After a quick bite to eat we were in the away pub formally known as the The Cap and Gown though now titled The Witton Arms and able to sink into a couple of shandy?s pre-kick off. The pub was fun and lively with some Belgian Evertonians in there enjoying themselves and making themselves heard. Was all a good laugh and teed us up nicely for an away day.
I got hold of the team news in the pub and wasn?t too surprised to see Gibson was plunged straight into the midfield alongside Fellaini. I was pleased to see Drenthe start in place of Bilyaletdinov and it was nice to see Duffy given the opportunity at centre-back alongside Heitinga. Generally, we were all quite pleased with the line-up. The comedy moment in the pub was when Dave said ?Isn?t that guy the spit of Rio Ferdinand??when on examination the fella bore no resemblance whatsoever.
On to the ground and, following a little confusion as to the whereabouts of our seats, we were ready for the match in good time amongst a rather sparse Villa Park, Everton attacking towards the Holt End in the first half. Mark Clattenburg refereeing an Everton game for the first time in roughly four years.
Following a generally tense start by both sets of teams, we began to settle. Petrov tested Howard quite early with a free kick but, other than that, Everton seized the initiative and created a couple of decent opportunities of which we really should have scored with at least one.
Saha nipped in with a header from an excellent set-piece ball from Baines which Shay Given saved well; and a little later Warnock nearly turned into his own net with Given again athletically saving. The key first half moment I suppose came when Saha looked set to score following a quality ball from Donovan. At the time it seemed incredible that he missed though having now seen it again you can see he is impeded by Hutton thus denying him the goalscoring opportunity. In hindsight it probably should have been a penalty and a red card though it did look a tough call for the referee in all fairness. Having said that, the way Saha has been in front of goal of late I wouldn't exactly have backed him to score anyhow.
Regardless, Everton weren?t doing badly. Heitinga and Duffy looked pretty comfortable at the back and Neville and particularly Baines were doing well. Fellaini was busy and Gibson appeared to settle in no time at all. Cahill was playing his best game in ages and Donovan was having a particularly good game. The only problem was the usual one ? the final third. Howard was also coping OK as exemplified by him making a decent save following a run and shot from Agbonlahor. As we tucked into our half-time pie, you could only be reasonably satisfied with the game, particularly given our last three turgid performances against Bolton, Tamworth and Tottenham.
Into the second half and, as I feared, Aston Villa had now upped their game and were having a bit more of a go at us. They got their rewards after I think Duffy failed to clear his lines correctly and Ireland got the ball back into the box for Bent to tuck home from close range. We were sat near to the Aston Villa fans by the corner of the ground and they began to chant ?We scored a goal, you must be shit? which had to make you chuckle.
Prior to Villa taking the lead, Fellaini had nearly scored with a header from another excellent free kick from Baines. Given repelled. That was just about all Everton had offered this half though and Moyes didn?t waste any time in changing it, replacing the increasingly frustrating Drenthe with Anichebe.
Eight minutes later the substitution was rewarded. Howard threw it long to Donovan on the wing who took the ball down and ran at Villa, cut inside of Collins and picked out a beauty of a ball to Anichebe who finished well, timing his run brilliantly. Relief as much as joy from the Everton support and we, of course, retorted with ?We scored a goal, you must be shit? in the direction of the Villa supporters. It was funny though not a nice reminder of how far down these two once great clubs have now fallen.
Everton probably had the better of the closing stages though you felt they were happy enough with the point. We came close to scoring on a few occasions from corners when the ball just wouldn?t quite fall for Cahill or Saha, whilst late substitute appearances from Bilyaletdinov and Stracqualursi failed to reap their rewards.
The ?Aarrrghhh? moment came when in the last minute of the game Cahill burst forward with both Anichebe and Donavon in space on the flanks. Feeling plucky, the Aussie let fly at goal from distance only to hit his effort high and wide. It was a shame because he?d had a good game. Strangely after the full time whistle, he ran straight off the pitch and down the tunnel.
Upon leaving Villa Park, whilst you had to be happy with a point considering we were behind in the game, I was also a little disappointed not to have won. Make no mistake, that Villa team is also suffering badly at the moment and were pretty much there for the taking.
Hopefully we can get back to winning ways at home to Blackburn Rovers next Saturday. Speaking of that game, I was relieved to hear Yakubu was sent off yesterday and will now be unable to come back to haunt us next weekend? just so long as they don?t sign Andy Johnson, as rumored, in time for next weekend's clash.
An easy trip home and not a bad day out at all. Let's get back on track next weekend.
Player Ratings:
Howard: Rather helpless with the goal. Otherwise he made a few decent stops and distributed well, particularly with his throwing. 7
Baines: Very good. Fine defensively and put in some super balls of which we really should have made more of. 7
Heitinga: Good. Very comfortable and did a good job of looking after Duffy on his debut. 7
Duffy: Probably at fault for the goal, hesitant on a few occasions, slow and seems to need decades on the ball before picking out a pass. Otherwise, I felt he looked very comfortable and settled into the game fine. Apart from probably his pace, all them other errors can be eradicated from his game in time. Not a bad his first Premier League start at all. 7
Neville: Coped just fine though nothing spectacular. 7
Fellaini: Very good. Used the ball well and intelligently plus was always working hard to win the ball back. 7
Gibson. Good debut. Seemed to settle in just fine. He passes the ball around well and gets stuck in. I think Rodwell could learn a thing or two from the way he plays. He?s won me over already. If we can just add a decent striker we might be OK after all. My man of the match. 7
Donovan: Really grew into the game. He?s obviously a very fit lad and works extremely hard and had a big, big hand in the goal of course. Certainly his best game so far. 7
Drenthe: Started well but was hopeless in the second half and was rightly subbed early. 5
Cahill: His best game in ages. Was very involved and passed the ball around and dribbled with the ball quite well. Only blot on his copybook was that stupid drive in the last minute. A good pass could have been very decisive there. Still? much better from Cahill. Let's hope there?s still time for him to find his goals this season. 7
Saha: He worked reasonably hard I suppose but nothing went for him. The times he?d try to be clever he?d just get tackled. When he tried to play a pass it was always stray, and when he was about to meet the ball with his head for what should have been a certain goal he was pulled back. Not a good afternoon for Saha. 5
Anichebe (for Drenthe): Good. Got involved and scored a goal. He?s sort of hit the ground running a bit since his latest injury. Let?s hope he can keep it up. 7
Bilyaletdinov (for Gibson): Couldn?t really get involved in the game. Put in one decent ball but that was about it. 6
Stracqualursi (for Saha): Not on for long, difficult to judge.
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