Manchester United’s veteran manager Sir Alex Ferguson revealed in August that he believed a fully fit Everton squad had an outside chance of qualifying for the Champions League this season.
Despite the pre-season optimism, three defeats out of six, to Blackburn, Aston Villa and Newcastle, have left Everton winless and propping up the bottom of the Barclays Premier League. To make matters worse, The Toffees were also embarrassingly knocked out of the Carling Cup by Brentford at Griffin Park last week, currently the bottom side in League One.
David Moyes and his men were booed off the pitch following their last home game at Goodison Park, a 1-0 defeat to newly promoted Newcastle. That shambolic display was symptomatic of the club’s inconsistency so far this season. It seemed Everton had turned a corner following their dramatic injury-time comeback against Manchester United in early September. However it soon proved to be another false dawn following two draws and a defeat since that epic two-minute double salvo from Mikel Artea and Tim Cahill. It remains the worst start to a season for the Blues in 16 years and Moyes admits he is worried by the current state of affairs.
Moyes said: “We started the season with the belief, coming off two defeats in 24 last year, that we would start the season well. It didn’t happen and that affects your confidence.
“It’s disappointing because I didn’t expect this. We expected to start better after the good run we had last year.
“We want to do better and nobody cares more than the players, I can see that by their attitude and the way they are training.”
Everton’s players showed some of that training ground commitment and desire down beside the River Thames last Saturday as they battled their way to a spirited 0-0 draw against Fulham. The Blues didn’t look like a side bottom of the table as they played with confidence and adventure. You could even argue they were unlucky not to grab all three points against their unbeaten South West London opponents.
Everton finished eighth last season despite a catalogue of injuries to key first-team players, which included defensive rock Phil Jagielka and playmaker Arteta missing a large chunk of the season. The injury curse has continued into this season with defender Jack Rodwell and striking duo Louis Saha and Victor Anichebe suffering long-term injuries inside the opening weeks of the new campaign.
The fixture list does not get any easier for The Toffees over the next few weeks, starting with an away trip to Birmingham on Saturday. Alex McLeish’s side are unbeaten at St Andrew’s in over a year and will not provide the best recovery tonic for a side struggling with form. This is followed by a Merseyside Derby against rivals Liverpool and a trip to Tottenham the week after.
Despite the club’s current position and difficult upcoming fixtures, Everton Chairman Bill Kenwright still believes the club can make it into Europe. He said:
“I can only say as a fellow fan I don’t believe we will be down there for much longer.
“The name of the game isn’t to get out of relegation trouble, believe me, but to get up towards the European places and I know that’s what everyone, especially the manager, is aiming for.”
Everton have too good a squad, as well as one of the best managers in the league in Moyes, to remain in the bottom three for much longer. Despite a woeful start, Everton showed enough grit and fight in their last game to get out of their current predicament and still fulfil that early season promise.
You can read more of my blogs HERE or follow me on Twitter.
Top Ten: Most bizarre goals of all-time
TOP TEN: Misses in football history
Andy Gray’s top commentary moments
