Season 2015-16 Opinion Talking Points
What Big Sam’s appointment would say about the current state of Everton FC

Okay, he hasn’t signed on the dotted line yet but he’s going to so better get used to it.
What’s perhaps more interesting are the insights that Big Sam’s appointment gives as to the thinking of Kenwright and Moshiri. Truly progressive companies work along the sound principles of forward planning. They can see trends and they can gear their businesses to take advantage. Everton isn’t run along these lines. It veers from one crisis to another and the cycle shows no signs of breaking.
Consider the last two managerial appointments. Quite what Bill Kenwright saw in Roberto Martinez, beyond nice shoes, I will never understand. Martinez had just presided over Wigan’s relegation. The hallmark of that team was a dodgy defence, a problem that persisted through Martinez’s regime at Everton.
Then we had Ronald Koeman. I sit in a marketing office in London, with no obvious connections to football. Lo and behold, as Koeman was being appointed, I got an e mail forwarded to me by my Saints-supporting colleague which told me exactly how things had unravelled at Southampton. It entirely predicted what would happen at Everton – Koeman being deeply unpopular with players and fans as his arrogance shone through.
All of this suggests a business philosophy that doesn’t do due diligence and certainly has no forward plan.
And so, to the impending appointment of Big Sam. His USP, unique selling proposition, to Everton’s owners is that he has never presided over a relegation. This appointment backs up the contention that there is no forward plan whatsoever at Everton except to stay in the division. This is where the money is made and this is all the Everton owners care about.
Allardyce is 63. He’s not exactly the future of football. Looking ahead, Nil Satis nisi optimum has never made less sense. Everton’s real “mission statement” now should be “make do and mend” and hope it all sort of comes out okay.
Finally, I would apply the same thoughts to the new ground. Nothing the owners say or do gives me any comfort on the new ground and I think their short-termism and mistakes on manager selection equally applies to the supposed new ground.
So, what does the future hold? Staying in the division. That’s all.
Sam will deliver that but don’t expect any plan beyond the end of this season. Return to Talking Points index : Add your Comments »
Reader Comments (45)
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
2 Posted 07/11/2017 at 21:36:21
A pair of ball bags in charge of this great club. Big Sam... how fucking low can it get?
3 Posted 08/11/2017 at 13:44:24
It never ceases to amaze me that people are holding very senior posts at our football club who were not vetted properly and who were appointed on the basis of dodgy relationships with the “right peopleâ€. Nothing's going to change while this continues and it's depressing that so many Evertonians don't seem to be bothered by this other than blaming Kenwright for everything. True, he is more than happy to see more Fokkers appointed but the composition of the board needs to come under a lot more scrutiny; it's frightening how little real expertise resides in the people now deciding who the next manager will be.
4 Posted 08/11/2017 at 14:42:05
I think big Sam wants an extended contract, something we are not prepared to offer. The board should make the statement quickly and end the uncertainty. No one else wants the job at this stage and who can blame them, we're in freefall. Good luck to Unsy.
5 Posted 08/11/2017 at 17:36:06
6 Posted 08/11/2017 at 17:41:51
Ticks every box for me and he's not Dutch or English.
Go get him now.
7 Posted 08/11/2017 at 17:53:12
It would be between Unsworth and Allardyce until a new, and high-profile manager, is installed. And my money would be on Unsworth rather than Allardyce.
8 Posted 08/11/2017 at 17:56:16
I just imagine the gates of the ground being boarded up to stop him gaining access.
Surely Boy's Pen Bill has learnt something over the years in charge
9 Posted 08/11/2017 at 18:04:55
The paucity on the field is a reflection of the mess off it. Who is in charge?
No structure, no sleak operation, just a lack of business savvy.
We all know the board needs refreshing, to be polite, and a media officer needs to be appointed. Everton need to control the narrative not be led like an old nag to the knackers yard.
If the board believe his appointment is a short term necessity then they will be badly mistaken. Everton will be yanked from the TV schedules, the minimum only. Attendances will drop and convincing players to come to a club who think themselves a relegation candidate will result in more poor recruitment.
I don't think in a million years Kenwright would appoint Sam, this if the media are to be believed must be a Moshiri driven idea.
Thats the point, the lack of leader and accountability has created a vacuum. It has been filled by any ‘Jonny who' except Everton. We look rudderless and inept.
How can Allardyce, Dyche & Unsworth all have been favourites for job at one point? It smacks of confusion.
Everton need to man up, place on record their plan and settle this shitshow down.
10 Posted 08/11/2017 at 18:10:11
Focus on what we have now not the past or the might be future. Unsworth is still in charge until I see different.
11 Posted 08/11/2017 at 18:42:14
(a) There's no clear-cut favorite who's currently available, so the board would prefer to wait until the summer
(b) If Allardyce has been sounded out, he's trying to leverage the situation into a long-term deal that the club isn't prepared to give
(c) The board has enough faith in Unsworth to allow him to steer the ship until the end of the season
Also, re: Jonathan's question about Martinez's appointment, if you go back and watch his introductory press conference (which makes for some pretty comical viewing), it seems pretty clear that he did his homework, walked into the interview, fawned over Everton's history and had Kenwright eating out of his hand. It all looks pretty embarrassing, in retrospect.
