Season › 2024-25 › News Vitalii Mykolenko suffers injury in the final pre-season game Anjishnu Roy 09/08/2025 22comments | Jump to last With less than 10 days to go to the start of the Premier League 2025-26 season, Everton have picked up a major injury concern. Left-back Vitalii Mykolenko suffered a groin injury after 10 minutes in the Blues’ final pre-season friendly at Hill Dickinson Stadium. The Ukrainian left-back had to limp off the pitch and was replaced by new signing Adam Aznou. Appearing to be suffering from a groin problem, Mykolenko is now doubtful for the league opener against Leeds United on 18 August. The club is awaiting a medical report on the extent of the injury. “We’ll wait to see [on Mykolenko] what the report says, we’ve not had a chance yet,” said David Moyes after his side lost 1-0 to Roma in the curtain raiser at their new stadium. Moyes also confirmed that Nathan Patterson and Harrison Armstrong are not fit at the moment. “Patterson is getting checked for a hernia and Armstrong picked up a thigh strain in training,” he added. Patterson was left out of the final Premier League Summer Series friendly against Manchester United. However, the Toffees have been bolstered by the returns of James Tarkowski, Jarrad Branthwaite and Michael Keane from their respective injuries. Branthwaite missed the tour of the United States after suffering a niggle against Blackburn Rovers but was fit to start this afternoon. Tarkowski, who led the Blues on to the pitch for the first time at Hill Dickinson Stadium, made his first start since April in the previous friendly against Manchester United. Reader Comments (22) Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer () Mike Gaynes 1 Posted 09/08/2025 at 22:16:00 He may be good, Aznou, but he's not ready to start in the Premier League.For Leeds, expect either an all-centre-back backline (6'4" or bigger at all stations) or a guest appearance by Seamus at left-back. Stephen Williams 2 Posted 09/08/2025 at 22:25:41 Couldn't have happened at a worse time. Either as Mike says or I can see Moyes going with 3 centre-backs with Garner and McNeil as wingbacks stiffening up the midfield and hope for a draw. Colin Glassar 3 Posted 09/08/2025 at 22:34:16 The perils of having a minuscule squad. Duncan McDine 4 Posted 10/08/2025 at 08:37:44 Aznou's defensive positioning was all over the place yesterday, which must be why Seamus was tried at left-back in the final portion of the match. Moyes (like me) will be very concerned about Mykolenko's availability.Once again, the squad is ill-prepared for the new season. Steve Brown 5 Posted 10/08/2025 at 08:55:18 The back 4 against Leeds will be:O'Brien Tarkowski Keane Branthwaite.Moyes needed a right-back and left-back who could come into the team and has neither. Aznou has potential, but he has a lot to learn before he is ready for the Premier League. His defensive positional play reminded me of Nathan Patterson. Jack Convery 6 Posted 10/08/2025 at 16:09:52 Sunderland just picked up Arthur Masuaku on a free. 2-year contract. He's 31. A left-back who played for West Ham, making 105 appearances for them. Played 45 games for Besiktas last season. Current DR Congo international. No idea if he's good, bad or indifferent but Sunderland see something in him. As an emergency cover for Mykolenko he might have been useful, especially as money appears tight. Alan McGuffog 7 Posted 10/08/2025 at 16:22:32 Uncanny isn't it? Was reading somewhere that Everton, for an accumulation of reasons, can claim to be the Premier League's most unlucky club.So I'm led to believe that, over the last few months, Mykolenko has started to look the business. And then this.Surely to God there can't be two Native American burial grounds in North Liverpool! Ryan Holroyd 8 Posted 10/08/2025 at 16:27:48 Why would we spend wages on a left back whos 31 as emergency cover when we have just bought a left back from Bayern Munich whos cover for left back. We dont want three left backs Ed Prytherch 9 Posted 10/08/2025 at 16:38:34 We may come to regret letting Ashley Young go. Sam Hoare 10 Posted 10/08/2025 at 16:42:13 The only way that we can catch up with the teams ahead of us is by developing young talents who go on to be top level players. And the only way that happens is by giving those young players time on the pitch and showing a little patience. That commodity seems to be in very short supply among some on here. Danny O'Neill 11 Posted 10/08/2025 at 17:12:38 To Ryan's point, Jack @6,We have just spent 9m Euros (I think) on left back cover. If Sunderland have been arranging that loan and it's happened, it would have all been in advanced stages for a couple of weeks and agreed. We only found out Mykolenko was injured yesterday.It looks like left back will be a toss up between Aznou, maybe Seamus and as I've said elsewhere, I wouldn't be surprised see Michael Keane in there or we play with a back 3.Sam @10, a debate we've all had for years and long before TW. All opinions, but it's always a balance and blend. As well as developing younger players, all clubs buy players approaching at their peak, or those with experience.I like nothing more than to see young ex-academy players breaking through, but our academy has hardly been tearing up trees over the past decade. The only realistic one coming through now is Harrison Armstrong.Arsene Wenger was good at it. But, wet finger in the air, I think a lot of those he brought into their youth set up came from other countries. He even had Harry Kane for a season, but mustn't have rated him as his released him. It just show's you that you can never tell, and it's down to opinion and