The Mail Bag
A Good Start Still Possible?
Comments (36)
The defeat at Blackburn and the draw to Wolves have been a very disappointing beginning to Everton's Premier League season but I still believe that it's too early to start calling this a bad start to the campaign.
My opinion is that you have to look at say 5 games before you can claim if a team started badly or good. Imagine if Everton won the next 3 games... 3 wins, a draw and a loss would be a pretty decent start to the season I would argue. It's too early to judge how well Everton have started. Let's give it another 3 games then have a look. So who are the next 3 games against?
First up is Aston Villa. They are managerless and hurting after a 6-0 drubbing by the barcodes. Villa's European campaign is also on the verge of collapse after losing 2-3 last night to Rapid Vienna. But let us not forget Villa have some great players and finished a Top 7 side for the past three seasons. Chances are Villa will be desperate to bounce back and its not going to be an easy away trip for Everton.
After that we have a home fixture against Man Utd. Last season goals from Bilyaleletdinov, Rodwell and some other guy saw us roll over Rooney and company 3-1. You can never count on a result against Man Utd but we did it last season, so why not repeat it?
Then it's another home fixture against Newcastle. They may have slaughtered Villa but I still think they are going to be relegation contenders this season. They actually have a weaker team now then they did when they got relegated. Are Everton going to fear a team whose best players include Joey Barton, Kevin Nolan and Alan Smith?
So that's Aston Villa (a), Man Utd (h) and Newcastle (h). Personally I think all three fixtures are very winnable.
But we have to beat Aston Villa first. For me this is a must win game. If Everton want to claim a good start to this Premier League campaign then they need to beat Villa and get something of a run going.
Villa are in a bad way. Sure they will be looking to bounce back but we have to stop them and hopefully complete a miserable week for them.
Dick Anderson, Posted 27/08/2010 at
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Nah to be fair, i'd actually expect the Villa game to be diffucult. More for the reasons Everton themselves make it diffucult. Why not go for the win there, but I expect Moyes to be very overly cautious. There's been lots of shite on the OS re; A Villa backlish.
As for Newcastle, would expect them to be relegation fodder; however, teams that get promoted usually are tougher to play against at the beginning of the season as they're more eager / enthusiastic and have a go full steam.
We'll see... again I'd expect the Newcastle game to be diffucult for the above reasons.
If you look at Man U even Liverpool last night, they go out knowing that they are likely to get a result be it a great win or scrappy win, or a salvaged draw ? they have that belief (well Liverpool mightn't have that now... but you know what I mean).
Until we get that run, we won't play the football we know we are capable of. Loosing to Blackburn and drawing with Wolves has certainly knocked us back, but I sense a good deserved win against Villa could start that 4-game sequence. The sooner the better as once you're up there it's far easier to stay there than try a late run as we all know last season.
Although it is a tough fixture, Villa away is certainly winnable (we've taken the lead on the last 2 occasions at Villa Park). A win there will give us the confidence necessary to tackle Man U at home.
The clue is in the word 'start'...
There were plenty of light blue seats visible all game, increasing 'rapidly' as the game turned in the last quarter. Perhaps they should use a duller colour so as not to draw attention to their poor attendances (only 1,000 more than Everton v Huddersfield).
Two of Rapid's goals came from quick breaks down the right flank. Sound familiar? So it is up to Everton to take the game to Villa. If they do so they should achieve a similar result to Rapid.
The season starts... you lose the first game away to a poor side that you beat well last season. 3 pts lost = bad start.
The next game is the start of your home campaign in the league; you surrender a good lead by playing like shite warmed up in the second half, losing another 2 pts.... Bad Start!
So... 1 point out of six... 16th in the League, 5 points squandered. BAD START!!!
It's in the record books and there is no changing it, certainly not by redefining "start" to suit a projected fantasy that enables you to convince yourself we can actually have a 'good start'.
Why invent such nonsense? Presumably just to make you now feel all warm and fuzzy. Dick, this is not Playschool!
I happen to agree with Dick. Not to complicate matters but wouldn't most believe that a start to a season is 10 -12 games, the middle being games 12-24 and the end being the final 12-14? Rule of thirds and all that?
So with that in mind, the start in itself can be broken into three, the first 3 games, the middle 4, and the end 3, thus giving you an overall 'start'.
So, to confirm we've started the start poorly, but can still make our overall start a good start!!
Point well made Dick.
?In the long run the pessimist may be proved right, but the optimist has a better time on the trip."
