ToffeeWeb - Season 2007-08

The Mail Bag

Doing the hard work

Let me nail my colours to the mast; I am a Moyes supporter. There is continued debate on this site regarding Moyes with, at the extremes, some pretty polarised views which require no further elabortion here. I would however like to offer my thoughts on an area that is less frequently discussed.

I believe that Moyes (and his team) are endeavouring to build something on solid foundations. There seems to me to be an unprecedented effort to recruit young and promising talent to create a level of stability not seen at this club for as long as I can remember. I not not able to back this with facts and figures as I have neither the knowledge to hand nor the time for the required research necessary. It is however a perception, a feeling that this is how it is and I steadfastly believe that this can only be good for our club.

Contrast this with the the strategy of everyone's "second favourite club" Newcastle. Didn't we just know that they would go for the highest profile manager possible? Never mind the quality feel the width. Now we got all the replica wearing retards on side ? what do we do next? I know... let's throw as much cash as we can at high profile, "today's news"-type players. Step three: wonder why we're still shite after spunking all that money....

Back to Moyes, as stated earlier I believe that his approach is different, he is still doing the hard work when it may be easier to become complacement given the high regard he is held in by his employers and probably other suitors. He is aiming to create a legacy. How good is that in today's short term, instant success driven environment? Moysiah or not this is creditable and commendable and for that he should be rightly proud and I for one thank him for his efforts.
Peter Jones, Wirral Posted 27/01/2008 at 11:06:44

back Return to the Mail Bag

Comments

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

Tony Williams
1 Posted 27/01/2008 at 17:29:02

Good piece Peter.

I think Moyes is a victim of his early "success" in getting to the Champion’s League Qualifiers in 2005.

An example of this I see in myself, as after the games in 2004/5 we would all end up in the Chepstow singing our heads off for hours on end, as though this was the greatest thing that had happened.

Now however after a game I go to Orry’s for a few drinks, OK maybe more than a few but there is nowhere near the same atmosphere or excitement as back in 2004/5.

God forbid I have become like a redshiite and expect us to be up there all the time now, I certainly hope not. I now do expect us to win the games I attend, whereas in the past years I was on the edge of my seat praying not to get beaten.

He has done brilliantly for us but you have hit on the most important aspect of Moyes’s job, he should not ever become complacent, as it will come back to bite him in the arse.

He need to keep his focus and continue to learn, as I expect even Ferguson and Wenger do, and continue to strive for greatness.

I hope he can take us even further and with some backing by the board and a little more adventurous footy, I can’t see why not.

Neil Pearse
2 Posted 27/01/2008 at 17:47:44

The key word here I think is STABILITY, and it is clear that Everton’s whole strategy as a club is now based on this. You can see it everywhere: ensuring that our two most critical players as of last summer (Arteta, Cahill) signed long term contracts, even getting two long-term Evertonians such as Osman and Hibbert (who may ultimately be mainly squad players) signed up for the long term. It’s all about building a settled squad, which is steadily improved over time.

Players are signed cautiously, often on loan first, to make sure they fit in. Even with the Yak I am sure that one of the influential factors was Joey Yobo supporting his mate coming to the club (and I suspect that Arteta’s support for Manny had some influence there). I very much hope, but don’t have much doubt, that getting Lescott signed up long-term is currently one of the club’s highest priorities. (It ought to be!)

As Peter says, given the recurrent chaos of most other clubs around us, maintaining this stability really does seem to be our best bet if we are ’move to the next level’. At various times I have thought that Kenwright needed to go to get in richer owner, and Moyes needed to go to bring in a more sophisticated manager. Now I really do believe that - despite the fact that both of course make mistakes - we clearly have a stable team at the top, and this stability itself may ultimately be the ’ingredient x’ which enables us to challenge the richer clubs above us.

Paul Columb
3 Posted 27/01/2008 at 18:55:47

I agree on the stability front w.r.t. the club? s and Moyes efforts to keep our most valuable under contract and a slow building approach in the face of limited resources. However, unless Moyes becomes more ambitious in the short-term and on a game-by-game basis as had been seen prior to Arsenal at home (albeit for a short stint), that stabiltiy will turn to fragility. If we don?t display a confident, attacking approach with real belief that we can penetrate the sky 4 in ALL games ESPECIALLY against those we wish to leapfrog, the Lescotts, Cahills and Artetas will move along and the stable shithouse comes caving in. Pity it only takes 5-10 years to build again.

I think this Wednesday will be a true test of our balls against a spurs team currently playing with the belief and venom that we should dispite our trio missing at the African nations. Let's hope Moyes has more ambition than a lone AJ and a return to hoofball ?strategy?. There?s been a lot of ?feel good? around the club seemingly in response to our recent style of play so let's let Moyes know that a return to his dark ways just won?t cut it for the Goodison faithful. Let Goodison speak on Wednesday. COYB

Peter Jones
4 Posted 27/01/2008 at 19:11:21

Dear Paul,

Whilst I appreciate your comments I think that you have missed the point of my post.

Regardless of what is happening on the pitch something bigger is happening off it. You are right however, 3 points on Wednesday would be fantastic.
NSNO

Paul Columb
5 Posted 27/01/2008 at 19:38:01

Hey Peter....in some respects I agree that my post was a little off the thread, but in other ways not. I don?t think what happens each week on the pitch can be seperated from what happens behind the scenes with squad building. Each and every club should be looking to their academy and talented young signings to form the foundation for future squads and invest heavily in staff and facilities for this purpose. It makes sense from a footballing and purely economical front and Everton have done a decent job of it over the years. This effort may be spiking out of neccessity with our limited resouces, and I agree that it?s a positive thing all round.

But what we invest in these players, whether brought up through the academy or bought at low cost, needs to be repaid in silverware, not purely the opportunity to cash in by flogging them to clubs with coin so that their reign continues indefinitely. Our success and ambition on the pitch NOW is what will make the scheme work in the club's long-term success (not purely economically).

Hopefully Finch Farm and continued support of the academy?s ambitions in combination with Moyes?s savvy signings coupled with a balls-to-the-wall ambition will put us back where we believe we belong. Here?s to your 3 points from Spurs, Peter!! COYB

Paul O'Hanlon
6 Posted 27/01/2008 at 20:00:36

Agree with your article Peter. Last season I was pretty envious of the squad Spurs were building, they seemed to be buying all the top young british players available! This season though I wouldn?t swap our squad for anyones outside the top 3. Moyes has done it the right way, slowly building a talented squad of hungry players whilst bringing the average age down.

Let?s hope the progression continues in the summer after we qualified for the Champions League!

Dan McKie
7 Posted 27/01/2008 at 21:51:45

I think South Africa are as good as out because their goal difference is rubbish, here?s hoping Nigeria blow it too!

David Moore
8 Posted 27/01/2008 at 22:57:43

Looks like peanuts set up the Sth African goal tonight.