12 Posted 08/11/2017 at 18:57:28
As you say, if they can't decide it will be Unsy for so long as we don't lose half a dozen games on the trot !
Then it will be back 'to their original favourite ,Big Sam !
13 Posted 08/11/2017 at 19:00:06
14 Posted 08/11/2017 at 19:16:32
15 Posted 08/11/2017 at 19:26:52
16 Posted 08/11/2017 at 19:30:52
The current state of the team is transitory given the finances involved with Moshiri, even if Usmanov doesn't come on board, and the days of low-level managerial appointments, certainly any long-term ones, over probably over. So really, threads like this belong in cloud cuckoo land.
17 Posted 08/11/2017 at 19:32:08
18 Posted 08/11/2017 at 19:39:12
19 Posted 08/11/2017 at 19:53:03
20 Posted 08/11/2017 at 20:01:35
21 Posted 08/11/2017 at 20:04:47
22 Posted 08/11/2017 at 20:06:05
23 Posted 08/11/2017 at 20:09:33
24 Posted 08/11/2017 at 20:14:32
I've gone from thinking who should be doing what at Everton to thinking the picture is really, crystal clear. We don't have a striker worth his salt and lets be totally honest Niasse is shite. I mean come on, the boy is seriously lacking. But, what he does so well is that he chases lost causes, he makes something happen out of absolutely nothing and he makes you scream the team on. The boy, by default, will become a legend. That is a FACT. He really has a foot like a 20p piece but god bless him he runs like Thomas the tank on speed. He chases so many lost causes, so many through balls and so many crosses that eventually one or two would bounce his way. It's like a rubber ball on cocaine.
Now BK is on a winner all ways, he knows it, because we blues just love chasing lost causes. We love it. Everton had bigger gates in the 90's when we were chasing survival than in the 80's when we were winning the titles. It's a given that we Evertonians want a game fit only for gladiators, where the winner takes all, fuck your 40 passes, fuck your possession, just let the opposition go 2 nil up and we, the mighty blues will somehow get 3 goals and then, the 3 points. Thank you, now fuckoff.
For me, Unsworth can see us through this shite, he knows that our current formation is fit only for gladiators where boots and tackles fly, when really, its game on. We will provide the encore, the support that has been missing for several years, but it made a come back on Saturday. We've been doing this since 1878, so no Premiership club, that includes Chelski, Citeee, Mourinhoo or even the shite across the park can match us. We have been in the top flight a long, long time and we are now going to show them how we do it.
25 Posted 09/11/2017 at 02:50:02
26 Posted 09/11/2017 at 05:10:05
27 Posted 09/11/2017 at 06:16:54
Interesting to note how stable the percentages are despite the substantial increase in voters from 1610 (when I first looked) to now, with 2709.
28 Posted 09/11/2017 at 06:19:06
It's the Premier League, FFS!!!
29 Posted 09/11/2017 at 06:47:40
30 Posted 09/11/2017 at 06:57:05
Our next three games are Palace away, Southampton away and West Ham at home. These are three games that give us, and Unsworth, a huge opportunity to really steady the ship. Two wins and a draw, or even a win and two draws, would give the team more confidence and it would give Unsworth more time to get to grips with being the manager of the senior team.
Those brings us up to the end of November. By this time we should be doing okay. It may seem a bit of a gamble to stick with Unsworth but I think going for Allardyce right now really is the option of last resort.
31 Posted 09/11/2017 at 07:19:28
Ever since Ben Hur landed the big gamble in the chariot race, the odds makers have reacted to what we (the punters) do. Somebody places a semi decent bet on anything and they are programed to making you think the punter "knows something". It also gives them a good excuse to chop the odds and entice more mugs in. . You/we dictated the markets, so why the fuck do so may of us see them as an indication or a sign ? You may as well be guided by the markets on virtual horse racing.
Only members of a smart board (and I exclude ours) will REALLY know who will get the gig and if they are smart (again excluding ours) and they want to make a killing they will ensure their bets are placed at the very last minute, thus catching Mr Oddsmaker with his kecks down . . They'll also get somebody else to place their bets.
Forget the Markets, they're about as informative as the tabloids
32 Posted 09/11/2017 at 07:28:06
33 Posted 09/11/2017 at 07:29:25
34 Posted 09/11/2017 at 07:32:39
Unless BFS is given the gig before we face Palace, the chair is Rhino's. If he wins, not even this board would be stupid enough to remove the fans favourite and take a gamble on the guy nobody really wants
35 Posted 09/11/2017 at 08:05:50
36 Posted 09/11/2017 at 08:25:11
If we get stuffed by Palace the fanbase would start panicking again and they (the board ) would be straight on the phone.
