ToffeeWeb MailBag |
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 ToffeeWeb Letters from
February 2006 |
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Bean counting So - they wouldn't want to drop out of the Top 20 after just having crept in; to stay in they would have to boost this year's revenue figure. And the easiest way to do this would be to sell Arteta and Yobo for big bucks. Now Moyes would have something to say about that but I think he is bought into the 'avoid Leeds Utd at all costs' school of soccer financial management. Michael, please tell me I'm talking bollocks! Summer Transfers If Yobo is still refusing to sign a new contract, it is a must we sell him and get at least �4M on him, because Everton Football Club cannot afford to let players leave on a Bosman. This summer, there will be lots of young strikers available accross Europe and Moyes needs to get off his arse an make more effort to sign one. Goalkeeper is another main priority. I would like to see young hard-working players signed in the summer who give 100% and aren't big timers, such as: Andy Johnson from Palace; Wayne Routledge from Pompey (if they go down); Joey Barton from City; Craig Gordon from Hearts; and if all possible the one transfer that fucked us up last season... Craig Bellamy... But don't hold your breath. If Moyes can't attract a quality striker
when we have got Europe to offer, what chance when we are just a
mid-table team!! Working 24/8 Doffing a cap to John Stewart of Comedy Central when talking about
George Bush, what Bill really meant was he was working 24 hours a week,
8 months a year. Tales of the New Stadium Ground waffle from the Wyndbag I want to hear no more of this twaddle until the site is identified
and the plans put in for approval. Early Days Blues Both these managers were given years to cement their position at the
Club and look how well that payed off. Moyes should be given the same
time to restore the glory to Goodison. Catterick's Cash Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose....... The Matter of Youth However, there's always a great risk when you decide to play your youth over your more experienced players. If they succed, good enough and everyone's happy... but What if that youthful Everton side gets into a relegation battle??? People are just gonna moan at Moyes and say "Why don't you play the seniors??" These youth players are just potentials; we do not know whether they can cut it in the EPL and yes unless we play them we will never know. But to play them in keeper, defence, midfield and striker while at the same time getting rid of our deadwood � that's almost managerial suicide. Sadly, our youth players are not the likes of Fabregas, Van Persie, Eboue... if they were, I'm sure Moyes would have played them. Maybe he wanted to play more youth but we had a horrendous first half of the season and now he's playing catch-up. What is needed now is stability to the team (Stubbs anyone???). Youth players are an unknown factor. They could be a Rooney, Osman or even a certain Peter Clarke! Which manager would put youth on the bench just so he could "blood" them when a more experienced player could make a difference if the team was losing? It doesn't also make much sense to play a youth over someone you pay a high wage unless they are really good. Yes, I would like to see more youth getting some match time and
gradually becoming first-team regulars like Osman and Hibbert but maybe
they are just not there yet. However,like Michael says "Dream On" ... What I mean by 'Negativity' I haven't read much of the mailbag this week because I sensed that it would just take one (albeit very frustrating) defeat to bring out all the people who had been quiet while we were winning. I understand people want the best for the club; what I don't understand is when people seem to look forward to us failing so they can continue their rants at certain members of the club but never seem to come on and praise them when they clearly do well. If Moyes was to sell Yobo, Arteta, Cahill and make Wright captain, I
would come out and say that he had made a mistake and he had lost it; I
just don't see the other side coming out and praising Moyes if we
qualify for Europe this season or sign any of the players they want him
to sign, but I guess we might never know. I can't really complain though
as without Toffeeweb I might actually have to do my job :-) Stubbs and Weir Yobo, far and away I feel, our best central defender � if only because he and Ferrari allow the rest of the team to play much further forward � will once again sit it out on the bench. This is probably as a forerunner of selling him in the summer. Good God! Is this the future that Moyes talks about? He promised to lower the average age of the squad and has instead increased it! And, if Stubbs is to be re-signed next year, will raise it even further. What is it with him and skillful, ball-playing central defenders? As
others on this site have said, there is a real chance now for Moyes to
give the future a chance; we are safe from relegation. Europe is not on;
why not give some of the younger lads a chance? When will you have a
better opportunity??? And you can start with the central defenders? re: Easy, Easy If you've got a problem with it, why don't you try contacting some Chelsea loving 'ponce' or someone at Soccer AM. I can't think of us ever having any opportunity to do it anyway. So keep your curry to yourself. Damn students. For the record, Tim Lovejoy is a legend and Soccer AM is a godsend on
a Saturday morning. Mike Price's Letter Regardless of what some Everton fans think, he is well-respected by other team's fans - whether they are wrong is up for debate but there are plenty of teams who would love him to manage their clubs. I don't live in Liverpool so the derby defeat is slightly easier to take as texts/calls are easy to ignore but we have now lost only 3 away games in 2006 � at Newcastle, Liverpool and Chelsea � it's hardly time to start getting too negative. There is no point me carrying on the Pro-Moyes Argument as I sense
some people are never gonna like him whatever he does which I think is a
shame. IMWT Academy Players a) are the players good enough or are they just there to make up the numbers in a very small squad of professionals b) Why does David Moyes not give these youngsters a chance to prove their worth? Personally I feel it was a disgrace to recall the 'talismatic' Duncan Ferguson for his swansong appearance against Liverpool on Saturday clearly unfit and without match practice. The Derby may have been a pressure-cooker and a difficult environment to include youth players but my opinion is that these are the occassions when the Victor Anichebes of the world should be allowed to experience and gain from. It is without question that the Youth Academy facilities are a
disgrace to a Premier League club and it is welcomed that Everton are
finally doing something about. We do however need a more robust scouting
network in Europe / Africa and it would make sense to source these
regions for up-and-coming youth players in the mould of Fabregras,
Toure, Adu et al. Lies, Damn Lies And Statistics? This season, in 27 games, Neville has attempted 100 tackles winning only 27 and giving away 55 free kicks in the process as well as earning 8 yellow cards and 2 red cards. To break it down even further, on average he is attempting roughly 4 tackles per match, winning only one! You would expect his 'tackles made' and 'tackles won' rate to be much higher for a defensive midfielder who offers nothing going forward, and who's main role in the team is to win the ball. Neville is on a par with the likes of Cahill and Arteta in the tackles made/won department. However their main job is to get forward and support the strikers, which they seem to be doing more effectively then Neville does his. Arteta: 1 goal, 6 assists, Cahill: 6 goals, 3 assists. Just for the record Neville: 0 goals, 0 assists. Neville's distribution is another talking point. His pass success rate is 73% which isn't too bad when compared with other Everton midfielders. I would interpret this though, as him making many succesful short passes sideways and backwards because, in general, when he tries anything more ambitious, such as hopeful punt to Beattie, it very rarely works. At times during the derby it seemed like he was passing to an invisible player on the wing. (Insert your own Van der Meyde joke here!) To compare like for like, last season Lee Carsley won 36% of tackles, completed 77% of passes, scored 4 goals and had 2 assists, and picked up less yellow and red cards. Basically this would suggest that Carsley is a better passer and tackler then Neville, and also offers more of a goal threat... well to the opposition's goal anyway! As for Neville's leadership qualities, he is from the Moyes school
man-management... The permanent miserable scowl etched across his face
and the constant moaning to team-mates and referee alike. No wonder
Moyes loves him so much!! The Organic Buster Wyndbag So, now we know that `inward investment` is vital if we are going `to grow the brand` because we can`t hope to `sustain` this `organically` and `profitability is the most important measure`. Just fancy that! And there was I thinking the main target was to win football matches and provide some entertainment (value for money) for the fans. If dear Mr Catterick is looking down on us now, he`ll be turning in
his grave � if you know what I mean, Harry! Dashing Stubbs Makes me laugh how so many gullible Evertonians are prepared to fete
Moyes for getting us out of a mess of his own creation and then hail as
an act of genius the `re-signing` of an ageing defender who he was wrong
to `resign` six months before! Guess it`s just where you put the dash! 'Easy Easy' Colm's column Merchants of Doom, get over it There were four reasons we lost:
Peter Fearon, Liverpool (29/3/06) The talentless Mr Neville It's an easy option to slate Kilbane but he tries even though my Gran has more skill and vision than him. Neville though seems 'exempted' from blame or criticism. He is nearly useless but is a Moyes favourite. And that's the problem isn't it with this club: Mickey Mouse leaders and Del Boy finances! Still, he's the best around... isn't he? Bye bye, Yobo: have a better Arsenal career than Jeffery Jeffers. Moysey in the Market What happened though? Why does every Everton manager fall into the same dull routine of their predecessors?? We still have an old squad. Most of Moyes's other signings have been the wrong side of 25. I think that maybe managers at Everton realise that if they buy young players in their late teens/early twenties then, if they turn out to be half-decent, they will want to move to a bigger club. Rooney, Arteta, Yobo all fall under this category and I am sure the latter two will be moving soon just like Wayne. We can only afford to buy one or two quality players each season and with us only going for 25+, we are stuck on a treadmill. If we sell Yobo then we need to replace the following players:
Paul Coleman, Kettering (29/3/06) Quality youngsters If you don't have money to invest and rebuild the squad every year, you have to invest in your Youth department, scouting countries and continents for new talents. A good Youth Academy would allow us to compete with the big spenders (up to some level). The success of Man Utd was based an the Class of 92; the success Arsenal on their famous back five. The home-based player gives you something different - passion, pride, history, the bonds of generations with the fans. Every top team in the world has at least two home-grown players. Our only chance to compete is to turn back to our youngsters. Martin Jol has understood that and he invests heavily in promising young players. Spurs has a young squad (if not the youngest in Premiership). The likes of Ajax, Auxerre, Udinese and even West Ham are examples for successful teams built without hundreds of millions. From all the players Moyes has released, none has set the world alive. The likes of Anthony Gerrard, Daniel Fox, Peter Clarke and Nick Chadwick are playing regularly for their sides in the lower leagues but nothing more. Moreover, our youth policy is nowhere near up to the standard, in the last 15 years the most notable names which springs to my mind are Tony Grant, Michael Ball, Francis Jeffers, Danny Cadamarteri, Gavin McCann, Michael Branch and Richard Dunne. From all these players, only Ball, McCann and Dunne are playing at the highest level. The others are lost somewhere in the lower divisions or with fading careers. Three decent players in 15 years (excluding Rooney and Hibbert)... Now, the most painful part: Do you know what is the common link between Rush, Owen, Fowler, Gerrard, McManaman and Carragher � they were all Evertonians rejected by our Academy coaches!!! Even Rooney was first approached by a Liverpool scout... we are losing our own talents thanks to our own coaches and scouts. If I were Moyes, I would have asked a lot of questions. The bad thing is that nothing has changed. Since Moyes came in, the only two new youth players which were signed are Vidarsson and the two keepers. In that time Spurs and Arse have built new young and hungry teams and we are re-signing a 35-year-old centre-back, because our own youngsters are not up to the standard. They have never been... Until we get new academy, with new coaches with an eye for talent
(sign some from Ajax or Auxerre) and change our youth policy, we will
never be able to be competetitive again � and our most talented
youngsters will go on to win cups with Liverpool. �In-dispensable`... que? Christ, I`d have thought he`d have learned by the effect his attitude had on Rooney and Kr�ldrup but perhaps it`s just his subtle way of saying "Piss Off, there`s a whole world of crocks out there just waiting to join us." Somebody said a few week`s ago `we shall win nothing with this
bugger` but what worries me now is if we can ever hope to keep decent
players when we do get them! Last one out dim the light-switch! 'Easy' � Piss off! It's not the result; it's not whether or not Moyes plays Yobo � and it's nothing to do with the ever increasing size of the queue outside the 'Goodison Road Supper Bar'. What worries me more than that is this ridiculous Soccer AM inspired 'Easy, easy' chant that every knobhead fan in the country seems to be singing at the moment. I truly hope to God that no Evertonian has discgraced our club by singing this nonsense inside Goodison. As far as I know, it seems to be more of a Birmingham, Villa, Tottenham thing � but you can never be sure, you get some very silly people in football!! Am I the only one who passionately dislikes this silly 'Chelsea' chant or am I just one of many? Will I be frowned upon if I throw my curry and chips at anyone who starts singing it? Have I just offended almost every ToffeeWeb reader because "Evertonians love the 'easy' chant" so much? Answers on a postcard please... Green tinted specs But, of course, for the derby we had Alan Green. I didn't see his article slating Everton in the summer but do remember him sneering at our style of play last season. On Saturday there were again less than kind remarks - including a sarcastic reference to Duncan Ferguson's 'holiday'. What really got my blood boiling, though, was his description of the incident that led to Gerrard's sending off. As soon as Kilbane went down Green was shouting about an outrageous dive. His eyes must have popped out of his head in disbelief as the red card was shown. Now � being a fair-minded person and depending on the commentator for an accurate view of what was happening � I felt a little uncomfortable at the prospect of the Blues going on to win thanks to Kilbane's acting ability. Green made no mention of having seen a replay of the 'foul' so I assumed that the referee had, indeed, been duped. Imagine my surprise, then, to watch MotD and find as clearcut a foul as any committed that day, Benitez making no protest and even the ex-Liverpool studio expert agreeing the referee was right to send off Gerrard. OK, the main cause of my anger on Saturday was Everton's shortcomings, but people like Green make it hard not to be a Bitter Blue. ps: I'm making my first trip of the season to Goodison this Saturday
� please be fit, Mikel. Good enough for the Arsenal but... But if it does happen, it will be a sickener to all Evertonians other
than the Dodds and Schaeffers who continue to believe that Moyes really
can judge a footballer. The sorry saga of Kr�ldrup � who any fool can
see via Bravo IS a class act � was one thing but to lose an established
player of the quality of Yobo is nothing short of sinful. Let`s just
hope it`s hot air but we`ve been here before and I fear the worst. The Long Term Where's the long-term planning at Everton? We seem to be lurching from week to week, increasingly relying on older players previously thought to be past their best. When the gallant Martyn, Weir and Stubbs end their careers, who's going to replace them? If there are really 'no strikers' out there, where are the young players from the reserves & youth team banging on the first team door to give us a future (see Man City & Middlesbrough). What are the coaches and scouts doing? I know we are better managed now than under Walker & Smith � big deal, is that the best argument for the current set-up? It's clear that, directly or otherwise, Kenwright appears to be discouraging significant investment into the club, which means that we stick with Moyes or get another up-and coming-Pro-Licence clone. Great position for Kenwright: he keeps the train set with a manager lacking the clout to press for more money. Great position for Moyes: he does his best with 'limited' resources and spins us into being a mid-table club with no trophy-winning history. Moyes made three good buys in Cahill, Arteta and Beattie. His biggest strength is buying mediocre players, getting a good year out of them and selling them at profit. All that does is keep us afloat. He, and we, seem to be continually running to stand still. I can accept that at the moment the best we can hope for every season is 5th/6th position and a cup run. I refuse to accept that, after four years, a mid-table position, an ageing squad and no youngsters coming through is genius. Yes, Moyes is every bit as good as the other British Pro-Licence clones. If we can't find a Hiddink, Jol, Mourinho or Wenger, I want him to stay and succeed. I'd love to see evidence that there's a long-term strategy, rather than the trashing of previous managers who had less time in the job, received less backing from the Board and (excepting Walker & Smith) achieved just as much, if not more. Do we want an Everton that's marginally better than when Walker &
Smith were in charge, or do we want a bit of real progress? FA Cup vs qualifying for a Qualifier I want Everton to win the league, nothing less will be good enough,
and I want it achieved by playing attractive football. Currently, this
Everton squad represent everything I dislike in a team. Hard work and
effort first, good football a distant second. This is Moyes's team,
Moyes's style, and yet you compare him with Royle, you defend Moyes to
the hilt, you lie to make him look better than what he is. In Defence Of Big Joe Such is my problem with the criticism of Big Joe. Joe Royle a chimp??? It's been a long time since I have seen something so blatantly offensive and absurd as that statement! {to me anyway!} I didn't need the numbers to confirm my opinion of Joe. He's the best manager we have had since Kendall. We played better football. We weren't doomed to defeat if we scored first. We had a team that was simultaneously respected in the middle of the park but feared on the flanks. We were entertainig and watchable and damn tough to beat. Joe was even One of Us - irrelevant to me, but it obviously means something to the pro-Kenwright brigade. They're not rose-coloured glasses. The numbers back it up. We scored {significantly} more goals on average, won marginally more games but got beat a hell of a lot less. What they don't show is that we were a hell of a lot more pleasurable to watch. The transfer arguments are interesting. Yes, I recall Claus Thomsen {shudder}. But, on balance, I would say Joe's successes outweighed the failures, by a large margin. Of course this is an entirely subjective view. But on the theme, who would you say Moyes best buy was? Arteta? The boys a terrific player, but he's no Andrei. The numbers bear that out too - how many goals has our Spanish maestro slotted this term? And of course, I haven't even gotten to the final and most important point. A football manager's job is to win things. Something we have singularly failed to do under Moyes. This is not a criticism of Moyes. {BTW, Mike Price: there are lots of us who don't fit into either the MOB or IMWT brigades � I for one am baffled by our manager and can't make my mind up.} Rather it is an observation on Joe Royle. Moyes may well turn out to be the finest manager we've had since the start of the Premiership. I for one desperately hope he does! But at the present moment, that honour belongs to Big Joe Royle. Joe Royle a chimp??? Whats next, William Ralph Dean just a donkey who
could only head a ball? Do we have to love him or hate him? Steve�s comments were very accurate, until his final paragraph which he made no case for. Yes, move the deadwood along but you make no case for Moyes being part of the deadwood. On the other hand Nick�s blind defence of Moyes completely fails to deal with the issues Steve raises. I think I know who is watching us more often. Moyes is a fine and promising manager. I like him and trust him. But not absolutely, and I�ve yet to talk to any season�ticket holder who regularly agrees with his team selections. Myself, I�d love to have a few words in his ear, and maybe hear something enlightening back. Let�s feel free to admire and support Moyes as Everton manager while
still wondering sometimes what on earth is going on. African Youth Kolo Toure and Emmanuel Eboue had tremendous games, particularly the former. Watching young athletic and pacy Africans given their chance against Europe`s best, with Pleat adding that the recent African Nations Cup was the making of them as players, added to my frustration. Who is the talented young captain of Nigeria, African football giant? Who is the paciest and most versatile centre-half we have? Who would never be kept out of the Arsenal team by two ageing centre-halves? Joseph Yobo. It doesn`t matter how well your team is playing. When your best players are fit & available, you play them. I can overlook some of the various defiencies in our play since Moyes took over but cannot accept not giving Joey his chance. If he is sold in the summer, it will be a disaster; he is the kind of strong, talented & calm defender teams build around. Yobo and Turner in on Saturday, please - at least it would be a sign
that youth is the way forward. Youngsters If any die-hard fan who attends reserves games could provide an
overview of him and other promising youngsters Kissock, Hopkins, Hughes,
Anichebe etc, would be appreciated. Would be nice to see another Osman
or Hibbert soon. Royle vs Moyes The win ratio is:- Royle (39.5%) and Moyes (39.1%). So the difference is .4%? You're kidding me, that's the statistic your using to say Royle is a better manager? 0.4%??? All that statistic proves is that Moyes and Royle have the same win ratio. Now I don't want to start finding faults in Royle � I liked the man and thought he did a good job � but let's be honest, Royle made mistakes just like Moyes. Both managers had a huge peak of success (Royle: FA Cup Win; Moyes: Champions League Qualification), but fans slag Moyes off for his transfer mistakes like Kr�ldrup � have they forgotten Royle's transfer duds? Earl Barrett, Marc Hottiger, Slaven Bilic, Nick Barmby and the truely legendary Claus Thomsen? How many great players did Royle sign? Andrei Kanchelskis and Duncan Ferguson were his best buys and both of them cost big money. Royle didn't unearth a gem like Moyes has with Yobo and Arteta. Royle also didn't develop a world class youngster like Wayne Rooney. And I don't remember Royle winning Manager of the Year twice. The bottom line is this. Royle took over a relegation fighting side and at the end of his run at Everton they were still a struggling side in the bottom half of the league. I liked Royle, he did a fair job, he was a passionate Evertonian and, in fairness, Royle was disadvantaged by having a bad chairman. But I can still see more improvement under Moyes. Everton are now a mid-table side with several international players and a few promising youngsters. That's real progress made. One last thing, I live in Essex right next door to Ipswich and I dont
know any tractor-boys who aren't shouting for Royle's head. In Defence of Big Joe Beating Liverpool 2-0 in his first game, we then went on to play some of the best football I have ever seen an Everton side play. The 4-1 beating we dished out to Spurs in the FA Cup semi-final at Elland Road was the best football I have ever seen any Everton side play � including anything from the Kendall era. The following season, Joe signed Andre Kanchelskis one of the best players I have seen in the Royal Blue shirt. Do you remember him, Tom single-handedly destroying Liverpool at Anfield in yet another great display of attacking football that was becoming our trade mark? Scorelines like 5-2, 7-1 are ones that dour Dave can only dream of yet, under Joe, we were fast becoming a team every-one feared. Cup final victors against Man Utd; victories over them in the league; unbeaten in Derby games; European competition back at Goodison; exciting attacking football � all in the first 12 months of Joe's arrival. Can Moyes or anyone else match that, Tom? No, they can't. The only trophy won in the last 20 years speaks for its self and it was all down to Big Joe. Joe Royle a chimp? � no, Tom: you're a Chump. Polarised However, just because I don't agree with the blinkered Moyes lovers doesn't mean that I have a problem with fellow Blues. Obviously we probably all prefer Blues to anybody else � even the ones you don't like! In fact in my own petty way I have always treated Blues much better and shown incredible bias towards them; the exact opposite is true of our ugly red friends. My previous job made it easy to slyly invoke such favouritism but I'd better not go into detail! Anyway, I've realised that many Blues like Moyes, and think he's the best we can hope for! I find that astonishing but then again I've seen us play good football and win things... thanks, Howard and Joe! Until we raise our collective standards, we are doomed to mediocrity. It seems a majority accept this, and I realise that the people I side with.... Tony M, Gavin R... Michael sometimes... etc, are fighting a losing battle. I feel we'll eventually garner more support and the dour Scottish one
will go, but that's going to take more years of pain and a slow, oh so
slow, Walter Smith like realisation that we're better than that. Football Fancy Finally, no real shock after Saturday that the `Mr Minger` winner by
a street was Richard Wright! Right of Reply However, to re-iterate, I was not calling for David Moyes to be dismissed instantly, I simply question whether he is the right man to take the club forward. I base my observations on his four years at the helm and the style of football he advocates, and the type of player in general he likes to buy. I just think we have a right to question the current playing style and team selections, and if he decided to leave, either in the short term or at the end of his contract, I don't know who would step in to fill his shoes as there is a real dearth of good quality candidates out there. Perhaps the most incredulous response to my article was from Tim Locke of Bristol who maintains we should be satisfied at 'securing our place in the Premiership', a real sense of ambition there Tim! And he believes Richard Wright 'still has potential and there was nothing wrong with his performance in the Derby game'. Sorry Tim, you must have simply been watching a different game with a
different goalkeeper! Anyway, I'm glad I provoked such debate, after all
that's what the mailbag is for isn't it? Pride and Prejudice Facts are facts: against Liverpool, we had key players out injured, our left side was decimated by injury and the replacements drafted in were either not up to the job or not match-fit. The manager has gone on record to say that he does not like to change a winning side but, all said and done, your best players should always be selected. Our squad is still thin on the ground in terms of numbers and the acid test for David Moyes should see a more ruthless approach to both team selection and disposal of players. During the summer, sentiment and loyalty should be replaced by prudence with a clear-out of Wright, Weir, Stubbs, Pistone, Naysmith, Carsley, Ferguson, Martyn who by and large have all served the club well but are either over the hill or not what we need to move on to the next level. The problem remains that, with the continued lack of funds available, we are likely to see a retention of the core set of these players � and possibly even the sale of our most lucrative assests: Yobo & Arteta. As long as we continue to be run with small-time mentality, PR spin and useless soundbites, then mid-table mediocrity will continue to be the fare served up for years to come. The time has come for those running Everton's affairs to show some
accoutability to the fans and go on record about investment, the future
of the stadium, and other key issues. We have three directors who are
controlling Everton and, as far as I am aware, this relationship remains
bitter and acrimonious. For the sake of Everton, the fans need to
mobilise and refuse to accept this ongoing mediocrity. One- or two-man team And imagine, if with Arteta, we had brought Andy van der Meyde to the game early on, we would surely have won. We would have kept the ball more and with it we would have created more chances. At least we would have played much more attractively! Of course playing "eye-catching" football is not "the end-product" � you must be efficient too, to win matches. But efficiency comes with the variety of means to play the ball towards the opposite penalty box. You can hoof the ball to the target player, but you must also have "sublime skills" to thread you way through the midfield or to go down the flanks and put good crosses in for the forwards to convert. As we all know, we don�t these days have as many skillful players as we would like to have. Mainly it�s down to our financial situation, which is getting better, but it still doesn�t allow us to splash money as the real "big guns" do. I think Moyes has mainly bought wisely. Arteta and Van der Meyde are good examples of that. The only regret is that Van der Meyde has been injured for so long. Though we have lately been playing well, the opposition has not been the toughest. In the "top games", as against Liverpool, we need to have Arteta and Van der Meyde in the side, otherwise it�s as it was last Saturday at Anfield. It�s not good to be relying on one or two players, but that�s the fact today with us, especially when we are facing top opposition, home or abroad. We would have had a much better chance against Villarreal, if van der Meyde had been fit to play. Of course Osman and Cahill have also been very good lately; even McFadden. I think we must keep these players which I have mentioned, and buy wisely next summer, mainly concentrating on "class-players". And if we can get some youngsters of our own ranks to thefirst-team, that would be great (where is the next Wayne Rooney?). When we can broaden our material based on skill, we can get away the "one- or two-man team" tag, which I have "invented" to outline the point in my letter. ps: Maybe we let Per Kr�ldrup to go too easily; maybe with time he
could have formed a good partnership with Joseph Yobo. The Royles have it! Royle
David Hall, Taunton (28/3/06) Thanks David. Don't forget, there's an all-too-rare FA Cup win in there too. Changing priorities Fragile Wright A striker, a striker... yes, i agree, but we had martyn in goal in
january, and now we know how weak our second tier of keepers is!! Turner
looks very useful: give him a go. Given was young, Casilla (madrid) he
was young � it can still happen with a few games to go. Sorry, Wright
Dick!!! An all too Predictable letter If he believes for one moment that Everton are as technically gifted as Liverpool he is sadly mistaken, and I fail to see having been reduced to ten men why Liverpool would lose some of their technical ability. Of course the game should be harder for them, and by the 70th minute the side should have tired, but sadly Everton�s main threat, which is closing people down, was never used. On Saturday, Everton�s main problem was they failed to make use of the pitch. So I was very surprised when Mr Hogan called for us to play through the middle, when our main source of success in recent weeks has been through using the wings. It was very clear from Saturday's performance, just how important Arteta has become to the Everton side; it was also clear that Naysmith is a poor replacement for Valente. Personally, I would have used Van der Meyde from the start, but I can understand Davey�s decision to leave him on the bench. As for Wrighty, I still feel he has potential, and there was nothing wrong with his performance on Saturday. You could say he could have done better with the second goal, but to go down that hindsight route, I feel only detracts from the very good finish of Garcia and shear instinctiveness of the keeper. On another day, we could have all been praising him for coming off his line well and preventing the scoring chance. I agree that progress is going to be slow next season, but let's be honest, here we are making progress: we finished fourth last year, one place ahead of Liverpool, and managed to get into the Champions League; we got knocked out due a poor refereeing decision, to a team who managed to knock out Man Utd and who still remain in the competition. We have secured our place in the Premiership for another season and still hold the outside chance of a place in Europe. We all remember the glory days, the doubles and the days when Europe should have been our stomping ground, but those days are not so far off. So give Davey a chance, the boy's track record speaks for itself: you don�t win Manager of the Year twice without doing something right. We would all love to see a world-class holding midfielder, and a fast 20-goal-a-season sticker, but then again so would nearly every other team in the world. It�s not a case that he cannot spot players � it's more a case hecannot buy them. It�s so easy from the outside looking in, saying why don�t you buy him or get him on lone, but sadly it�s not like Championship Manager, and there is a lot of the work which goes on behind the scenes, which we never get to see or hear about. So, before you start commenting, look back and remember Mike Walker,
Joe Royle, and the rest of the chimps who have spent their time
masquerading as Everton managers, Davey�s done a good job and with a
little bit more time and money it could become and excellent one. Goalkeeper crisis Youngsters Please correct me if I'm wrong but, depending on where you finish in
the league, each place is worth another half a million the higher you
finish. Given that we don't have that much money and the way that Moyes
sticks with his favourites, I dont feel that he will gamble the
youngsters and will try to finish as high as possible to get as much
money as possible. He won't risk the young ones just in case we lose our
remaining games and slip, say four places � and lose 2 million quid!!!
