A Christmas Carol

Not even two short weeks ago, the feeling around Everton was overwhelmingly positive.

Everton had won three of their last four matches, seeing off Nottingham Forest and their former boss Sean Dyche with ease.

Thierno Barry had scored his first Everton goal, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall was in rampant form in midfield and even the impending departures of Iliman Ndiaye and Idrissa Gueye to the Africa Cup of Nations could not dampen spirits.

Everton had done the legwork, collecting valuable points ahead of clashes with Arsenal and Chelsea — title favourites and Champions League hopefuls, respectively.

These games were always going to be tough, but then fate struck a cruel blow, too.

Not only did Ndiaye and Gueye leave for AFCON, but Dewsbury-Hall limped off early on against Chelsea. Jack Grealish is carrying a niggle in his hamstring. James Garner is one booking away from a suspension. Everton are down to a skeleton crew.

Saturday’s 1-0 defeat to Arsenal exposed Everton’s issues. Without Ndiaye and Dewsbury-Hall, they were shorn of the key cogs in not only linking the midfield and attack, but helping them to maintain possession.

Dwight McNeil, handed his first Premier League start of the season, was poor out on the right, and lacks the pace, skill or tenacity to thrive in this set-up, especially in that position. Carlos Alcaraz, starting in the number 10 position, was incredibly erratic. Barry was starved of service and Beto came on to little avail. Tyler Dibling also failed to impress from the bench, but does need more minutes to regain confidence and start to show why Everton were so intent on bringing him in in the first place.

However, for all Everton’s attacking weaknesses, it was ultimately a moment of madness from Jake O’Brien that proved decisive against the Gunners, and a little under a year into Moyes’ tenure, the overall progress is clear to see.

Last Friday marked a year since The Friedkin Group assumed ownership of the club. In that time, they have set about reshaping the club’s leadership.

Progress, they say, is not linear, though, and there will be — and has been — bumps in the road.

However, since it’s Christmas time, it seems like the ideal moment to stop and breathe. There are plenty of positives, and plenty of negatives; plenty of things going well, and plenty of things that must improve.

But for the first time since the 2020-21 season, Everton have reached Christmas in the top half of the Premier League.

And while the scars of the last few seasons should stop any Evertonian from declaring guaranteed safety just yet, it is much nicer not to feel the daunting need to look over one’s shoulders heading into the festive crunch.

Everton will reach Christmas Day on 24 points — 11 clear of the bottom three. They have won seven games, drawn three and lost seven. This time last year, the Toffees had played only 16 times, compared to the 17 this term. They had, strangely enough, lost fewer matches (six), but they had only 16 points and were 15th, just four points above the relegation zone.

Progress, then. Clear, tangible progress, eight points worth, to be exact, even if there has been some understandable frustration, given how far away Everton are from being able to really compete with teams in the upper echelon of the table. Of the seven league games the Toffees have lost in 2025-26, six of them have come against the sides competing in the Champions League.

There will be plenty more frustration to come, but compared to the ghosts of Christmas past, every Evertonian should relish the chance to breathe a little easier and, for now, look up rather than down.

 

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