With Calvert-Lewin starting the 20/21 campaign in a firecracker start of 11 goals in only 11 matches, pundits were optimistic to see the heights the Everton Forward could reach at the end of the season
The 4-3-3 formation brought in by Carlo Ancelotti did wonders for Everton at the start of the season as we saw an inspired Calvert-Lewin in the six-yard box for the Blues, much to the delight of their fans. But their poor home form on the road to the end of the season left many questions on whether the Calvert-Richarlison duo upfront could have done better to claim a higher spot in the table.
Everton was off to a good start thanks to the firework show from Dominic Calvert Lewin as the forward went up to score 11 goals in his first 11 appearances at the start of the season, leaving every other forwards scratching their head. The striker's remarkable ascent in front of the goal took little time to grab the attention of the England manager Gareth Southgate who called up the forward in the national team selection ahead of Wales faceoff. And he didn't disappoint, coming out with a goal from the match as England went to win 3-0 against Wales.
One of Carlo Ancelotti's approach to the season was to improve the overall set-piece department of the team, with proven set-piece takers behind the ball and good aerial options in the squad, Everton made the most of it by converting the 14 goals from the set-pieces, 3rd most than any other team in the league thanks to their 56.7% success in dealing with aerial duels with Calvert-Lewin being their spearhead in that front.
His speed to get into good positions quicker than his opponent backed up with his get jumping capability and heading made him the biggest threat from set-pieces as well as floated crosses into the six-yard box. His ability to generate good ball speed from his header comes from his off-the-ball movement, sniffing out scoring opportunity while also having the ability to out-jump defenders by the likes of Eric Dier and Alderweireld. Although a constant aerial threat for having the right sets of skills, Dominic Calvert-Lewin can also be equally dangerous with the ball in his feet.
In the 4-3-3 formation used much often, James Rodriguez played on the right side of the field, dropping deep behind the opposition midfield on a regular basis and exploiting the half-spaces, while Richarlison and Calvert-Lewin were always on their feet to look for disruptions in the opposition defensive lines and use their pace to exploit it. On defense, the team would look to team press the opposition and close the passing options for wingers with the ball in their own half, at times, creating low blocks and overloading their own box to restrict spaces for the opposition to cash in on.
The plan worked best with James in the middle of the crowd, getting the ball into his feet and feeding them to the attacker, while also arriving late in the box or lurk outside for shooting opportunities.
And as much as it looked good at the start, soon, a huge problem poked its head out in the form of Richarlison finding it hard to find the back of the net on regular occasions. Soon, Calvert-Lewin followed in with a 7 match run without scoring any goals. And it was getting clear that Everton was struggling to score from open play as only around 57% of their goals in the season came from that department. Their winning margins were very thin, with only 4 instances where they beat their opponents by 2 or more goals out of their 17 wins. Set-piece brought about 30% of the goal for the Blues, which in papers looked like great statistics for the team, but also indicated that they would manage to get very little out of the match if the set-piece plan failed.
With James Rodrigues missing 14 matches in the season, Carlo Ancelotti had to make changes to his sides and put in more responsibility on Gylfi Sigurdsson to look after the creative playmaking side of the game. And it was not good enough. The absence of James in the squad also brought in a number of switches in formations, forcing the players to adapt mid-season in fear of damage-control and lose more ground.
The goalscoring chances drying out, aided with Richarlison not being anywhere near to his previous season's form, Calvert-Lewin had to see off the season with only 5 goals in his last 21 appearances. Though 16 goals in the top flight of English football is no small feat for any striker, it has to go as a rather disappointing end to what once seemed to be a fairy tale season in the making for the striker.
The England international made his place in Gareth Southgate's England team for the Euro 2021 where the Everton forward is happy with a secondary role after their Captain Harry Kane. His decision to let Henderson take the penalty that the Liverpool skipper eventually missed was criticized heavily by Roy Keane in post-match in their 1-0 win against Romania.
With the departure of Ancelotti to Real Madrid and the rumour of Rafa Benitez taking charge of the team, Calvert-Lewin will be hoping to have a more productive next season if he wants to consolidate his position in the England squad for the future.
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