All Joao Virginia could do was bury his head in his hands. Brave, ten-man Cambuur were within touching distance of a hard-earned – and potentially invaluable point – at home to AZ Alkmaar.
But then, just as the clock ticked past 89 minutes, the on-loan Everton goalkeeper somehow allowed a speculative Jordy Clasie shot to rebound off his gloves, over his head and agonisingly into the back of the home side’s net.
This was not the first time Virginia had been forced to issue a rather sheepish apology to his Cambuur team-mates either. Just a few days earlier, the former Arsenal youngster offered all the resistance of a wicker prison cell on the grounds of Alcatraz; veteran striker Burak Yilmaz beating him at his near post.
With two high-profile errors in as many games, some may have been surprised to see Virginia retain his place when Eredivisie champions Ajax hosted Cambuur on Saturday. At least, this time, the 22-year-old would not shoulder the blame all on his own.
What next for Everton’s Joao Virginia?
Virginia, in fact, could do very little about any of Ajax’s four goals. There was a long-range stunner from the electrifying Steven Bergwijn, a pair of tap-ins and a lucky deflection. In truth, he was powerless to prevent the latest in a long line of Ajax shreddings.
But if Virginia wants to prove that he deserves a future at his parent club, mistakes like the ones against AZ Alkmaar and Fortuna Sittard cannot be repeated. Not by a man who has already found life difficult during previous loan spells; at Sporting Lisbon and, in particular, at Reading in the Championship.
“(The Premier League) is the pinnacle of football,” Virginia told Record in August, after claiming that he did not see much of a difference between himself and the other goalkeepers currently plying their trade at Goodison Park (Goal.com).
“The goal is always to get back there.
“Whatever happens, I will be there fighting to be the No.1 (at Everton). I’m ready to play games and I think I have shown that, especially in the last two years.
“I have to believe in my own ability first and foremost. And I do. I see it every day in training. I feel I am at the same level (as Jordan Pickford and Asmir Begovic). And I don’t see any reason to believe otherwise.”
A reality check
That disastrous start to life at Cambuur, coupled with Jordan Pickford’s latest Man of the Match performance in Saturday’s Merseyside derby, feels like something of a brutal reality check. A reminder of how far Virginia still has to come.
And with the Toffees closing in on Cork City’s 22-year-old prospect David Harrington, Joao Virginia is now starting to feel like a man drinking alone in ‘last chance saloon’. Two disappointing loan spells are damaging. A third could be disastrous.
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