Everton - Midseason report
Thursday, 17 Jan 2008 12:43
A look back over the first half of the 2007/08 season, and a look forward to what is still to come.
The season so far
Everton finished sixth in the league and qualified for the Uefa Cup in the 2006/07 season, and surely the best that Toffees fans could have hoped for at the start of the year was a repeat performance, especially as Tottenham Hotspur – the fifth-placed team – spent so heavily in the close season.
However, Everton now find themselves challenging not just for fifth place but for fourth and a spot in the Champions League – and one of the other teams in the mix is none other than Merseyside rivals Liverpool.
The dream scenario for the rest of the season? It doesn't need to be spelt out – securing a Champions League spot at the expense of the neighbours.
But before we get ahead of ourselves, let's review the season so far.
The highpoint was undoubtedly a 7-1 drubbing of Sunderland at Goodison Park. The low-point is still fresh in the memory – a home defeat to the mighty Oldham Athletic in the third round of the FA Cup.
Equally frustrating, though, was the defeat against Liverpool at Goodison in October after a catalogue of refereeing howlers including a failure to spot the fact that Jamie Carragher was suffering from a bout of amnesia and had convinced himself he was playing rugby.
That won't matter at the end of the season though if the Blues beat the Reds in the race for fourth.
The new signings
The headline arrival was undoubtedly that of Yakubu, who was signed from Middlesbrough for a club record fee of £11.25 million.
After taking his time to settle in and adapt to Everton's style of play – manager David Moyes had to inform him of the need to up his workrate on more than one occasion – Yak has hit form in spectacular fashion, scoring nine Premiership goals and 12 in all competitions prior to his departure for the African Cup of Nations.
Meanwhile, loan signing Steven Pienaar has impressed on the wing, and Leighton Baines has provided much-needed competition for places on the left side of defence.
Phil Jagielka has taken longer than the others to find his feet, but even he is now starting to turn in some decent performances. All in all, an impressive bunch of recruits.
Star man
Everton's team seems to be full of key players – Tim Howard has once again proved dependable in goal, Joseph Yobo and Phil Neville have been solid in defence, Tim Cahill re-emphasised his importance to the team by revitalising the side on his return from injury early on in the season, Mikel Arteta continues to provide the creative spark and Yakubu has started banging in the goals.
But one man has stood out head and shoulders above the rest this season.
For not only has Joleon Lescott turned in some mature performances at the back, he has also weighed in with some crucial goals.
Indeed, he is currently the club's third-top scorer – behind Yakubu and Tim Cahill – with six. His club form has been such that Steve McClaren decided to reward him by playing him out of position for England against Russia in the crucial Euro 2008 qualifier.
Hopefully Fabio Capello will have more sense than the 'wally with the brolly' but if Lescott sustains his current form he has every chance of being named in the Italian's first squad in a few weeks' time.
Manager approval rating
David Moyes: 9/10
Unbelievably, David Moyes has suggested that had Everton been knocked out of the Uefa Cup away to Metalist Kharkiv earlier on in the season he might have been out of a job.
According to Moyes, victory was essential as he needed to prove that he is capable of leading Everton into the latter rounds of a leading European competition. However, having won through, Moyes has been imbued with a renewed sense of confidence and he now believes that his team has the ability to beat anyone on its day.
He has also been able to celebrate ten years in management without ever getting the sack.
Moyes, though, still thinks he can improve – and this goes for his team as well. The trouble is, expectations will soon start to heighten and before he knows it he will be under pressure to qualify for Europe at a canter and add silverware to the trophy cabinet. Starting with this year's Uefa Cup...
January wish-list
With Yakubu, Yobo and Pienaar off to the African Cup of Nations, gaps have opened up in the team.
David Moyes has already acted to improve the midfield by signing former player Manuel Fernandes on loan, while Andrew Johnson will be champing at the bit to replace Yakubu up front and highly rated 18-year-old defender/midfielder Dan Gosling has joined from Plymouth Argyle.
This is all well and good, but do Everton really have the strength in depth to cover for the loss of their best players?
That is what Moyes needs to address if his team are to continue the good form shown so far this season and challenge Liverpool, Manchester City, Aston Villa et al for fourth place right until the last game of the season.
Tim Lesnik
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