Everton journalist Dave Prentice has been sharing his thoughts on Toffees midfielder Fabian Delph and his potential role in the team throughout the remainder of the current season.
This comes after Prentice made an appearance on a recent episode of the Liverpool Echo’s Royal Blue Podcast where he spoke about a number of subjects concerning Carlo Ancelotti’s side.
On the subject of Delph, Prentice had this to say about the Englishman. (28.45)
He said: “I don’t quite get the level of ire directed towards him on social media.
“I know he had a row with an Everton fan on social media, which was a bit silly and a bit of an ill-advised thing to do, but he has been a very good footballer, [he was] considered good enough for [a] Manchester City team who picked him whenever he was first in a title-winning season.
“He’s had injury problems ever since he’s arrived and we’ve not seen the best of him, but again, there’s a good footballer in there somewhere.
“It would be silly to dismiss him out of hand because he’s had a row with a fan on social media. Carlo clearly rates him to actually elevate him ahead of Tom Davies, so again, maybe Fabian Delph could be one of these players who we actually see come good at a time of the season when we need him most.”
Everton signed Delph back in the 2019 summer transfer window from fellow Premier League club Manchester City for a fee of £8.55 million.
Since then, the 31-year-old, who is currently valued at £4.5 million, has made 28 appearances for the Merseyside club in which he has managed to pick up six yellow cards but not a goal or an assist (per Transfermarkt).
As mentioned by Prentice in the podcast, Delph got into a row with an Everton fan on social media following their 1-0 FA Cup defeat to Liverpool back in January 2020.
TIF Thoughts on Dave Prentice’s comments on Delph…
Given how Delph made his first appearance for Everton in the Premier League since December during their recent 1-0 win over Arsenal, it’s easy to see why Prentice thinks Delph could offer Ancelotti an extra option in midfielder after him being out of the squad for so long.
Do you think Delph can be an important player for Everton next season?
Yes
No
In our view, if Delph can put in some decent performances before the end of the season when called upon and managed to pick up his first goal or assist for the club, this would surely back up Prentice’s claim and end his debut season with the Toffees on a high note.
In other news: Journalist reveals Ancelotti’s ‘absolute priority’ at Everton