Everton's young side were unable to maintain the club's unbeaten European record this season as Krasnodar chalked up a victory at Goodison Park.
With the Toffees already guaranteed to top Group H ahead of the final game and their Russian opponents eliminated, manager Roberto Martinez took the opportunity to showcase the latest "diamonds" to come off a production line.
He gave debuts to 17-year-olds Ryan Ledson and Kieran Dowell, while Conor McAleny and Tyias Browning both made their first senior starts.
Ledson, a combative midfielder and the England U-18 captain, caught the eye with a confident display while 21-year-old left-back Luke Garbutt was a threat in attack.
But the result ultimately was a disappointing one, with Ricardo Laborde scoring the only goal of the game on the half-hour mark.
The danger appeared to have passed with Laborde moving away from goal before he turned and beat the disappointing effort of Everton's Spanish goalkeeper Joel.
Irish Independent
No comments: