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The Nick Armitage Column
Butterflies
Its Wednesday and for me the butterflies have already started. On Friday, I wont be able to finish my dinner and on Saturday morning Ill be as snappy as an OAPs Yorkshire Terrier. Three things terrify me; exams, surgery and Anfield derbies. I cant stand them; but unlike most sane people who will switch off their mobiles and travel to the other end of the country when they are on, Im going to be in a boozer full of reds. This boozer will be full of real Liverpool fans, the ones who are so loyal, they wear their shirts the day after theyve watched Liverpool lose on the telly thats commitment for you. Like the last few derbies at the tin-mine, I havent tried to get a ticket and despite what most Liverpool fans will tell you you can get hold of tickets for Anfield if you really want to go. Over the last decade, the atmosphere has deteriorated at derbies; its a shame. I can safely say that it wasnt peace, love and understanding like the Echo might have you believe, but we did at least tolerate the opposition and so did they. I dont know what the rank atmosphere is due to now; some reckon it began when Liverpool started losing on a regular basis while others will tell you that its down to cocaine snorting Stella fuelled Lacoste and Rockport wearers whod pick a fight with their own Grandmother. Whatever the cause, it isnt nice. The last derby was a shocker for us, I even agreed with some of the comedy genius of Chris Bascombes match report, we were that bad. The 1-3 scoreline could have been far worse. Even if Beatties other goal had counted, I reckon they simply would have increased their goal tally further. From kick-off to final whistle, it was men against boys. We were dead and buried back then and I was very worried about Moyes and the rest of the season. Going into this game, we are playing as well as anytime under Moyes. We are not just sneaking 1-0 wins now, we are battering teams and its the first time in a long time that weve done that. Arteta is looking like one of the best midfielders in the league. How many times have you heard fans bemoaning the loss of Gravesen in recent weeks? Thats how good Arteta is. Osmans feet are now keeping pace with his brain and Cahill and Neville are both back to their narky best. Stubbs has been phenomenal, and perhaps shown that principles in football are sometimes best left elsewhere. Beattie is now the player Moyes wanted when he signed him and even McFadden is surprising us all and getting in on the act, the lad had a cracking game last week. Right through the team we have players right at the top of their game... except for Wright and Weir. Weir had a nightmare at the last derby and I will be disappointed, Walter Smith style, if Weir starts and Yobo sits on the bench. Too many doubts and indecisions have crept into Weirs game and his confidence has evaporated you just cant get away with that combination when you are a slow as he is. Wright should have saved Villas goal last week; in the end it didnt matter but every Evertonian knows that man is a flapping, error-prone liability who couldnt catch a beach-ball in slow motion. Hopefully Stubbs, Hibbert and Neville can keep the red hordes far enough away from Wright and Weir because we all know in truth Moyes will pick them. On our bench we have a couple of very effective subs: Andy Van der Meyde must have sat through the last half hour of the Villa game thinking how on earth Kilbane got on before him. I want Kilbane to play in that derby as much as I want Steven Gerrard to play despite what Ronnie Goodlass told us on Radio Merseyside, Kilbane was very poor against a well-beaten Villa. If we cant wait to see Van der Meyde play, imagine how he feels. Hes not fit very often so when he is hes got to get on the pitch. And then theres the other one who has a tendency to miss lots of games. The big man has had seven games to think about how naughty he has been. Hes had seven games to think this is his last game against the team he loves scoring against and his last opportunity to smell the fear of Sami Hypia. I bet hes churning the Bellefield turf up as I write this... Ferguson hasnt been half as effective as he was last season and maybe the injuries really have got the better of him but hes had a bit of a rest and seeing him silence the Kop just one more time would be a fitting end to his roller-coaster Everton career. So whos gonna win? Throw that formbook out of the window and flip a coin at least this time around its worth getting the coin out of your pocket. This one really can go either way.
Nick Armitage
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