Lille coach Paulo Fonseca has defended Everton midfielder Andre Gomes since he arrived on loan.

The 29-year-old was moved on by Frank Lampard from the Goodison Park club this summer.

Criticism of Gomes made its way into the Jeunes Footeux publication, describing him as “far from convincing" this season.

Asked about Gomes, boss Fonseca told reporters after a 1-0 win over Lens in Ligue 1: “We tried to find spaces in the Lens team.

“We had prepared him (Gomes) like that, it's important to recover balls, to find spaces.

“He is a player who has not played much in recent seasons. He hopes to have more minutes now and he will improve more over time."