'He did really well': Lampard names the Everton player who really impressed him against West Ham
Frank Lampard had no choice but to reshuffle his Everton side when Donny van de Beek suffered a thigh injury in the warm-up.
The Dutchman was originally named in the starting line-up to face West Ham in yesterday’s 2-1 defeat at the London Stadium.
The Manchester United loanee looked set to line-up alongside Abdoulaye Doucoure in a midfield two, but the 24-year-old’s place in the side was taken by Everton goalscorer Mason Holgate.
But instead of going with what looked like a 4-2-3-1 formation on paper, Lampard changed his approach and instead went with a 4-3-3.
The change in formation resulted in Alex Iwobi playing a deeper role to compensate for the loss of van de Beek.
The Nigerian isn’t a stranger to that position, but it did mean he didn’t have as much attacking freedom as he probably would have liked.
Frank Lampard reserves special praise for Alex Iwobi
Lampard was well aware that Iwobi wouldn’t have been happy with his manager’s decision, but the former Chelsea boss had little option given there was no Tom Davies, Allan or Andre Gomes available.
But the former England midfielder was full of praise for the former Arsenal man who produced an energetic performance.
Lampard said: “I know Alex won’t be happy with it but I thought Alex did really well in there, and Doucoure and himself had a lot of energy. I thought the balance was good.
“I had no doubts, he played in the eight for Everton and before for Arsenal.
“He’s an intelligent player, so when you speak to him he can understand what you want, he has bundles of energy, physicality, and since I’ve been here he’s trained really, really well.”
Given Everton’s injury struggles, Iwobi may have to fill in for van de Beek once again on Wednesday night if the 24-year-old hasn’t proved his fitness for the crucial relegation clash at Burnley.
