Captain Sensible?

Given club captain Seamus Coleman’s ongoing fitness issues, there’s every chance had Everton reached Wembley in May that James Tarkowski would have led them out but rather than dreams of getting his hands on the cup, it was more a case of having his head in his hands here.

So often, the 32-year-old leads by example but unfortunately that was not the case here as a couple of errors of judgement cost his side dearly.

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The first was more of an occupational hazard that we’ve come to expect with the Mancunian as he steamed into a full-blooded challenge on Antoine Semenyo and as a determined competitor who always plays on the margins in this respect, there is always a chance that referees are going to give a penalty, even if, as Tarkowski seemed to remonstrate, he had also got the ball.

What was going on in the passage of play that resulted in Bournemouth’s goal is anyone’s guess though and without digging anyone out, David Moyes suggested as much in his post match press conference.

While this correspondent has dubbed Tarkowski’s centre-back partner Jarrad Branthwaite ‘The Carlisle Kaiser,’ the skipper doesn’t exactly scream libero himself. He showed he’s not just blood and thunder with a clever curled pass to pick out Beto for his first goal a week earlier, but an attempt to spray out from the back here as a ball-playing central defender was more thud and blunder.

Tarkowski, a pro who is as honest as the day is long and a footballer with a heart of a lion who never hides, will bounce back from this and there’s every chance he puts in a heroic display against Liverpool. However, in the one-off nature of cup football, there is no margin for error when it comes to making mistakes like these.

Don’t cry for me Argentina

Speaking in his pre-match press conference at Finch Farm, David Moyes seemed eager not to build Carlos Alcaraz up too much, after all his transfer deadline day recruit is only a loan signing and obligations to buy will only kick in because he’s featuring regularly, but what he did state was that the midfielder was fit and ready to play. Those of us who were inside Goodison Park on Saturday all know that now.

On what was a disappointing day for Everton following a hat-trick of consecutive victories, the midfielder’s second half cameo was one of the brightest sparks to emerge from the contest. Blues fans love a trier an we saw that with the other Argentinian Moyes brought in during his previous spell at the club, Denis Stracqualursi.

However, unlike the hard running but limited striker who achieved cult hero status during his time at Goodison Park, Alcaraz already looks a far more promising talent. His manager acknowledged that the 22-year-old’s previous spell in England with Southampton ensures he’s used to the speed of the game here and from the off, having replaced Abdoulaye Doucoure, he was slaloming at the Bournemouth defence, winning the free kick from which he would strike the post.

Moyes lamented that he wasn’t able to get more new faces through the door in the winter window, and the lack of depth on the bench here showed just how limited his options still are. However, the one acquisition that the club did get over the line at least looks capable of providing a few more Goodison highlights.

Keane to impress

Like in politics, a week is a long time in football and having raised what appeared to be a Carlo Ancelotti-esque quizzical eyebrow to the prospect of Michael Keane being deployed as a striker for Everton, Moyes was telling his understudy centre-back to go up front for the closing stages of this FA Cup tie, with many of the home fans roaring their seeming approval.

When asked about the ploy, the Blues boss said: “Let’s be fair, he’s not a centre-forward,” but then tellingly left the door ajar to the idea by adding: “It’s not the first thought on my mind... but I might need it.”

Speaking in the ECHO’s Royal Blue podcast on Friday to preview the Bournemouth fixture, Everton’s official statistician Gavin Buckland had praised Cherries boss Andoni Iraola for the progressive way he has supposedly shown that football will be played in the ‘Post Pep’ world.

Yet in trying to desperately fight their way back into Goodison’s last-ever cup tie against the Basque tactician’s side, the Blues were rolling back the years by utilising Keane as a 2025 version of Mick Lyons or Derek Mountfield by throwing a centre-half up front and putting the ball into the mixer.

While the woodwork took a battering, Everton were still only able to muster a single shot on target. It was one more than they managed against Bournemouth last time out but still laid bare the paucity of Moyes’ options just seven days on from Beto’s brace.