At the start of the 2014/2015 season Everton’s defence was all at sea. We were conceding sloppy goal after sloppy goal and dropping far too many points because of this. John Stones has only played 26 times this season but has generally been a steadying and calming influence next to Phil Jagielka when fit.
Without Stones next to him in the first three games Jagielka made three vital mistakes which lead to goals. Since then he has only made one mistake leading to a goal throughout the rest of the season. In the 21 league matches that the pair have started, Everton have conceded 21 goals compared to the 29 goals conceded in the 17 games in which other pairings have begun. With Stones and Jagielka at the heart of the defence Everton concede 0.7 goals less per game. The duo also leads the squad in terms of blocks made with 1.1 per game which may contribute to the reduced tally of balls in the back of Tim Howard’s net. The two have also contributed in terms of goals too, Jagielka scoring 6 in all competitions and Stones the solitary strike against Manchester United. They are the only centre-backs to have scored for us this season.
Stones and Jagielka both have differing styles of defending, with the former clearly more comfortable on the ball either playing a pass into midfield or bringing it out of defence himself, whereas Jagielka prefers a much more traditional approach. The two combine well as these styles suit and complement each other. For me, Jagielka has always covered his defensive partner probably more than necessary. This means that when he is playing with a weaker partner his workload effectively doubles which leads to mistakes on his part. When he is next to Stones however he covers less and focuses more on his own game as he does not have to worry as much.
It is fairly lucky that these two are far and away our best centre-back partnership as they are currently the only centre-backs we have. Strengthening in the summer is an absolute priority with academy graduates our only cover. If Stones and Jagielka both remain fit next season though I personally cannot see whoever we bring in being able to break the partnership up. The current club captain and one of the best young defenders in the country will not be easy to replace if either gets injured tough, as plainly demonstrated by this season’s lacklustre defensive record without the pair.
In the burgeoning talents of Stones and the usual reliability of Jagielka, hopefully Everton will have a solid platform from which they can produce football close to or better than the 2013/2014 season. Stones’ ability to play from the back will no doubt be a valuable asset; as will Jagielka’s strong leadership and defensive resilience.
