Benitez refuses to play blame game as errors prove
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EVERTON manager Rafael Benitez blamed more errors for their defeat at home to Brighton but insisted it was not the time “to point fingers”.
Brighton were 2-0 up in 21 minutes through goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Dan Burn and, while Everton academy graduate Anthony Gordon scored his first goals for the club, Mac Allister’s second sandwiched between them was enough for the visitors.
To compound matters, Dominic Calvert-Lewin missed a penalty at 2-0 in his first appearance since August.
Everton have won just once in the last 12 matches and are not helping themselves having conceded the first goal 14 times in 20 matches this season.
“We have shown character in a lot of games and played well in a lot of games but we are not capable of avoiding mistakes which are costing games,” said the underpressure former Liverpool manager.
“We had a slow start, conceded an early goal and after another mistake we
conceded from a corner. It is not easy when you have these mistakes and then
after we miss a penalty and it is even more difficult.”
Brighton’s second goal saw the unmarked Burn head home after a nearpost flick-on and that left Benitez fuming.
“What I can tell you is we were practising specifically these corners and how to defend and we made too many mistakes,” he added.
“We made a mistake and we know how, and we know what we have to do, but it is just not the time to point fingers. We have to accept responsibility as a group.”
The Spaniard also defended his decision to pick right-back Seamus Coleman on the left of a fiveman defence and leave Lucas Digne, who looks set to leave after a disagreement with Benitez and the arrival of Ukraine