesn’t work.”
“It’s clear though. I have the defensive and recovery qualities of a 6. I have the percussion of an 8 and the races of a box-to-box. I’m bringing it all together. And I’m having as much fun in 8 as in 6.”
“If I am asked to be a butcher during a match to help the team win, I do it.”