Moyes Yet Again! Let's be honest, how many fans are completely happy with their manager? I've never said David Moyes is the perfect manager. I've never claimed that every decision he makes is correct. What I have said is that Moyes is continuing to slowly build Everton into a decent side. He took over perenial relegation candiates and alright admittedly over-acheived by finishing 4th but now looks to have established Everton as a mid-table side. That to me is progress. That is something Walter Smith was unable to do. If Moyes can continue to develop Everton into a decent team that regulary challenges for a European place then I think that is the best we can hope for. Everton will never be able to challenge Chelsea for the title � they don't have the money to compete � but if Moyes can build a side that regulary finishes in the Top 6 then I say "Job Done". And I dont think he's far off completly that. One thing is for sure if Everton were looking for a new manager they would have no chance of finding a candidate who has finished 4th in the Premiership or won Manager of the Year � not once, but twice. Everytime I talk to other supporters about football they all
compliment the job Moyes is doing. Moyes may have his faults but we
could never replace him. Not unless Kenwright was incredibly smart and
managed to unearth another gem in the lower leagues. Anyone for jokes yet? Shame we didn't turn up for the last 70 minutes. Boom, boom! 'All too predictable' We're all gutted to lose to the kopites, but let's not lose perspective. When Moyes took over, Everton were relegation candidates � year in year out. Now we're moaning because of what? Because we're mid-table? Some of his signings have been disappointing, but show me a manager whose hit the jackpot with every signing? Percentage-wise and on a value-for-money assessment I don't think he's done too badly. You can lambast Chelsea for playing boring football because they've got the money to buy whoever they want and consequently play however they want. Moyes has been restrained in how we can play by the players who he inherited and the fact that he is shopping at the lower end of the market. Yes Moyes has made mistakes, both tactically and in the transfer market, but he's changed the team when he needed to and he's done a voltface on Kr�ldrup/Stubbs, which is why we're now 10th and not down there with Birmingham. Who would you rather have manging us? Allardyce � what style of
football does he play? Curbishley � more yo-yoing? Mike Newell � a young
manager doing well in the lower divisions... didn't we get the
equivalent four years ago?! Let's have some stability at the club and
build a solid team again rather than knocking Moyesey all the time. In
Moyes We Trust! Re: Quality Gap On Moyes, you have to wonder � is he actually learning from his
mistakes of past. It is quite apparent now, that Everton have a real
problem when it comes to the big games. Performance and tactics gone
AWOL. Tactics The flavour varies depending on the team's results and it was with a morbid expectation I logged on after Saturday; sure enough, it was as expected. So far, all good stuff, but to the serious points about Saturday's result. I have been and still am a supporter of what Moyes has done for the club but I am starting to get a bit disconcerted by his ability to change tactics in a game. David Pleat's Chalkboard in today's Guardian says it much better than I can and sums up how I feel about the derby game. When we start well and score early, we can turn it on as in the previous two games, but it's when you concede or you have an opportunity to win by changing something during the game; that's when a manager really earns his corn. As much as I hate to say it, I believe if Benitez had been our manager on Saturday he would have made the changes as Pleat suggests and we could/would have gone on to win the game on Saturday � that's the difference: Benitez has proved he is a top-class flexible tactician; Moyes hasn't. We missed our quality on the ball on Saturday (Arteta, Valente) but the players play to a plan laid down by the manager. I hope Moyes can develop in this area as we don't need more change and instability but he needs to do it soon or we will keep losing to the likes of Liverpool and let's face it, we have all had enough of what we are feeling today. This is what football is about, not blind faith in the manager/club/board or otherwise; I think we can all sign up to beating Liverpool on a regular basis because then we'd be going somewhere and be happy (sorry, got over-optimistic there!). A final rant; Keith Wyness' points on Radio 5live yesterday about
refusing an offer to join the G14 (some hope!) is a load of bollocks, it
really is. Does he really expect us to believe that he would turn it
down? I would like us to be in the position that would enable an offer
to be made, Mr Wyness, thank you!!! At least my wife's happy...... Friday and Saturday put the final nails in the coffin of "worry about Everton" for the season. The team's excellent performances in Jan and Feb had banished relegation as a possibility, but once again Europe beckoned. I knew we were too far behind and the run-ins of Arsenal, Spurs, Bolton and Blackburn are such that if they match the results of last season they are all going to finish on over 60 points. But until Friday, 7th would get us in. Then the cup draw came and either West Ham, Boro or Charlton will get into Europe as the Cup Final losers (Don't argue, the losers get in, it is only the Micky Mouse cup losers that don't). So now it is only the top 6 into Europe. Then Saturday, we won't say any more, but the chance of us improving to over 60 points: no chance. So we ain't going down and we ain't getting into Europe. Last year we were in Europe, but the tension � Champs League or only Uefa Cup? The year before, 17th and relegation fears as we only reach 39 points. The year before that 7th on the last day and not even the Uefa Cup. The year before Moyes to the rescue (playing attcking football; 40 goals in 9 matches of which 18 were ours). Before that, 16th on goal difference. You have to go back to the spring of 2000 for a relaxed time of nothing to worry about. So in my wife's opinion, she could put up with a morose, ill-tempered
depressed husband for one night, knowing that she will have a relaxed
and happy one for the next two months... until the transfer window
opens, and then it will all start again. Honest,at least Perhaps that`s what makes Everton special under a manager who,
himself, always tells it as it is. Personally, I hope Davey keeps faith
with both of them on Saturday when we can expect normal servce (win,
win, win) to be resumed. Hypocrites! Loyalty goes both ways you know, I've been telling Reds all season that Moyes is a great manager and can set us up for long-term success. Moyes never puts short-term gain before long term aims. In Cahill and Arteta we have gained two young, quality midfielders at a bargain basement price. As for Kr�ldrup, how many managers would insist on playing someone who lacked quality just to save face? Leaders make mistakes too but the important thing is admitting and rectifying them. I never doubted Moyes during December. I did doubt a heavy fixture list and a run of injuries. Also players like Valente and even Arteta hadn't fully gelled with the team in December but we've seen their quality more and more. Have fans forgotten already that Moyes won Manager of the Year in two of the last three seasons? Apparently they know more about football than Premiership managers. I have full confidence in Moyes's ability to lead Everton to long-term success. Finally, the overreaction to the derby defeat justifies claims that
it's our cup final. Wake up. Loyalty questioned Do some people expect all Evertonians to continually sing the praises of everyone associated with the club regardless of their performance? If David Moyes had signed me as a player, would every Everton fan be expected to cheer my every mistake? � my lack of pace, positional sense, tactical awareness, tackling ability, finishing prowess, and general ball skills??? Would it not be the duty of everyone with Everton's best interest at
heart to shout 'Davie! Get that waste of space off the pitch!!'
Obviously I'm not claiming that any player in the Everton squad has my
failings as a player, but when we feel something is going wrong, we
should say so. Equally, when something is going right we should say so.
And the vast majority of us do. Most of the people who criticise the bad
things also applaud the good things. The rose-tinted glasses brigade,
however, never seem to question the bad things for fear of having their
'loyalty' questioned. Let's not go off the deep end 1. No Arteta meant we had no one to be the playmaker in midfield. It's all to clear how much we rely on him to create goals. Without him, we were lost. 2. Their first two goals were an own-goal (every team gets them) and another scored by a man (and I use that term loosely) who shouldn't have even been on the pitch as Garcia somehow escaped with a blatant elbow to Kilbane's throat in the first half. Change those two situations and we almost certainly would have won this game. But the fact we didn't once again causes a segment of supporters to label Moyes a cretin. Memory, I suppose, is as long as one wants it to be. I guess the eight wins and two draws in the previous 11 games � with some excellent football in the wins over Fulham and Villa � means nowt now that we've lost a derby. I've read a comment replying to an earlier missive in which it's said
we "choke" againt the big clubs. I hardly think 1-1 home to Chelsea, 1-1
away to Man United and 1-0 home to Arsenal qualifies as choking. Ho hum I don't beleive I will never warm to Moyes's teams; his first-choice team seems to place too much emphasis on work ethic (which, admitedly, is always needed to a certain extent) over skill and pace. A good, attractive team needs a combination of them all. For example, a team of Sheedys would get nowhere, but niether would a team of Peter Rieds. Until Arteta came along, our midfield lacked pace, skill and movement. It did not lack work rate or commitment but that meant nothing once we got the back from the opposition. Moyes needs to add just a bit of pace up front and pray that Van der Meyde ends his lifetime injury problems and the team may even look semi-decent against quality oppoistion. Disregarding whether Moyes is any good at creating a good team, I also have to remember this isn't the 80s and we are no longer a big club... but its hard not to compare current sides with teams of the past. Hell, I even do it when watching Liverpool on TV... they have a winning team at the moment, but it still looks crap compared to their previous ones. Finally, I also have to remember that football is just crap now. Everton can no longer afford the tickets for the big private parties and instead have wait outside jostling with all the other plebs hoping for a way to sneak in through the backdoor. I hate the way Everton play but the Premiership as a whole is pretty dull. 95% of the teams are set up to stop the opposition rather than beat them... when Gerrard got sent off, Everton didn't have a clue as to what to do because they are so used to playing second fiddle on the pitch. We may be well organised and difficult to beat (ha!) but what's the point if you have a Wright in goal and two old men in front of him. I want Everton to show a bit more courage and have a bit more confidence in what they can actually do to hurt the opposition. Oh look... there's a flying pig! Give What a Rest? On that basis, we could all forgive Harry for being a misery arse. Moyes is a misery arse without the great midfield, great football, local youngsters and trophies. That's why some of us laugh at the hero-worship of Moyes. Passing the ball to feet, defenders who can defend, strikers who can score, a unit of 11 players who know what they're doing and can adapt during a game. It doesn't matter whether it's now or then, the principles are the same. Instead of belittling those who have achieved genuine success for
this club, perhaps the IMWT brigade may look at how we achieved such
success in the past and beg their hero to look and learn. Facing Reality To me, the top sector comprises of clubs who have the necessary wherewithall to mount a REGULAR challenge for European competition and is made up of:- Chelsea, Man Utd, Liverpool, Spurs, Arsenal and Newcastle. Everton fall into the second sector to be joined by West Ham, Blackburn, Bolton, Charlton, Man City, Middlesbrough, Fulham, Aston Villa and (just maybe) Birmingham City. I do not see Wigan as likely to continue to punch above their weight and place them in the bottom tier with West Brom, Portsmouth and Sunderland or whoever is likely to replace them next season via promotion. Now I know some Evertonians will scream at this but I firmly believe that we would all save ourselves so much angst if we accepted our true `second sector` station in life and saw as our goal TOP spot in that group. It would certainly mean that we had won more than we lost and if allied to a bit of success in the cups give us some half-decent seasons. It is, fellow Evertonians, acceptance of this philosophy, which
enables me to keep my perspective and to continue to believe that
Kenwright, Moyes and Co are doing as well as we can reasonably hope for
our Club. What think ye? What IF? It was obvious following Gerrard's sending off that Moyes was just hoping to keep the score at 0-0 till half time and then try and nick one late in the match. Mr Phil's own-goal put an end to that and a Dickie Wright rush of blood after half-time all but ended our chances. I just wish after Gerrard's sending off Moyes reshuffled and went for it rather than playing it safe. Although I was raging with Moyes afterwards, I must now on Monday admit that events were (maybe) out of Moyes hands. The goals either side of half-time (especially the second) effectively killed his game plan. Then we score and get a player sent off. Some may call it bad luck etc. But the fact remains the team and management failed to respond to Gerrard's dismal. The only conclusion full-time brought was that our team was ageing, immobile and out of its depth. And he management appeared slow; unable to adapt with any form of forward-planning on the touch-line. Moyes, has taken us to a mid-table level in the Premiership, this has
given us some respectability. But we must not be blinkered by Moyes's
achievements in his time here. Next year will provide a stern test of
whether Moyes can take us to the next level. If he doesn't it may be
best all round to find someone who can. Shut up! Do you remember Mike Walker & Walter Smith? David Moyes is one of the
best managers in the country. I'd rather support a losing Everton team
than a winning Liverpool team. Support Moysey, he's the future of EFC! Furious With Ricky Wright Let's put his brain into perspective � injury falling out of the loft � then injury on a sign that says "stay the fuck out of the way of this sign" and we still put him between the sticks and say "dont go flying to the edge of your area if there is a good chance that the defence will cover the situation � is that okay Richard? will you remember this?" Sorry, but is anyone else as spitting mad as I am with this? Predictable and dissapointing!! Which of the players took it upon themself to turn the team around
from the jaws of relegation to within spitting distance of Europe. And I
am not discrediting Arteta here but Nup, give this one to the manager.
He re-molded a side that was down in confidence, and had most people
speaking of the drop, into a side that now, we dare whisper Europe
about. ''Quality Gap'' How the tune doth change again We have slipped up in what has been the best vein of form for any
Premiership side since 1 January. I would like to stick up for Moyes
because I feel that people are not looking at the bigger picture and
what David Moyes has achieved for Everton Football Club. He is a young
manager and he is learning his trade, already bringing us to fourth in
the premiership. This is an unthinkable, and once-thought impossible
achievement. Telling it as it is Wright has been a liability from day one. Some times you've got to hold your hand up and admit to poor decisions; he has probably been the single worst signing of Moyes's tenure and it's time he accepted it. One also has to question the role of Woods in his coaching of the young keepers: frankly, if neither Turner nor Ruddy is capable displacing Wright, there is something seriously wrong... perhaps it's time for a new keeper and coach? We started off really well with Cahill getting at both Gerrard and Sissoko and dominating the early exchanges. But, given our defensive frailties, we simply cannot continue with Stubbs and Weir � they simply undermine the efforts of their team mates. This was all too obvious as the game progressed: their need to drop deeper and deeper allowed the opposition to come on to us. Contrast this with the few games which Ferrari played prior to his injury � we where at times defending up to the centre circle. Some will rightly point out that Ferrari is injured but my gut feeling is that, injured or not, Moyes would have gone with Stubbs and Weir in any case. But, whilst I continue to support Moyes, I must admit to a growing lack of confidence in his judgment as some of the current problems are blindingly obvious. Naysmith should have gone a long time ago and Neville I'm afraid simply can't cut it against the better teams. But, to be fair, I don't believe Moyes has been given the financial
support required to bring the quality players needed. Yobo will
undoubtedly go and who can blame him? � having to watch the circus act
of Stubbs and Weir from the bench must be extremely hard to swallow. Derby depression The fans calling for Moyesy's head need a reality check. Anyone who's been at Goodison for the last two home games surely must have gained some satisfaction from our performances. I agree it's not back to the School of Science days but we were top of the 2006 table before Saturday. There are too many fans out there waiting for a slip up so they can
start clamouring for change. There are still winnable games left so
please keep the faith. I still remember with dread losing a couple of
cup finals to Liverpool and conceeding three but no-one calling for the
manager's head then. Hard work Moyes likes hard-working players. He buys hard-working players. Arteta excepted, he seems afraid of players who can make things happen, with pace, with flair, with speed of thought, comfortable on the ball. That is why we struggled against 10 men. Our one player with ideas was injured. As a consequence, no-one knew how to shape and control the game. They had players with power, speed of thought and quick feet. That's why they beat us. That's why Villarreal beat us. That's why people have to compare us to Middlesbrough, Charlton and Bolton in order to make Moyes look 'great'. Our season has been lifted on the back of hard work against our fellow mediocre sides. Without Arteta, we were always going to struggle against Liverpool. Last summer our club neglected to buy, or were unable to convince, any such players to come to our club. Despite being consistently told we have the 'best young manager in the country' and that we're the '18th richest club in the world', they're not coming here. Can someone tell me why? I salute our players. On Saturday they worked their socks off, but weren't good enough. You buy mediocrity, you get mediocrity. We're a mid-table side � please don't expect these players to turn over sides like Liverpool more than once in a blue moon. Give the kids a chance, see what they can do for the rest of the
season. Buy some midfielders who are comfortable with a football, with
pace. Let's have more than one quality striker on the club's books. I
keep saying it, others keep saying it. The problem is, while there are
Evertonians calling this state of affairs "genius" and "greatness", this
is the nearest we're going to get to it. Over-reaction Before the derby game we were top of the league for 2006, what more can people ask?! People were demanding that we ditched the 4-5-1, that we scored more goals and that we played more attacking and attractive football. I'm pretty certain that is exactly what's happened (to an extent) so there really aren't any grounds for complaint (at the moment). I'm not going to say, like some people, that we lost solely because we were unlucky � it's too easy to do that. Yes, we were unlucky in parts (the ref: how he sent Van der Meyde off I'll never know; Arteta being injured) but we were also lucky that Gerrard got sent off and we failed to capitalise on that good luck, which is something we need to learn. The game, on the whole, was total dross � derby games usually are � people should expect nothing else; we were never going to play the same way we did against West Ham and Fulham. Moyes did make an error or two: playing the totally inept Kilbane ahead of Van der Meyde was borderline madness, Ferguson being anywhere near the squad was ridiculous. However, calls to split up Stubbs and Weir are without foundation. We have undeniably been a better unit as a team since they were reunited and then there's the old adage about changing winning teams. Since they've been back in the team, we've scored more and conceded fewer, what more do people want? If it means Weir getting caught for pace every so often but a general improvement in results and stability then I think we should be willing to leave them as they are. At this point I'm trying to think of excuses for Richard Wright but I can think of any. He can't catch, can't command his box, and his decision-making is embarrassing. To conclude, I think people should lay off Moyes and the team for the time being. The game was dire and, in fairness, neither team deserved to win. The only difference between us and them is that they win lots of games when they are not the better team; we don't at the moment (Sunderland being the one exception), but hopefully with a bit of time and some more good form, that will come. We have some of the best players we've had in a while (Beattie, Arteta, Cahill, Valente, Neville, Hibbert, Osman) and we've had some of the best results for a while. For that, we should be grateful and full of praise; we should not be demanding wholesale changes based on one game. Football is a very fickle game and it needs to be. When things are going badly wrong then disparagement and possibly changes are necessary, but when things are going well, support should be at the forefront of everyone's minds. It is fair to constructively criticise no matter what the situation is, but total disdain at the moment is uncalled for. Come on you Blues! Black Saturday It is easy to pull the trigger and shoot every body down at Everton Football Club especially the Manager. But I think it would be naive to pass our verdicts so soon, bearly a day after the debacle, when our blood is still hot and fuming mad. Overall, the main culprit was definitely the FA for fielding an inept referee. Surely they knew this was a Merseyside derby when passions run high on and off the pitch. It is precisely for this reason that a more mature and experienced referee should have been employed. Flashing a card everytime someone went down reflects very poor judgement. Everton was the team that really settled down first and were playing some nice football throughout the first half. They looked threatening and looked like they would score first. The turning point was Neville's own-goal. That changed the complexion of the game especially when the goal came just before the half-time break. After the break, Garcia's early goal was really down to the bumbling Richard Wright, who has no place in this Everton side. Time and again, he has been a liability and should really just go. Our Everton team, while having the physical strength to do battle on the field, has absolutely no mental ability to handle a game after conceding a goal. Yes, Tim Cahill did get one back for us but the team as a whole does not really know how to come back after we are trailing. We have been on a roll and winning a lot of games lately so this loss
is a reminder that not all is well. The Board should take this as a sign
and do something about it at close season. It is not rocket science to
know what we need - an experienced goalkeeper, a striker, two central
defenders and perhaps a good midfield maestro. And we should definitely
get rid of players who are not performing, as soon as possible. But we
should definitely keep David Moyes. Blue Jokes The other corker is this: "Moyes is the best young Manager out there." Well he might just be that if you exclude Mark Hughes, Alan Pardew, Paul Jewell, Jose Morihnio, Mike Newell, Ian Dowie, Steve Coppell, Martin Allen... the list is endless. This is the problem we have got at the moment. Too many eaily pleased
head-in-the-sand merchants. Our fans don't really know much about
football, I wonder who said that one first? Harsh I can't agree fully with Steve Hogan's piece, however. I regularly laid into DM halfway through this season, and admittedly, had he been sacked I would have been happy. I wouldnt say I/ve "changed my tune" as such, but I am far happier now than I was in November or December. We have put an excellent run of results together after some diabolical 4-0 reverses. It takes something in a manager to turn that sort of form around the way he has. Given that, I'm now prepared to give Davie time and see what happens. Facts are facts; he has some unwanted records to his name but our league position is a real credit to the manager and his team when you consider the reults from the first 4 months. He's won Manager of the Year twice also. Liverpool have spent heavily, very heavily. I think their fans apreciate that we have a good, honest team that cost a fraction of theirs. Ok, we need improvement and we need numbers come the summer. That is going to be the job of BK to bring in the cash to enable that and take us to the next level. Will it happen? Probably not. I would like to see HIM go and someone brought in to take this club forward and awaken the sleeping giant that this club is. The longer Kenwright stays, the longer progress will be hindered. He must be able to see that himself. Does he love Everon as much as he claims? If he did, he wouldn't be sitting back and denying us the chance to move on. The likes of Coventry, Middlesborough, Bolton, Wigan, Millwall, and
Reading all have new stadiums and have made progress (perhaps not on the
field). These are clubs that shouldn't even be mentioned in the same
sentence as Everton but, sadly, we are flagging behind most of them
commercially � that has nothing to do with DM but those upstairs. Its
time for them to ship out and let someone else have a go. The end of
this season would be perfect Bill. Deal or No Deal? Let`s face the truth The truth, I fear is somewhat different. Only a handful of the current squad (Hibbert, Valente, Arteta, Cahill and Beattie) are of genuine Premiership class and the manager ordinary and predictable in the extreme. However the devoted `talk things up`, the record shows that when up against anything out of the ordinary � the top five here and ANY team in Europe � Moyes is out of his depth and the players either bottle it or completely lose discipline. Can things improve? I fear not. The infrastructure of the Club militates against it as potential signings are put off by the shabbiness of our surroundings and the dour reputation (amongst press and agents, at least) of the manager. Sorry to say, calls for change will fall on deaf ears as Kenwright
pursues more profitable projects and Moyes is happy to toe the party
line on everything from transfers to the lack of facilities. But, as my
Birmingham City neighbour said to me last night, `We`d settle for
mid-table mediocrity every year!` That, let`s face it, is also the
realistic ambition of Everton today! Frustrated By the way - I haven't seen much comment about Dowd's refereeing! I'm
glad he doesn't have my cheque book! 4-5-1 It is clear that Liverpool has the better ball players. What do old-fashioned English teams do against ball players? They scrap!! (like we did last year and earlier this year). That is what we should have done last night. People slagged Moyes off for using the 4-5-1. Fact of the matter is, with Arteta not playing, we are no match for Liverpool. The 4-5-1 would have been the only way to get a result out of this one. Of course I am not coach / manager, however I do understand a need for a different tactic for more "difficult" games ? Also, no one's mentioned Mr Van der Meyde's egg-in-the-face comments
before the game... something to the tune of "I have faced 80,000 people
in a derby... what is 40,000 compared to that?" Derby inquest So the three goals told a story about three men: the fluke, the fool, and the idiot. But had we forfeited a defender (Weir) and brought on either Van der Meyde or Ferguson, it would surely have put them on the back foot. As it unfolded, we allowed them to to regroup and in the end outplay us. So... I blame Mr Moyes; however, I still think we've got probably the
best young manager in the game. Up the Toffees. Now is the perfect time Wright is wrong for the Premiership so why not give John Ruddy a few games? Victor Anichebe looks to have some potential along with Bjarni Vidarsson. Surely they deserve a shot to prove their worth before the season ends and the new signings (maybe) come in. Might save Everton a packet in the long run if they show they have talent. If they don't have talent, what are they doing in the Academy? Either way, give them a shot, Davey. We might just see some exciting
football for a change. Moyes debate At half-time, I thought Everton would at least come back to tie given their form of late and against maybe a tiring ten man team but the crucial second goal from nothing put paid to that. I also sensed at half-time that Everton needed to keep 11 players on
the park but didn't expect Van der Meyde to get red-carded. The
yellow-card frenzy is the responsibility of DM who as coach should have
instilled discipline in his squad, even when they are losing. Funny how
Liverpool started the rough stuff and Everton are the team who get fined
�25,000 typical ? Dean and the Bambino Not Moyes's fault Same old story I just hope Moyes sees sense and leaves Wright & Weir (thanks for
your service, Davie) on the bench and inserts Turner and Yobo for the
remaining games. re: All too predictable It is disappointing to lose to Liverpool but on the back of this we
shouldn't sack the manager. His transfer record is not that bad compared
to Bentiez either. Beattie is hitting top form; Arteta was an absolute
steal; Valente has proved his worth and he swallowed some pride and took
Stubbs back to shore up the defence. Get Real Moyess� transfer record isn�t brilliant but it is better than most Premiership managers. Even the likes of Arsene Wenger make mistakes (�8M for Jeffers, �17M for Reyes). Moyes has bought some good players on the cheap (Arteta and Cahill) and others at their market value (Beattie, Neville etc.). Obviously Kr�ldrup was a failure but not a very expensive one compared to what other managers have done. We all know where the team�s weak points are. We need a second striker, cover in midfield, a new central defender and a new goalkeeper. It would be very easy for a manager to splash the cash on someone like Emile Heskey, or worse, but I would prefer our manager to be cautious with our club�s precious resources. Better to be in our position than Birmingham, with a treatment room full of expensive flops, let alone Leeds. Moyes�s record in the transfer market suggests that he can get good
payers if they become available, but he is not going to take risks.
Unless we can find a Russian billionaire willing to splash the cash,
that is just what we should want. Out of the Ashes How I shouted my head off when Cahill scored (you could see the police and stewards wondering what was gonna happen, and besides having me putting one or two idiots in their place for being personal, the banter was pretty good). I know after that it was pretty down hill but we are definatly improving and if Bill Kenwright gives the manager as much money as usual, we should get the 'keeper and forward we need. I have never been Davey's biggest supporter but the football we're playing now is ok. We all know who is leaving in the summer but if you take into account
their age and how much they cost, most of them � Weir, Ferguson, Martyn
etc (except Wright and Naysmith) have severd the club well. I just
didn't feel as dejected walking away yesterday as I did walking out of
Goodison after the last derby. Keep the faith, onward Evertonians. Oh how the tune doth change Everton were as much in the game as Liverpool until a divine slice of outright luck on the point of half-time changed the game � I'll say it again � changed the game. We didn't create many opportunities and, yes, we should have gone with Yobo, but who else felt our chances of creating much disappeared on news of losing Arteta? The leading article on today's ToffeeWeb Homepage is simply a reaction to losing a derby and which in fact is just another game in the building process of Everton Football Club. It was a passionate affair, a great match, always will mean a lot, but mathematically it was just another game. This is where the Evertonians must decipher: what is more important � The notion of victory or of progress? I back Everton; I back Moyes � he has done wonderful things for this club. It annoys me, this silly Moyes-bating, because it is what we say when there is little else to comment on.