judgement.We've done okay with younger players the past couple of seasons. Not academy players, but we acquired the likes of O'Brien, Branthwaite and Alcaraz. We've done it this summer with Aznou, and Barry, again from other clubs. Sam Hoare 12 Posted 10/08/2025 at 23:03:10 Danny, absolutely, Im not saying that we should only buy or play youngsters. But when we do buy them we have to give them game time to develop either on loan or at the club, if its gonna be at the club then that takes patience. Martin Farrington 13 Posted 11/08/2025 at 00:06:50 This might ring the bells of fury, but Tsimikas was left out of the Liverpool squad for their joyous defeat at Wembley Palace. He is a left back. Just saying runs for cover Mike Corcoran 14 Posted 11/08/2025 at 00:38:54 Honestly, in a defensive set up, fullback is the easiest slot in the team. Getting further up and recovering is where you earn your Spurs. Jerome Shields 15 Posted 11/08/2025 at 06:46:51 Sam and Danny.Moyes will just have to adapt to circumstances and that is where the real change will come. He can buy and have a wish list all Summer long, but constraints will mean he will still have to be innovative during the season.Everton's problem is that they have not negotiated enough young player contracts early enough, including Dibling. Teams want to keep their young players. Trying to negotiate at this stage of the season gives them better opportunities in negotiations to keep them. They cannot lose. It pushes up their value with tangible benefits to their current teams. Danny O'Neill 16 Posted 11/08/2025 at 07:02:22 We're thinking along the same lines Sam. I expect to see Barry feature more as the season goes on, swapping with Beto. Aznou would have taken longer, but maybe now there's no choice?Jerome, yes, the manager will need to look at what he's got and play a system that suits the players, not make the players fit the system he may want to stick to.If we get Grealish and Dibling in, I don't think we're looking too bad for options in the middle. Still a bit thin, but he will have selection dilemmas when all fit. Not a bad thing compared to what we've been used to over the past few seasons. We also have AFCON to consider.Those 2 take us to 7 new signings. Not quite the 9-10 Moyes initially cited, but not far off. Throw in Branthwaite; not a new signing, but getting him to commit to 4 years, when others were reportedly sniffing could be considered part of our summer business. So an argument for 8th. Nearly there, no a right back, whoever that is. Tony Abrahams 17 Posted 11/08/2025 at 07:22:38 Youre being way too positive, imo Danny, because we both know that the only way to move the team forward is by bringing in some better players, along with also filling the squad out with some decent players?We both know that better players usually cost a lot more money, unless theyre younger and need developing, but in the very harsh environment of the EPL, you also need players with experience, especially in a squad that is embarrassingly short on numbers.The first summer for TFG, is definitely going to see a lot of people being a lot more understanding because of the shit-show they inhabited, but the alarming lack of numbers, seven days before the season starts, is taking me back to the times when Bill, always found Dave, at least £5million each summer.When Roy Keane came out with a sentence that is automatically ingrained inside the minds of people who ‘need to be winners, then it saddens me when I read or listen to Evertonians, who have forgotten the words of the late, great Sir John Moores, and have become way to accepting of mediocrity Liam Mogan 18 Posted 11/08/2025 at 07:45:30 Mo money, mo problems It's like the more money we come across, the more problems we see Denver Daniels 19 Posted 11/08/2025 at 07:54:55 I wonder if we should have tried for Estupinan? He only cost Milan 17mil. That's a pretty good deal. Off topic, I see that Kingsley Coman at 29yo has moved to the Saudi league. What a waste. Danny O'Neill 20 Posted 11/08/2025 at 09:31:46 My point may have read better if I'd phrased it with those 2 signings, we're looking better Tony.That gives us 10 midfielders to choose from.It doesn't mean we're finished and still need to add the depth we've needed for years. I wasn't too concerned about the defence prior to pre-season, but as we saw on the US tour, it only takes an injury to Tarkowski and/or Branthwaite and now Mykolenko and we look thin.In terms of aspirations for this coming season, I was, what felt like, one of the lone voices on here that said why can't we have a go push for a European place and go on a cup run? With the right players, right mentality and belief, I stand by that.As you say, a lot of supporters have accepted mediocracy for too long, probably because it's all they've known. I've never accepted it, I've just had to endure it.That Sir John Moores quote is my Everton favourite. Anthony Dwyer 21 Posted 11/08/2025 at 13:04:30 I think we got to go with this kid and hope for the best, it works for all the other prem sides who blood kids when there short.Love Seamus but he looked like he was towing a caravan v Roma, let's give these kids a chance and see if they can step up. Tony Abrahams 22 Posted 11/08/2025 at 17:13:20 Well, Jack Grealish is a player who should give us a lot more, Danny. Most of the midfielder players we are putting together can play out wide or come inside to play, which means we should be a lot more exciting to watch and a lot more interchangeable.This will hopefully give our opponents more problems when they play against Everton! 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