How Manchester United's Donny van de Beek can rise above Frank Lampard's Everton criticism

The limp nature of Everton’s FA Cup quarter-final defeat to Crystal Palace on Sunday left Frank Lampard furious at full-time. The Toffees were just 90 minutes away from a trip to Wembley, however, they ended up being comfortably beaten 4-0 by their South London hosts, despite a bright start to the game.

Everton faded dramatically after falling behind in 25th minute and managed to register just two shots on target. “There is only so much you can keep trying to butter someone up to get confidence,” said Lampard frustratingly in the wake of the loss. “You’re playing at the cut-throat end of football; this is the FA Cup quarter-finals. If you haven’t got the confidence to play, you can flip it and say: ‘Have you got the b******* to play?’."

In their midfield, Everton lined up with Andre Gomes and Abdoulaye Doucoure as a central two. However, it was a painfully poor performance from both. They proved too easy to overcome off the ball and largely ineffective with it.

READ MORE: Manchester United must make ruthless contract decisions before transfer window opens

It’s more than likely that, had Lampard had the choice, he wouldn’t have lined up with this midfield duo. However, key midfielder Allan was suspended and Manchester United loanee Donny van de Beek was cup-tied.

The positive from a Van de Beek and United perspective is that the Dutchman is almost certain to come back into the first-team fold after the international break. After all, the 24-year-old did go to Goodison Park with the hope of getting more regular minutes under his belt as he aims to rediscover his best form.

He was rarely able to show his best at United, although we have seen glimpses of it at Everton, even under tough team circumstances. The same led to