Daniel Greenwood, Liverpool (26/3/06) A great match!?!! Beyond the first 15 mins, there was hardly any football played in the first half. The game became a spectacle because of the "overly-fussy" referee, who totally ruined it with his card-waving antics. Everton got their first corner only after 60 mins � that shows how much football we were playing � and played the whole game far too deep. And as for your pompous and patronizing parting rationalizations, no-one wants to hear that kind of parsimonious crap, thank you. The idea that somehow we should just let the events of yesterday rank on a par with the routine drubbing of Fulham or Aston Villa is so far off the mark, it is simply inconceivable. � Michael The Rich List Is so-called `rich` determined merely by income because that means
nothing as Mr Micawber pointed out all those years ago! Time for Change If I had my way Moyes and his side kick Irvine would be on the National express to Glasgow just about now. Well, as we all know, that isn't going to happen. So let's assume that he [Moyes] is going to be around for the next couple of seasons. What will actually change in terms of quality of play and players? From where I am sitting: not a lot really. We have had four years of this shit and its getting harder to bear for every one. Why do we [Everton supporters] put up with it? For instance, clubs like West Ham and Spurs pride themselves on trying to play in the correct way because the fans demand it. They won't settle for the kind of crap we put up with. They know they will never compete at the very top but they understand there is an obligation to the fans. That's what we should expect from our club and our team also. I am sick to death of the watching players pull on our Royal Blue jersey who just dont belong in it. Some of them dont even possess the basics � ball control and passing for instance. As long as some of us continue to sing the name of Moyes and give undying support to his way of doing things, nothing will improve. We need to be more demanding of our team and stop settling for the drivel we are fed, week-in, week-out. Another season of this Fiasco Football and you will see the numbers starting to drop off. What's wrong with a bit of value for money these days? Don't we want to see pacey young strikers and midfielders who can actually play the game in a blue shirt? Wake up out there for as long as you put up with this rubbish we are seeing, then nothing will ever change. We should start on Saturday against Sunderland with some youngsters
in the side. Give Turner, Anichebe and Hughes a game. There's nothing to
lose. Dickie Contwright Truth is with our ageing/creeking central defenders, no goalie would know whether anyone was getting across to cover and it is clear from TV re-runs that Weir failed Wright abysmally on that occasion. I have to say that if Yobo (now being spun against prior to departure!) is not restored ere long, this tragic season will end with us nearer bottom than top. We hear a lot from Moyes and his gullible supporters about progress but it`s a funny chart line that sees even 10th regarded as progress on fourth! Oh, I forgot: we over-achieved last season! Liverpool 3 - 1 Everton So let's try and get things into some sort of perspective. First of all, Everton have been on an amazing run of form lately and, if the league had started in January, Everton would be top. One defeat shouldn't take anything away from that run. We lost a game, thats all it boils down to. We lost a game, just like almost every club does. It happens, its football. We had the bad luck to encounter a Liverpool team in amazing form. Don't forget leading up to yesterday's game Liverpool had scored 15 goals in 3 games, including a 7-0 thrashing of Birmingham. We lost an away game to the European Champions, the 2nd best team in the Premiership, in the best form of their season. I don't see any shame in that. We also had bad luck which ruled out Arteta, who has become Everton's best player, and without him it was always going to be a struggle. Would it have been a different game if Arteta had been involved? I think possibly it may have. The other talking point is: Was Moyes right to stick with Weir/Stubbs and leave Yobo out? Well, I think Moyes made the right decision. Weir & Stubbs have been playing great lately and Everton have been winning games. So why change it? The problem with Weir & Stubbs is the lack of pace but Liverpool have Peter Crouch up front. A player with less pace then both Weir & Stubbs. Why bring pacey Yobo back to mark a slow-moving forward? Better to let the more physical Weir & Stubbs use their experience to handle the freaky bean-pole. The other point seems to be why Andy van der Meyde didn't start. Well, considering the injury-prone winger got stupidly sent off after 5 minutes of coming on as a sub, I'm kinda glad he didn't start. Here's a thought:- Duncan Ferguson: injury-prone British player gets sent off; the Everton fans blast him as a disgrace and claim he should never play for the club again. Andy van der Meyde: Injury-prone foreign player gets sent off; the Everton fans blast Moyes for not starting him. Who says the fans don't favour the more fashionable foreign players? Another example is Weir, everytime he makes a mistake he's blasted by the fans but nobody ever mentions the true awful mistakes Yobo has made this season. Double standard. Anyway, back to yesterday's game; what did we learn? Well, surprise surprise, an on-form Liverpool are a better side then an on-form Everton. More proof that Dickie Wright is way out of his depth. Everton miss Arteta big time. Let's stop slagging the team and Moyes off. Kenwright is not going to
sack Moyes this season so lets get behind him. seven games left, four of
them home games against struggling teams. We can still finish in a
European placing. The Invisible Van Mediocris satis! I know Rome wasn`t built in a day but to read that Moyes may need ten years to make us truly competitive with that lot across the park is definitely not what I want to be reading on a miserable day like today! Just reflect that we`ve been hearing this crap for all of the LAST ten years and during that time we`ve seen hopes of a new ground dashed, Bellefield continuing to crumble, the youth policy virtually abandoned, our best player since William Ralph Dean used to get us out of hock, and a small fortune wasted on crocks and `no hopers`. I know all this cannot be laid at the door of our manager(s) and that Kenwright and Co. need a bomb up their collective arse but I just do not see David Moyes as the kind of inspirational figure who might be able to stimulate those `upstairs` into real action. What the whole bloody lot of them have settled for is survival and and, sad to say, that has permeated down to a whole raft of Evertonians. Don`t give me nil satis, it`s more like mediocris satis
these days! 11 vs 10 11 vs 10 gives you the advantage, but it doesn't really mean you will
definitely win. If we could win a match when playing 10 vs 11, we could
also lose a match when playing 11 vs 10. Post Derby Blues I was really unhappy with how long it took to start to impose
ourselves on the game (Walter Smithism there!) considering our numerical
advantage. When it came, we failed to really make it count, and Moyes
should have carried his intended changes through; it looked totaly
unproffessional and showed his lack of desisiveness. One observation on
the ref: surely Garcia's elbow was worse than Van der Meyde's? Let's spin it and see... Odd? Or what? Is this more spin from behind the 'Big Blue Door'? I
think we should be told! Right of Reply to Luq Yus I have only written to Toffeeweb twice. The first was to point out that we wont be signing Matteo Ferrari, because Roma want him back. The second was to point out how a loan deal, with a VIEW to a permanent transfer actually works. At no time did I say Ferrari was a bad player or that we didn't need him, just that we wouldn't be signing him and why. How this makes me part of the IMWT gang, I don't know!! If you must know I am as frustrated and dissapointed as you after yesterdays shambolic display. I think Moyes deserves criticism for yesterday's game, such as our inability to string three passes together without Arteta in the side. His blind loyalty to the useless Kilbane and Naysmith (Number of crosses from the left yesterday? - Zero). And his failure to play Yobo, who is without doubt our quickest and best defender. However, Luq, if people have got their facts wrong about a loan deal,
and are using this a stick to beat Moyes with, then I'll defend him. I
am not on the side of the sychophants or the cynics. Every one is
entitled to their opinion, mine happens to be an unbiased, balanced one.
I'm sorry this upsets you so much! The future However I remain bemused at why so much of the fire is directed at DM given the lack of real support from the board � the worst thing is nothing is going to change whilst Bill Kenwright and his merry men remain in charge. We desparately need outside investment, new ideas, modern management at the top and a Board of Directors with the vision to deliver what our long suffering fans deserve. Instead, as examples � and there are many � the best player we have ever produced is sold, no real investment, a pathetic stadium, training ground and youth academy to name just a few of the problems we face. We are in debt, going nowhere and mid-table mediocrity will be the future. We spend our time looking bakwards. We had the chance at the start of this season to move up into the higher echelon and we well and truly blew it due to lack of vision and investment. If you want a reality check, just look at how Liverpool have taken us apart twice this year yet their manager is about to receive huge funding for the summer transfer merrygoround. We will be no doubt shortly be selling our two best players, Yobo and Arteta, and scraping around in the bargain basement. So as much as DM`s inadequacies drive us all mad, let us get real
folks and recognise nothing but nothing is going to change until BK
disappears over the horizon... unless that happens please do not expect
anything different. Shambolic The whole defence, excluding Hibbert and maybe Stubbs, should be dropped. They have absolutely no confidence in Wright, who is totally inept and clueless, and kept sitting back in order to protect him. Why oh why did he rush out for Liverpool's second goal, I still can't comprehend. Weir should hold his hand up and admit he can't cut it anymore just like Ferguson and stop hurting Everton Football Club. I love Everton with all my heart and i'm not ashamed to admit that I cried and it hurt so much when the final whistle was blown. ps: Try catching Yobo's expression when the three subs were about to
come on or when Cahill scored. Totally disinterested, has no pride
wearing the blue shirt and knows he will be leaving very soon. Anfield Then Phil Neville makes his worst (human error) mistake since conceding a penalty in World Cup 1998, and Crouch out-jumps Beattie to lay on the second for Wright to mess up. So, bring on three subs, but one goal back, so put your track suits back on. Eventually, van der Meyde & Dunc do come on. Is �5M enough for Andy's 5 minutes today and '7 starts'? Is he doing a Big Dunc? Did he ever earn his money in Italy? Did Johan Cruyff or someone say he was a dud? Is he a conman? Is he fat & bald, or is he a Johnny Morrissey � as he looked like for 30 minutes in December, & can create space on the left & cross it? I was told off before by the mediator on this page for querying
whether these mercenary guys were paid per win/minute or per month, as
employee contracts were private. Did they say Arteta had a bad back
today? Is he moving to Liverpool, or is he just friendly with someone
from home? If someone grows to be world class, like Gravesen, take the
money! The Man, The Myth, The Carsley! This man got Everton to the Champions league last year and the rest of the team threw away his season-long effort by losing to Villarreal. This would not have happened if the bald genius was present. Everton's season began as a mess. They were laughed at by everyone for their poor performances; people should have been ready for this as the Carsleynator was injured. Everton then began to improve as soon as Carsleymeister begins to recover. This is not a coincidence! This is PROOF of how great a player he is. Alex Ferguson is searching the universe for a replacement for Roy Keane and there would be no better player to replace him as Man Utd Captain but then would be recognised further as the greatest thing to hit Football. Carslo is to Everton what God is to the world. Moyes! � get this man a new contract because all the big clubs will be after him in the summer.... They should probably let him go because they could use the �10M to get some new players. May I recommend Gary Breen or Peter Crouch might come? That sort of quality is what's needed if the worst was to happen and the ball avenger felt that he needed a new mission! Please come back as quick as you can � football needs you, Lee! The man is an inspiration to my country and we will welcome him back with open arms if he would come back and play for Ireland on the world stage to show off his amazing talents. Long live the legend that is Lee Carsley! I hope this will encourage
Evertonians everywhere to write in to share their favourite Lee Carsley
story or moment, while I would like to share mine with you. Finally "Who
put the ball in the scousers net? Lee-Lee-Lee-Lee-Lee Cars-ley." Sillly?? Anyway, I'm neutral as far as Moyes is concerned, but his loyalty to shite players does worry me. On the other hand he has done a good job this year. So Toffeeweb a bit of consistency please. If you are going to call me
silly for saying that we would lose because of the team put out, then
surely you should be using that nice blue font to tell everyone else
they are silly for suggesting Yobo and VDM should have started. For Next Season It's hard to find any silver linings but at least it painted a clear and bloody obvious picture that even a blind man could see... and if Kenwright can't see it..... We desperately need some better players in all departments: Wright, Weir, Stubbs, Naysmith, Pistone, Li Tie, Kilbane, Dunc definitely have to go. If need be (due to funds or rather lack of) keep Stubbs, Kilbane, Naysmith and Nige AS COVER. But I'd rather see them all go and us using youth players as cover. Next season is the time to use the likes of Wilson, Vaughan, Anichebe, Hopkins, Hughes, Boyle, Turner and all those promising youth players that we have. Cheap and saves us money. It's always a risk playing kids but how much worse can they be than those lot above (excluding Nige)??? Da Silva coming next season; hopefully he will be another creative player in our ranks so we need not rely on Arteta alone. AvdM should have the whole of next season to prove his worth; hopefully he can stay fit enough. We deffo need a centre-half, left-back, 'keeper, left and right
midfielder and a couple of strikers but to do that we need at least �50M
and that's what we dont have. So in all logical reasoning we should see
more the likes of Turner, Yobo, Vaughn starting than sitting on the
bench. Blackjack Dealer It wasn�t the payers that lost control � we expected a hard tough match of bitter rivals, it was that referee who lost control and destroyed a much anticipated game, and let the biased Liverpool crowd control the deck of cards he loved to display to any Everton player. As for Arteta, he showed his true colors, and kept his loyalties for
his homeland Spaniards, whom he will be joining next season. A Disgrace What I can't abide is heartless performances: a slow and aged defender blundering about the park; Phil Neville putting in another lacklustre performance and throwing the ball away at every chance � even into his own net. I can't abide useless, gutless refeering in which seven of our players were booked and one sent off for no reason. Maybe we were over-awed; maybe Weir was too slow or Wright too crap; maybe we're nothing without Arteta. Or maybe, just maybe, Liverpool are on top; we haven't been for ages and we won't be, even at our best. I've never admitted it before in my life � never � but I just feel that some blue pride is being replaced by some red sense. And it's really saddening. Future Things we already knew It is bad enough having to sit through the home 'leg' (win or lose) and I'm getting too old for the stress levels either fixture (home or away) brings. So I promised myself that this match would see me doing something else. I succeeded (apart from the odd moment when the desire to know how we were doing got too much). As a result, I was as pissed off as every other right-minded Blue. However, I had not seen the game. I saved that dubious pleasure for MOTD, but I was filled with trepidation; having already read the postmatch TW mailbag. Were we really that bad? Having just watched MOTD (granted edited highlights), I have to say no. Most of Everton's problems in the game were self-inflicted, but stem from problems we already know about and can only pray Moyes will fix in the summer. Firstly, Richard Wright is a liability. We have all known this for some time. If Nigel was fit, Dickie wouldn't get a look in. However, his presence has an understandably and completely un-nerving effect on the rest of the team. I blame him for two of the goals. Phil Neville would never have attempted the headed 'clearance' / OG if Nigel had been there. Naysmith was culpable for the second goal, but disaster would have been averted if Dickie had stayed on his line. The third goal for Liverpool was a good one. Any forward would have been proud. At the same time where were our defenders? Hibbert should have gone to Kewell, but instead pulled away. The underlying issue however, is that we were playing too deep. It was 11 v 10 for God's sake! But, even with more men on the pitch than the opposition we cannot press; because the whole team (and fans) know that, when we have Weir and Stubbs at the back, we are fine when the ball is in front of them, but that we are stuffed if it gets behind them. We have to play deep against any number of opposition in case they use pace to get behind us. Arteta's ommission from the side was crucial. We all agree that he
has increasingly become our pivotal player and his absence today was
glaring. We have the nucleus of a very good side and nothing I saw today
(in a one-off match where we lost 3 points) will persuade me other wise.
Today showed that we must keep hold of Mikel Arteta � just as it showed
that we need two new centre backs and a new goalkeeper. But we already
knew these things and will still know them long after the hurt of today
has passed. What Happened ? Firstly, when Neville and Cahill make up your central midfield, one plays so deep( to cover for Weir I presume)and the other so far forward that we actualy have no one playing around the centre circle for vast periods of time and Alonso bossed the game from that very area. When Arteta is fit, this is not as big a problem as he tends to drift inside and fill this gap and can pass the ball which I cant remember us attempting to do today. Secondly, his assertion (and I agree) was that, when you have a man advantage, it is your full backs who have to push up and take a chance � something which neither did today, the blame for which he laid at the feet of our manager, again wondering if he was afraid of exposing our aging centre-halves. Obviously hind-sight is 20/20 but, from now on, when Arteta is not playing, maybe it would be better to revert to 4-5-1 to try and address these issues with Davies coming in (I know, I know...) and McFadden out. At least in theory it would free up the full backs and enable us to play through the midfield a bit more. Couldn't be any worse than Moyes's answer today � throw on the thug
(no I don't mean Van der Meyde) and bomb it long � now could it? The smartest man in the room However, after grinding out wins in the first quarter of the year, progress was made to finding an effective formation and the consistency had returned with some exciting attacking football, home and away. It�s anyone�s guess whether or not this is down to Moyes�s management or just the players sorting themselves out. Either way, progress has been made. That brings me to today�s derby at Anfield. Alright, we�re all gutted. But let�s face it, even against nine, Everton would have struggled. At this point I have to say that I have read the letters posted after the game and I�m asking: what could have Moyes done differently? He didn�t risk the best player on the books because we�re not Man City. This club is not all about beating Liverpool once and having a mediocre remainder of the season. The challenge for a Uefa Cup spot, clearly the last one available at this stage, doesn�t rest on the outcome of this game. Arteta is needed to ensure four wins out of four at home and one on the road so we end up with 58 points, which might be just what is needed. I talked with Evertonians all week about my fears for El Toffee lining up already carrying a knock, against Carragher and more particularly Gerrard. Once again Gerrard gets away with it, as he was off with a second yellow rather than the straight red the tackle deserved, and will only sit out one game instead of three. The lack of European-style �savvy� is clearly evident with the current Everton squad, with big honest lad Kilbane straight up on his feet after the tackle, in contrast to the �clever Spaniard� Alonso, who writhed in agony after the legitimate challenge from Van der Meyde. Honestly, you get bumped harder in a Tesco checkout line of a Friday evening. Fellow countryman Garcia tried the same trick on Naysmith. I digress. Moyes stuck with the pairing of Stubbs and Weir because Yobo gives him no option. Yobo has made a catalogue of errors in key games despite his abilities, and seems to have a hard time focusing for the entire game, particularly at the beginning of the second half. Weir and Stubbs are too old and slow, granted, but for several seasons now, they have proved effective against the clubs outside the top four. Clearly, we�re going to struggle here until Moyes can bring a kid through to partner Ferrari. But right now it�s the only option Moyes has. Ferguson has cost the club more than just his wages over the years and the less said about his inclusion today the better. The criticism I will level at Moyes today surrounds his delay in introducing Van der Meyde. He should have been brought on after Gerrard was sent off, in an attempt to hold the ball in the last third and bring McFadden and Beattie more into the game. Little Ossie runs his knackers off every week and is in on merit. The rest of the squad have shown recently that they are more than capable of finishing off the season in winning style against much lesser teams than was met today. I know it�s slow but progress is being made. I saw Moyes interviewed
on Sky Sports last night and he more or less said that it would take
about ten years to get into a position to compete with Liverpool, and
the other G14 types on a regular basis. If we all lay off the ciggs, cut
down on the bevvie and lose a bit of weight, we might just be around to
see it. Golden chance blown Much of the game has been covered by other readers but I must say that Moyes made a big mistake letting Westerveld leave when he clearly is a much better keeper than that prick Wright! Another transfer bungle! Then the selection of Weir... he was always going to be a liability and Moyes's love affair with him makes me sick. A MANAGER DOES WHAT'S BEST FOR THE TEAM � NOT PICK WHO HE'S CHUMS WITH! Especially with a fit Yobo sitting on the bench, it bloody angers me he doesn't play as it's obvious he's leaving now. I'm so angry I have tears in my eyes; I am sick of medicority, and for all those fans who said "Be positive, we're having a decent season," well, the first quaility opposition we play in seven games we get outplayed. With ten men with most of the game as well. Forget Dutch; where are you, Marcus Turner, who said we don't need Ferrari? After today 's embarassment, you � and the rest of the Moyes faithful � must see how blindly silly you lot are! Yes Moyes is the best choice at the moment as manager as there ain't much out there to replace him but he does some stupid things!!! See you next week and thanks for messing up my week, Moyes. I'm now a Montrose supporter The reasons have all been touched on by your correspondents: poor central defence, far too deep, no Arteta; Naysmith & Wright � a good shot-stopper, but he panics and that negates every thing. But two reasons stand out above all others and they point to our main problem.
What did Moyes tell his subs to do when they came on so fired up that one was sent off and one booked before they even touched the ball? I don't want excessive passion and commitment: Weir's got that, Stubbs has got that. Moyes has got that. I want some of the intelligence and subtlety that characterised Young and Vernon; Ball, Kendall and Harvey; Sheedy and Sharp; Rooney and Gravesen. This team without Arteta and Yobo is full of passion, it's fully committed. It's also technically naive and stupid. My dad played for Montrose during the war, maybe I should give them a
go or maybe Exeter City, I had a trial for them. Fifty years of being
magnanimous in defeat, it's not right. Let`s get real! We can dream all we want but the real goal is to compete with the
likes of Spurs, Bolton and Blackburn and hope for the occasional triumph
as we had last season. Sorry, but that`s the reality of Everton in the
2000s Blue Murder In a red-hot derby atmosphere in front of a hostile crowd, we blew it in terms of competing; we just didn't play any football � is that called freezing? Valente and Arteta being absent certainly left us short of craft and passing ability but we should have been able to cope better than we did. It is time to bite the bullet and say Liverpool were stronger than us mentally and physically. They played the better of the football that was played, kept a shape better, and had the better players man for man � and this with ten men. Today horribly exposed the areas I have been concerned with; to demonstrate this, just look which players were anonymous in the tough going: Faddy, Ossie, Killa, Neville, Naysmith, and Weir. All of these can put in good shifts against lesser teams but, if we want to be at that top table, then Messrs Kenwright and Moyes must find a way of bringing about first-class improvement so that we may be able to compete when the temperature is sky high. We hardly gave them a game and boy that hurts. We can still finish
high enough to give us what some call a decent season but I won't be
satisfied until we can compete with the top clubs men v men � not men v
boys. Should beat the Makems... shouldn't we? See you Saturday ---- UP
THE BLUES When will we have something to sing about
What has happened to our once great club? We have nothing to sing about, a ground that's stuck in a time-warp, no players we can bring on to change a game, a manager who is tacticly useless, a Chairman who we can bet wont be on the radio bragging today. We have a team who would find it hard playing against a local pub side. No passion, no class, no commitment just drawing their wage week to week happy in the knowledge that most fans scrape the money each week to watch them play � but hey never mind they could always have another bonding session in the States. We need change and we need it fast other wise we will always be
living in the shadow of them across the park. To Billy, I would end by
saying please put the great back in our club or fuck off and let someone
else do it. We don't deserve to live in misery for supporting our club.
It's only a blip Mr Veitch got it spot on with his comments the other day. We are
short in some area's but we were playing against a team that were
European Champions last season, and let's be truthful head and shoulders
above us. Don't panic and look forward to the rest of the season.
Today's result is now history. Come on Dutch Here we go again The bleeding obvious My own view It seems we are more of a 'huff and puff' team, playing the percentages and creating pressure through hard work. Against a stubborn defence and ten men, you need more creativity, and we were found lacking today. Moyes has to take responsibility for signing Wright and Naysmith (again), and those two were at fault for the second Liverpool goal. I am not reacting in a knee-jerk manner, so I am not going to cite the age-old arguments about our centre-halfs being too old, Kilbane etc. Where we are lacking is more in the final third of the field, where we need to be more creative anyway, and we do not have enough numbers in the squad to cover any injuries/suspensions to our attacking players. Let's face it, we will continue to suffer if anything happens to players such as Beattie, Arteta, Osman or Cahill, because we can only replace them with workers. Moyes will have to make sure we recruit several attacking players in
the summer, and in the meantime I'm going to pray nothing happens to the
players I've mentioned between now and the end of the season... One step forward; two steps back... As long as Moyes insists on playing Weir and Stubbs at centre back, we are going to get shown up by decent teams; yes, we�ve had a good run but you only need to look at the Villa game to demonstrate that we are severely lacking at the back when teams try to get at us. We have got a strong midfield, but without Arteta playing, we look scared to play the ball through it. We never even looked likely to get the ball through the middle and try to pull players out of their defence to make an opening, all because our defence are pulling our midfield the wrong way. Please David, get Joey back in the team and as soon as fit get Ferrari playing. We are starting to look like a team, but we will never be the team we should be with such naive and basic tactics where we try to stop the other team playing above our own game. Today is a perfect example of how not to set the team up. We missed a great opportunity to put one over on them, and instead managed to turn victory into defeat through a complete lack of ambition. Finally, can someone please explain what place Kevin Kilbane or
Richard Wright have in a Premier League team; we all knew what they
would do and they didn�t disappoint. Oh well, maybe Moyes thinks that
3-1 defeats to Liverpool now guarantee a good run of form! Lets say it slowly for the hard of
understanding
Tony Horne, Kettering (25/3.06) Exposed! And to all those IMWT boys who are dreading him leaving: check out the reaction from the Newcastle fans � they are praying that he's staying at Everton. The only place he will ever win anything is the two-horse race that occurs in Glasgow and the sooner he goes the better. Tony is bang on about this season being a complete embarassment... horrible football, horrible results, derby humiliations, useless players on long, fat contracts... very similar to the dreaded Walter scenario. Obviously we're all gutted but it's not a knee-jerk; lots of us just
don't see any hope and that's just sad. Shame ! These problems should all sort themselves out soon enough, although the antics of Richard Wright are far more of a concern. It's obvious the defence has no confidence in him, and who can blame them? I'd like to see Iain Turner given a run from now until the end of the season. He can't be any worse than Wright, and if he performs well, he may save us splashing a few million in the summer ! It's the second time we've lost badly to the reds in succession, but
only two defeats (both away from home) since new year is not a bad
record, and the manager doesn't deserve a fan bashing for this
performance alone. I just hope he buys sensibly in the summer, and adds
quality to the squad so we have some sort of depth to replace injured
and suspended players. Know alls know fuck all Moyes is responsible too for the useless Naysmith. Anyone worth a carrot would have long since shipped him off and taken a punt on someone else, such as the lad he missed from Tranmere. Don't come on here singing Moyes's praises and not be able to take his well-deserved tanning for his indecisive and shit player choices and this latest defeat �not forgetting the season up to December. Knee jerk of course; mad, yes but as a paying supporter � why not? Moyes for Newcastle! We get back in the game at 2-1 and then Moyes steps in to make sure
we get beat. Anyone with any sense knows Ferguson can't play with
Beattie. Two lumbering strikers together will never work. But our idiot
manager thinks it might. I'm not even going to mention his other
substitution but thank you Moyes for another inept and humiliating
performance � and good luck with the Newcastle job! Another job for the Moyestro I knew we were up against it when Arteta was ruled out and with Nuno Valente and Martyn still not available, the manager`s options were severely limited. Thought we had by far the better of the first half and Neville was bitterly unfortunate to concede an own goal on the stroke of half-time.
Most Evertonians will agree that VdM`s sending off was no more than a `get out of jail` card for the ref and the heart seemed to go out of the team after that injustice.
