Vitalii Mykolenko impact has skyrocketed under Sean Dyche - and key Everton numbers show it
The goal against Brighton & Hove Albion was just the cherry on top of the cake but everyone who has been watching Everton’s matches this season can see that Vitalii Mykolenko has been a new man in recent weeks.
Following his £17million transfer from Dynamo Kyiv on New Year’s Day last year as a replacement for the Aston Villa-bound Lucas Digne, who had endured a well-publicised fall out with manager Rafael Benitez, Mykolenko endured a tumultuous start to life in English football. Benitez himself who had identified Mykolenko as the club’s long-term left-back option was sacked within 24 hours of him making his debut in a 2-1 defeat at the Premier League’s bottom club Norwich City.
The following month Mykolenko’s native Ukraine found itself enveloped into what is already the deadliest conflict in Europe since the Second World War due to Russia’s invasion, with the player later revealing his own father was part of a military unit fighting Vladimir Putin’s forces. Among all of this turmoil, the defender was expected to adapt to life in world football’s toughest domestic division.
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Although Mykolenko broke his scoring duck in style for his new club with a spectacular 25-yard volley just six minutes into a game at the King Power Stadium on May 8, 2022, to set Everton on their way to a 2-1 victory over Leicester City for what was their first Premier League away win since the previous August, it’s fair to say that his form at times was still understandably sketchy as he found his feet in his new surroundings. Despite at one point having Ashley Cole –
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