Everton have found themselves in an extremely vulnerable position again this season and Sean Dyche is running out of time to save the side from their first Premier League relegation.
The Toffees are currently 18th in the table after 22 outings with only 18 points tallied up from a possible 66 so far, something that the newly-appointed manager must drastically improve if they are to have any chance at survival.
Indeed, there are a number of variables that have contributed to Everton’s struggles this season as the forward line has been considerably weakened due to Richarlison’s exit in the summer and Anthony Gordon’s shock departure last month, with no replacements brought in over the January transfer window to boost the goal contributions over the second half of the campaign.
Not only that, Everton have been plagued with injury issues once again with Dominic Calvert-Lewin struggling to build up a run of games without picking up knocks and muscle strains, whilst break-out starlet Nathan Patterson and other key players have failed to maintain their fitness in order to give Dyche his best chance to save the club.
One player who has been out of action since November with a back injury is summer signing James Garner and a new update on his potential return has now been revealed which could give Dyche a huge boost very soon.
What is the latest on James Garner’s injury?
According to Premier League injury expert Ben Dinnery, the Manchester United academy graduate could soon become available for Dyche to deploy in the centre of the pitch at Goodison Park, with his status changed from ruled out to 25% chance of being available for the crucial clash with Leeds United this weekend.
Indeed, it is very unlikely that Garner will feature in the bottom-of-the-table fixture on Saturday, however, the new availability status hints that the midfielder’s return is imminent.
The 21-year-old ace was signed for £15m by Frank Lampard last summer after attracting the attention of a number of Premier League clubs due to his outstanding loan spell and important role in Nottingham Forest’s promotion back to the top flight last season.
Over 41 Championship appearances, Garner – dubbed “obscene” by former team-mate Jack Colback – scored four goals, registered eight assists and created seven big chances, as well as averaging two key passes, 1.4 interceptions, 50.8 touches, 1.1 shots on goal and 3.9 duels won per game, proving that he was a huge presence in the centre of the pitch.
Since making the move to Merseyside, the rising star is yet to feature in a Premier League starting eleven but has made six substitution appearances before suffering his long-term injury issue but could now be Dyche’s secret weapon in the relegation scrap over the remaining 16 fixtures if he can reach the levels displayed at Forest.
With that being said, the return of Garner could be a great opportunity for Dyche to unleash another player who can offer quality and resilience in the heart of the team as the manager attempts to navigate through an unstable and troubling period for Everton.