But don`t let`s forget what a great 2006 we`d had up to today and just as Davey has proved he can bring us back from the abyss in the past, I am positive he will have everyone firing on all cylinders next week � that`s what makes him `The Moyestro`! Predictable selections and result Well, with little chance of European qualification now, perhaps Moyes
will finally give Turner a run in the side and bring back Yobo and
Ferrari when fully fit. After all, every cloud has a silver lining... or
does it? No defence!! Yet again Weir and Stubbs � no I'm not complaining about one game, I'm complaining about every game. Did either of these two win a single header? Why were they stood 5 yards inside our own box when the ball was played on the ground to Kewell? I'll tell you why, the're so fucking slow they can't get out quick enough to close people down and are so terrified that they will be skinned for pace that they defend deeper and deeper as the game develops. Is there another defensive pair that can't close people down at the edge of their own box in the Premiership? The pair of them are useless; neither wins headers sent in from any angle other than straight balls. If any of you doubt this, watch the next match and count how many clean headers either wins when balls are sent in at an angle. Those of us who have played football at a decent level know this is the sign of old age - the inability to get off the ground without a run up. Strategic planning for the future? I don't think Moyes knows what it means!! Naysmith was just plain shite, his passing was aimless his touch was poor and what the fuck was he doing after Stubbs was beaten (yet again) by Crouch for Garcia's goal? I hope Valente was really injured!!! � but nonetheless Neville should have been at LB and not Naysmith. Which leads me on to Wright. What can you say other than he is not and never will be a Premiership goalie. His decision-making is poor and he provides no confidence for anyone around him. Ferguson on the bench...what??? And just to form he aimlessly fouls Alonso to get booked. Doesn't win anything and contributes absolutely ziltch. He's an ignorant Scottish thug who has no right to wear the royal blue shirt of Everton anymore. So now we get to Moyes: what exactly was his tactical approach? Was it get the ball down and try and get wide? Was it turn the back four and pressurise them? Was it hit Beattie and then look to support? No, it was kick the ball in the general direction of their goal and avoid conceeding a goal and if we're lucky we might get a free kick or corner to cause them some problems. Then they go down to 10 men and suddenly Cahill, Neville, Osman and Kilbane go missing because, without Arteta, there's not a single football brain between them. So that leaves Moyes's only real tactic: give the ball to Arteta, and we're fucked cos he wasn't there. We concede a goal just on half-time and surely the first thing that he must have said was don't concede another 'cos they will tire and defend deeper � don't give them a cushion to defend. So, assuming he says that, then Stubbs, Naysmith and Wright are all useless twats because what Liverpool did was simple Route One football that should be easily dealt with. We're a second goal down, and he gets three subs ready, obviously looking to take two midfielders and one forward off. We score from a corner not from open play, have not looked like creating anything from open play, and he puts Ferguson on with Van the man (absolutely no comment on him cos' I can't remember seeing him play a full game � oh sorry he hasn't !!!). Yes we scored a goal but if he felt that we needed to change the midfield because they wern't performing... what actually changed? Cahill scoring, perhaps? Well, if he was planning to take him off he obviously balanced his possible goal scoring against his general play and felt a change was needed. What is his tactical assessment that has changed? Confidence of a goal? But if the midfield needed changing then surely straight after the goal when they are more pensive is the time to add to their questions not sit back and let those same players become subdued again. Moyes has no tactics, his team selection is based on nepotism and a care of the elderly; he does not know how and does not possess players who can change a game - and who buys the players? The prosecution rests. What has the defence to say? Biased Parry As for the game, I didn`t think we ever got into it properly although my heart went out to Phil Neville who was certainly up for it. I do continue to worry about Weir whose game now relies on impeding and shirt pulling and, as ever, Wright, who always seems to make the wrong decision. As far as Plan B was concerned, Van der Meyde has obviously learned
from the ridiculous Ferguson that once you`re fit you can still avoid
having to play by getting yourself sent off! Let`s just hope that we can
put the defeat behind us and, as Moyes always says, soon get back on
track. Moyes Exposed Again No so-called good manager would have them two, Kilbane or the ridiculous Andy van der Meyde anywhere near their team. We all knew that Wright was going to fuck up today so why doesn't Davey Moyes see it. It's alright for some of these out-of-town Evertonians who think Moyes is wonderful � their kids don't have to go to school around here on Monday. They don't have to go in the local pubs tonight and tomorrow putting up with all these red gobshites everywhere. It's getting to the point now were I would sooner give my season tickets up than watch Moyes's Everton play pub football much longer. Its killing me and Moyes is killing Everton with his outdated style of doing things. Davey, you are out of your depth here; please go to Newcastle, Celtic or the north pole � anywhere but here; we have had enough humiliation this season to last us a life time. Moyes a good manager? Don't make me laugh. The tactics (or lack of) are a joke and after four years of Davey Boy we are no different to watch than the Walter Smith sides. This season has been one of the most depressing and miserable we have ever had to endure and yet still some sing his name. There won't be much singing tonight I am afraid. Please, someone call the Samaritans. Or a Taxi for Moyes. Choked it Again So we had all the Moyes Supporters saying how great we were and that we were heading towards the top 6 and the players were coming out saying they were on their way to European competition but did not do the business when it REALLY mattered just like all the other times this season. 6-2 in the games aganst Liverpool who played the lion's share of this latest debacle a man down is simply not progress. Let me take you back. Mr Royle never lost a Derby and actually won us silverware but was given less credit that this Glascow clown. Hurry up, Newcastle; come and take him back north. Let's face it, the moment we lost Arteta we were up against it � so stark was this fact that even when Gerrard was sent off we still could not muster a shot on target. Beatie for England? Don't make me laugh � granted, service to him today was not great but he was made to look just what he is � absolutlely average, playing for mid-table no-hopers. Sorry this sounds so damning but they build us up and then this... Why on earth did Moyes sit the subs back down after scoring? Anyone could see it needed changing even despite the goal and true to form we almost concede a third with Alonso's shot which hit the bar. Too many, once again, went missing. Neville was poor, Osman looked like a little kid trying out for the reps and poor old David Wear needs to be put in an old people's home to convalesce. We are in dire need of a new keeper, at least one centre-half and a bank loan in order to keep the only shining lights Cahill and Arteta at this club. However, if a top team comes knocking for either of these two who could blame them for moving on? I In my opinion, this manager is shite, indecisive and seems not to be able to leave out the senior pros (although Chris Woods wants a rocket up his arse for allowing Wright to just tread water and never show signs of improvement.) Can you blame the young kids now for not wishing to support us? When another weak display lets us all down once again. No doubt we will get a few results between now and the end of the
season and enter the Intertoto - for me that simply is not good enough,
I'm sorry, and we face another summer of missing out on a decent player
or three. Progressive When Gerrard walked, a progressive manager would have looked at the system, rejigged and changed personnel where necessary. Instead, we had to wait till half way through the second half for that. Personally, I think Van der Meyde should have been on from the start instead of Kilbane. If he had flagged he could have been subbed. He certainly should have been on for the start of the second half. I therefore come to the inescapable conclusion that on many occasions
Moyes's lack of progressiveness costs us dear. The fact that we didn't
see a lot from Beattie also blindly states the obvious that he needs a
quality strike partner but we already know about that old chestnut. To the IMWT gang: They had 10 men for most of the game, yet still went 2-0 up. Any other team you could shrugg your shoulders. We played Liverpool today, our local rivals and again made it easy for them. I'd like to thank the managment and staff for a wonderful weekend ahead. ps: The ref was poor but don't use that as an excuse. Opportunity Lost At Anfield Why did Wright burst out so quickly when Weir is already closing Garcia down? Why did Van der Meyde do what he did? Why did nobody close down Kewell? Why? Why? Why? A terrible, terrible derby defeat when you got the feeling we could have bossed them around. We really miss Arteta. I am so gutted we could not exploit the sending off any more than with just hopeful throw-ins and free-kicks. However, I do feel we are on the right track here. The first fifteen minutes we were pretty good. Our remaining games are winnable (except Chelsea) and we can still make it to Europe. If Moyes can buy smart and get rid of the deadwood (Weir, Ferguson) we can go places. Creativity and Pace is the key. Very, very disappointing derby defeat. Bollocks I am happy to say well done if the lads play well and Davie does a
good job but today was a waste of time, granted the own-goal kicked us
in the gut but the second goal... dreadful stuff. Right, I'm off to get
pissed. Team Selection I beg to differ... Most of the old players would need to 'lift' their game to compete in
today's premiership. I am not saying for one minute that they could not
do so. If that was reversed, almost any modern day squad player if
transported back to the past would be a star. Goalkeepers No Aidan, I believe the buck stops with the head coach. It is his
responsibility to make sure that his coaching staff have not only the
credentials, but also the ability to bring out the very best in whatever
player in whatever position. Having said, that I am and always will be a
very strong fan of "Davey, the Peoples Manager". Give it a rest! David Hall`s piece on Harry Catterick`s team takes the biscuit. Apart from being a hundred years ago when everyone knows the game was played at walking pace and the players couldn`t hold a candle to today`s super-fit athletes, I have it on good authority that The `great man`s` demeanour would make Moyes look like Mr Sunshine! He NEVER spoke to the press and managed to fall out with with just about every player who played for him. All this is on record in the many books on that era by first hand witnesses. So for Gawd`s sake, give it a rest, will you? Or is that altogether
too much to expect? No goal God, I hope I'm wrong. Delusional Why are we celebrating being top of a form table, when in reality we
are in the bottom half and haven't improved on last season, and without
major spending in the summer (replacing the back line) we will be even
worse next year!!! Negative Vibes What exactly will it take for you to turn round and say, "I'm delighted with that result"? 4-1 at home ain't good enough for you; 3-1 at home ain't good enough for you. Why d'ya bother following a football team if you never ever get excited or find time to be happy with the team? The poison against Moyes is mind boggling. Christ, you really have no
clue how screwed we'd be without him. Goalkepeers Over recent history we have hardly covered ourselves in glory with our signings of number ones. In fact, a catalogue of disasters is closer to the truth. Gerrard Simonsen and Wright to name but a few. My point is that, although over this period we have a had different coaches, managers, and even chairman, the one common denominatator is the Goalkeeping Coach. Now the goalie is a very specialist area and if I remeber rightly
Mosiah is quoted in saying that all goalie issues are dealt with by
Chris Woods. As we have all seen, I cannot remember a stopper since the
world-class Neville Southall being able to kick it straight. To state
the bleed'n obvious, and keep moving on from the progress that the Red
Haired one has made we need a good premiership keeper. Leaving this
decision to Woods does not fill me with confidence. A Chance to Shine Anyone who knew Harry Catterick would tell you that no man ever suffered fools less gladly or gave house less willingly to the `unproven` than he. Yet no less than 10 members of his 69/70 Champions squad were local lads brought up on a diet of boot-cleaning and endless skills practice and presented with their chance to shine at any age from 16+! I wonder how many Mailbaggers still remember that teenagers Darcy,
Humphreys and Kenyon all made fleeting appearances in that glorious
season and that Royle, Husband and Whittle were certainly no older than
our `young` star Leon Osman. Just for the record,local `veterans`
Labone, Wright, Husband and Harvey made up the Scouser compliment. Don`t
tell me there`s no similar talent on Merseyside today. I just won`t have
it! Kr�ldrup The truth behind Per Kr�ldrup? More Strikers While The Iron's are Hot Who will play up front if Beattie or McFadden get injured/suspended? Where would we be in the league right now if we had one or more strikers in the squad to compensate for the absence of a strike force from August to January? I'm pleased that our strikers are now doing their jobs after so long.
Let's have some serious competition to keep them and us up to speed! Naysmith and Pistone Secondly, Moyes's transfer abilities are poor and you just have to
watch Bravo and Kr�ldrup to see that. A quality player who was treated
appallingly, while Naysmith and Pistone (who are both shite and injury
prone) get the benefit of doubt! The case is clear but unfortunately a
few fans want Everton to be average and that's what we're we are and
where we will stay without courage in the transfer market! The Kr�ldrup Mystery A further indication of Davey's attitude is this talk (please it can only be talk, can't it?) of bringing back Ferguson after his seven matches out, for the derby match. Feguson in the early 1990s was a class act: he had pace, excellent control and aerial power, though he was never a good finisher. Now he is a bully who ought to be left out of the picture for the rest of the season. Not considered as a battering ram to be used against Liverpool for the last half hour. Davy likes big, whole-hearted lads, preferably British and that's why
Kr�ldrup is back in Italy. British fans like passion. Allardyce, Pearce,
O'Neill are all considered suitable for the England job because they
prance up and down on the touchline. None of them has produced a clever
or attractive team, they produce teams that battle and are hard to beat.
Davey is of that ilk. The Danish Pastry! I remember when he was coming back from injury and he played a reserve game, in the match report it said he looked completely lost and didn�t know what had hit him � if he was like that in the stiffs imagine what he�d be like in the Premiership! At the end of the day, Moyes wasted five million extremely valuable pounds and I just hope to God he has learned from it. As for the Derby � keep it tight first twenty and get into half time
level. Throw Duncan on second half and you just never know. The Big Man
rising, last minute, Kop End - fairytales can happen! What about 2005? Like the man said, stats can be made to show anything. Just as we are
shown to be top dogs this year, a similar job on last year`s figures
would show us alarmingly near the bottom. All of this froth means
nothing until we get it together for a complete season and I still
remain to be convinced by this manager and his yoyo team. In defence of the ageing It wasn't to do with foreign-ness, though � my favourite player is
Hibbert � I just saw too many instances of Weir getting beaten for pace
in the first half of the season to merit an ageing back pairing, but
they have proven me wrong so far this year... long may it continue!
COYB! Per Kr�ldrup What I witnessed then, and in the two succeeding Fiorentian matches I attended, was a class centre-half who had it all. Unlike the reports we got when he was at Everton under Moyes's "expert" coaching, where we were told variously that he was shaky, indecisive and didn't have the skills for the Premiership, I saw three world-class defensive/attacking performances from a highly gifted player. As Giovanni and his source have pointed out, Kr�ldrup thrived on the pressure and not only broke up solid, well-orchestrated attacking moves from the opposition, he turned defence into attack with his peerless passing and general distribution of the ball to teammates. I told my colleague that I believe that if Kr�ldrup had gone to the dreaded Liverpool instead of David Moyes's Everton, they could now well be genuine challengers for the Premiership title because of the class, strength and skill he would have contributed to their side. I firmly believe that Kr�ldrup is one of the three best central
defenders I have seen in 43 years of playing, coaching and watching our
wonderful game. And we at Everton "blew it" by treating him
disgracefully and ultimately losing him. Ferrari & Yobo Get a mathematician to correlate Stubbs's return with points gained
this season, or do it with 5 fingers. Hopefully they can all stay in a
stable squad for next season, and we can get a couple of million for
Pistone, if he's not out of contract � either option for him would be
great. Ben Leyland � Dizzy Dean
Now, on to Saturday: God bless the Blues. The Matteo Ferrari Mystery Your point about the loan fee being payed as part of the tranfer fee... Maybe it was? Maybe it was a �500k loan fee and another �3.2M if a transfer was agreed, making it a �3.7M deal? Who knows? If you are suggesting that we should have given Roma a large chunk of the �3.7M fee to guarantee the transfer, this seems a big risk to take at the start of a loan deal, for a player with no experience of English football. His injury record this season would also suggest that Everton were wise not to do this. You also mention the possibility of cancelling the deal. What benefit would it be to Roma to agree to a cancellation clause? I would think that no sensible club would agree to this, unless it benefits both clubs involved. At the start of the season he was deemed surplus to requirements by Roma, so there would be no reason for them to recall him. Therefore, they want to guarantee that we pay his wages for the whole season, even if he injured for most of it. It's good business sense from Roma and risk that Everton had to take when deciding to get him on loan for the season. If we had a option to send him back in January, Roma would then have been stuck with an unfit player on �20k+ a week, so there is no way they would agree to such a clause in the deal. Hope this has cleared up a few things, and absolved Moyes, Wyness and
Kenwright from any UNFAIR criticism. The James Gang! The James Gang, also known as Beattie and McFadden, have started to
score on a regular basis and have the makings of a decent partnership.
The James Gang are scoring goals and pushing Everton up the league and
Moyes still has his transfer fund for the summer. Aren't you glad Moyes
didn't waste his transfer fund in January by signing an over-priced
lower-league player like Nugent or Trundle? In my admittedly jaundiced eyes, Moyes remains wholly culpable for all the dreadful failings of Everton FC on the field throughout 2005, and I will not be forgetting that dreadful spell any time soon... especially not when people like you try to subtly re-write history! � Michael �$% As for the stats regarding Weir and Stubbs, so what! Does anyone seriously expect this partnership to get stronger or weaker next season? It's obvious the future is with Yobo and Ferrari, not because they are foriegn but because they are young class acts. I bet Man United or Chelsea wouldn't hesitate in shipping out the old guard and getting better younger players in, so why should I settle for second best? And Big Dunc. you're a legend in my eyes but please do not do
anything stupid on Saturday... like play!!! Sorry, no Dean connection! And I'm afraid that, however widespread the fame of Dixie and Everton
back then, it did not extend across the pond. US interest in soccer was
almost nonexistent until after World War II. Incidentally, there was a
famous Dixie in American baseball during that era as well, Dixie Walker,
but he was so named because of his Georgia background. Derby Week But that's neither here nor there, I just want to make a fool of
myself and predicate a result. Score draw, and a good performance
considering the form of the opposition at the minute. Do you think most
Blues would be pleased with that? European Qualification Chris quite rightly mentions our relatively easy run-in. However, Blackburn's run-in is practically the same, playing 5 of our last 8 opponents. In fact, it could be argued that their run-in is easier. Everton will require 7 points more from their last 8 games to overtake Blackburn. We would also have to leapfrog Bolton and Wigan whilst fending off a whole host of clubs just below us. Bolton are 5 points clear with 2 games in hand and whilst we may catch Wigan I think even seventh spot may be beyond us. At least that means I don't have to wish for a Liverpool Chelsea final to bring qualification place down to seventh. And there's still the Intertoto Cup. I'm no snob, I will definitely
travel abroad to see Everton in that cup, its about the beer and the
craic. We may even win a game in Europe! Manager of the Season... Twice The excerpt below has been taken from a Man Utd fan site and in many ways there are alot of comparisons with what Moysey has done so far; we just need to give him the time. 1986-90: Dodgey beginnings Ferguson's first job was to lift United away from the foot of the table after Ron Atkinson had steered the club into trouble. This he accomplished but problems major remained. United's reputation as a boozing club was not without foundation and Alex tackled the situation head-on. In addition, he revamped the youth team system, a decision that would repay a hundred fold. He paid minute attention to every detail of club life, first to arrive and last to leave was his attitude. Former United star Mark Hughes returned from Barcelona, Steve Bruce, Brian McClair, Gary Pallister and Paul Ince arrived but United were still adrift of the then champions, Liverpool. Though finishing an admirable second in 1988, 1989 brought dour anti-climax as the reds finished 11th. The side was hard working, methodical and dull, while Fergie's cautious approach did not win the fans over. To read the rest of this article,
follow this link. Raising the Bar Looking back over his four years: Hibbert had already been bloodied by Walter Smith; Rooney was a genius waiting to happen � and for whom Moyes did little in my view; Osman had to wait almost too long for his chance; and Vaughan was only introduced at 16 to obliterate Rooney`s name from our history. Other than that � nothing! Pearce at Man City and McLaren at Middlesbrough have, in my view, done a far better job with young players and it`s about time Moyes recruited staff capable of providing a steady stream of talent for the first team. If all this sounds like carping, it is mentioned only to keep some
perspective about Moyes`s all-round progress so far. In my firm, they
raise the bar each year and widen the brief if they think your up to it.
For Moyes to be viewed as anything other than a necessary improvement on
his predecessor, he needs to embrace a similar philosophy. 2006 Table so far PREMIER LEAGUE-TABLE FOR 2006:
Kjell �ge, Denmark (23/3/06) Well, will ya look at that!!! 'Dizzy' Dean Arteta PS... I'm shittin it for Saturday! Ferrari & Yobo What has Ferrari done this season for the fans to have so much faith in him? He's been continually injured and only played a handful of games, most of which Everton lost. Stubbs on the other hand is very rarely injured and has been instrumental in this superb form since the start of 2006. Why on Earth would you pick Ferrari over Stubbs???? Personally I think fans tend to favour younger/quicker players because they are more fashionable. Stubbs has proven beyond doubt that he's the capable player to do the job and age has nothing to do with it. If your good enough your old enough. That true of both teenagers and
players in their late 30's. Comparison not the whole story Not necessarily, in my view � or not yet, anyway. His performance in preparing for the European adventure was abysmal and naive in the extreme and his rcord in domestic cup competitions is woeful. Similarly, however his proponents gloss over the issue, his tranfer dealings leave much to be desired and he will need to be far more decisive in future. Mystery seems to surround too many of his overseas deals � are they trialists, loans or part/outright purchases and are they injured when they arrive? I wish to take nothing away from what he HAS achieved � a massive improvement over Walter Smith � but he operates in an era when the Wilkinson-inspired Pro-Licence makes clones of home-produced managers and the really inspirational figures all come from abroad. Thus, I feel, the comparison approach fails to tell the whole story
and Dodd and his ilk (and perhaps Bill Kenwright!) would do well to
temper their outright acclaim and attach a `Encouraging four years,
capable of further improvement` note to Moyes`s latest appraisal report.
A level of achievement If you simply regard Moyes as a promising manager and stick to the facts, ie, he's turned us from perennial relegation candidates to (one season excepted) a top-ten side, then you don't have to spin our current position and our club's great history to make him look a genius. This would save people a lot of effort and perhaps dampen some of the hyperbole and pressure around a coach who in his own words 'hasn't won anything yet'. Interesting that it was David Moyes himself who said this last year.
I was beginning to think I was the only Evertonian left who measures
success by the team winning trophies! Thanks, Davey! Response to Chris Marks Granted, as you explain briefly, Everton did flatter to decieve in the early part of the season but, strikers aside, the team is fairly well balanced. The side are beginning to play the football players of their standard should be, and we have I believe one of the finest managers in the Premier League, if slightly slow on the transfer-market uptake. In summary, your views are totally unbiased, factlike and very well
presented... Ever considered EFC idiot fan roadshows? From the horse's mouth.... You moan about Moyes going back on his word by selling our best players but you know the circumstances in which our best players have left. Rooney and Gravesen, our only two best players since Moyes took over. have gone to � officially � the two bigggest clubs in the world. Fact is that Utd and Real Madrid are clubs that footballers just
don't turn down. We are a great club but those two are massive, just as
unique as Everton (but no more so) and littered with top-class players.
Moyes did say that he never wants to get rid of his best players but he
also said that he would never keep a player at Everton if they asked to
leave because he understands that having players around who don't want
to be there - no matter how good they are - is bad for team moral,
something Moyes prides himself on. Both Rooney and Gravesen asked to
leave. The Disappeared I do not, for one minute, believe that xenophobia rules at Bellfield
but overseas players seem to get short shrift whilst we are made to
suffer the likes of Wright, Kilbane and Naysmith ad nauseam! Any bets
against Arteta and Cahill soon following the Gravesen Trail out of
Goodison? Paranoid, me? Nahh, it's you lot... If Ferrari was signed on loan for one season only then why didn't Everton say so at the time? If that is the case, why didn't Everton negotiate to have the right of refusal, rather than Roma, with the loan fee being part of an agreed future transfer fee? What was the point in taking a player, who you would think by this action was not wanted by Roma, on loan to play his way back into form if they could then cancel the arrangement? If this is the case could we, should we have sent him back when he got a long term injury? The alternatives seem to be that Marcus is wrong either partly or
totally or, he is highlighting more of Davey's dithering with help from
the backroom disorganization of Kenwright and Wyness. Whatever, it seems
Davey is right and we out here certainly don't understand what is going
on in there. Reality check No 'celebration' is required, but if some satisfacton cannot be derived from the recent upturn in fortune and the subsequent attention it brings our better players and manager then what's the point in supporting this club or any other outside of the big four? Should we instead hope for a return to the shite we witnessed from August to December? Then, at least by your rationale, we would not have to worry about anyone poaching our talent or about being misled by the chairman or manager as to their dealings. Instead we'd be rubbish and far happier for it. Centre-Backs This I think gives us the clue as to what is required. Ferrari may
well be leaving but he is the type of centre back we need, not just
young and quick but old enough to know the position well and a very good
organiser of not just his defensive partner but the whole back four. I
wish we had seen more of him and I bet so does Joe Yobo. The one that got away In Gazetta today, Cesare Prandelli, coach of Fiorentina, says, �Our season has turned round since we got Kr�ldrup at New Year. His asset in defence is one thing but his distribution is like having additional midfielder. Luca Toni has thrived on the better service and looks a new player, I bet he wishes he could take the Giant to the World Cup with him.� Please forgive this posting but I know some will be interested. Derby Team Selection No doubt he will stick with Wright but given his aversion to coming off his line I suspect Crouch will be given the freedom of the city. Assuming Weir is selected, I fully expect Cisse to appear in the starting eleven in an effort to try and restore his confidence. However, without doubt the most debatable issue is whether to include Ferguson. Personally, I feel he's got to make the subs bench. Whether he plays
will depend on the effectiveness of our midfield. The opposition are
physically strong and use this to their advantage but one thing they
simply can't cope with are big guys who get at them and no one fits the
bill more so than Ferguson. Could be an interesting last 15 minutes �
assuming Wright and Weir haven't sold us down the river by that stage...
What is Everton�s best centre-back partnership?
