The 3 major failures of Marco Silva at Everton

Marco Silva was finally shown the door at Everton, after a terrible start to the 2019-20 Premier League campaign saw the Toffees languishing in the relegation zone.

When Silva was hired before the start of the 2018-19 season to replace Sam Allardyce, there was a mixed reaction by fans, with many believing he wasn't experienced or good enough to be Everton's manager.

His first season saw Everton finish in 8th position, the same as they had finished the season before under Allardyce. However, a strong end to the season saw the Toffees build a 'fortress' at Goodison Park - with wins over Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United and Burnley.

This season, however, turned out differently. Shocking defeats to Burnley, Brighton and the three promoted sides - Sheffield United, Aston Villa and Norwich - saw Everton struggle in the bottom half of the league table. While they should eventually manage to avoid relegation, the club shouldn't have been in this position at all - especially with the massive millions they have spent on transfers in the past two windows.

The club's long injury list and inability to sign the players they wanted in the transfer window like Wilfried Zaha and Kurt Zouma didn't help the cause of the Portuguese manager. He was sacked after managing a 40.9 winning percentage from his 61 games in charge, lower than his predecessors Ronald Koeman, Roberto Martinez and David Moyes.

A last-minute defeat to Leicester City and then a 5-2 humbling at the hands of local rivals Liverpool in the Merseyside Derby were the final nails in the coffin for Silva. At the time of his departure, the Toffees were in 18th place with a disappointing 14 points from 15 games.

But where did it all go wrong for Silva? Here are the 3 main problems Everton faced under him:

1. The Zonal Marking Disaster

While most managers use the man-marking strategy while defending corners and free-kicks, some have turned to the zonal marking system. Zonal marking is a defensive strategy where defenders cover an area of the pitch rather than marking a specific opponent.

If an opponent moves into the area a defender is covering, the defender marks the opponent. If the opponent leaves this area, then marking the opponent becomes the responsibility of another defender.

Silva's Zonal Marking - The Back Post (Green Zone) has been exploited by opposition several times

Even though teams have traditionally done well with zonal marking, Silva's version of the system turned out to be a disaster - with teams exploiting Jordan Pickford's near post in 2018-19. And although it seemed like Silva had got it right towards the end of the season, this season teams have continuously targeted and successfully scored at the far post.

In 2018-19, Everton conceded the most goals (16) from set-pieces. In 2019-20, the problem of conceding from set-pieces has continued, with the team conceding seven goals already (only Aston Villa have conceded more).

Even when Silva was manager of Hull City, they had conceded the most goals from set-pieces. That issue clearly carried on to his life at Everton.

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2. Inability to bounce back

Silva failed to inspire Everton's challenge for the top six

Since Silva took charge in 2018, the Toffees have conceded first 28 times and have never managed to win a game after conceding first. After falling behind, Everton have managed only 5 points i.e. 5 draws, which is the worst of any team in this period.

All of this just shows that Everton did not have the mental strength to make comebacks; if they went behind, then that was pretty much it.

Compare that with top teams like Liverpool and Manchester City, who you cannot count out of the game even if they go two goals behind. Any team that is aiming to challenge for the top places and Champions League qualification cannot do so if they don't have the mental strength and spirit to come from behind and win matches.

This is not at all what you'd expect from a team which, over the years, has been known for its fighting spirit and 'never give up' attitude. The 1995 FA Cup winning side was given the nickname 'The Dogs of War' due to their spirit, but the Everton side under Silva were nowhere near deserving of that title.

3. Predictability and no Plan B

Leicester City v Everton FC - Premier League

A worrying belief about Silva from his time at Hull City and Watford was that he was a very predictable manager. After his time at Everton, it was pretty clear that that was true.

Throughout the 2018-19 season, the manager used the same 4-2-3-1 formation regardless of the opposition and their approach. Silva's strategies of playing from behind worked fine last season, when they had Idrissa Gueye in the middle of the park. However, with the club failing to replace him properly and the midfield reinforcements Fabian Delph, Jean-Phillipe Gbamin and Andre Gomes all on the injury list, their game has been slow and predictable.

They have not been able to replace Romelu Lukaku's goals and their strikers have been left isolated in the 4-2-3-1 formation with lack of support from the midfield. The wingers have been sending in crosses aimlessly and the midfielders have been unable to penetrate the defenses.

Any mistakes during the buildup have led to Everton conceding on the counter on several occasions. In almost every game, they have had more possession of the ball but have failed to get on the score-sheet, and their defence has struggled to keep clean sheets.

The defensive substitutions from Silva and lack of direct play were also responsible for fan backlash, which ultimately led to the sacking of Silva by the board.

The Marco Silva chapter for Everton is finally over. It's going to be interesting to see who replaces him and whether the new manager can overcome these issues and turn the fortunes of the club around.