Dyche told to bench Everton man who ‘can be ripped to shreds’ and could cost Toffees

A journalist has told Everton to play Ben Godfrey over Vitaliy Mykolenko, as he believes he ‘can be ripped to shreds’, which could cost the side.

Mykolenko is yet to miss a league game for the Toffees this season. In fact, the Ukrainian left-back has failed to complete 90 minutes in the league on just three occasions.

He has been utilised quite heavily since signing for the club for around £21million last January.

He’d likely have hoped his career in England would have been a bit easier. Indeed, Everton’s struggles have been well documented over the past couple of seasons.

Last term, they escaped relegation by just four points. Since then, Frank Lampard has been sacked and former Burnley boss Dyche has taken over.

A big contributing factor in Lampard’s sacking was the looming threat of relegation yet again. Indeed, Everton are currently within the bottom three, in 18th place.

The lack of signings made in January at Goodison means Dyche has had to continue with the same squad Lampard struggled with.

That didn’t hinder him in his first game, a home match against league-leading Arsenal. Everton won 1-0, with a very similar side playing to the one that lost 2-0 to West Ham in Lampard’s final game – including Mykolenko at left-back.

Dyche told to bench Mykolenko for Godfrey

Despite him having started every game so far this season, Mykolenko’s defensive capabilities have been questioned. One journalist believes the Ukrainian should be benched for Godfrey, who he feels is a better defensive player.

“Mykolenko played okay last week, but I would prefer Ben Godfrey just because he’s more reliable defensively,” he said on The All Together Now Everton Podcast.

“I trust Ben Godfrey more, on more of a one-to-one basis. Everton are going to be up against the likes of Salah and Nunez, and they’re going to be up against quick players where you will be sometimes left isolated on a one-to-one basis, and this is where I don’t want the likes of Coady or Tarkowski left 1v1.

“We all know he’s a half-decent player, but defensively he can be ripped to shreds – as we’ve seen against Manchester City and all decent players this season.”

Indeed, the journalist feels that his lacking defensive abilities could cost Everton in big games, such as against Liverpool.

“So I wouldn’t want him left isolated in a one v one against the likes of Salah or whoever’s playing – we know Jota could be coming back into the fray as well – so I don’t want that. I would prefer Godfrey, personally,” he added.

In a relegation scrap, the Toffees will want to be as solid as they can be at the back. Whether or not that means they will drop Mykolenko remains to be seen.

That he’s not missed a game this season suggests he won’t be dropped. Indeed, Godfrey has only played four times, with an injury hindering his playing time.

With a new manager currently assessing his squad, there’s a chance some changes could be made. Dropping a mainstay for a player who has hardly played this season could come back to bite them, though.

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