Not surprising they fancy Moyes Rather than ranting and raving when other clubs are said to fancy our
players � and now our manager � we should see it as a compliment to the
progress we are making. And, remember, it`s all due to The Ginger One
who has put the pride back into being an Evertonian! Defence At the moment Yobo is not consistent enought to start, I believe that
Stubbs and Ferrari should be next season's duo as the two are clearly
class. I am suprised (and yet not) at the fact Stubbs's name is never
mentioned when the England squad is concerned. Is he not an older
version of Carragher? Yet he never gets picked. Stubbs is more
consistant than Ferdinand or King and would form a formidable
partnership with Terry, who is like Weir (in terms of style and lack of
flair) except far better. Stubbs, Beattie and Hibbert for England!!!! Arteta Rumours Preposterous � that is a ridiculous claim to make, and it is sad that
you've published such tom-foolery. Is this what is thought of Everton,
of David Moyes? Sorry but it's laughable, and you're all the more
cynical and fickle for publishing it. Dave Southword The Liverpool Echo couldn't undertake any investigative journalism to save theire lives. The high qulity of this mail bag is down to the editor of the web site. I suggest you go try the other poor-quality message boards and you will finds others of like mind. Thank god for ToffeWeb. With friends like this My brother-in law who was present says, of course there has been no
direct approach but this was Shepherd`s usual way of seeing if there is
any positive re-action � via agents � from a possible target. Someone
should tell Bill that he can do without friends like Shagger Shepherd! Moyes to Newcastle? Media Anti-Everton Bias Specifically, I wish criticise a website called 'ToffeeWeb'. Look at the latest dirge you have on your excuse for a homepage. Can you make a simple link to a simple story about Mikel Arteta and a slight injury worry before this week's derby? No! This story is proof to some cock-and-bull rumour about Arteta moving to Liverpool in a signed and sealed deal. Where is your proof? I suppose because Mikey hangs around with Xabi Alonso a bit means a transfer to Liverpool is a certainty? Nothing to do with the fact that they played for the same village team in their youth perhaps? No, of course not, this is ToffeeWeb; put some spin on it. And what about last week's 4-1 win over Villa? Anyone saying 'Great! 9 goals in 3 games! We're back on track and bring on the derby!'? No, all you lot can do is say, 'Well, we won 4-1 but after being 3-0 up at half time we should've put another 3 past them in the second half, and by the way, weren't we crap at the start of the season?' I don't know, somewhere down the line you seem to have lost sight on what it is to be a football supporter. Perhaps because you control a website you think your role has change from giving your support to the club you love to providing a critique and finding problems and stories where there are none. You're not Jeremy Paxman and you're not Alastair Campbell. No football club 'deserves' fans like you. Why don't you follow rugby instead. Please. All the best. Central Defence Partnership! I have a lot of time for Yobo, I think he's a really good defender but it's worth noting that Yobo played in both of the 4-0 drubbings against Villa/Bolton this season; he also played in the 5-1 Din Bucharest slaughter. Remember the 7-0 Arsenal humilation? That day it was Yobo and Weir at the back. Stubbs wasn't involved in any of those matches and, since his return, he's played 8 games and Everton have only conceded 5 goals. Now I'm not suggesting Stubbs is a better player than Yobo but is it a coincedence that, since his return, Everton have found their best Premiership form? A similar run of form saw them finish 4th last year and Stubbs was involved in almost all the games. Maybe the team plays better with a Weir/Stubbs partnership because although the have experience which seems to breed confidence. Could it be that the youngsters in midfield like Osman, Cahill and Arteta play better knowing Stubbs/Weir are behind them? I've heard it said on this feedback page that Moyes continues to get it wrong at centre-back but I don't see that. You can't argue with the form Everton have shown since Stubbs/Weir were reunited. I don't know why but Weir/Stubbs works; Weir in particular looks more comfortable with Stubbs. Of course, given time, Yobo/Ferrari could develop into a great partnership but, in the Premiership, you can't blame Moyes for sticking with what works. Does Ferrari deserve a permanent transfer? I dont think so; he's hardly played... maybe he's injured... maybe he can't displace Weir/Stubbs. Either way, he's only made a handful of appearances this season and that's simply not good enough to warrant a permanent transfer. Bottom line: I don't care about pace; I don't care about age; I don't
care about technical ability... all I want is an Everton defence that
doesn't concede goals and at present the stats prove that Weir/Stubbs
are the partnership that is hardest to beat. Stubbs praise Arteta Ferrari + Yobo As for Yobo, he has said in the past that he will see out his current
contract, which runs out summer 2007. This will mean he has lived in
England for 5 years, making him eligable for British citizenship. So if
he doesn't go to Arsenal this summer, expect a Bosman to Italy or Spain
the summer after. Yobo Surely it cannot have escaped some people's attention that our good form in recent seasons tends to coincide with periods when Yobo is dropped or unavailable. The common denominator in the thrashings within the last eighteen months at the hands of Tottenham, Arsenal, Dinamo Bucharest, WBA, Bolton and Aston Villa is the presence of Yobo at the heart of the defence. Stubbs and Weir have played together numerous times in recent seasons without us once leaking goals like the proverbial sieve. If only the pair of them were ten years younger! Correction Best of friends He said: "Bill Kenwright is one of my closest friends in football, and I have phoned him to say that Newcastle United have not approached David Moyes and will not approach David Moyes." I found that fascinating because it was Freddy Shepherd who was instrumental in helping Manchester Utd leverage Wayne Rooney away from Everton. You may recall that Manchester Utd had decided not to bid on Rooney for another full season, but an unexpected bid from Shepherd of �20 million panicked Ferguson into making his move. Later, Shepherd helpfully upped the ante with another �23.5 million bid, forcing United to increase their own bid, despite the fact that they had already spent their transfer budget. No-one in football, including Shepherd, believes there was ever a chance of Rooney going to Newcastle. There was nothing for him to gain from such a move and plenty to lose. So there are two possibilities. One is that Shepherd was doing a favor on behalf of the criminally corrupt agent Paul Stretford. Shepherd�s son Kenneth worked for him at the time. The other possibility is that he was acting on behalf of Bill Kenwright himself, triggering a transfer process that Kenwright secretly wanted but which Manchester United had decided to delay. Perhaps Kenwright � one of Shepherd�s closest friends, he says � had set his heart on the transfer for the obvious financial reasons but wanted the deniability that an outside bid by Shepherd would give him. If that is not the case, and Shepherd was helping out Manchester United or Stretford or both, then how has this friendship survived? The legalized abduction of Wayne Rooney by Manchester United is one of the most corrupt episodes in Everton�s history and we are still in the dark about most of the facts. And the more you look into this sorry chapter the murkier the facts become. Why doesn�t some journalist ask Kenwright about these matters? I would like all the facts surrounding the Rooney transfer to come
out and they will only come out if we as fans demand them. It�s not just
curiosity. We have to make sure that history does not repeat itself. And as for The Truth being magically revealed at the behest of eloquent demands from the fans... I'm still rolling around laughing at that one. You jester! � Michael Judas? Spaghetti Western Centre Backs Despite what many people have written in recent months, DM doesn't get many things wrong but central defenders seem to be an exception � despite playing there himself.... strange. Incidently my recent nomenclature of the James Gang for Beattie and
McFadden seems to be catching on as fast as their popularity. Do you
think that I can follow the only true course of action for a scouser and
claim some money from someone for this? A view from the uneducated outside... I would like the Manager to explain if we play the long-ball so much because he feels anything else might lead to making errors at our end of the field? Or it is the quickest way to counter attack? Or he feels that the majority, if not all, Premiership teams are incapable of properly defending it? Don't get me wrong; I think there is a place for the long ball but I just think we tend to overdo it. Having said that, Villa did seem particularly poor at defending it and at one stage seemed to be pulling more and more players back to counter it with less and less success. Also, I would like to see us play more through midfield than we do but this again may be dependent on playing it out of defence. On the plus side, it was good to see Cahill and Osman arriving in the box as they did and McFadden looks a lot better when he is as decisive as he was on Saturday. Other things I find troubling are the way we started the second half when it looked like we were going to sit on the edge of our own penalty box and try to defend for the entire second half. The first half started similarly with Villa doing better in the opening 10 minutes. Are we just slow starters or is it under the Manager's direction? The most worrying was that, when Arteta was substituted, a lot of the skill, invention and movement went with him. I've always believed that the hallmark of good players of any era is the time and space they appear to have. This leads me to ask what we will be doing in the summer transfer window. Has Mr Moyes already drawn up his list and had them properly assessed? It does look as though Yobo only intends seeing out his contract, which is his right, but will Everton try and cash in before this happens? And why wasn't he tied down to a longer contract last year? Nothing mentioned above, I hope. I assume that we will be seeing our already signed Spanish Brazilian sometime during next season... or will he go the way of our last Brazilian? So, what are we looking for? At least one goalkeeper, cover for Hibbert, at least two central defenders (no matter what your opinion of them, Stubbs and Weir at 34 and 36, is it? can't go on that much longer). I like what I have seen of Ferrari but it does look like he is going back to Roma (has Dutch given us the inside line?). If Van de Meyde gets fit then the midfield seems more than adequately covered. That leaves the striking department. It looks like farewell to Dunc and next year before Vaughan recovers, if at all. The least needed seems to be a big man to cover for Beattie and someone with a bit of pace. Well that's my two-bob's worth which I hope is not more than Everton
have to pay for it, but it does seem that we will have to unload
someone. Let's hope we have learned the lessons of last year and have
better but cheaper replacements already lined up. Views and more views But again, Dutch Schaeffer, we are at logger heads. I like you, mate, but I honestly think you're going for the job as Yobo agent. Yeah, damn right why should he stay but why should he bloody leave either! As for what you said regarding Ferrari; yeah he's injured a lot but so was/is Naysmith and Pistone and they got three- & two-year contracts apiece??? So if they can, it should be a dead cert that a player of Ferrari class should do also... but somehow I don't think Moyes likes him. Maybe because he is good with the ball and Moyes doesn't like that (Kr�ldrup everyone)! I'm hopeful but realistic about the derby, but with officer Dibble (sorry, Dickie Wright) in goal, and David 'He can read the game so well but his body can't react to danger' Weir (remember what Cisse did to him last Derby?), I'm scared that both jokers will cock things up. Moyes: PLAY YOBO AND STUBBS FOR TUBANCE'S SAKE!!! Scottish Rooney? � Bollox! Davey on the move? No doubt the next few days will see endless speculation of the "will
he, won`t he?" nature, followed by an announcement of a new 10-year
contract for the miracle worker who`s got us up to ninth in the table.
Just you see! Moyes to Newcastle As for the Derby, you know Moyes is not going to change a winning
team. Depending on Valente's injury we will start with Wright, Stubbs,
Weir and Hibbert. I agree with all the mail regarding this pairing
(especially Weir), but Moyes only changes his central pairing when we
get pumped for 4. As for the midfield and attack, it will be interesting
if he goes defensive and sacrifices Osman for Kilbane or Davies. Let's
hope Cisse doesn't get one-on-one with Weir again. I hope we can put a
few past them like they did to us at Goodison. C'MON EVERTON!! So Negative When Kendall took over, he inherited 70% of a winning team, with
Ratcliffe in the reserves... Don't just knock Moyes, I for one am glad
that we may get into Europe again � and next season looks bright.
Regarding Weir and Stubbs, sometimes pace is not the just the factor;
READING the game is the name of the game... so wake up!!!! Sent Me For A Pie To Worry or not to Worry... I have a problem with people bemoaning Kilbane � he came on as our brightest player and was really enthusiastic, putting in some delightful crosses and he was all over their defence. He's playing for his place and, but for the excellence of Arteta, he makes a very good case. Van der Meyde is being idolized before he even delivers the goods � he's never completed a match this season! Ridiculous!!! What I can appreciate is fear of our best players going. Ferrari, Yobo and Arteta are awesome players that must be kept at the club. We cannot afford to lose them and playing Weir & Stubbs � although they are on form � is a ridiculous move and shows Moyes's lack of care for our future. We need to build up the Ferrari-Yobo partnership and to do that they need games. With a youthful defence, complete midfield and goalscoring forwards
we can glide into the top six, we can hopefully enjoy some more routs at
Goodison Park in the future, but it hangs in the balance... and for me,
it hangs upon three players. Keep Arteta, Yobo and Ferrari and keep
moving up the table � lose them, and go down to mediocrity once more.
The decisions is in Moyes's hands... I hope he makes the right one! Joey Yobo Transfer Saga! Moyes I feel would want to keep Yobo but knows he can't stop him from going. And if we can get �8 million then Moyes will have the funds to find a suitable replacement. Even big clubs have their best players leave for a new challenge: Beckham left Man Utd, Owen left Liverpool, Henry looks set to walk out of Arsenal and I have a feeling Lampard is not long for Chelsea. Oddly enough, even though he's one of our best players, Everton have been most successful without Yobo in the side and with Weir/Stubbs as the centre backs. �8 million would bring in the exciting Joleon Lescott and the reliable John O'Shea. As for Matteo Ferrari, I hardly think it's a problem if he doesn't
sign, after all he's only started 11 games this season. If he was any
good, Moyes would have given him more appearances. It's not friendship
or favourtism that keeps Weir/Stubbs in the side; Ferrari just isn't
good enough to displace them. The Derby Onwards and (more) Forwards You get more of what you focus on. Throughout 2005 we focused on not losing games, we created little, we were dull and we kept losing, which is why some of us were critical. Recently we've been much more positive and the results are there for us all to see. Earlier in the season I said that with this squad, I'd be happy with a top-ten position and playing good football. I'm chuffed that we're 9th and playing positively! I just hope we don't fall into the old Everton habit of taking our eye off the ball when things turn for the better. It was awful listening to Kenwright prattle on about Collina last week. Instead of blaming a referee for four months' poor performances, we can sort things out for ourselves this summer by strengthening the front end of the team to give us more positive options next season. I'll continue praising Moyes when he's doing the good job he's doing right now. I'll criticise him if we revert back to the negative rubbish of 2005 and the transfer neglect of last summer. Some people call it whinging and disloyal, some people call it telling it like they see it. Let's keep focused on being more positive on the pitch and in the
transfer market. Onwards and (more) forwards! Each to Their Own Fact of the matter is, everyone is entitled to their own opinion. If we all agreed it'd be a bit boring. Yes it's fantastic we scored 4 good goals, but it's hard not to be too cynical when Richard Wright is being beaten like that and David Weir IS so much of a liability � he's too damn slow. I hope the talk about Yobo leaving is false 'cos we need Weir punted as soon as possible. Here's hoping we can play with a bit more confidence against
Liverpool. Perhaps we could play Dunc at the back to sort out Crouch?
That way, Beattie might get a wee shot at playing at the World Cup too! Wait a minute Beattie will invariably break a metatarsal if he goes to Germany;
Arteta will return to a Spanish club (or be snapped up by Man Utd or
Liverpool) and Andy van der Meyde, if ever fit, will probably be bought
by Newcastle. So PLEASE stop talking about Mikey playing for Spain;
let's keep him our worst kept secret. Facts don't lie Beattie for England? Absolutely. And Mikel should at least be in the Spanish squad. Bloody hell As for the Schaeffer remark: "I'll support Moyes in whatever he decides" � that is utter magic mushroom talk. How can you support a manager who's intent on selling our best assests? Fans after each letter please state whether you want Yobo and Ferrari to stay or go. Then Schaeffer, after the results will you still back Moyes even if the fans don't? Neville is playing much better, though, and I'm very glad he is as he
could develop into a real leader on the park (if he carries it on).
Despite my mate calling him the modern-day Raymond Attervelt. Oh how I
laughed! TEAM Mates Good news and bad news As for Richard Wright, where does one even begin? To start with, he was hopelessly stranded on occasions, and reliant on Cahill and others to make goal-line clearances. He then caps his performance by letting in one of the softest goals you're likely to see all season. Firmly in the path of the ball, he somehow manages to take evasive action avoiding an inevitable collision otherwise known as making a save! Solution: Yobo and Valente back, and Turner in goal. Some may view
Turner as a risk but we can take it as a given Wright will be a complete
liability in the derby. The hot debate I feel fairly comfortable going into the derby next week, hopefully the lads won't let us down for once. C'MON YOU BLUES!! Weir's finished A History of moaning. What I noticed first of all was the wordy battles between the moaners and the much rarer breed of Evertonian, the optimist. I read comments about history; whether we have been crap since The Big Bang or only during the Premership years and discussions about the genius or otherwise of David Moyes. But nobody (at least as far as I could see) was able to see the point! Evertonians have always been and probably always will be the biggest moaners in football spectatorship � and I can say that with vast experience because I have watched them since 1954. We are the biggest moaners in supporterdom precisely because of our history. Depending on how you calculate it, even allowing for the dismal Premiership years, we are still the 4th most successful club in England. As a result our expectations are always high, perhaps unrealistically so in these modern days when money speaks much louder than it used to. We also see ourselves as the unluckiest club in the world! We gather together great teams that win Championships in the same years that World Wars break out; teams never to play again! We build a great team in the 80s only for somebody else's supporters to knacker us by conspiring to cause the demise of 38 Italians. This happened at just about the time when thoughts about the forthcoming Premiership were being conceived. So, when it came, we entered it weak, pauperized and with a short European portfolio � a big club made small with the help of the German military and Liverpool supporters (but not necessarily in that order). History, high expectations, and horrendous bad luck... even if David
Moyes was a genius, he could not stop Evertonians moaning about it. But
one thing we all have in common is, wether we moan optimistically or
pessimistically, we moan because we love the buggers � even when they`re
shite! Old and Cynical (68) It`s always been like this, you see, for as soon as anyone comes good at Everton, they ALWAYS move on to pastures new. ALWAYS it`s at their `own request` and ALWAYS for half the fee they are worth! In recent years the likes of Speed, Barmby, Rooney and Gravesen followed the trend so why should our present stars be any different? Looking further ahead, Moyes will need only another season of
`consistent progess` to make himself a `shoe-in` for the Celtic job he
so craves � so some will say that every cloud has a silver lining! Joey Yobo Yobo was fantastic at the start of the season but the team around him was awful, Everton were in the worst form they had seen for years. The African Cup then took Yobo away and Stubbs (who was a regular last season when we finished 4th) returned. We are now in the best Premiership form ever. Yobo is such a good player but it seems like Stubbs/Weir inspire confidence in the other players. For some reason Everton are harder to beat with the vetrans at the back. Now apparently Arsenal want Yobo and I have no doubt he's good enough to play for the Gunners, does Moyes cash in on Yobo? Can Weir/Stubbs continue next season? Can Moyes find a replacement for Yobo? Moyes has some difficult decisions to make and whatever he decides I
will support him. Everton 4 - 1 Aston Villa The only small disappointment from the Villa game was Dickie Wright. He had to rely on three goal-line clearances from his team-mates and he was absoluetly nowhere for the goal, a very weak goal to concede. Things are really starting to come good for Moyes and if he manages to gain us European qualification would it be wrong for him to be considered as a candiate for Manager of the Year again? The way he has turned the team around this year has been nothing short of spectacular. Is it an indication of how far we have progressed under Moyes that a
Top 10 finish is now considered an abysmal season by some fans? A top-ten finish will fulfill the minimum expectations based on last season: nothing more. This is the first time we have been in the top 10 this season after a full set of weekend fixtures. And there are still 8 games to go, so let's see where we actually finish before giving Moyes the MotY award. � Michael Negativity on here - what a surprise! What I saw Has Moyes been playing Arteta at left wing for long? I always though he was a right-side or a central midfielder. Anyway, it worked like a charm last night. So much for people whining about Moyes's inability to sign "flair" players. Faddy's strike was pretty good. Cahill's first was just a display of raw strength. Osman's third was similar to Faddy's first. By this time it was game over. Credit to Villa, however, for keeping their heads up right until the end. Next year we will need a new goalkeeper, a strker, a right-back and a
center-back. Don't know where the money will come from though. Ah well.. Great Result but... There is no doubting that Arteta's withdrawal was damaging but why were we so deep and why didn't we try something different when using subs for a change? No matter what the scoreline is, Moyes has to give Killbane his weekly game... WHY? It's so predictable, it's becomong an in joke. My son knows what's coming next when we make a change and he is six years old! As for playing the likes of Wright and Naysmith when there is better in the reserves � what's that all about? On the plus side, we are now scoring goals from open play and beating the lesser sides, which we were not doing earlier in the season. As for the Arteta � going or staying? debate, there are plenty of rumours doing the rounds most of them bullshit. We need to keep hold of this player more than anything. Let's give Davies and VDM away and give Mikel the money we would save on wages to him. We must do anything we can; he has got to stay. The game highlighted how important he is to us. He is our Gerrard, our Vierra, our Keane � whatever you want to call him. If he leaves it will be just as damaging to us as when Rooney buggered off up the Lancs. Arteta makes us tick and watching him play makes going the game worth while. If he goes, then it may well be one of the final nails in the coffin for some of us. Yobo will leave and so will Ferrari but if Arteta goes then we might as well pack it all in. Let's just hope he doesn't make the Spanish World Cup squad and showcase himself to the world. Anfield, here we come � without Richard Wright, I hope! I can't believe what I read on here I agree with the sentiments of an earlier poster, if it had been Chelsea (or a Manchester United of 5 years ago) who had taken their foot off in the second half, we would have been marvelling at how they can win at a canter and that they were resting themselves for more serious challenges. As for the editorial comment about playing against Brummie kids, didn't they have Mellberg, McCann, Hendrie, Sorensen, Moore (who has scored a Premiership hatrick) Davies, Hughes, Samuel, Ridgwell (who has played all season) � all players with Premiership experience and who according to your match summary had an impeccable away record. Yours in despair at a really morbid bunch of fans who can't enjoy
winning when, let's face it, the winning feeling is why we all go to the
game. Reasons to be cheerful Enjoy yourself while you can or you'll always be miserable! The glass is half full not half empty 3-0 down at half-time Villa were always going to be the dominant team in the second half because that's what usually happens! And why is everyone getting eachother worried by talking about Arteta going to Liverpool? Yes, it might be our worst nightmare but it aint going to happen! If he was gonna go to them, he would have gone in the summer before he signed a 4-year contract! Didn't anyone see his interview the other day talking about how much he loves life at Everton? An yer Liverpool can have him if they want... for �20M! I feel confident we can record a long-overdue win at Anfield next
week! Come on, the People's Club!! Strange Game Myself nor the rest of the crowd could really get going at most times which left a very odd feeling coming out of the ground where we had won 4-1, gone an unprecedented number of games undefeated at home, and hot on the heels of European contenders... yet we left with a feeling we hadn't seen much. The good moves were spasmodic but good enough to create goals. Individual players shone brightly then dismally in equal proportion with the exception of the in-form Arteta who was the class act of the day. His enforced removal from the field was far more noticable than it should have been. A handsome win, yes, but it left me thinking I should really be rejoicing a much more convincing win. I saw things that should give our manager clues to the building programme required to match those teams a little more threatening than your Fulhams and Villas. In some ways, today's game reflected our fortunes under the present management: one half better than the other. Still, not to be a kiljoy, well done lads: a great win... And yet... See you Sat -- UP THE BLUES Moyes still inept Whats right about Wright? Nothing! And please, Moyes, if you're in your office, surfing the net and you happen to read this mailbag, then please hear me out: Drop Richard Wright as has a negative effect on our defence. His fear of crosses will kill us against a long-ball Liverpool. Drop Weir for Yobo as he is too slow and against Liverpool will be exposed. Lastly, keep Davies on the bench as he can't do any harm there! No
slagging off; just sincere advice, Moyesly. Looking forward to the
derby! Come on you blues!!! Turner? But I've noticed a few fans have fallen into the easy trap of calling for players we know sod all about. How can we say "bring in Turner, he deserves it after the Chelsea game"? He didn't make any saves in the Chelsea game that you wouldn't have expected him to, so why do some people assume he's the answer to our problems between the sticks? He could be dropping balls left right and centre in training for all we know, and judging by the fact that Moyes brought in Sander despite Wright only being out for one more game, I suspect he probably is! Turner seems to have potential, but don't make him the hero just
because he wasn't utterly shit against Chelsea. You'd imagine Moyes and
Woodsy have a better idea about who will do the best job! Two Halves and Some Worries Second half was like Fulham home game all over, sat too deep and looked terrible after Arteta went off � hopefully his thigh will be ok in time for the derby match. Worries and complaints: Naysmith is crap when he isn't injured but Moyes left him on when he couldn't even stand up and in the second half he stayed on despite limping several times and being skinned by Hendrie. Surely a more sensible move would have been Neville to right back and Kilbane or Van der Meyde on and either of same pair for Arteta once injured???? Weir was skinned several times; he is too slow against faster younger players � it's a fact! And Richard Wright is appalling!!! The goal he gave away was poor and on far too many occasions he switched to rabbit-in-headlights mode. I wish Stubbs would have just slapped him for being so incredibly shite so often towards the end of the game. Onwards and upwards for the derby but lets hope Moyes has ideas for
subs and maybe young Turner gets the run out he deserved from his
performance in The Chelsea Cup match where none of the goals were his
fault. A roller coaster ... Yes, we took it easy in the second half, but with the derby next week and some massive games to come, am I alone in thinking, "Who cares?" I, as much as anybody, want to be entertained, but if seeing the Blues knocking in seven goals in two games at Goodison isn't entertainment, I really don't know what is. The second half today was solid - no more and no less - but in my
eyes, it didn't detract from a genuinely impressive opening period. If
the boys bang on 3 in the first half every week, I for one will be more
than happy for them to rest their legs a bit in the second! Arteta & Moyes It's good to see some kind of form at last, although again when we go three up, why do we not push for more (Like Liverpool did against Fulham). It's all Ifs and Buts, but imagine where we would be if it wasn't for the awfull start to the season. If Moyes takes thr credit for the results recently then he has to
take the stick for the first 5 months, and the crazy purchases in the
summer. I still worry about his ability in the transfer market; with
defenders of a combined age of 896 we should all worry. Arteta off? Sounded like bullshit... until he walked off injured. Here's hoping
it's one of these "mate's uncle's nan's friend" rumours.... Tin Man Time and time again, there were crap balls played into our box where you thought 'easy meat for the goalie', only to see him rooted to the spot and a panicky clearance from the defence. The goal he conceded was typical of him and he really does remind me of the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz. He is a total disaster and the lack of confidence the defence has in him, combined with his own ineptitude, could lead to an embarassment. Oil yourself up and prove us wrong, you muppet! Yobo won`t be missed! Looking to the future, am I alone in hoping that Moysey will not blow all his transfer budget on a multi-million pound striker? We just don`t need one anymore! By all means recruit an up-and-comer from the lower leagues but of far greater priority is a top-class goalie and a central defender to replace Yobo who has, I am told, made it clear his future lies elsewhere. In any event, he will not be missed as the upsurge in our fortunes co-incided with his trip to Africa and our manager`s masterstroke in bringing back Stubbsy. As ever, Moysey knows best. So it`s Onwards and Upwards for Davey and the Blues! Concerns Stubbs/Weir/Wright shaky to say the least; you have to worry about them being shown up at Anfield next week. Surely an old head (Stubbs) plus Yobo is a better option, although I think Moyes is scared of this because they haven't done well when paired together in the past (if someone can remember the exact performance, I would appreciate it). Could be a classic derby next week; come on the blues! Champions Perspective As I say, I'm not innocent of doubting Moyes myself but I don't think anyone can say we haven't progressed. When 40 points by March is a shit season, think about 1998 when we stayed up on goal difference and the numerous years when we've got into the end of April sweating on results. Last year was a blip, not this one. We need to be a bit more
realistic really. Who'd have thought back in December we'd be looking up
the table at the end of the season not down it? We're on the rise � just
not as quickly as us success-starved blues are desperate for... In response to David O'Brien I'm just trying to make the point that during my lifetime, there have been Everton managers who have achieved at least as much as Moyes. They were sacked for 'failing', while some people regard Moyes as a genius. I just find that a bit odd, that's all. My other point is that I don't think Moyes,or anyone for that matter,
is beyond criticism. Since when has questioning a manager's methods been
a lack of support? I've heard plenty of it in the last 36 years from
loyal Evertonians! History After that... zilch.
Before Davey gets too comfortable, perhaps he would be embarrassed to
know that Howard Kendall had won 2 Championships, the FA Cup, a European
Trophy and left the Blues for pastures new before he reached Moyes age.
So much for the best "Young" manager in the business... Believe it! Quack, quack IMWT He has made a few mistakes in the transfer market but, on the whole, he has made a lot of great buys. As Phil Neville said on the Everton chatroom this week, he's a young manager who is still learning and getting better and showing signs of being as great as Alex Ferguson. If we're patient, the stability of having a good manager for a number of years should only help us get to the next level. I for one look forward to the next few years under Moyes and regular
top 10 finishes. Perspective in 2D I notice the author left out the money (in relative terms) previous managers were given to spend. I also notice you "forgot" to mention the emergence of Sky and Murdoch's filthy baby that changed everything - and I mean everything. If this was not the case why did you also "forget" to include Kendall's 2nd and 3rd term at the club? Was this to avoid criticising Kendall? You say you support Everton not the manager? Sorry but to not support the manager is to not support the club � after all, the manager is part of the club as are the players and the fans. Quite clearly your views are polarised � on one hand you spout statistics whilst conveniently forgetting our most successful manager's second and third terms that that were both disastrous. The question is: Were they disastrous BECAUSE Kendall had become poor? Both times? I think you will struggle to come up with a answer - I have. People praise Moyes too much; others slate him too much. The best
reflection of his ability is if you use people's opinions are other fans
thoughts about our manager. I am always being told what a good coach
they think Moyes is - Utd Fans, Hammers fans, Gooners and Spurs fans.
Their opinions are surely as un-biased as you could reasonably expect.
