A Simple Matter of Keeping the Ball

Like us all, I watched last night?s game and am thoroughly dejected by our fall from grace. We have gone from a run of form where we were not only winning regularly but playing attractive and, at times, expansive football - to a run of 6 games where we have won only one (against Derby), scored only three and played poorly.

This recent loss of form has meant our challenge for a Champions League spot has collapsed and we are now clinging on to fifth spot in the league, essentially hoping the games run out before Portsmouth and the like overtake us. Undoubtedly injuries to key players have hit us hard ? any team missing the goals of Cahill, the pace and direct running of Vaughan and the ingenuity of Arteta (who has been missing most of the season even when on the pitch) is going to suffer. And the board just don?t have the money to back Moyes to strengthen our squad to cope with such injuries in the way that other clubs around us seem to be able to.

So, it is clear that there is little that David Moyes can do but wait for the season to end, see how much money is found for him to bring in new faces and then launch another assault on the top 4. In terms of personnel, there seems to be a consensus on this site that it is the midfield that needs strengthening, and there will be endless debate as to whether this and that player can cut it at the highest level.

But there seems to be less debate about our manager reverting back to some of his old form in his team selection. I know he has very few options at his disposal (hence me going into this at reasonable length earlier in the article) but I still feel as though some of his decisions are unnecessarily negative. I am not talking about formation per say; 4-4-2 or 4-5-1 - if you play well enough in the right areas you stand a good chance of winning football games.

So his decision to start once again with Neville and Carsley in the centre of midfield - at home - against a top quality opposition baffles me. The only reasoning for it that I can think of (other than a lack of other options) is that he wanted to stifle Chelsea from playing by using two defensive-minded central midfielders. But there is a simple flaw in this and it is one that seemingly frustrates a large number of us ? Carsley and Neville, for all they might bring to the side, are two of our worst players in terms of finding a team-mate with a pass. One of the things you have to do when playing quality opposition, especially at home, is retain the ball and in-so-doing restrict the number of opportunities your opponents will have to hurt you. So why not play Fernandes in the middle and Baines on the wing? Better ?footballers? and more likely to keep the ball when we get it. It seems simple yet Moyes doesn?t quite seem to get it.

In saying this, I do think David Moyes is the right man to be in charge at Everton ? he has taken us from perennial relegation fodder to perennial challengers for Europe, and deserves his chance to take us to the next level. But I do have my concerns. We were at our best this season when we kept the ball, playing simple football with short, sharp passing in the midfield. We struggle when we fail to keep hold of the ball and give away possession too easily. I hope Moyes recognises this, and works to rectify it in future.

Reader Comments

Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer