The Technical Area – Assessing Barkley’s Role on the Everton Left

There’s no doubt Roberto Martinez is a big fan of Ross Barkley. Deprived of the youngster’s services for the first seven Gameweeks of the season, the Toffees boss has thrust him straight back into league action, with three starts and a sub appearance in the subsequent four league fixtures.

Only last week, Martinez responded to Roy Hodgson’s recent comments, which likened the Toffees midfielder to Paul Gascoigne, and took the chance to wax lyrical over Barkley’s talents:

“Ross is going to draw those sorts of comparisons. The way he is as a footballer, he can bring about memories of many different players. I think it is a phenomenal compliment (for someone) to see aspects of Ross’s play comparable to Gascoigne, and I also mentioned before Michael Ballack’s attributes when he was a young player – there are many (similar) things I see in him too. But the reality is that the longer you see Ross having a big role at our club, you are starting to see a quite unique footballer. Ross Barkley is himself and someone I think is going to mark an era in English football.”

Barkley’s return to the fray has, however, handed Martinez a dilemma in recent weeks, with the Toffees boss searching for a way to squeeze the fit-again 20-year-old into the starting XI alongside Samuel Eto’o and Romelu Lukaku.

In Gameweek 8, Martinez started Barkley behind Lukaku in a 3-0 win over Villa, before shifting Eto’o into the role in “the hole” for the following week’s win over Burnley. Gameweek 10 saw Barkley tuck in behind lone striker Eto’o but the omission of Lukaku from the XI coincided with the first time the Merseysiders have failed to score this season, as they served up a goalless draw at home to Swansea.

Last weekend, Martinez changed tack and chose to accommodate all three in his starting line-up as Everton travelled to Sunderland. With Eto’o tucked in behind Lukaku, Barkley was shuffled out to the left flank in the 1-1 stalemate, and as the Toffees prepare for a kind run of fixtures, we cast an eye over his display at the Stadium of Light.

Everton Average Positions versus Sunderland
As the average position map highlights, Barkley (number 20) was more or less as advanced as lone striker Lukaku (number 10) when on the ball with, Eto’o (number 5) dropping deeper. The youngster’s tendency to drift centrally offered the Toffees less width when compared to Aiden McGeady (number 7) on the right, though, with Leighton Baines (number 3) far further up the field than Seamus Coleman (number 23) when in possession.

In terms of involvement, Barkley had more touches of the ball (42) in the final third of the pitch than any other Everton player, as his team-mates looked for him time and again. Eto’o and Lukaku (36 apiece) were also heavily involved, though Martinez’ side offered little balance on the right flank – McGeady managed just 20 touches in the final third by comparison.
Top 10 Players for Touches in the Final Third, GW11

Encouragingly for Martinez, Barkley, Eto’o and Lukaku all featured in the top ten players for touches in the final third in Gameweek 11. With the trio so heavily involved in possession far up the field, Everton registered 237 touches in the final third – up from their previous season average of 199 – despite the fact that their 59.3% possession against Sunderland was marginally down on their 60.8% from Gameweek 1-10.

In terms of distribution, Barkley also received more passes (27) in the final third than any other Everton player and produced more successful passes (29) in this area than his team-mates. Indeed, only Wayne Rooney (30) bettered Barkley for this tally over the weekend’s fixtures – the latter’s hugely impressive 100% pass accuracy in the final third underlines his coolness under pressure. Southampton’s Dusan Tadic, for example, had more touches than any other player (49) in the final third over Gameweek 11 but was successful with just 63% of his passes in this area.

In spite of his accuracy, Barkley created just two goalscoring opportunities for Everton on Sunday – the same number as Eto’o and Lukaku. Intriguingly, the youngster led the way for attempts on goal (five), and with Lukaku (four) and Eto’o (three) all threatening, Martinez’ trio certainly offered plenty of threat in their first outing in the starting XI together. Furthermore, only two midfielders – Angel Di Maria and Yaya Toure, with six apiece – produced more attempts than Barkley last weekend, with his 17.2 minutes per shot far quicker than his previous average of 31.8.

The Baines Impact
Whilst Barkley turned in an impressive shift without picking up the Fantasy points, it’s also worth noting his impact on Leighton Baines’ stats. The Toffees left-back managed 65 touches on Sunday – bearing in mind his Gameweek 1-10 average was 96.8, it’s fair to say his overall involvement in Everton’s build-up play dropped significantly, slipping from one minute per touch to 1.5. With Everton looking for Barkley on the left more often, Baines also plummeted from 1.7 minutes per pass received down to 2.6 against the Black Cats – again underlining the knock-on effect of the youngster’s move out wide.

Further up the field, though, there’s less to worry about – Baines’ 28 touches in the final third was only slightly down from his previous average of 32.7, whilst he also produced more crosses (seven, compared to 5.6) than beforehand. Crucially for Fantasy managers, Baines’s creativity didn’t suffer – his previous average of 38.2 minutes per key pass quickened to 32 last weekend – but with Barkley becoming more prominent in the Toffees’ attacks, we’ll be keeping a keen eye on Martinez’ tactics in light of his weekend reshuffle.

*The Technical Area is put together using the statistics and maps available in our members area. For access to such data and tools on every player, team and match of the 2014/15 season, and for exclusive members articles like this, click here for details.