Make a stat out of that! Intertoto Cup Qualification It's the least we expect For me, DM is a decent manager who is not only learning his trade but also how to manage people. Where he is lucky is that he has found a chairman who is not only prepared to give him time to build a team but also a squad. He has provided him with more funds than 70% of Premiership managers (well done on both accounts, Bill!) Overall, I am very happy to say DM is moving the club forward... but please Davey stop bigging up your wins and pretending that your very, very lows (not only football but your handling of Rooney etc) didn't happen. 90% of Evertonians are happy you are here but we have never accepted being in the bottom half of the table � never mind a bottom-six club. All our managers who took us close to the bottom (besides you) got
sacked. And at the real bottom clubs, they get given a bonus and new
contract for finishing sixth from bottom. I'm glad you have turned the
season around but I for one will never accept it being a good season for
Everton that, come February, we are out of all the cup competitions and
the most we can hope for is a top-eight place. That reminds me about a
letter I sent a while ago about accepting mediocrity... A Letter to David Prentice It appears to me that you do an excellent softball PR job for the club instead of asking hard questions as an impartial objective journalist. The ToffeeWeb Mailbag throws up more hard questions on the running of our club than I've seen adressed by you during your tenure at the Liverpool Echo. I'd rather read see you tackle the club head on and print some meanigful answers in the local paper. Let's take your latest article - The facts behind Moyes' reaction to the critics - all you have done here is to rehash the original article and put your spin on why those who have hard questions should shut up. It's a pity you don't have the balls to ask the hard questions yourself given your job is to do exactly that, as a journalist. Maybe you don't want to loose your column in the Everton programme and the free lunches at Everton's expenses. If your struggling for hard questions, try these already pointed out by the fans in this mailbag:
Billy Bunter, Dublin, OH (17/3/06) While your list of unanswered issues is a good one, I think your premise is a little inaccurate and unfair. David Prentice is a voice of reason and sanity at the Echo (remember "Taking the Piss" that so pissed off Stubbs et al???) He is infinitely preferable to that sycophantic idiot, Dominc King. But there are many reasons why you won't see any such probing investigations in Everton's local paper any time soon. Don't you remember a few months back that infuential Everton fans forced a meeting with the Editors precisely because they were percieved to be too anti-Everton in their coverage? It's a difficult balance at best. While I'd love to hear some properly researched and well-presented answers to all of those questions, I'm not holding my breath... � Michael For fucks sake Entertaining football Maybe it's Chelsea, the kings of the 1-0 despite having a squad costing �200M. Maybe it's Liverpool who, previous to the other night, had had something like seven 1-0 wins in their last 10 games. No, I know it's Bolton. So that's it, take yourself to the Reebok and be thoroughly entertained. Even Man Utd rarely score more than 1 or 2 goals these days. Basically the Premiership is boring; boring in terms of its predictability and boring in the football that's played. Those players who show a bit of flair (Rooney, Duff, Whalcott, Cole, Saha, Wright-Philips) are quickly snapped up by the big 2 or 3 so is it any wonder the rest of us are left with the dreggs? Moyes hit on a formula last season playing five in the middle, which was quickly copied by a lot of other managers. They are in a results business with the prospect of relegation making clubs doubly determined to avoid going down. How many teams have come to Goodison and entertained us? Blackburn, despite playing against 10 men, hardly crossed our half-way line and the possibly one and only entertaining side in the Premiership, Arsenal, didn't do much better.
Jez Clein, Childwall (17/3/06) Hmmm... it's hard to argue with much of that, Jez. Except for this: if Everton under David Moyes were actually able to start playing something that at least shows more attacking desire, and actually goes some way toward fitting the decription of "entertaining football", would that not destroy your argument at a stroke? Newcastle (A); West Ham (H); Fulham (H)... Or at least make you wonder why we couldn't have been doiing that a bit more during the past four years??? � Michael I am not stupid! I must be a bit thick. Surely the way to keep Yobo is to give him a new contract? We don't have to wait until the summer to do this. ToffeeWeb contributors (myself included) have been screaming for this for some time. But actually I'm not stupid, this negative media spin has formed a regular pattern for departures in recent seasons and I have feared for some time that this would be the case with Yobo too. By the way, Billy and Dave, letting him play instead of kicking his
heels on the subs bench might help persuade him to sign (if you really
meant him to, that is). The future Whatever, it's my bet that Moyesey boy is going to take us absolutely nowhere. As someone else pointed, out he's just one of many Premier, and old First Division, managers who flatter to deceive. I'll stick my neck out and predict all those getting excited and
predicting a Uefa Cup qualification finish are going to be disappointed.
It's my bet that we'll end up near enough where we are now, or lower.
The rot could well start again on Saturday against Villa. Hope I'm
wrong... but somehow doubt it. Europe & other stuff This season's European disaster? Well, yes, the Uefa Cup certainly was, but look who are one of the Champions League quarter-finalists: Villarreal � courtesy only of that slap-head ref's diabolical decision against Dunc in the second leg of our qualifier.We might not actually be that far off being good European material. Competing in the Uefa Cup, while a drain on players' fitness, and low crowds, is still important. That way, you get more 'points' in Uefa's ranking system and so the next time we get to the qualifying stages of the 'Big Cup' we get a better draw, ie, not Villarreal, but the type of crap teams Liverpool get drawn against. I believe that the best managers are those who get results even when the injury list is long � they don't resort to excuses (ie, Souness is crap as we all know). Well, David Moyes belatedly managed to get some results after Xmas, so I shall (reservedly) side with him on that, even if it was not pretty to watch (on TV here in Canada). But injuries are clearing and now Moyes is back to being measured against our great managers. At Everton, we expect not just results but also that the boys play entertaining footie, and even DM's greatest supporters on ToffeeWeb cannot say that, so far, that has ever been consistently achieved. OK, if they play like they did against West Ham and the obviously poor Fulham for the rest of the season (or at least against Liverpool), I'll again side with DM, but not until. So, even after 4 years, I think the jury is still out regarding Moyes
as a manager (and I do not think that an unreasonable time-frame). Some
positives, several negatives. But at least 4 years of managerial
'stability' is something we should all welcome. Our Big Chance Wasted? The club is making progress, and despite many people's thoughts, David Moyes is doing a damn site better job than any of his predecessors did over the last decade! Playing European opposition for the first time in ten years (even though we were out-classed) was a breath of fresh air. More of the same, please, Mr Moyes (but with a better result!). If last year's events served only one purpose, it was to have a look at what level we need to reach in order to maintain a lengthy run in European football. I am not saying that the experience was enjoyable for the players, fans or boardroom, but there is the saying: 'learn from your mistakes'. If we make the Uefa Cup this term, I think we will be much better prepared for what lies ahead. We have more players in the squad with European experience: Phil Neville, Nuno Valente, Mikel Arteta and with the possibility of additions in the transfer window. I tell you one thing, I would much rather us get into Europe and fall at the first hurdle than not get there at all. (Obviously I would like us to get further than the first hurdle.) What ever happens, we need to get behind the team and the manager. If, in your day job, no matter how hard you tried and no matter how well you did, people still said you were shit and wanted you out, your confidence would be at an all-time low and you could think 'whats the point?' Maybe Tony Marsh needs a change of day job. Damned if you do...... David Moyes is now actually the longest serving manager at Everton with 4 years service since Howard Kendall's first tenure. Previous chopping and changing of manager has created instability alongside boardroom and administrative disasters and coincided with an almost perennial fight against relegation. Do people realistically want a return to such an approach when the next Mike Walker or modern day Mike Newell is seen as the way forward. Newcastle are a prime example of quick fix solutions that don't work; with their revenue stream, money is always available but has it been repayed with success? In respect of potential managers � who is there? Maybe that foreign coach?... for every Wenger there is 10 Alain Perrins. And possible investment? I can't remember seeing a queue down Goodison road. The reality is we would all love the nirvarna of having lots of money to spend but realism is needed. Moyes is criticised for being a defensive manager, he buys defenders, plays for a 1-0 and forgets expansive football. Is that why he bought Mikkel Arteta and Andy van der Meyde? Is that why he has honed Leon Osman and has given him a chance? In respect of a centre-forward, yes we are desperate for one to partner James Beattie. I believe that with this careful acquisition during the summer at the right price, and the spine of the side strenthening further then we have a realistic chance of pushing on next season. Robbie Earnshaw was even suggested in some quarters during January - is he setting the world on fire at Norwich? Moyes has his targets and valuations, Andy Johnson and David Nugent are two, given their desire to win promotion, do their respective clubs really want to sell in January? But, come the summer, after missing out on promotion, then they may be there for the taking. I believe David Moyes has a plan and he has stated his desire to win
trophies. It is appropriate that his success should be ultimately judged
on this, but patience and planning is required for this to bear fruit.
Unless a Russian billionnaire or the like walks in and puts �100M on the
table, then a more pragmatic and realistic approach is required. Moyes Moyes has stabilised the club in the league and of course has had the odd crisis along the way. It is progress and just because we aren't pushing for the Champions Leauge again should not cause some fans to get on his back. If you really want us to move to the next level, then you will need to look at us getting new investment from somewhere. As fans we always want the best for the club and that is to be expected; let's support the manager and the Board but still give them constructive criticism. If we don't support them then the manager will piss off to Rangers and then, instead of moaning about missing out on Europe or getting knocked out of Europe, we will all be moaning about why we have to fight relegation every year. If we keep this squad together then next year we will be pushing for
Europe again and I dont know about you guys but thats good enough for
me.....for now ;) The Moyes debate Mike Price is spot on when he says our big chance has been wasted: it has. Considering the shite we have to put up with over the years, our support is easily the best in the country, yet the club treat us like twats. I didn't say I dont want us to get in to Europe I said "What's the point?" � there's a big difference. The way the club is run, the fans would get fucked around again and with Moyes in charge the team would get hammered again. Cant you see it? The way Moyes sends his team out to play would be a slippers and pipe job for any half decent European side. As for organising travel and tickets, the bunch of tossers at Goodison couldn't run a stall at a car boot sale. Some of our fans have this strange way of defending Moyes and his policies: "We were crap before he came and so it's alright to be crap now because that's the way it's always been." What a load of shite. They keep going on about this good run we are on as if we are suddenly some kind of world beaters. We beat Fulham 3-1; big deal... look what Liverpool did to them last night. It was only three games ago at Newcastle were we looked like a conference side in the second half and once again Moyes's rabbit-in-the-headlights tactics were to blame. As I have said before, if David Moyes had been deprived of funds to buy players, then I would not have a problem at all with what I'm seeing. But he has spent more money than most managers in the Premier League in the past 18 months on a load of shite. Making mistakes by buying young up-and-coming players is nothing to be ashamed of. Buying other team's duds the likes of Davies, Van der Meyde, Kr�ldrup, � all at the same time � is. Of course I want Everton to be successfull and play in Europe; it's just that I dont think the club as a whole is geared up for it. What I don't want to see is a repeat of this season's world shattering humiliation all over again. That's what would happen with the present set-up and yet again the poor bastards to suffer would be us mugs who follow the team on the road. Try telling any one who went to Romania in September that being in Europe gave Everton stature around the world... We are a big club; we could attract better players and we could play
better football. May be I am crazy but that's what I believe and I don't
think for a minute that we will ever improve under the present regime. Moyes will win nothing! They are all of the same ilk and just the same as the generation before them - Atkinson, Reid, Basset and Co who were always `three or four players away from a good side.` The one thing they all have in common is that they are good at patronising the fans and spending our money on crap players, knowing that as long as their teams stay out of relegation, some idiots will regard them as the second coming. Estate agents, car dealers and journalists share the lead in the poll on `Shysters of our Times` and with very few exceptions, the modern football manager should be high on the list! So have no fears, give our man another four years and success will still be a season or two away - and then we can replace him with another `no-mark` who can start the process all over again. God, I wish I liked cricket! Perspective in Management For some of us, football and Everton began before Sky. That's what our 'history' referes to. Here's my take on the managers I've seen: Catterick: Two championships, one FA Cup, quarter-final of European Cup. Say no more. Bingham: Fourth. Two defeats from the title. Got us to the verge of Wembley and was sacked for being a 'failure'. Lee: Third, Fourth. First win over Liverpool in years. Countless near misses in semi-finals and one final. Sacked for being a 'failure'. Kendall: Two championships, ECWC, one FA Cup, countless finals and semis. Say no more. Harvey: Didn't want the job, so shouldn't have been given it. Still got us to a cup final. Bought some good players and bottled it. Walker: Tried to play good football. Miles out of his depth. Nearly got us relegated. Sacked for being a failure. Royle: Saved us from relegation and won the cup in the same season. Then gave us our last entertaining season. Left after lack of support from Johnson. Smith: Initially bought some good players, then let down by Johnson (see various interviews with John Collins). Then let us down big time. Then fell asleep for a couple of years, woke up in time to be replaced by..... Moyes: Seventh, seventeenth, fourth. Given �25 million to spend. Regarded by some as a 'genius'. That may explain to me why younger Evertonians love Moyes. It may show why I have been critical of Moyes and annoyed by the hype surrounding his supposed 'genius'. I have seen all of the above managers criticised, that's part of football and comes with their territory. Why should Moyes be exempt from criticism? I happen to think we can be a great club again. In this poor league, a Uefa Cup spot should be there for the taking every year. When he produces some consistency for more than half a season, I'll start believing the hype. In the meantime, I'll back Moyes and whoever else manages EFC,
because I'm an Evertonian. I support the team, not the manager. That
includes both praise and criticism based on the evidence, not on the
hype. Moyes Mis-quoted Nothing good to say No, we are not the finished article; No; no silverware yet, but we are on very solid ground.... I think you are all spoilt by the reality of Premiership and media money that has not come our way due to being crap when big money came in with the Premiership... Go on, Moyes; you're doing alright. And yes, you are learning � but
petty well I think!!! Or forever hold your peace..... Sorry, Davey, am I reading too much between the lines? Now why would I have done that? The trouble with opening your mouth in such a way is that you will be asked to use it to correct the situation. So, Davey, educate me on the following;
Thommo Bigpond, Liverpool (16/3/06) Oh look, an art critic ! This bugs the shit out of me, so while we're in a good patch, let me reiterate : David Moyes is not good enough for Everton Football Club. The reaons have been done to death over the recent period: tactical ineptitude and baffling substitutions, bizarre transfer issues (some of which is admittedly not public knowledge, so could be anything), relationship with current club regime etc. Suffice it to say that the recent good run of results have not changed my view, any more than the previous poor form will have altered some others' positivity. He should go � and if he can take the Board and senior management with him, all the better. I accept that this is an unpopular view at the moment but, 'twas ever
thus. Just remember in a few months where you heard it. Moyes Skysports Interview I watched the televised interview and he clearly said that we'd been nearer to a bottom six club over the years OF THE PREMIERSHIP, after some great times in the previous period. That's pretty near the truth (can we use the phrase 'the truth' ?) and I didn't hear much at the time to disagree with massively. So, in a nutshell, he didn't say it. Sorry to nail that one so easily, but there you go; even an
unrepentant Moyes critic as myself has to draw the line somewhere. Moyes comments As the song says "...if you know your history..." No doubt we've all got one or two books/videos/programmes etc. that
Davey could learn from. Lies, damned lies and.... You can�t compare managers of two different squads playing different opposition over a different number of matches a decade apart simply by equating the points gained per game or the goals scored per game and so on. This is not statistical analysis but mere arithmetic and it tells you nothing. You might, in a limited way, be able to compare individual strikers or goalkeepers using that kind of model, but the result tells you zero about the managers� performance. Although both are inspiration and charismatic figures, Joe Royle took over a very different Everton squad from the one David Moyes took over and the two were faced with very different problems. The Premiership was also a very different environment when Joe Royle managed Everton than it is now. In order to compare the two you would have to come up with an Index that weighted the different transfer funds spent, accounted for the relative qualities of the two squads at the beginning of their respective reigns and took into account Joe Royle�s achievement in lifting the FA Cup. Even with that, you could not take into account the fact that Joe Royle, despite all the negative connotations of the �Dogs of War� tag, which began as just a reference to one specific match, produced a higher overall standard of football entertainment at Everton than David Moyes has � at least so far. It may have been physically committed, as is the Everton of today, but it was rarely as negative or as dull. I believe it is also a meaningless comparison to subtract funds from transfers out from expenditure on transfers in as if this tells us something about a manager�s skill in the market. In that model, Manager A who sells a world-class player for 20 million and buys five mediocrities for 19 million is better than Manager B who does the reverse. But that�s not football and it�s not even statistics. It�s accountancy. Whose team would you rather watch? The one with five mediocrities or the one with a world-class player in the squad? The problem is that management is an art and you really can�t use science to analyze it usefully. It�s like calculating the amount of blue paint Leonardo used over the amount of red paint Michelangelo used. You get the answer, but what have you learned about them? As the only manager of Everton to lift trophies in the Premiership
era, Joe Royle must rank first among them. We�ll never know what he
might have achieved had he stayed, of course. Eventually, I believe
David Moyes will top his achievements at Everton. But until then�
1. Harry Catterick 2. Howard Kendall (taking all 3 managerial stints as one) 3. Colin Harvey 4. Joe Royle 5. Gordon Lee 6. Billy Bingham 7. Johnny Carey 8. Cliff Britton 9. David Moyes 10. Theo Kelly 11. Walter Smith 12. Ian Buchan 13. Mike Walker I suppose you could argue that Moyes is better than Britton was, and that, maybe Royle should be above Harvey, but, other than that I don't think you could argue with this listing. Although I have included Kendall's 3 stints as one, it may be interesting to note that if you break down Kendall's individual stints as manager then he comes out as being first (in the 80's), seventh (ust under Billy Bingham) on his return and finally, just above Mike Walker in his third stint. Again, I don't think you could argue too much about that either. Cheers, � Steve Dear Mr Marsh Why on earth would somebody who supposedly supports EFC come out with the comment 'Whats the point in qualifying for the Uefa Cup?' Now I can understand people having different views, some positive and some not so, but surely as a fan you want the team to do well? Or are you a 'glass half empty' kinda guy? Sorry to have a dig, but constuctive critism is usually a worthwhile
cause; Down-right stupid questions are, well, down-right stupid. Improvement since Xmas 2005
Richard Williams, Danbury, USA (15/3/06) Nice job, Richard. A letter to David Dear David, If I think back through what you have said over the past few years, I have to admit that I believe you to be an �honest� man. I believe you deserve our respect for speaking from your heart and being straight with us. When you said recently that during the transfer window, you had looked at �everyone� that was being mentioned and had decided that there was no one available who was better than who we already had, then technically I guess I had to go along with that. I�m presuming that this implied �availability� meant that we could actually afford them, and it also implies that we have youngsters who you believe will be better than whoever was available. Time will prove whether you were correct in this assessment of the potential of our youth. I would expect that if you value the likes of Anichebe, Hopkins, Vaughan, Kissock, Wilson, and others so highly that they will be given a chance to prove themselves at the first team level (even though you have shown your cards here too often by NOT giving the lads a good chance). This all being said, I have to believe that since you are an honest man, that your recent comments must have been mis-quoted. Surely you were not indicating that all those who that thought the early season form of the Blues was diabolical were uneducated and knew nothing about football? Surely you weren�t suggesting that when you arrived at Everton we were a club who had no realistic expectations (or prior history) of finishing in the top ten? Surely you weren�t suggesting that we actually played in the Champions League, because even those of us who are uneducated and know nothing about football whatsoever know that we only played in the Champions League �qualifiers� not in the big show itself (sorry if that is being too picky)? David, we the �people� of Everton Football Club have every right to comment and criticize � sometimes we are completely full of it and sometimes we�re not. But please don�t suggest that we are not �clever� enough to recognize inept performances when we see it. Our performance in the transfer market last summer was inept, our play for most of the first half of the season was inept, you know it and so do we! Now please get back to squeezing the last life out of our current squad and continue this nice run of form � it is really very much appreciated, and while you�re at it please start contract negotiations with the list of transfer targets you have already drawn up before they go off and sign for other clubs. Playing talented folks out of position may be successful in the short term but it�s not a good sign for our long-term prospects. Also, David, I see that your long-term infatuation, I mean transfer target, David Nugent, is now injured and out for the season � I guess that guarantees that we�ll buy him then? Or are there other lower division and non-league targets we can look forward to? For the record, David, I think you�ve done some really good things as
manager of our little club, and I support you in the future quest for
silverware of significance. You have my respect as being a sharp-minded
football manager. You�ve also made some mistakes, it happens to
everyone, you have my respect when you own up to them, God bless the
Blues! Four years of dross And as for Andy van der Meyde, Moyes's backroom staff advised him not to buy him because of his injury record... but Moysey knows best, eh! I hope AvdM plays a few games so he can build up a profile for another crap team to buy him, or should that be crap manager!! Anyway, somebody should remind Moyes of our history and that it started before the Pemiership! What do I say?, ship him back to Glasgow where he belongs and where he wants to be: results in 2005 would have had us relegated over a full season. Moyes us big time and if he can't see that he should move out along
with Billy no-mates... Li Tie Easy now Being the nit-picking (nerdy) Everton fan that I am, I thought he showed a rather 'interesting' view of our history... in fact he showed the same kind of knowledge (or lack of) about our beloved club as most of the Man Utd, City, Liverpool (delete as appropriate) fans I have to work with. Actually, the bit that got me was when he said how we used to be
successful and in the European Cup all the time... errr we would have
been in the European Cup all the time but for our neighbors (sorry, it
still hurts even after all this time). For years not Four years Setting the bar! Moyes was given a lot of support, lots of money to build a squad to get us into the Champions League and to move us forward in the Premier League. He blew it and it's going to take a while to get that chance back again. Personally I agree with Tony on the subject of Europe. I couldn't
give a toss about the Uefa Cup, attendances and money are a joke and it
is a major drain on the squad. Champions League or nothing is my
preference. The Moyes comments regarding Evertonians Knowledge and
Everton being a bottom half club are weak... it smacks of setting the
bar low, which when successfully negotiated has some Evertonians wetting
themselves with joy over not getting relegated and actually entertaining
one game in ten! Blue Moaners We are on the right track. Let's support the club with this and then
maybe, yes maybe, we'll see those days again sometime in the near
future. IMWT Hang on Davey, 4 years 0 Cups Bollocks, Davey! A couple of wins with some nice football is what the fans have been waiting and praying for since you took the job nearly 4 long years ago! The same everton fans have seen previous managers guide the team to success, titles and cups. Something, Davey, you should do well to remember and as you have won nothing yet, which is the benchmark you laid down. This love-in fest by Moyes and Bill is starting to getting on my
nerves as they back each other up and pop out for press stories after a
few wins. I think I will thump Bill and Davey, if they come out with
these crap statements about the fans knowing nothing about football. Well done lads! Lower League Potential He's receiving rave reviews both playing left back and left midfield. Hard-working, skillful and, considering he's only been there a short time, already a key part of the team. Man of the Match on Saturday and got a standing ovation when he came off near the end. I know an Everton scout was supposedly there also, so my view on other players who are worth a gamble .. Alex-John Baptiste - 20 year old defender and class act All-in-all an interesting experience... and shows that there is a lot
of young talent in the lower leagues that would be worth exploiting (and
wouldn't break the bank).. All the above would represent better value
for money than Per Kr�ldrup or Li Tie. Feeling Yellow As an owner and a fan of our yellow third kit, I'm wondering with the season coming to a close, are we ever going to see the boys actually wear it on the pitch? Also if we don't make it into Europe it will again decrease the opportunities to see it in action. Surely we wouldn't invent a new strip and not wear it, would we? Those out there who think I'm being shallow and that I need the
players to wear it in order to justify my purchase, you're absolutely
right! Censorship or silence? It seems Toffeeweb decided not to publish any of them! With the amount of negative letters when we were performing poorly,
surely he must be sending you some positive ones while we are performing
well. Is it a case of Mr Marsh being quiet during the good times or
ToffeeWeb not publishing them in order to maintain his status as a
whinger? Real World There's no money to be had until the final and our squad can barely make it through the season as it is. Maybe it's all the new quality players we could attract � just like last season, when we finished in a CL position. As for getting there... aren't we still in the bottom half of the table with a pathetic goal difference and still only one striker at the club? Yes, it would be fantastic going through all that misery again with a squad weaker than last time around. Count me in: I cant wait. Schaffer & Dodd, the funniest comedy act since Laurel & Hardy, believe it's a formality that we make it, so good luck to you, boys, when you turn up at the airport with no tickets and no plane on the runway. And, with master tactician Moyes at the helm, we will breeze through
the qualifiying stages with ease. Yes, I must admit European adventures
with Everton are wonderful occasions, don't you think? Contracts and selective memories And to those Neville supports I wasn't going to respond to their snipes as I hate arguing with fellow blues but your loyality to Uncle Fester is misplaced. Yes he has had two MotM awards this term but what has he actually done since he signed? Not a lot... and that's a sign for things to come. Carsley may be a Division One player but he is realiable and a presence in the middle of the park. He doesn't drift or pass the ball backwards or aimlessly punt it to the flanks. Carsley just sits there and adds steel to our defence. I may be remembering the Liverpool and Newcastle games where he scored last term but that's two more fond memories than Neville. I'm not saying he's rubbish, no he just isn't a midfielder and to say he must be captain because he is so professional or experienced is just bollocks my friends! Don't take my word for it � ask the Man Utd fans who say in 10 years he had 10 good games but cost them in many (remember Man Utd v Arsenal '99 Cup semi-final, where he gave a stupid pen). Surely you supporters are only remembering the one dominating display he had against Arsenal as that was it. And the Mancs should know best?! Ask the England fans about Neville and they took me back to Euro 2000 where again he gave a needless penalty against Romania. They also can't remember a great game from Neville and often wondered why he was in the squad � but, now he isn't at Man Utd, he ain't in the squad. Surprising, eh? So let's put it in perspective: Neville isn't the second coming, he
is just an average player whose name is bigger than the player: Fact!
Suggestions that he should be captain or he is an influentail player for
Everton: Foolish! Enough said, as that is the last I'll say on old Uncle
Fester. Four-year rollercoaster Mr Moyes says that the media play a big part and concedes that platforms for critisism exist but these should be tempered with "Educated People" who can answer phone-in questions correctely. Forgive me for thinking where the hell can I find a phone-in with an educated person to explain to me a 4-0 reverse at the Hawthorns! Where is that educated person to explain to me why we made such a pigs ear in Europe? Where is that educated person to explain to me why we only perform for half a season? Last season we chased Europe on a good first half of the season, this time we are chasing Europe on a good second half to the season... WHY?? Many thousands of us Blues spend a fortune on season tickets and finding our way to ground after ground only to be told we are uneducated and can't recognise dross when we see it. Davey boy, we moan and bellyache only when what we have witnessed deserves it and are also quick to praise when that is justified. In your four years, one thing you don't seem to have learned is that Blues fans are not uneducated and will always be quick to either praise you to high heaven or chastise vociferously purely based on their knowledge gained after many more than four years of following this club. As you say in the Daily Post, you need people who are educated and ready to answer questions correctly then why not start with yourself and come from behind the Media Training curtain that blights all questions. As a Blue for what seems like a century, I wish you all the best in gaining us the silverware you talk about but please dont patronise us for being bitterly disappointed with your European preperation and such a dismal start to the season, which has left us safe but playing catch up. This post is from a fan who believes Moyes is the best manager available to the club as it stands; god help him from those who don't like him! See you Sat --- UP THE BLUES Onwards and Upwards By and large, however, we have made progress and I have belief that
we are going places, which I never once felt under the previous manager.