Unsie needs to follow up that lucky win with a least a point down there or the doomsday scenario will be upon us.
37 Posted 09/11/2017 at 08:51:57
After Unsworth's first 2 games I was heading into Sam Allardyce territory. After his third game there is a glimmer of hope but I would say he has a hell of a job on his hands to turn this around.
Dyche has never appealed to me as an Everton manager and I reckon he would be mad to leave Burnley for us in the current circumstances.
Silva is doing OK at Watford and would, like Dyche, be mad to jump ship after just being appointed at a new club subsequent to being relegated with Hull.
Simeone, is a high profile manager but everyone seems to think that Moshiri is in la la land if he thinks he can lure him or anyone like him to Goodison.
Sam the other candidate on the "short list" is not on the list according to Sam and is probably now out of the question. I don't reckon the board would be game to appoint him anyway.
I think I may be getting cynical after the events of the last 3 years, but the thought has occurred to me that "the board" are playing a blinder.
38 Posted 15/11/2017 at 21:00:31
39 Posted 30/11/2017 at 09:24:04
Everton doing so perfectly encapsulates our expectations and mentality, ie: that of Stoke, West Brom and Southampton.
If it wasn't for our heritage and our fantastically loyal supporters, we would have no standing in the game at all.
Bill Kenwright has run this club like a corner shop, whilst the six we aspire to compete with have grown into megastores.
Allardyce may well 'save us from relegation', but what happens next? Is that it? And is that all the board expect nowadays?
40 Posted 30/11/2017 at 09:36:43
It doesn't encapsulate our expectations; it encapsulates our current predicament. We have to put the fire out before we can resume building the house.
41 Posted 30/11/2017 at 09:49:35
The club is two points off 9th place with a shell-shocked Huddersfield up next.
Only the panic merchants believe we are in a relegation battle... I wonder have any of them seen how shite some of the teams down there are.
Unsworth has confounded his critics, They said the job was to big for him, but he has taken us from a relegation spot to 13th, he has given us our best performance of the season and the only decision he has to make now is whether to give his critics a mental one finger or two.
That's three wins from six Premier League games and, try as they might, his detractors cannot change that irrefutable fact.
I wonder if big Sam will build on Rhino's climb or the table or have us slipping down the table again? Time will tell...
42 Posted 30/11/2017 at 09:57:45
"Unsworth has confounded his critics"... What? He has done no such thing; rather he has proven himself lost at this level.
43 Posted 30/11/2017 at 13:02:27
------------------
And they'd be right. What fucking future plans are gonna be made if youa re not in The league? Check out Leeds, Villa and the rest. Until they get their arses out of that league, they have no futures. and even then, they will likely have championship players and be in real danger of going straight back down.
Everton have players on six figure weekly salaries. There would be a fore sale. Why would any club show us charity. "You want him off your wage bill?" £20 million tops for Sigurdsson. Enough to pay th eliabilities still owing on him. And then the rest...
We are in shit creek. If we survive, there will be much talk of dumping Sam. Thanks for the help, but bye. It would be tough on Sam, but what does he expect from that style of football? And what do we expect after months of dross, inept defending and little evidence of goal threat?
44 Posted 30/11/2017 at 14:54:36
As for the insults, let's just stop and give him a chance. I remember the treacherous Moyes getting a standing ovation at Goodison when he was leaving to go to Man Utd (Yes Utd, for god's sake) after doing very little for us apart from creating a legacy of getting well beat at Anfield and struggling at other top grounds and getting dumped out of cups by shit teams with plenty of hammerings to boot.
He showed no respect to Everton and it finally came out at the end with his underhand dealings with Man Utd. Once again last night he showed his talent for making it easy for the opposition. So if Allardyce improves on that great!
Quite the irony that the player Moyes ensured left Everton earlier than he would have done, got the hat-trick to spoil his night. The player that the some idiots say is finished. Will some people ever learn!
45 Posted 30/11/2017 at 18:21:44
Bill joined later. But the intent is clear. Moshiri's appointment. Bill clearly didn't agree and has been demoted to the ensemble.
I'm petrified about the appointment, I'm sure this isn't the stop gap everyone thinks it is. Moshiri's and Allardyce's rhetoric sound anything but a chance to kick on, nothing about saving us from relegation.
I wouldn't be surprised if he has an impact, the squad has talent and skills, despite hiding that from us in recent memory. So that's why I find it so galling, any reasonable organizer will get more from this team. It's not broke so bad that it needs life support.
After the 3rd went in, we actually showed a little confidence and knocked it around. Davies almost in an instant reverted back to the one touch demon, instead of the headless chicken he's become.
There was no need to panic, but the real reason we are is the boards lack of succession planning. Get your replacement lined up before you fire the fella.
Add Your Comments
In order to post a comment, you need to be logged in as a registered user of the site.
Or Sign up as a ToffeeWeb Member — it's free, takes just a few minutes and will allow you to post your comments on articles and Talking Points submissions across the site.
1 Posted 07/11/2017 at 21:25:15