Everton defender Ben Godfrey is currently undergoing a tough time at Goodison Park of late and his increasing lack of minutes under Sean Dyche may well mean he is nailed on to quit in January.
The York-born powerhouse appeared to be a worthy capture at the time of his arrival back in 2020 signed by Carlo Ancelotti, having previously starred for his previous employers Norwich City, both in the second tier and in the Premier League.
Godfrey commanded a rather sizeable fee at £20m, after showing some tremendous potential and growth in his game during his early years at Carrow Road, especially in the Premier League.
Since then, the former Canaries defender has gone on to make 79 appearances on the blue half of Merseyside since his capture in 2020, severely hampered by injury troubles and lack of consistency in the Toffees first team.
That has unfortunately continued under Sean Dyche’s ten-month tenure at the club, with the 25-year-old defender now a forgotten man, over two years on from when he was touted as one of the best young defenders of his position in the country and handed his England debut in June 2021.
With just two years left on his current deal on Merseyside, there had even been reports over the summer (The Times, 1 June) that Dyche and co would be open to letting the one-time Shrewsbury Town loanee depart, such has been his fall down the pecking order.
While Godfrey ultimately stayed put with the likes of Conor Coady, Yerry Mina and Mason Holgate all departing, the £4m-rated man has found himself on the periphery this season with youngster Jarrad Branthwaite now a deserved regular in the team.
When the former Norwich City man has started for the club over the past year, he’s been forced to play unfamiliar roles at left-back given Everton’s troubles in the role, a decision which certainly goes to show his decreasing worth at Goodison Park.
Godfrey has featured in just two games all season and it’s now very uncertain when he’ll go on to make another under Dyche’s tutelage right now, even if Everton do suffer injuries to one of James Tarkowski or Branthwaite.
Given he will now be entering into the most pivotal years of his career, it won’t be a surprise to see Godfrey seek pastures during the January window to reignite his career. It’s arguably the best decision he could make right now.
Leave a Reply