The Mail Bag
Managing the People ('s Club)
Comments (12)
I, like many Everton fans this close season, am incredibly disappointed by the apparent lack of progress made by EFC. Given the current market and our recent transfer history, I can understand the lack of noise from EFC officially concerning this. Nevertheless, what disappoints me more than anything is the ability (or lack thereof) of EFC to control the speculation around the team and to placate the fan-base through effective communications.
Who amongst the fans can seriously consider that Everton do not have a plan? OK ? don?t answer that ? but go with me on this will you?
Given the qualification for the Uuefa Cup, given the total balls-up made of Europe last time, given the recent history of selling our best players and being gazumped by others (like LFC for Sissoko) for the one?s we wanted? surely this time we have entered the close season knowing what to do and how to do it? The question of money may well prove to be a deciding factor, but DM and BK will (must surely) know how much moolah they have, and how much they can afford to throw around. I personally would splash £12M on Fernandes, because I think he has the next level of class that Everton needs as a club to progress?
However?
- I don?t have £12M
- I don?t manage EFC
The experiences of the past several seasons I hope will have taught EFC several valuable lessons about not being blabber-mouthed when it comes to prospective targets, not playing the fans for chumps by using the Echo to link to fantastic footballers that we could never afford? and I suspect that it has. Not many teams have entered the transfer fray yet; all expecting to have stupid prices quoted at them (£16M for Darren Bent!) so they are waiting until the last week to buy when clubs need to ?panic-sell? to get shot of their deadwood. So maybe, just maybe at the end of this close season, Everton will have bought who they wanted, for the money that they wanted and be where they think they should be.
However, and here?s the real killer? what about me???? (and you lot as well obviously!) Somebody tell me something PLEASE!! Even if all you have to say is ?Wait and see? then please at least tell me that ? give me the confidence that you know what you are doing.
Rupert Sullivan, Posted 29/06/2007 at 10:19:27
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Moyes had had 5 years now, most of the groundwork is in place. How about we all try and trust what he is doing. I am not 100% pro-Moyes and at times he has baffled me, but looking at the big picture I think we all know deep down there is no-one better out there available to Everton right now.
So, be patient and lets try and trust "the everton way" (see the OS article on timmy and mikky’s new deals). I for one prefer that option to our news being splashed all over the media every day/week.
We’l be buying all summer, so lets see who comes in first and if needs be slate Moyes/BK/KW after 31st Aug.
The things that people ALWAYS fail to consider is that people are human beings before they’re footballers. Think about it, you live in say London or anywhere you care to mention in Europe and all of a sudden a job offer comes up in the North of England - do you just go, ’ok I’ll be right there’ or do you consdier your life outside of football/work?
Family commitments/career prospects etc all have a huge part to play, something I think people forget when it comes to these matters.
We all tend to just say, ’yeah buy him or buy him’ without thinking about the consquences for ’him’
I just think that Everton could manage that relationship better.
This year, we evidently had a chance to buy Joey Barton for £6M, Fernades for £12M and Nugent for £10M (money allowing), early in the transfer window. Barton has since moved on to Newcastle, which may not have been bad thing as he may have been a disruptive influence on the squad. Nugent may yet still come to Goodison but at a much lower fee, and Fernandes may yet come back next season on another loan deal. So in both of those cases, biding our time may prove to be fruitful, and also save us a pile of cash.
So remember what your wise old granny used to say, patience is a virtue, and often she will be right.
’Keeping Mum’ is the name of the game.
In case anyone has forgotten (and how could you with these two!!) they are ALREADY Everton players. Whilst I am as pleased as the next Blue to have secured these two players on long term deals, let's not forget that both still had THREE years of their current contracts remaining. All we have done is pay them more money to prevent their heads being turned. Next they'll be telling us it's like having two new summer signings (y'know we've all heard that old chestnut before).
Having secured their signatures, surely the Board (& Manager) should now be focusing on bringing in NEW players of the quality to compliment the good ones we already have; not trying to use some con-trick to mask their total lack of activity (so far) in the transfer market... Can anyone tell me why Jagielka appears to be our ONLY transfer target?
Okay if he is the manager's No 1 target and we've got to wait, fair enough... but what's stopping us signing transfer target's 2, 3 & 4?
When he took over, Kenwright promised us transparency and a willingness to inform supporters of what's happening within and around the club... Bollocks!! He seems more interested in signing his next Joseph... Any dream will do eh!!... enough said !!
Whilst I do not for one minute expect the club to broadcast the identity of potential transfer targets for obvious reasons, I did expect us to have made some inrodes into strengthening the squad with both quality and quantity by now. Instead all we have to 'excite' us are the signings of two senior players who are already employed by the club and two 16-year-olds who will be nowhere near the first team.
Shortly after the end of last season, when Uefa Cup qualification was confirmed, I recall Mr Wyness (backed by Kenwright & Moyes) making the statement, "We know what we have to do this summer" and telling us how "busy" the club would be. WELL DON'T JUST TALK ABOUT IT... DO IT!!
At this moment in time, with now new arrivals iminent, and pre-season training due to start on Monday, all I can see is a repeat of our last debacle in Europe and another season of angst ? all this despite the club "Knowing What It Has To Do"... but yet again failing to do it!! Don't worry, Jagielka may be here before the 31st August ? ya never know!!!
When we qualified for the champions league just a few seasons ago I waited to see then what I saw was us get our arses kicked by admittedly a good side in Villareal and a shite side in Dynamo Bucharest through waiting and the club doing fuck all. Qualification for Europe was achieved months before and still no movemen in time, if the club fuck it up again just how will have waiting helped then?
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Yes, be concerned about the lack of action but this far more important than Management of the People. If the "real killer" is because YOU want someone to tell YOU something so that YOU can have confidence... I'm sorry but that is simply ridiculous.