The challenge now is to maintain the momentum and estalish ourselves in
the top six over the next few years. By the way, whatever happened to
Rob Fox?? Real Progress This is a real turn-around and the players and management of the Club should be congratulated (I feel another Manager of the Month coming on for Moysie). However, it is progress which is fairly limited in nature, given that what we are actually doing is comparing our pre-January form with the football we are now witnessing. So, whilst enjoying watching the Blues again, I was nonetheless prompted to write by the mail submitted by Jez Clein � who has concerns about whether Arteta, Yobo, Cahill and Ferrari will be at the club in 18 months' time. I would absolutely agree with Jez. The silence over a new contract for Yobo is deafening. A good World Cup will raise the profile of Cahill. Arteta�s stature is rising all the time and, if he could squeeze into the Spanish squad, could rise higher still. The same is true of other players in the squad (including James Beattie, by the way). For me, the real test of progress at our Club will be our ability to hold on to players of calibre. How do other teams do it? Basically, they win trophies, or at least do a better impression than Everton at being capable of doing so (eg, Spurs). Consistently higher league positions and the odd trophy mean that the Club would be better able to afford the higher wage demands which inevitably come from wanting to attract and retain the better players. If Everton can put a full season or two together playing to the
pre-Christmas 2004 and post-Christmas 2005 standard then I would be
confident of holding on to such players. Otherwise, I am afraid Jez�s
concerns will become a reality and we will again have missed an
opportunity to make real progress. Mikel Arteta's Improvement So naturally, I was unimpressed at first. But as time has passed, he has become one of our best assets in the past few seasons. I think even more than Cahill, he has been a fantastic signing. He has toughened up and also wised up to the English game. It's good to see him fighting for the ball and he's a real asset at set pieces and going forward in general, he seems to spur us on. So, congratulations Davie, and keep it up Mikel, you've proved me and
alot of people in Glasgow wrong! Dear Bill; maybe you should stay... Kenwright has his problems in other areas but everytime he talks about Moyes, he seems to confirm everything that I think is brilliant about the man. Imagine Kenwright was not only poor/tight (in chairman terms) but also had a shit understanding of the game! Then, we really would be screwed. Thankfully our Bill is a stern supporter of Moyes and that makes me very happy. Infact, something else that Kenwright also got spot on - forgive me if i'm wrong, I was only 16 at the time - was the timing of Smith's dismissal. Smith, ideally would never have come to Everton in the first place but we all agree that we were in the shit in his last season and Walter was taking us down. Kenwright didn't mince around like many chairman's do. He acted and acted fast. Bringing Moyes in asap. So, for my supposed dislike of Kenwright, he's responsible for almost everything that I think is good about Everton at the moment: mainly, the sacking of Smith and appointment of thou holy one. In fact, if it wasn't for the cuddly minx, I could actually be as depressed about Everton as all of these other Moyes cynics who are slowly creeping back in to their shells. Strewth. That would be bad. Well done, Moyes Dear Bill The one thing that spoils it for me is Billy Bullshit's gushing shite. Bill. Please don't go public again until you announce you are giving
up the train-set. Let's hear it for the boys! Let's give a bit of praise when it's due please. Moyes However, I just want to pick up on one of the letters which said
about Moyes being able to build a side. Unfortunately, he will never get
the chance to as who can honestly say that Arteta, Yobo, Cahill (and
Ferrari for that matter) will be at the club in 18 months' time. No
wonder Bullshit Billy sounded so pleased after Saturday's match � he's
probably already instructed Mikel's agent to go out and get the best
price he could for him! Neville for Captain Week-in and week-out, Neville is the last player off the field at goodison and shows both appreciation and an afinity with the fans. For every Arteta there needs to be a Neville, skill and creativity need to be blended with grit and determination. Phil Neville's overall contribution to the renaissance witnessed in recent months as far as I am concerned is there for all to see, he has played across the back four and midfield and does whatever job is asked of him to the best of his ability. In games when Man Utd have needed steel this season, Neville has been
missed. Ok, he isn't Roy Keane and never will be, but their loss is our
undoubted gain. With good results, confidence returning throughout the
ranks and on the terraces, and the feel-good factor once again in the
air, let's get behind the boys in blue, and here's hoping that Neville
flattens Gerrard early doors and inspires us to derby day success. What if...? Last week, when Kilbane was brought on for Arteta, it made sense to put a winger on to exploit the wide open spaces of the left wing which Arteta had worn himself out exposing. Shame Kilbane didn't have the brains to pass the ball to Beattie instead of aiming to destroy the corner flag. Evertonians already knew Simon Davies's contribution yesterday would be: (A) inevitable, and (B) irrelevant. I don't expect to see Ian Turner or John Ruddy in the first team
again soon... When will Moyes realise that the the only way to KNOW if a
young player can or can't cut it in the Prem is to play him at least for
a couple of games. There was a chance against Fulham to improve our
goals for and to learn a bit more about the future, if he has one, of
Anichebe. Chance spurned. Let's Build So here's the choice. Are we going to go on about these two games for the next year, or are we going to build on this in the summer? The more we play like this, the more attractive we'll be to watch, the more appealing we'll be to creative players. Could someone give me a definition of a great manager? I always thought it was one who builds great teams that win trophies, like Catterick and Kendall. I've said in previuos letters that I'd love Moyes to stay here, putting out a side playing good football. He's proved it for two games; let's have some more. Let's get some perspective. He's a promising manager, yet to give us a cup run or anything close to a trophy. Maybe a great manager for the future, surely not now? Right now I'd settle for steady progress, rather than two steps forward, two steps back. What's depressing, whinging, pessimistic about that? Out of the mouths of.... The James Gang Doubles I just wanted to point out that, despite our six home defeats, no
team has managed to complete a double over us. We have played five of
the six away, winning two and drawing three. The remaining return
fixture is at Anfield later this month so I fully expect the record of
no doubles to be continued... David Moyes and Neville vs Carsley Since making the point about Andy VdM not being fit enough to strike a ball long or hit one of his ferocious drives, I found that it was indeed only last week that the physio admitted Andy was only doing basic training and was not yet able to hit the ball hard. Moyes didn't bring him on early because he didn't want to leave him in a situation in which he was going to put himself in danger of a relapse. With only five or so minutes left, he could have a gentle run out and reintroduce himself to the fans without finding himself in a do-or-die situation that could have set his recovery process back. As for Carsley vs Neville, are you absolutely mad? I've heard of selective memory but this is extraordinary. Carsley has been a good Division One player all his career, but Moyes's excellent man-management skills and ability to give a player a defined and valued role in a team brought him up a gear or two. Nonetheless, despite some great performances when he had Gravesen to help him out, I feel you are remembering his winner against Liverpool and thinking he did that every week. He was good yes, but he was never better than about 7/10. As for Phil, he has been our Man of the Match on so many occasions this season and he has looked a class above the rest on too many occasions. Yes, his versatility is useful, but the guy is an excellent footballer and I find it astonishing that you are really tipping Lee Carsley as his replacement. When players are out injured for long periods, we tend to look at all the games we lose and think, "if we'd had him out there, we'd never have lost that one". This has clearly happened in your mind with Lee Carsley, as to suggest Phil Neville's passing is inferior to Carsley's is perhaps the most bizarre thing I've ever heard on ToffeeWeb. I sat at Goodison with my head in my hands on so many occasions watching Lee winning a great tackle before punting it out of play or knocking it back to the keeper. Moreover, Phil is a better tackler than Lee Carsley by a long way anyway and is also a much more impressive leader. Not only are you exercising a selective memory when it comes to the bald man, you also seem to be demonstrating that oh so infuriating trait of getting on Phil's back just because he's ex-Man Utd. His commitment to Everton, his intelligence on and off the pitch, his comments about how proud he is to represent the Blues and about how impressed he is by the fans and the whole setup at the club; all of these make me delighted to welcome him to Everton. When I also reflect on a string of brilliant performances this season (I think he was crucial in turning the season around, with huge performances when some players were shying away), I find it unbelievable that anybody can still have doubts about him. I think there are a number of Evertonians out there who made up their minds about too many things too early. Some Blues decided that Moyes was crap in the transfer market, crap at substitutions and didn't know how to play attacking football. Well, with Arteta, Yobo, Beattie, McFadden, Neville and Valente all playing some great stuff, isn't it time to swallow your pride? Such is the faith I have in Moyes (yes, he really does know more about football than us) I'm also willing to give Davies time to refind his confidence. Moyes told us over and over again that he was sure his players would come good, and sure enough, they are doing. Moyes saved the club from relegation in his first few months with the club. He then achieved enough points to get into Europe in any other season. A bad one followed when nothing seemed to click, but it is testament to the man that he followed it up with one of the most memorable seasons in the club's history. We're now a few points behind the clubs in European positions so, for
God's sake, stop your whinging and reflect on what has actually happened
in the last few years. Moyes's bad transfer dealings, his inability to
get the side playing, and his crap substitutions are working pretty well
as far as I can see. The Big Picture I appeal to the readers who have been watching the club developments both on and off the pitch for the last 4-6 years. Yes, that right: the last 4-6 years... So this won't take very long. Under the leadership of Bill Kenwright as Chairman for the last 6 years:
Billy Bunter, Dublin, USA (12/3/06) Thanks for that, Billy. The Big EFC Picture can indeed look monotonously depressing but it's the complex and ever-changing tapestry of day-to-day life as an Evertonian that keeps the rest of us interested. � Michael Great performance, but? Secondly, the daft subs Moyes made or made too late in AvdM's case. Kilbane and the woeful Davies came on, Neville went left-back and again Everton looked a lot less positive. Thirdly, I cannot believe Neville plays ahead of Carsley. I thought Neville's passing and positioning again was embrassing and it really pisses me off he plays 'unconditionally' for Moyes! Otherwise it was a great performance, espeically from the vastly improved Valente and Beattie. Keep it up lads!!! Yeah, almost forgot: I support Dutch Schaeffer, regardless of if he
is a club plant or not. Doesn't mean I agree with him, far from that!
But he loves the club so lay off him and his blue-tinted glasses as this
'plant' affair is quite boring now. At least he doesn't give half-arsed
letters to the fans, reeking false sincerity, concerning why the club
didn't sign a striker! We're being taken for a ride But don't let editorial commments just be to there to create reaction for your site, Michael. That is taking the piss just as much as the EFC establishment you like to goad. I expect that is too cynical. Perhaps the site doesn't need some kind of authoritive view? What do you think is the purpose of it? 3-1... and great today. Enjoy. I am. Moyes and vdM Safe Today, I witnessed a game I have been waiting to see for a long time: a routine Everton win against a poor team. We totally dominated and played some very good football until the manager changed everything. Was anyone else like me in fingernail-biting mode for about eight minutes at the end? Last week at West Ham and today I saw a lot of good things about Everton and I think it is within these good times that you can really see what is required in the stengthening department. Whilst playing well in both games, you could not fail to see the need for a degree of youth and speed at the heart of the defence, also a dynamic force in the centre of midfield, which leaves only the thorny question of a striker... What we need is a proven goalscorer at the highest level in major leagues � so do most clubs in Europe � so that leaves us a bit down the pecking order. Those who believe implicitly in Moyes must hope he takes a punt on a rookie and it comes off. As far as securing an automatic Euro spot, I am a little apprehensive so maybe we could qualify to go via the Intertoto route. Whatever route we take, I hope our preperation for Europe is far superior to our last effort. Villa next and I am sure we will all expect a similar performance. This is a great site for stats but dont forget they all begin with
the result of the NEXT match. See you Sat--- UP THE BLUES Give Moyes a break Take today - you refer to the fact that Moyes's substitutions never cease to puzzle, yet you have absolutely no idea what is going on behind the scenes. Why don't you accept that you're not the manager and therefore you don't know how players are feeling physically and mentally. Maybe Killa and Davies desperately need the confidence from a 20-minute run-out; maybe Andy van der Meyde told Moyes he didn't fancy more then a few minutes to get a feel for the stadium again? I read only last week a quote from Mick Rathbone saying that Andy VdM has not been able to practice kicking the ball long or shooting yet. Isn't this evidence that it is not worth getting him to go full pace for 15 or 20 minutes? The thing is, we don't know what has happened in training and we don't know exactly what kind of fitness or psychological strategies are being employed. With this in mind, it seems utterly futile to chip away at our manager, especially having seen the boys perform so magnificently yet again. Shouldn't Moyes be given the benefit of the doubt when we don't know any better? Having said that, your match reports and articles are never short of top class. All I would say is that after four years, I certainly still believe in David Moyes and perhaps more so than ever. He has done a remarkable job for the club and yet he is still young and is still learning. Let's give the man a break and see just how far he can take us. In Moyes we Trust Snipers are the bores Valente, Neville, Weir, Cahill, Davies, Beattie and, yes, McFadden are already internationals and are playing like it. It can surely not be long before Hibbert, Osman and Arteta join them and with the brilliant Van der Meyde now on the way back, Everton will soon be able to boast a full team of world-class players. Add a truly inspirational manager who has been able to transform our club in no time flat and I can see only glory days in store for us. No sir, it is your legendary snipers who are the true bores � perhaps
soon they will see the futility of their asinine comments and shut up. GD Yes, we all know about our appalling defeats during the first half of the season but EVERYONE knows we weren't going to be a mean goal-scoring machine. I've given up on the hope of us finishing with a positive GD but I won't give up on my belief that Everton could still qualify for Europe. I know it's an outside chance but I just think the likes of Man City and Wigan are suffering a dip in form which could open the back door for us. Please, Michael, we don't need the moaning about GD at this moment. Thanks if you post this comment. Great Website. ps: I was a bit embarrassed before the match was about to start when
the announcer bleated "30 seconds to top-quality Premiership football".
The club's PR department must have been working overtime to think that
one up! Anyway, I'm glad the players put to rest my worries and produced
an excellent performance. Everton 3 - 1 Fulham Everton's strength is the midfield: Arteta runs the game and the World Cup will be a lesser competition if Spain don't take him. Cahill works hard and is always dangerous; Osman has a quick mind and even quicker feet while Neville is the rock upon which the others depend. This was a great result and the perfect anniversary present for our
esteemed leader Mr Moyes. I'm going to enjoy this result and
performance. I wonder what the rest of you will find to moan about this
week? After all I must be a plant because I'm a supportive and
enthusiastic Everton fan. Kill ban vs. Pemb Ridge Looks like it's going to be a good win today too! Everton boring?
Alan Whitmore � eat your words! Torry memories Gillick made 40 appearances in the League Championship win of 1938-39, scoring 14 goals (Lawton managed 34!). However, Gillick`s real moment of fame had come in May 1938 whilst playing for Everton in the Empire Exhibition tournament in Scotland. In the semi-final of that tournament, he netted after just 10 seconds � the fastest goal ever recorded anywhere in the world. Unfortunately, the Second World War did for his career and at it`s
conclusion he retuned home to his beloved Rangers. I know this is all
irrelevant to most of your readers but please, Michael, don`t disparage
our heroes of the past or those who cling fondly to their memory. "Torrance Gillick was a man who helped to maintain The tradition of top-class Scottish players at Everton. A stockily-built winger and natural entertainer, he was ana exhillarating sight when in full flight down the flanks. His major problem was his attitude to the game. Far too often, he played it strictly for laughs, so annoying the more studiuos members of the side. Somethimes he was brilliant, sometimes woefully ineffective, but no matter what the circumstances, he was always entertaining. Sadly, the Mersyside public never really saw the best of him for, like many others, his peak years came and went during the course of World War Two. He joined Everton from Rangers in December 1935 in an �8,000 deal. He played on either wing and very occasionally at inside-right, and won five Scotland caps. He rejoined Rangers in November 1945. He died in 1971." You're Having a Laugh St David`s Day The brilliant innovator of a style of football that revolutionises the concept that you need goals to be successful, Moyes with a win/games ratio of 38.7% is already more than half way to the success rate of the likes of Mourinho and, indeed, should now be crowned as the REAL Special One. Sharing the view of Wenger that you win nothing with British kids, he has scoured the world for young talent and the occasional appearance on the bench of a foreign-sounding youngster indicates how successful he has been in this direction. So today is a momentous day in the history of our club � our very own St David`s Day � let us be sure, whatever the result (you have to look long term, you see) that it is marked appropriately. (Submitted on behalf of Dodd the Dutchman of Formby/Timbuctoo) Questioning your reason Second best � God help us! All I can say is if Moyes is as good as it gets, God save us all! It says much for the depths to which our aspirations have fallen that so many Evertonians find a degree of satisfaction in the boring, negative tripe which has been served up across all four years Moyes has been in charge. As you pointed out a few days ago, the permanently negative goal difference says it all. Best, second best or Moyseiah, I for one will not be re-newing my
season ticket whilst this bore remains at the helm. Dutch Schaeffer As an escapee from PR I'm convinced that Dutch is a club plant, his writings are just too "on message" to be genuine. Dutch; I'm getting to be an old arse these days, my first season ticket was in the top balcony of, the, then, new Main Stand in season 1970-71. Before that I'd been in the Boys Pen and ground for ten years. It's appreciated that us old arses invoke the zzzzzzzzzzz's in younger guys, the old arses did the same to me when I was young. Nontheless I've been lucky enough to watch Everton from the halcyon days of "Ball, Harvey, Kendall" through the magnificent mid-80s side to today. Let's be brutal: if you think the current Everton side and it's manager rank above mediocre, it shows one of two facts. You are either unfortunate enough to be too young, or an American, to have watched a real footballing Evertoin side; or you are, as I'm convinced, a club plant. Being an old timer has few advantages; however, you do at least get the wisdom of experience and if you're lucky a nice family. Now I'm fortunate enough to have a couple of great kids, who I love very much � their best interests are one of my prime motivating factors. If I saw one of them making a big mistake, what should I do? Tell them "yes I support you whatever stupid things you do" or say "I love you and want the best for you and I'd suggest you are making a major error". What's the best tack, Dutch?? I love Everton too and in my opinion none of us do the club any
favour with unquestioning loyalty. Unless of course we're club plants.
What say you, Dutch? Fairtrade Fortnight David Moyes, A Bloody Good Manager! So fast-forward to the present and, while I can still look back at more embarrassing scorelines (Man City again, Blackburn away, Shrewsbury, Arsenal, Bucharest, West Brom to name but a few), anyone who tries to tell me that we are in a worse position and have an even worse manager than Wally needs to go into a room alone and have a word with themselves. While the 03-04 season and the first half of this season weren't much fun at all, seasons 02-03 and 04-05 were bloody brilliant and I loved every single minute of them. And I have David Moyes to thank for a large part of that. Moyes has to take his part of the blame for what happened during our lowest ever points haul in a season and the first half of this season. But he also deserves a bloody huge amount of credit for last season. Yes, they faltered as the season went on, but we still finished 4th. We still beat Liverpool & Man Utd. We still webbed Villa AT Villa Park. We still qualified for the Champions League. And also on the back of last season, I think he has earnt our support. He does make mistakes, sometimes big mistakes � not buying a striker before the start of the season. But ,as he proved from the mess that was the 03-04 season, he learns from his mistakes and comes back stronger for it. Everton are a better club under David Moyes. By keeping faith in Moyes, I think we will continue to grow. And while I could do without the ups & downs, at least there a few ups every other year instead of contant downers. Anyway, Visca Del Everton!! Am I Hated? I really don't want to annoy people, I was just trying to be optimistic and look on the bright side concerning Everton. If that's going to annoy people please tell me and I will not post here anymore. I'm serious; I don't want to upset anyone. Anyway fingers crossed for 3 points tommorrow against Fulham. Come on the blue boys!!! Wait did that last statement come accross as too optimistic? Just ignore it if it did. I hope I didn't upset anyone just then. Would I be more popular if I stopped optimistically looking on the bright side and instead focussed on something disappointing? Isn't Richard Wright a crap goalie... Bit silly giving Pistone a new contract and then him getting injured... Boy, is Naysmith very avearge. No sod that, too depressing, come of the Toffees, you can beat
Fulham. 'Get behind the team' I am convinced that Moyes's strongest critics leave the stadium hoarse after every match from cheering on the Blues for 90 minutes. This does not mean that those same critics must cheer every decision, every spineless performance and every headless-chicken impression they witness. If someone exercises their right to criticise, they should not be labelled as disloyal. Personally, I think Moyes has done a lot of good for Everton but fans
of big clubs, even in 'small' periods, have a kind of collective memory
and have the right to expect more for their money (yes, money). Sorry
Dutch, I admire your loyalty, but some of us, while getting behind the
team, are not entirely 'Satis'... Mel Brooks Alive and Well at Goodison My old Dutch That would be the weirdest thing ever to happen on ToffeeWeb! Maybe Simon Davies will have a good game on Saturday (if selected)???? Now I am dreaming :) Rooney For �10 Million Thats �20 million so far and it should raise higher depending on Man Utd winning Cups and how many appearances Wayne makes for Man Utd and England. It's about time this site dropped the 'best young talent sold for
only �10 million' thinking and started recognising that we got �20
million at least for a player who was more interested in cash then
playing for Everton. More Moyes Maddness a) Moyes will finally rid us of Weir in ths summer, or If I were Moyes, given his track record in the transfer market, I'd
get shut of Weir, stick with what we've got, and invest the funds on a
much needed striker. Just a thought... otherwise, great job Moyes. LOL. I'm An Awful Everton Fan! I know I have a tendancy to be optimistic but I dearly love Everton and, like parents with naughty kids, I can only see the good. When Moyes defended Davies this season it wasn't an attempt to justify his signing, it was an attempt to raise the player's spirits and give him confidence. I try to do the same thing, I believe that if the fans actually get behind the team and try to be positive then the players will take confidence from that. Some of you may be upset that Everton have consolidated themselves as a mid-table side but I can't see that as anything but an improvement after a decade of relegation fights. Anyway, as I say, I'm sorry if my attempts to support the team have
upset anyone. If you want I'll try and find another Everton site where I
can be optimistic about supporting the team I love. Who is 'Dutch Schaeffer'? Choosing a pseudonym like that suggests that the 'Dutch Schaeffer' who writes to the mailbag almost on a daily basis, is either an adolescent who likes winding people up, or, more likely, a smarmy EFC employee sitting in an office at Bellefield practising 'Blue Spin'. Which is it 'Dutch'? Priceless
Finally, when the fans resign themselves to see how the season closes
and if the manager ever bothers his arse to buy a striker, he goes to
watch yet another bleeding defender - priceless! Biffa Strikes Again? I agree with the mailer who suggested it was time to ask for our Ball dosh back (with interest). However, I'm now more interested in relating the Rangers coup to our own recently announced 5-year deal � to outsource the megastore and other retail operations to JJB � as the numbers seem harder to identify. <>P> I can't find any reference to what Everton get out of it in any of the articles published at the time. At best, Biffa seems to suggest that it was all too much like hard work for the commercial team at Goodison and that they were better served off-loading this prime revenue generator to experts. The logic may be sound and it might just be my lack of research skills (in being unable to find out the bones of the deal); or could it be that dear old Biffa didn't get anything like the Rangers deal, so it wasn't worth publishing the benefits ? Presumably Bill is taking him to task as we speak? Tory Gillick Tory Gillick was a supremely skilful inside-forward who was the only player to be signed by Rangers twice - once in 1933-35 and once in 1946-50. He was sold to Everton for �8,000 in 1935 - a then record fee for the Club. He earned 5 caps for Scotland, all whilst playing for Everton, and a Football League Championship medal in 1939. He was a good goal scorer and netted 62 goals from 140 games. Methinks we could do with him today and I hope this, to a degree,
satisfies the earlier letter writer who asked about him. I am sure if he
looked up Tory's name on the Internet he might find out a fair bit about
him. I only know of him because my Dad was such an ardent Blue and used
to rave about him. Abysmal Lows? Really? Is it really an abysmal low? Sure being knocked out of the Champions League was a blow but remember it was our first attempt at football at that level and we had the bad luck of being drawn against a very difficult Villarreal side. Villareal have this week progressed to the quarter-final stages by beating Rangers. To be fair, if the "world's best" referee hadn't ruled out Big Dunc's perfectly good goal, who knows what could have happened in extra-time or penalties. After the Champions League exit, the players suffered from low confidence which resulted in some awful form. Then, after some great management by Moyes, the team got their confidence back and are now steadily climbing the league. The relegation fears are gone and all we have to worry about is: "Can the team finish 6th and get a Uefa Cup spot?" A mid-table finish, possibly a Uefa spot, an abysmal season? I think not. I look at this season as a consolidation, Everton have continued to cement themselves as a mid-table side, which is an amazing step up in 3 years considering how bad they were under Smith. People who expected Everton to challenge for the Champions League every season were dreaming. We over-acheived last season due to team spirit and damned hard work, both of which Moyes instilled in the team. Think back to when Walter Smith was sacked; if you could have been Bill Kenwright, what targets would you have set the new manager? I think the following is fair:-
In Moyes I Continue To Trust
And David Moyes was the Manager (of the Year... x2) in charge, and therefore directly responsible for this orgy of abysmalness! If he takes the plaudits for the recent run of form and the long-awaited improvement in our football � finally witnessed in the last two games � then he carries the can for all the awful abysmalness that went before it. The balance is right now directly equal to our goal difference. And the damage done won't be healed until we have a positive goal difference � something I feel confident in predicting we will not see this season. Does that help you understand the excruciating abysmalness some of us have suffered this season? Thought not... � Michael Man Managment However, this may be a crazy idea but maybe Moyes is backing the player so he can improve. While we all appreciate honestly, Moyes coming out in public with `Yep, he's been shit` is unlikely to help Davies' confidence. Anyone else prefer Davies to play well rather than sit in a position
of `I told you so` while he rots in the reserves? Tory Gillick It`s all the players fault! If this was, indeed, the limit of his ambition � and 45 had been good enough to finish fourth, remember � was the gamble not to invest in a `summer` striker justified? On balance, it probably was, given that he must have seen Beattie alone good for 15 and token contributions from `non-scoring strikers` like the other three could well have boosted the total beyond the 50 mark. Just think of that! We know now, of course, that it all went wrong. Opposition managers have taken steps to negate the `Cahill Jump`; Davies can`t hit a barn door; and other than Beattie � now transformed into a lone striker expected to cover every blade of grass on the pitch as well as be in position to score � the so-called strikers have contributed nowt. So, readers, it isn`t the manager`s fault we`re well behind schedule
� he did the planning alright � it`s the bloody players who just won`t
do what they are told! Balls Oh no, I forgot � Wyness and Billy Blue let them keep it because the poor little club were struggling for money. For fucks sake!! Davies Praise for Davies ill-judged To think he had `the hots` for Davies for at least a year before he signed him almost defies belief. Jol, on the other hand, couldn`t wait to get rid and, as soon as he was half-fit, had Davies on the train to Merseyside. David Hall`s prediction (7/3/06) of what the summer has in store for
us rang all too true to me; with Moyes considering `no-marks` like
Davies to be what he is looking for, yet another influx of dross can be
expected. IMWT? Now we might not be in the BIG FIVE any more (at least not financially) but we are sure in the big eight financially and support-wise. Any manager who at the absolute minimum does not keep Everton in the top eight, with a cup run (at leat a quarter-final) every couple of years is not doing his job. If we look at the financial backing and time David Moyes has had, the conclusion regarding his abilities so far can only be fair to middling. No one is saying fire him now... but we want big improvement for next
season. The game at West Ham was more like it � the players & fans went
there saying; WERE EVERTON AND WE'VE COME TO WIN. (The atmosphere was
boss; reminded me of when the big man got two there.) More of it,
please, Davey. The one eye is king in the valley of the blind!