You say 1 point out of 6. BAD START. Dick in his post said in his opinion you have to look at 5 games. Others may think a start is 45 minutes others again 1 game. You think it's 2 games. No matter what the score is on Sunday It's in the record books and there is no defining start.
"Why invent such nonsense"? Presumably to make you feel all cold and stiff. Michael, is this playschool?
If Everton have eased their way into contention for a top four place by mid-October the whole of the football comunity will be talking about our "good start".
Of course some will still point to these two games ? and others we may not have won ? and insist on crying over the milk spilt on the way. That's just the way they are.
I expect us to click into gear soon and if we are there (top 4) or thereabouts by mid-October, I for one will consider that a very good start.
That's despite some people's attempts to point the Finger of Gloom after just 2 games.
Yes it's early days but who have we played?
And How have we played?
And what is going to change for Villa, Man U or Newcastle?
In football terms, crap start but 3 pts from Villa and we are cooking.
And Blackburn a "poor side"? They finished two places below us last season. They lost three home games all last season. So an opening day win for us at Ewood Park was hardly a gimme.
Agree entirely with GJ Butler's opening statement @ 11.
It's irrelevant how long your start is...it could be 2 games, 4 games, 32 games or a 100 games...
The fact that you've lost 5 points from two games which you should have comfortably won, means that the team has underachieved in their start.
It's a relative measurement against what you expected to achieve. I'm disappointed... are you?
Not having anything down that right wing is problem; gamble on Coleman, we need something down that wing or elese we are easy to beat. I am from Ireland and he is the man, he gets the ball and drives forward, simple as ? that's what we need . ~ COYB
But dropping 5 points in the first 2 games we should have won if we have aspirations of Top 4? Yep, that's a fuckin bad start.
Ciaran's dead on: I'm disappointed.
But still hopeful.
League Champions? ? forget it.
Champions League? ? possible...
Europa League? ?likely...
Mid-table? ? highly likely.
What I believe is that the 5 points or at the very least 3 points already squandered means that the next 3 games you mentioned we must look to take at least 7 points from. Possible but by no means easy.
I feel it's possible to challenge for 4th this season; however, the first two games didn't fill me with great optimism... and yes, even at this early stage, it's important we pick up points and get our form going as trailing 7/8 points to the team fourth place with just half a dozen games into the season will be a difficult job trying to catch up come the end of the season.
Consider the next 3-4 fixtures absolutely crucial to a CL challenge.
I remember back in 77(?) when we played Sunderland, last game of the season; they were relegated and Charlie Hurley ? Capt.(?) and all around hardman and legend ? was asked how he felt being relegated on his last game of the season and I think career. He said, "We didn't get relegated coz we lost the last game, we got relegated coz we lost the first game of the season, if we'd've won it we would've stayed up!!"
Sums it up.
i) We have a shocking record at villa, I think I've gone there for the last 18 years and seen us win once;
ii) Everton happen to be the most accommodating team in history.. if you are having a bad patch, we turn up and give you a boost.
We always seem to give a side on the slide a win and confidence boost. For these reasons, I'm not planning on leaving Villa Park on Sunday with anything but a feeling of dejection... for details, see last season.
Two other things that are nailed on for Sunday:
i) Young will spend most his time diving;
ii) The Holte will scream "Penalty!" so often that at some point they will get one. Knobheads.
Not 1.
When teams are separated by 4-6 points at the end of the season, these dropped points will be crucial.
But I'm sure we'll have a good second half of the season and either just miss out on a CL place or maybe Europe like last year and then we'll realise how important these games are instead of writing them off as if they don't count.
Fact 1 - Lost away to Blackburn - shit result
Fact 2 - Drew at home to Wolves - another shit result
Fact 3 - Villa are there for the taking today if we are positive and Moyes shows some bollocks in his selection, namely playing Heitinga as one on the CB's and finding a place for Rodwell in midfield.
Fact 3 - Moyes will not show any bollocks, he will stick with the old guard of the likes of Hibbert and Osman, he will not leave out one of Jagielka or Distin to accomodate Hetinga. We will probably play with 2 defensive midfielders or he will leave out one of Heitinga or Fellaini which is ridiculous.
Fact 4 - We will start tentatively and throw the initiative to Villa.
Fact 5 - Ashley Young will wind me up all game (cheating little twat)
Fact 6 - I'm usually wrong!!!! Let's hope so hey .........
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1 Posted 27/08/2010 at 14:25:43
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