Everton Under-21s boss Paul Tait backed the "passion" behind the red cards handed to two of his frustrated starlets in the side's defeat to Southampton.
Sebastian Quirk and Isaac Price were both sent off in the closing stages of the 2-1 defeat, Quirk for a second yellow card and Price for dissent. Tait said both must learn from the experience but added: “It’s just passion, I’m not going to take that out of them."
There were positives to take from the Premier League Cup loss at Walton Hall Park despite the result. Ben Godfrey made a major step in his comeback by playing for the first hour and, with two U21s having been involved with the first team, six second-year scholars and one first-year scholar earned vital experience.
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The red cards came as Everton chased the group stage game, which they had led through Price. Of the dismissals, Tait said: “It’s just passion, I’m not going to take that out of them. Seb’s on a yellow card, he’s got to learn to play on a yellow card, but he’s passionate, he’s a Blue, he wants to win, and he’s gone through someone, but he will learn from it. Isaac has said something to the referee because he’s frustrated. He was our best player by a mile and he’s flying at the moment.”
The result leaves Everton bottom of Group F after a performance Tait believes was undermined by fatigue after the U21s produced an impressive display to defeat Paris Saint Germain in midweek. He said: “We lacked energy and drive, the lads looked really tired. Whether that’s just because of the load of games they have had recently, the game on Tuesday against PSG also took a lot out of them.
"Some of them didn’t even look like they had recovered, and then to come up against a team that’s really good in possession, they have some really good individuals, Southampton, a good way of playing, so that stretched us physically and then when we did turn it over and get into the final third, our play wasn’t incisive or as cutting as it has been.”
While there was disappointment in the defeat, Godfrey's return - his first minutes since he suffered a fractured fibula - was a step forward in his progress and the side was without Tom Cannon and Stanley Mills, who were both in the first team squad for the defeat at Bournemouth on Saturday.
Tait said: “Stan’s not there, Tom’s not there, but as I said to the boys, we’ve finished the game with six second-year scholars and one first-year scholar, so maybe it’s about developing these boys now as they could be the next ones in. That’s the job at U21 level, the best ones going up with the first team, because the pathway is there, and then we have to develop the boys coming from the Under-18's.”
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