Everton 1-3 Manchester City: 5 Talking Points

#4 Rooney's midfield experiment proves futile

Rooney struggled in a more defensive-minded midfield role for Everton

You couldn't help but feel sorry for Rooney here.

Playing in an unfamiliar role as part of a holding midfield duo, his lack of mobility was always going to be exposed against a City side who attack with blistering pace and dominate possession under Pep Guardiola, making it increasingly tough to get more than a few touches on the ball.

From kick-off Everton collectively were lethargic but Rooney was particularly poor. Two clearances, a dribble and key pass were the only positive statistics he had to show for during his time on the pitch - most of which was spent chasing shadows and trying to force City into delaying the inevitable, rather than making an active effort to stop them in their tracks.

As previously mentioned, it was clear that Everton missed Gueye in midfield. Between the pair of them, Wayne and Morgan Schneiderlin are not exactly very quick to begin with - so when faced with this opposition, it's hard to believe Allardyce thought his gamble would pay off.

Tom Davies - who replaced Rooney before the hour mark - and Beni Baningime were probably watching on in frustration from the sidelines, knowing they'd both do a better job. More suited to midfield roles with such responsibility in spite of their youthful exuberance, it's decisions like these which make supporters question Allardyce's decision-making in regards to selection dilemmas.