Everton boss Sam Allardyce has said that James McCarthy was an example for his teammates after the midfielder came off the bench against Manchester United on New Year’s Day.
The Toffees suffered their second successive defeat in the Premier League as second-half goals from Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard secured all the points for Jose Mourinho’s side.
There was a lack of bite in Everton’s midfield before McCarthy came off the bench to play the final 28 minutes of the Premier League clash.
The Republic of Ireland international has recently returned to the fold following a hamstring problem, and Allardyce was keen to pay tribute to the midfielder for his all-action performance as Everton looked to hit back at 1-0 before eventually conceding a second.
Allardyce told reporters:
“James McCarthy, for me, was the shining light of the recovery, because he actually went and tackled somebody and showed the rest of our team how we had to go about our job.”
McCarthy, who is valued at £13.5m by transfermarkt.co.uk, only made 13 appearances in the whole of last season after struggling with injury.
Everton will look to return to winning ways when they travel to bitter rivals Liverpool in the third round of the FA Cup on Friday night.