Dissapointed I got depressed with it all, kopite mates back in Liverpool ringing
me up taking the piss. If Dutch thinks being a laughing stock is not
dissapointing, he must have low standards. Also, he says this season has
consolidated us as a mid-table team. Yeah, Dutch � along with Fulham,
Blackburn, Charlton, Wigan, etc � don't you think that's dissapointing
in itself? Dutch/Toffeeweb I'm not saying I want to revert back to bottom-six finishes, that would be mad. But the highs of finishing 7th and 4th are mixed with the lows of 17th and whereever we end up this season. I don't understand how we can play so well at one point then get totally hammered by teams who we honestly know are worse than us, it wasn't like we where getting beat 1-0 or 2-1... it was 4-0... three times!! I fully realise that the Champions League exit was heart-breaking, and Moyes must have felt it as hard as most, BUT we totally fell apart as a club. To lose a couple of matches is one thing but we didn't look like we had any spirit till the end of October!! That's what I found difficult, mainly cos I believed Davey would sort it out. Maybe my expectations of Moyes where too high but as a blue the period from Aug to Oct was the lowest I can remember for years, and we've had some lows, haven't we!! At least ToffeeWeb gives us the forum to share our views, and it does
it with a bit of humour, and I for one am very grateful. Advance and be recognised, Dutch! Now I don`t mind a fellow supporter believing the sun shines out of the nether regions of Kenwright, Moyes and Wyness and, in a strange way, I find the likes of Richard Dodd amusing (NB I know he exists because he is a distant relative!) but Schaeffer is far too glib and a Scouser can smell a patsy a mile away! So `Advance and be rcognised` Dutch � otherwise you had better
retreat to your natural home � Evertonfc.com. E= mc� Entertaining (and hopefully winning) football = More media exposure = More exposure to potential investors = More chance of getting investment in the club = Bigger wage/transfer budget = Better players = More Trophies = Happier fans You could also say... Entertaining (and hopefully winning) football = Happier players = better reputation amongst agents and players = More chance of signing better players (even if we cannot offer more money) On the other hand, this is what we get now... Dour (occasionally winning) football = Less media exposure = Less
sponsorship = Less investment from Sponsors and potential backers = Less
money to invest in team/wages/ground = Less Trophies = Pissed off fans
ToffeeWeb I really am getting tired of defending Moyes. I think he's doing a great job and if others don't well that's your opinion. Moyes took a team which under Wally Smith had fought relegation every single year, not once finishing in the Top 10. The squad consisted of everyday journeymen (Pembridge/Gemmill) and over-the-hill vetrans (Gazza/Ginola). All the promising young players had been run out of the club (Jeffers/Ball/Dunne). I've listed before what Moyes has done in his three seasons but I'll do so again because it's so impressive:-
Add a quality striker in the Summer, and a defender maybe, and Moyes could turn Everton into a very good side. As it's been pointed out before, what's the option? Sack Moyes? Thats laughable! We have no chance of attracting a manager anywhere near the quality of Moyes. Sack the two-time manager-of-year Moyes and appoint Peter Reid or Grame Souness? I think not. This season is not disappointing, its just consolidated us as a
mid-table side, which is an amazing achievement considering where we
were four years ago. Just plain silly What worries me more though, is the fact that you guys who run this site obviously believed the article was good enough to splash onto your homepage in the first place! All you depressed Moyes pessimists will realise sooner or later that he's a great manager and he is moving our club forward all the time. And frankly when you do, I hope you feel ashamed of yourselves every time you step foot into Goodison Park. Anyway, tallyho.... ps: - Dutch Shaeffer - good man What, you think I'm mad...... I was there for the first one. I was in the Boys' Pen, sneaking into the ground with Fat Bill but that's another story, when the winning vote went in. There was uproar as some suspected that he only got it because he is Scottish which is seen as something of a hinderance if not a downright disadvantage and has since been, quaintly, known as the "Sympathy Vote". I am writing to the FA, or someone equally aptly named, to see if we can have a play-off, a sort of Charity Shi..., no they don't use that one anymore, the Community, no they don't vote on it, a People's Club versus... no. Anyway, a vote-off for a worthy cause with the bloke who stopped DM's hat-trick, if only we could remember who it was..... While I'm at it I may ask if we can do away with this playing for points to decide positions on the ladder and just have people, qualified people, those who can spell X (or know how to cross it out if they spell it wrong), decide who wins what. Sky TV can sponsor the counting, say 5p a vote, which could be used, you know, to improve your chances of winning next year. Now, if you ToffeeWeb people stop all this negative rubbish I might
just mention your good work with the ToffeeWeb Polls and who knows....
Missed the Point Let's Take the Moyes job: OK we fire him and bring in who? Or maybe we can go get a great Foreign coach (hit and miss - see Mourinho and Perin!!) As to the Chairman, what we need is a sugar daddy to bring investment into the club. All you guys would be happy if Blue Bill suddenly stuffed �100 million into the club ( maybe the Securitas robbery in Kent was down to him... ummmm!!!) The Problem is EVERTON FOOTBALL CLUB is not seen as being sexy enough at the moment for future investors or players. We've got to work back up to that status again 'cos � like it or not � we don't have the same profile as a lot of your contributors think we have. In my view weve been very lucky not to be relegated in the past 10 years and, to be honest, Moyes has done a great job to keep us up � never mind give us a shot at Europe. Do Moyes and Kenwright make mistakes? Yes, they do ... Are they the
best in the business? Probably not... but rather than bitching and
moaning, maybe some of you can come up with a realistic alternative or
quit moaning.! 'Just Sign here' � a piss take!!! Just lighten up!!! Statto lives! Just sign here... "Moyes: �Definitely son. I know that the cynics will point to the fact that the average age of the squad has actually gone up since I took over but you wait and see�� " Has the average age of the squad really gone up since DM took charge? I know that Martyn, Stubbs and Weir are all pretty old but I thought the average age of the squad was down from the WS era. Can any stato give me an answer? Transfers
Dutch Schaeffer, Liverpool (7/3/06) What's happened to Cahill then, Dutch? He scored a few goals last season but he really is a horrible player to watch. And this season he is next to useless. Don't tell me that's David Moyes's fault � bad training, perhaps? � Michael Smile,darn you,smile! On the departure side, I expect to see Martin, Weir, Ferrari, Lie Tie and Ferguson released and efforts made to sell Wright and Kilbane. Stand by for a shock departure with either Yobo or Arteta used to bring in much needed funds. (Any transfer provoking controversy will obviously be at the request of the player, his agent or other dark forces!) As ever, all the Academy players will be released and those reponsible for their development given huge rises for getting them off the books. On the in-coming side, expect Wyness to come up with the extra million or so he couldn`t find for Nugent at Christmas. A goalkeeper will obviously be a top priority as Turner and Ruddy will be told that even Big Nige didn`t reach his best until well past 30! Other signings will be at a premium as we shall be told that having Pistone, Naysmith, Carsley, Vaughan and Van der Meyde back in action is like signing a new team. Oh, I nearly forgot, on the eve of the new season, Weir will be offered a new one-year deal to fill the gap in defence and Nigel will return after the new goalie trips over a Gatorade bottle. Just tick off the above events as they happen and at least you`ll
have something to smile about this summer � that`s if you`ve not already
succumbed to the Everton Blues! Just sign here?!! Our manager and players probably read sites like this and it is articles like that one which destroy confidence. They definitely do not reflect the opinions of the majority of Evertonians and when they are written in such a childishly piss-taking way they should be ignored. All the names mentioned by Williamson didn't join us for valid
reasons and Moyes has signed far better players than them (e.g. Arteta,
Neville, even Beattie). Please don't make it the case that when things
are looking up on the pitch we still fail because of fans sites
spreading ridiculously negative vibes. Light and tunnels! The other bit of light, that although distant is still there, is Moyes voicing a move back to Glasgow. I'm hoping it was a first step in the slow engineering of a move away from Goodison. It's where he belongs, he'll do OK there amongst his own, and his lack of tactical nous and inability to value pace and skill won't be so clearly exposed. I know it may not be for a while but it's given me hope... something I've not felt for a while and I've missed it. For those rose-tinted spectacle wearers who will wonder who's better?... well, that's another story. Most of us hate the football we play, can't believe the chance to move us into a top 6 position that was luckily there for the taking before this season started and was blown so spectacularly and embarassingly, and we don't like the continual disasters in the transfer market which often seem down to the manager's dour personality and over-rating of average workmen like Davies, Carsley and Naysmith. Anyway, it's been a horrible disappointing season. The manager was given more money than most, he blew it, it was his fault! Thankfully we look safe from relegation and the manager see's his future away from Everton.. eventually. Tiny, pathetic chinks of light. Thanks for nothing! Opinions Eh!!! Ok, I will admit Moyes and the lads have done a great job since the New Year and God did we need it, but who got us in that position?? Yep; you guessed it: Moyes and the boys. A season that should have been great has been very miserable at best. I won't forgot sitting watching us get beat 4 - 0 by average teams every other week for a long time. And what will the summer bring??? Stubbs and Weir get another year (at least one will stay, my money is on Stubbs); Yobo could be sold as his contract has only a year left; Moyes will buy hardly anyone and Li Tie will be in the reserves 'til he "gets match fit". Don' get me wrong, I admire the job Davey has done and we've shown more spirit in the last two months than all of last year but this club is going nowhere fast... in fact nowhere slowly! The only new arrival im expecting is my first baby who's due in April ps: Is Davies the worst player in an Everton shirt for 10 years? I
know he has some competion (Degn, anyone?) but I reckon he's right up
there. �3.5M well spent, that! In Moyes We Continue To Trust His transfers on the large have been great, he's unearthed some real gems at very resonable prices (Cahill/Yobo/Arteta). He's used the youth system to develop youngsters into great players knocking on England's door (Hibbert/Osman) and truely world class players (Rooney). Not only has he managed to get Everton to finish in the Top 10 twice (something that's only happened 3 times in Premiership history) but he brought Champion's League football to Goodison Park. He's won Manager of the Year two out of the three year's he's been in charge, I'm gonna repeat that because its such a magnificent acheivement, HE'S WON MANAGER OF THE YEAR TWICE IN THE THREE SEASONS HE'S BEEN IN CHARGE. This year got off to a bad start because of bad luck (could we have got a more difficult tie then Villarreal?) and his transfer targets being more interested in money (Scott Parker). Like I say, he's not perfect but could you imagine any other manager in the world doing a better job with such limited resources? Give the guy a break, would you really want Kenwright to sack Moyes
and appoint Souness or McCarthy? Face it, Moyes is the best manager we
could possibly wish to attract to Goodison and he deserves some respect. Ridiculous It doesn't even give a balanced viewpoint. I doubt this will be printed but it was that bad I had to reply. It doesn't do yourselves any favours with other Blues on the view that the site is anti-Moyes/Kenwright. Nil Satis Nisi Optimum should reply to the articles as well. Deadwood and fresh pine! He offers nothing in attack and is prone to error in allowing the midfield to be over-run. The only reason he plays in midfield I think is that it is part of his contract which, if right, is another Moyes mistake. And Mr Schaeffer unless you're blind or simply don't pay attention to other fans, Davies gets a regular slaughtering from me and will do until he improves or leaves!!! Lastly the fans comment about the Moyes and Keane fictious conversation is an excellent example of why Moyes fails in the transfer market. If you disagree then ask yourselves who would you rather have... Neville or Parker? Enough said. ps: I bet you Moyes DOESN'T sign Ferrari � possibly our best defender
� and resigns Weir! That's gratitude It makes pretty unpleasant reading. Where else would you get an article like this about a manager who has just led his team on a two-month streak to get them out of trouble? I know Moyes isn't perfect (ie, I know he was a lot to do with us being IN trouble so please don't feel obliged to point that out in a clipped, sardonic, we-know-best reply), but this piece, attempted comedy or no, takes a pretty simple view. Is it worth even trying to point out the good things Moyes has done
anymore? Does anyone there have any time for the man? Phil Neville Neville is a complete professional and makes up for his shortcomings with 100% commitment everytime he plays. I think he was well worth the �3.5 million Moyes paid for him. If the fans really want to question a player's worth then how about Simon Daives? He also cost �3.5 million and really hasn't shown anything for it. Why is it everyone is willing to get on Neville's back but Davies
escapes the moaning? Kroldrup-now we know! `The Danish, like his unit companions, often slips. It is always in delay but its long levers help it to recover easily` Seems like, as at Everton, poor Per just can`t find his feet! Waiting Game As for saving resources until the summer, after last summer`s debacle, few of us have much faith in The Moystro`s tranfer abilities. Just reflect on the money wasted on `no shows` like Kr�ldrup and Van der Meyde, the sheer ordinariness of Davies and the re-signing of Naysmith, Pistone and Ferguson whose total contribution amounts to nil. I`m glad that Schaeffer and his dopelganger, Richard Dodd, are happy
in their so easily satisfied world but I, for one, will not be renewing
my season ticket until I see proper commitment from the Board and a real
indication that Moyes can operate in the transfer market at top level.
On the recieving end... I am not attempting to defend the indefensible yet I wonder where you
would rank Dunc's behaviour on this little list of onfield crimes:
Feigning injury, attempts to get an opponent sent off, diving, spitting,
assaulting an official, attacking a spectator, career threatening fouls.
I would place Duncs offences at the lower end of the scale. What do
others think? Live in lover! Second thoughts, perhaps we should petition to have this sycophantic
bore removed to New Zealand! The Striker Dilema! First of all, we are safe from relegation so not signing a striker was not the downfall of the club many predicted. As for the strikers Moyes was reportedly interested in but didn't sign, much to the annoyance of the fans, how have they done? Bear in mind, James Beattie now has 9 goals this season.
Personally I dont think any of the striker's I have mentioned above (except Keane) would have added anything to Everton. I'm glad Moyes kept his limited funds and I hope he spends it wisely in the summer. In Moyes We Continue To Trust. Moyes Lane
Much Better Why can't we do this every week? Better times around the corner - maybe - only time will tell. However, we still need faster central defenders who can play further
forward than Weir and Stubbs if we continue to play with two strikers.
Ferrari and Yobo sping to mind - who do they play for these days and is
there any chance that we might sign them? Exploded Myths Add to that the much repeated story that David Moyes is `a miserable
bugger` which has been totally destroyed by his most pleasing demeanour
in his stint on Sky`s Goals on Sunday this morning and, all in all, it
hasn`t been a good weekend for the Mailbag gloom mongers who only
rejoice in defeat and disappointment. IMWT! Duncan Ferguson
New Manager? There are managers available out there, Martin O'Neil being my
choice, closely followed by Newell and Reid. Mind you, Sven will also be
available. Heaven help us!!!! Sod off then Moyes! Cuddly Bill Admittedly this season our football has been poor and I'm not so blind to see that it is partly to do with the manager's style of play. Similar to Chelsea, only with players who are not as good! I say give Moyse'y a chance to prove his worth this summmer when every Evertonian will be expecting him to buy good, fast attacking footballers, because the rest of our team is ok. If he fails, I may be forced to side with you and other Moyes pessimists. On the subject of Kenwright, I and most fans of Moyes Ii'm sure, are with all Evertonians on agreement that he is arguably the most pointless chairman in the Premier League. I dislike him almost passionately if it was not for the fact that he's still a blue. In fact, 'Big Bill' would often scrounge a lift on our coach back to London from Goodison because the trains are so shit, much to the delight of all the Evertonians on board. But instead of offering us an insight into the club or maybe telling some funny stories about the players or manager, he simply sits there on his fat arse and reads the papers. Growling if any fan dares to ask him a question. We've just lost at home to Charlton, Bill. Were pissed off because we've got a 4-hour journey back to London. Talk to us, please. He may come across all luvvy duvvy on tv, like a big friendly bear, but really he's a miserable old man who genuinely believes he is more special than you, and me. I stopped getting the coach a while ago so maybe 'cuddly Bill' has changed and tells everyone everything, but frankly, I doubt it. ps: To those who were strangely wanting Moyes to buy Franny Jeffers back � I can tell you that the only thing we ever squeezed out of Big Bill was when we had our shit arsed season of which Jeffers was a part of recently. "Why isn't Moyes playing Franny??" a fan asked from the back of the coach. "because he's crap in training and argues with him all the time." So there you go, not only is Jeffers now a Charlton reject and a Rangers reject, Moyes also hates him. No chance of him coming back, believe me. I write this shortly before our trip to the Hammers. COME ON YOU BOYS
IN BLUE. Phil Neville He does work extremely hard, and I believe he is a star. Hes a great
signing for the club, a superb professional and the experience he brings
to the club is in my opinion invaluable and will certainly rub off on
the 'younger' members of the squad. Per: Cool Customer Star of the Viola`s victory was a young Bulgarian, Valeri Bojinov � why can`t we find finishers like that? His two goals in as many minutes negated Parma`s early lead and set the visitors up for an easy 4-2 victory. So what of Per Kr�ldrup? All I can say is he is one cool customer who
would probably have given us all heart attacks if he had ever been put
to the test! Can`t recall him making a mistake but whether you would get
away with such ball-holding audacity here, we shall never know. One
thing is for sure: he don`t come from the David Moyes School of
Centre-Halves � that`s certain. How on earth he came to sign him is
beyond me. Viduka? Can't see it Self-opinionated and very vocal, he is the antithesis of what our
manager goes for and his CV carries more than the odd strike record
(industrial variety)! No, I can`t see that one coming off but if, in
desparation, it did, the inevitable fireworks alone will be worth the
entrance money, believe me! Hint of what's to come... The option on Ferrari is something like �3.7M. I'm doubtful if we'll see much of him between now and the end of the season, as I really think Davey needs to save his pennies for the area that even he acknowledges we're short in � strikers. Okay maybe I'm being a little pessimisitic, but why does he need to
come out with quotes like that if it's not to dampen expectation? Where there`s smoke..... Whilst I don`t expect us to be let in on all the Goodison/Bellefield
secrets, a little more openness wouldn`t go amiss and other managers
always seem to be able to handle things much better. No wonder the press
guys don`t give Everton the time of day! Outsiders' Views on EFC I travel all over the UK for business. The words I most often hear from outsiders regarding Everton are: dull, defensive, why don't you have any strikers?, boring, negative, bit embarrassing in Europe weren't you. Oh and of course, great fans. That's what I hear everywhere I go. Maybe that's why we struggle to attract better players. Every great business and football team has been based on the people within it questioning, asking, probing, taking chances and looking for different options. Some people call it moaning. Successful people call it positive, proactive management. I respect that some people have complete trust in Moyes and Kenwright. I just can't understand what strategy they have, if they have one. I'd rather their trusting supporters explain it to me rather than telling me to shut up! Over to you folks! Toffee Loyalty? There is no such thing I'm aware that Neville is no Makelele in his position, but Neville is
a good defensive midfielder, and I don't think Makelele can be a
competent left back, a competent central defender and when required a
right back when need be. But it seems when a person who has been Everton
Captain this seaon is left out of a pre-World Cup squad, we don't rally
around him, we start picking faults. Loyalty Evertonions, look it up!
It's in Websters, under L. Viduka in the Bag! Evertonians for Change We'll moan a lot but nothing is going to change
I choose not to view things in a negative way. None of us can predict the future. But recent (over the last four years) performance of the the people who run the club, the manager and the players tell me that we are going in the right direction. The best financial and league performances we have had for well over a decade. Nothing has changed because some will still moan. Rather than look at what you expect, look at the results we had before Moyes and look at where we are now. Some will not accept that we do not have the financial clout we once had. Time to move on me thinks. As long as we do what we are good at which is getting behind the team
(our job) let's leave it to the club to sort out the rest. They have
been improving, yes they have made mistakes, but they are improving. Any
outsider can see it. I do wonder sometimes reading this mailbag whether
my fellow Toffees can see the bigger picture also. Change is happening,
Michael, but some don't see it. Moan about it if you wish..... Smoke and mirrors Does no one at Goodison feel they owe it to supporters to indicate just what is going on with this once very effective midfielder whose progess was followed throughout China and in many eating emporiums like my own? After all, the day we stop showing any interest will be a sad one for Moyes & Co but perhaps they just want us to fook off and leave them to their private machinations! The way Moyes `sets his stall out`, they`ll soon be playing to an
empty stadium anyway! Up for it! Basic They are a shambles: lack money, incapable of change, in it for their own reasons which may not be for the benefit of the team and supporters. Kenwright has failed to provide the organizational leadership (after all he's busy breaking onto Broaday, and that's fine, except I don't think many other club Chairmen have such demands on their time, resources or commitments) or financial know-how that we need to take our club forward. Putting on a blue scarf and speaking as a "true-blue" Gwladys Street"
supporter is not enough. To me Moyes isn't very good, the team has
spirit, but little else, but they are symptoms of the real problem: the
Board and Bill Kenwright. Forever Ordinary That these players are viewed as our `stars` is to me an indictement of the Kenwright/Moyes regime although the signing of players like Bent, Davies and Kilbane and the re-signing of Pistone and Stubbs says it all about both the ambition and the ineptitude of those who govern the Club`s fortunes. I cannot believe that without a total re-think this club has any future apart from one of mind-blowing mediocrity. A useless Chairman and Board of Directors, the most boring manager in Britain, a crumbling ground, absolutely no youth policy, and a team who can`t score even every other game. What a bloody mess! Trouble is I can`t leave them � what time`s the coach for West Ham? Neville As I see it, the Swede thinks Everton are unfashionable, did he not say Rooney would be better playing his football elsewhere? This bias extends beyond Everton. Crouch never figured in the England squad 'til he went to Liverpool; Heskey was ever present while he was there, but now at Birmingham he is nowhere to be seen. The fact that they don't deserve to play for England is another issue but the same players seem to be picked on who they play for � none of the three mentioned above have changed dramatically either way. I personally don't care for England anymore, if they played in my
back garden I would draw my curtains. What concerns me is any future
player considering a move to Everton would think twice if he was on the
fringes of the England squad. Well I suppose that won't happen anyway. Praise for ambition Who would honestly say that James Beattie would not have done better than Bent � at least he would have been a damnsight more mobile � and Phil Neville would have done a far better job at stand-in left-back than Carragher. As for Van der Meyde, he is pure class � his country knows it and must be hoping like hell that he can shake off the dreadful luck he has had with injuries since coming to Goodison. So what`s wrong with these players stating their World Cup ambitions?
Surely their striving to `make the cut` will be in the very interests of
our Club? Give them and us a break you knockers. Polish Legend? World Cup Wannabes Now the first two I can sort of understand as the Echo keeps egging them on although I suspect that few Evertonians would have thought they were up to it before they came to Goodison. But Van der Meyde has a bloody cheek even to mention it - although, if truth be told, that`s probably why this serial crock is, at last, getting off his fat arse to grace us with his presence! Somebody at Goodison should tell these wannabes that they should
concentrate on impressing their countries` coaches with their feet
instead of their bloody traps � or am I just old fashioned? String Theory The latest reason for thinking this is the debate over Everton players representing their country. This debate continues a string of differing topics and contributions which have, at their centre, the view that Phil Neville is not up to it, either for England or Everton. The latest addition to the string comes from Luq Yus (phonetic scouse? I was told by the Editor we all had to use our real names?!); quote� "Neville had it easy at Man Utd and when he is asked to perform week in week out, old Uncle Fester can�t do it! � jack of all trades; master of none� my boss would say." Well Confucious, you and your boss may know a clich� or three, but you�ve not been watching the same Phil Neville as me this season. PN has been one of our most consistently solid performers since he arrived. You (and others) see his ability to play in several positions as a weakness. Personally, I am delighted. Moyes will have known this; his ability was a key strength when he bought the player and, given our small squad and the injury crises we have had, I for one am glad Neville has been able and capable enough to fill the gaping holes across and in front of the back four. I don�t let the odd wayward pass or poor tackle cloud my view of other players in the team, eg, Mikel Arteta (who I think is a great player and should be playing for Spain this Summer). So I would ask other supporters to do the same with Phil Neville and recognise the qualities he brings to the side. Don�t be surprised if he is Captain next season. By the way, I also don�t subscribe to the conspiracy theory that says that, just because someone plays for Everton (as opposed to one of the �Big� clubs), they get overlooked when selection for England comes round. Phil Neville has lost out against Uruguay because Sven wants to experiment with other players before choosing his 23 for Germany. I would fully expect him to be in that 23 if he continues his fine form for the Blues. I like Tony Hibbert (I wish Rooney had shown the same loyalty as Hibbo) but he is not England class, simple as that. He should be but (whilst he is a great tackler and a dogged defender), his distribution, crossing ability and pace are not international standard. Until he can improve these key aspects of his overall game, I just think there are better defenders in that position. By the way Confucious, who says how much Moyes will have to spend in
the Summer? �10M or �0.10p? No one will know until the end of August. Beattie comes good?? I would just add 3 points. First, he did go on to say "I'm not saying I'm there yet...", but that would detract from the Sky Sports headline, wouldn't it? Second, what do you expect him to say? He's going to "big" himself up in an interview - no-one giving an interview would say that they're actually untalented, lazy and ridiculously overpaid (even if they thought they were). Sure, it's more important what they do on the pitch, so why not take it with the pinch (or handful!) of salt we use for any article written about Everton? Third, Beattie has scored more goals this season than Peter Crouch, a
player who seemingly is picked only because he's 6' 7" tall. I would
suggest that Beattie offers more than Crouch, so if Crouch can expect to
be picked for England, why not Beattie? Beattie at his best? I woke up this morning to hear him telling Sky that he was now back to his best and deserved a shout for World Cup selection. Now I`ll cheer on anybody who wears an Everton shirt with pride and recently I`ve begun to think Beattie fits that category. But England class � no way! Thanks to Moyes, he certainly puts himself about but in general terms his `finishing` skills are dreadful. True, he had a purple patch at Southampton the season BEFORE we signed him but his overall record is modest and his cost per goal ratio (including transfer fee and wages) is still running not far short of �1 million a goal! So, dear James, thanks for putting in the effort for our cause but if you`re now at your best, it ain`t that brilliant, believe me. Less mouth and more goals would be gratefully received by all at
Goodison � then you might think of England! What are the rules? 2) What is the rule regarding red card suspensions and mid-season signings? 3) When Arteta, Ferguson and Neville were sent off earlier in the season, they had to serve 3-match bans. Fair and fine. But when Iain Turner was unfortunately dismissed against Blackburn, he was only given a single-game suspension. What cirteria is used to determine the length of the suspension? 4) More pointedly, how come 'special dispensation' can be granted to sign a player outside of the transfer window? It is great that Sander Westerveld made a solid (albeit losing) debut at Newcastle, but how come he was allowed to join us at all? Aren't the possibility of injury and suspension crises not the very reasons why managers have to make sure that they have enough players available to them? I am in no way anti-Everton, just wondering . . . . Question The not-so-mighty Dollar Everyone says 'soccer' and the only 'soccer players' they know are Pele and Beckham. My question is� I have been looking everywhere online for a long-sleeve Everton Jersey and the only ones I can find are in the UK. This sucks because you all pay with the ₤ we pay with $ (₤1 = $2). So when I see one on your sites I see it for ₤60 and shipping to the US is ₤20!! Now I love the Blues but I am not ready to spend $160 for a long-sleeved jersey. Can any of you help me out and point me in the right direction to find a cheaper site to get a long-sleeved jersey. Thank you all! Once a Blue, always a Blue Neville � England Moving on... is he worthy of a place in the national side? I'd have to say "No, he isn't." For effort and commitment you would be hard pushed to find someone better, but that doesn't qualify you for a 3-lions shirt either. What if Sven, for all his faults, has found a better alternative? Carrick, perhaps? I honestly think that Phil Neville has been a plus for Everton this
season, for which I will thank him. But, if he deserved to be in the
England squad, he would be. I won't accept either, that he is not in the
squad because he plays for Us. He is not in the squad because he is not
good enough to be there. In fact, I'd be hard pushed to find a player of
any nationality playing for us, who would get into the England set-up. |
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ToffeeWeb Letters from
February 2006 |
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