Adam Jones has been speaking on the Royal Blue podcast about what the future holds for Everton defender Lucas Digne.
It has been a strange few weeks for Digne, as the Frenchman has gone from being a regular at left-back to now having been dropped from the last two matchday squads by Toffees boss Rafael Benitez – and that was reportedly down to a falling-out behind the scenes, which was had out in front of other players.
Should Everton sack Benitez?
Yes!
No!
Benitez has since opted for Ben Godfrey as his left-back, despite the 23-year old’s natural position being at centre-back, and if Digne can’t find a way to fit into Benitez’s team and to potentially even apologise for the training ground bust-up, his future could be away from Goodison Park.
Jones is interested to see how Benitez handles the situation and what it means for Digne’s future.
“If Digne can effectively play in that Rafa Benitez style, even if he doesn’t agree with it, if he can teach himself to play a little bit better in that sort of style, I think that will be better for the team.
“Benitez has got to give him the opportunity to do that now, which would be better for the team.
“It seems very much that the club, the player and the manager have kind of reached a crossroads at this point, and Benitez, it’s up to him to try and work through this now. This is all about his sort of man-management with Lucas Digne, so it’s going to be really interesting to see what he does.”
TIF Thoughts on Digne’s situation…
Ever since Digne arrived at Goodison Park, he has featured very heavily under several different managers, and much like on the opposite flank, that may well be because there is no other alternative at the club, with Godfrey seen as the backup to Digne.
If the manager and Digne are unable to fix the situation they find themselves in and learn to work with each other, it may be best for the Frenchman to move on, as he will need to be playing ahead of next year’s World Cup in Qatar and Benitez will also not want to be playing a young centre-back as a full-back.
Nor would the Spaniard want to delve into the transfer market without allowing Digne to find a new club, especially with Everton’s finances stretched, based on their recent activity in the summer window. Whatever happens, it seems that something will have to give in the near future.
In other news: Journalist issues big claim on Benitez’s immediate future at Everton