Everton's pre-season struggles continued with a 3-0 defeat to Stuttgart, as striker Beto endured a frustrating afternoon, missing several clear chances. The result highlighted recurring issues in front of goal and at full-back that will concern manager David Moyes.
Beto's day to forget
Beto's reaction said it all. He lay on all fours behind the goal, first holding his head in his hands and then lifting it to look into the sky. Merlin Rohl had also looked up in search of an answer from the Gods, but none came. It was the midfielder's ball that found his teammate with the goal gaping, yards out. Beto read the German's intentions and timed his run well - only to then fail to connect with the ball.
It was not the first time. Amid a flurry of chances, he was also unable to reach a dangerous Carlos Alcaraz ball across goal and, when played in by Rohl earlier, decided to pass wide of the back post in anticipation of a run that was not being made. The better option was to shoot, even if the angle was tight.
Missed opportunities
Beto was not the only guilty party. Alcaraz opted to take a touch when shooting was the better option from Tyler Dibling's pull-back. The effort he did get away beat keeper Fabian Bredlow but was delayed long enough for a defender to provide a last-gasp block. Dibling also forced a good save from Bredlow with a well-taken volley as Everton created chance after chance in a 15-minute spell that was menacing enough to provide Moyes with hope his side is capable of causing problems in the final third.
The problem, however, was two-fold. First, despite lively displays from Alcaraz, Dibling and Rohl, the opportunities they were manufacturing were not being taken. The second was that Everton were already behind when this spell came after Nikolas Nartey was played down the wing into space left vacant by Vitalii Mykolenko.
Defensive frailties exposed
Jarrad Branthwaite, wearing the captain's armband and left isolated, committed to a sliding block that allowed the midfielder to cut inside and line up a shot that he rifled into the roof of the net. When Stuttgart pushed again late in the first half, they again created chances as Mark Travers made impressive saves from Nartey and Lazar Jovanovic.
At the start of the second half, Travers was needed for four saves in quick succession. Chris Fuhrich teased Jake O'Brien, who once again found himself out of position after Tim Iroegbunam's early injury saw the Republic of Ireland international moved away from Branthwaite and the centre of the defence, where he craves to play.
Set-pieces also proved problematic, and it was from a corner that Ramon Hendriks headed in unmarked after both sides made a series of changes. It was one of four corners from which Everton were caused issues.
Barry's impact and late push
One of the changes Moyes made midway through the second half was to end Beto's torrid afternoon and replace him with Thierno Barry. The former France youth international quickly made an impact, beating Bredlow to the ball to win a penalty he then converted despite an approach from normal taker Iliman Ndiaye, in for his first minutes since his post-World Cup holiday.
The goal was not the catalyst for a late push for the Blues, however. For all that Hayden Hackney and Harrison Armstrong fought in the middle, Stuttgart dominated the ball and hit the woodwork twice, through Fuhrich and Ermedin Demirovic. The game ended with Badredine Bouanani smartly finishing after Stuttgart again found joy down Everton's left, this time where Adam Aznou was operating.
A late goalmouth scramble saw Ndiaye and Michael Keane come close but, save for that 15-minute first-half spell of genuine dominance and creativity, Everton rarely looked like overcoming their opponents, who will play Champions League football this season.
Positives and concerns
Moyes does not have to look hard for positives - Hackney and Branthwaite both look strong after overcoming injuries, while Rohl, Dibling and Alcaraz played well, and Barry seized his opportunity to maintain his impressive pre-season form.
But the same recurring issues will trouble Moyes as he leads his squad back to the UK and an introduction with new signing Christian Norgaard. Everton may be able to work their way to improvement from set pieces, but they are being caused serious issues at full-back and, while they are capable of creating chances against good defences, they are not good enough to spurn them, as they did so painfully in south Germany.
