This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…
According to The Telegraph, Carlo Ancelotti is now Everton’s first-choice manager to replace Marco Silva following his sacking by Napoli on Tuesday night, and his previous comments about current Toffees winger Theo Walcott suggest he could be a key man if the Italian takes over.
What did he say?
Well, the former Chelsea chief was speaking ahead of Bayern Munich’s Champions League clash with Arsenal back in 2017 – when Walcott was still a Gunner – and he picked out their attackers as their key players before the game.
According to Football London, the now 60-year-old said at the time: “Their most important players have lots of quality. Alexis, Ozil, Giroud and Walcott.”
Key man if Ancelotti gets the job?
He could well be.
The Italian is clearly a fan of the 30-year-old given those comments, as well as the fact that was something of a controversial opinion at the time – as shown in the Football London article.
Did he play for Everton? Simple question but a lot tougher than you think…
It would certainly be something of a turn up for the books if the former Arsenal man instantly became a regular in the XI if Ancelotti takes charge, seeing as he has largely been a fringe man this term.
The attacker has only started seven of the Merseyside outfit’s 16 Premier League matches despite their struggles, with the majority of those coming in recent weeks having featured for just 74 minutes across their opening eight top-flight matches of the campaign.
Despite his experience and lack of minutes in the Premier League, he also only played 75 minutes in the club’s three League Cup fixtures as he fell down Silva’s pecking order.
The Portuguese likely took that decision after seeing the former England international score just six times in 40 outings last season, as he struggled to make an impression on the right wing.
He would need to make a significant improvement on the two assists in 14 appearances he has in 2019/20 to become a mainstay on the team-sheet under Ancelotti, but he has shown in the past at Arsenal that he has the pace and finishing ability to really trouble opposition defences.
The fact that he has averaged 1.7 shots per game in the top flight this term, as per WhoScored, as well as 0.6 key passes and 0.5 dribbles show what he is capable of, and he could get that extra confidence boost if he knows he has a manager who believes in him at the helm.
In other Everton news, Paul Joyce has claimed that another 56-year-old manager is “on the brink” of taking charge at Goodison Park…
