Everton have been handed an injury boost ahead of their midweek Premier League clash against Newcastle United.
In a recent post on Twitter, The Athletic journalist Patrick Boyland gave positive updates on two Toffees defenders, one of whom cold feature in the matchday squad tomorrow night.
He tweeted: “Mason Holgate set to return to the Everton squad for the trip to Newcastle. Ben Godfrey back doing light training.”
After starting all four of Everton’s opening league matches of the season, Holgate has been out of action ever since with a knee injury. Meanwhile, Godfrey had only played 18 minutes of the club’s opening league game against Chelsea in August before suffering a fractured fibula.
While Frank Lampard has had Conor Coady and James Tarkowski available at the back, having Holgate in the squad against Newcastle and having Godfrey back on the training pitch for the next stage of his recovery will surely have the Everton boss thrilled.
Bearing in mind how both Tarkowski (76) and Coady (56) are among the top 10 players in the Premier League for the number of clearances made so far this season, it’s safe to say that they have been rather reliable and prominent for the Toffees in the absence of Holgate and Godfrey.
With Yerry Mina also out injured, this will surely make the imminent return of Holgate even more pleasing for the Toffees manager.
Last season saw the 25-year-old end the campaign with the second-highest number of clearances (127) at Everton, which suggests how useful a figure he could be next to either Coady or Tarkowski.
While this game against Newcastle may be too soon for him to get straight back into action, having him as an option in the squad will surely be a great help for Lampard, especially if the defender is able to avoid any more injuries between now and the end of the season.
