Luton Star proves Everton wrong after Moshiri signs off on final transfer mistake
Andros Townsend has proved Everton wrong after Farhad Moshiri and Sean Dyche allowed the winger to leave the club for free after his contract expired at Goodison Park.
Townsend has suffered from injury issues towards the end of his Everton spell, leading to the club making the decision to see him leave for free, but his form for new club Luton Town so far has proved them wrong.
Given the lack of strength in depth in this squad and Townsend’s skillset, it has to be considered that the winger would still have something to offer Everton had he not been let go.
With Moshiri set to exit the club soon having agreed to sell his majority stake in the club to 777 Partners, subject to a Premier League investigation, this decision may have been one last mistake from the owner.
Townsend spent the summer training with Burnley before they decided to go in a different direction, leading to him signing for Luton where, so far, he has impressed.
In the 4-3 defeat to Arsenal on 5 December, Townsend featured prominently, with a 100% dribble success rate, 50% ground duel success rate, two attempted crosses and drawing a foul as the team came within minutes of a huge point in respect of their survival prospects. [Sofascore]
Townsend also managed to impress despite defeats to Aston Villa and Manchester United, stepping up despite the team’s poor displays against high-flying clubs. In those games, he completed five of a combined seven attempted crosses, with a 100% success rate against Villa.
On top of this, he also showed the creative side of his game with two key passes and one big chance created. Most relevant to what Dyche wants from his players, though, he won six of 11 attempted ground duels, making four tackles and two interceptions. [Sofascore]
With the inconsistent form of loanee, Jack Harrison and an apparent lack of trust in Arnaut Danjuma, Townsend’s ability to cross the ball and willingness to get back and help out in defence suggests he would have been perfect for Dyche’s side this season, and it may have been a mistake to let him go.
