View: Moyes must reverse recent player omission at Everton, he has a key role to play

David Moyes has handed just two starts to Tim Iroegbunam at Everton since the end of January.

Iroegbunam’s gametime was always going to be reduced when taking into account the fact that Idrissa Gueye was away at AFCON and the Toffees had several injury issues.

However, very few people will have expected his level of gametime to drop quite as much as it has over the last few months.

Since the end of January, the midfielder has played just 170 minutes of Premier League football, despite having been named in the matchday squad on seven occasions.

And with Everton chasing European qualification, Moyes must realise what the 22-year-old can bring to the table.

Tim Iroegbunam leads way at Everton for crucial metric

Iroegbunam isn’t the type of player to change a game with a moment of quality in the final third, nor is he the type of player to dominate a game from start to finish.

However, he is the type of player who can contribute more than enough over the course of 90 minutes at both ends of the pitch.

With that said, his strengths certainly lie in his awareness defensively, with the 22-year-old averaging 4.14 tackles per game, which is the most of anyone in the Everton squad.

On top of that, Iroegbunam wins 7.39 duels per game on average, which places him among the top six per cent of midfielders in the Premier League.

His biggest assets may not be anything to get fans off their seats, but they are crucial to seeing games through and disrupting play.

And with European football in sight, Moyes needs to start making more of it.

Where does Iroegbunam fit in at Everton now?

This is not a call for him to start for the Toffees, especially when taking into account the form of Gueye and James Garner.

However, he certainly needs to be utilised more.

He’s been an unused substitute on two occasions, while also having played just five minutes of football across three of his other appearances this year.

Moyes needs to start giving him a lot more time from the bench, and if he does, they will reap the rewards.

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