“Clear Progress”

[ToffeeTim]

Can play bingo with the buzz words mate.

4 emails in the space of a month.

A lot of it is just spin. 10th after being 12th is progress and 49 to 59 points is "progress" based on the ordinary dictionary meaning of the word.

But it's definitely not success and that's what matters. No one should be even close to content after the second half of the season. There should be urgency to improve rather than patience being shown.

 

[Death]

Points total.

First win anfield 20 off years. 25 years at arsenal. Record breaking points v the super six. Many many hoodoos and mental blocks have been lifted in just one season. 3 points between 10th and Europe. Just couldn't get over the line in the end.

Now its up to everton if they wanna give carlo the team he needs to build on it to play better togger v the lesser sides with this new found confidence against the big sides.

 

[Daveysgingerlovechild]

"Has connected with Evertonians"

I hate that sort of thing tbh - I couldn't care if the fanbase love or loathe the manager and neither should the board/owners - Evertonians love the manager because of what he's done at other clubs not because of any success here like Kendall, Royle etc.

Its the sort of reactive rubbish that has plagued our club for years in terms of recruitment "lets appoint x,y,z as the fans will love them and they play a,b,c type of football" rather than an actual plan in place in terms of which managers/players coming in will actually fit in the club/long term plans.

Personally I think the club are a bit damned if they do, damned if they don't on this. Koeman aroused suspicion from the off due to the sense he just was not arsed.

But agree, being chummy and well liked with the fans isn't really enough is it? You may as well put Speedo Mick in charge. Not saying Mick is a bad manager. Hmm, maybe give him a go? Wouldn't be the maddest shout I've seem.

 

[Toffe3m4n]

Ancelotti insists he is "quite happy" with how the season went, citing the team's 10 point improvement on last season and impressive victories over Liverpool and other sides who finished above them.

But the Italian once again referenced the Blues' wretched home form and says the summer recruitment will be based around correcting the team's results at Goodison.

"Quite happy because we improved compared to last season," Ancelotti said.

"We have 10 more points on the table, we had some fantastic results - we won the derby, we won against some top teams but we were not good at home and this is where we have to improve and work in the summer to find the right players to improve the squad."

He added: "We have an idea, a clear plan on how we can improve the squad. In the summer we will follow this plan. We have to put, in general, more quality in the squad to try to play more attractive football, to have more quality from the back. This is where we are working."


^ Ancelotti's exact words after the match yesterday, for what it's worth.
.

 

[messymascot]

There is progress. Some of us believed we could do it. Unfortunately this was forgetting that it's Everton we are talking about and somehow we always grab defeat from the jaws of victory. We ended the season 9 points off top 4 which is the closest we've been in a long time. I think the choker is we ended up in 10th and there were so many missed opportunities.

 

[DaChunk]

Ancelotti insists he is "quite happy" with how the season went, citing the team's 10 point improvement on last season and impressive victories over Liverpool and other sides who finished above them.

But the Italian once again referenced the Blues' wretched home form and says the summer recruitment will be based around correcting the team's results at Goodison.

"Quite happy because we improved compared to last season," Ancelotti said.

"We have 10 more points on the table, we had some fantastic results - we won the derby, we won against some top teams but we were not good at home and this is where we have to improve and work in the summer to find the right players to improve the squad."

He added: "We have an idea, a clear plan on how we can improve the squad. In the summer we will follow this plan. We have to put, in general, more quality in the squad to try to play more attractive football, to have more quality from the back. This is where we are working."


^ Ancelotti's exact words after the match yesterday, for what it's worth.
.

Grim.

 

[ForeverBlue92]

Personally I think the club are a bit damned if they do, damned if they don't on this. Koeman aroused suspicion from the off due to the sense he just was not arsed.

But agree, being chummy and well liked with the fans isn't really enough is it? You may as well put Speedo Mick in charge. Not saying Mick is a bad manager. Hmm, maybe give him a go? Wouldn't be the maddest shout I've seem.

Its same with the coaching staff - why is Big Dunc Carlo's assistant? Is it because he's one of the games best up and coming assistant coaches? Is he a master tactician? Did Carlo truly want him? Or is it because he's an Everton Cult Hero who tossed kids around Goodison on the touchline at the Chelsea game?

Nothing will change at this club until the culture changes thats the reality not many fans like to admit.

The Spectre of Bill Kenwright still looms largely over this club make no mistake.

 

[Simon Buttle]

Its same with the coaching staff - why is Big Dunc Carlo's assistant? Is it because he's one of the games best up and coming assistant coaches? Is he a master tactician? Did Carlo truly want him? Or is it because he's an Everton Cult Hero who tossed kids around Goodison on the touchline at the Chelsea game?

Nothing will change at this club until the culture changes thats the reality not many fans like to admit.

The Spectre of Bill Kenwright still looms largely over this club make no mistake.

He does kind of remind me a bit of Ernst Stavro Blofeld just hovering about in the background.

 

[GrandOldTeam]

Its same with the coaching staff - why is Big Dunc Carlo's assistant? Is it because he's one of the games best up and coming assistant coaches? Is he a master tactician? Did Carlo truly want him? Or is it because he's an Everton Cult Hero who tossed kids around Goodison on the touchline at the Chelsea game?

Nothing will change at this club until the culture changes thats the reality not many fans like to admit.

The Spectre of Bill Kenwright still looms largely over this club make no mistake.

We're back to blaming Duncan Ferguson then?

He's a potential Everton manager, that's why. He's learning from one of the very best. When Ancelotti leaves, he's a candidate to step in.

Lukaku, Calvert-Lewin have credited him with improving their game no end.

Really is cringeworthy how fans start to blame coaches like Ferguson and Davide Ancelotti when things aren't going well.

 

[Furey1878]

10 points, 2 cup QFs, players who have improved the squad.

We need to be seeing another increase in ~10 points for next season and to go further in the cups, let's see if we can keep it up.

 

[Daytripper]

 

[KaiserEFC]

We're back to blaming Duncan Ferguson then?

He's a potential Everton manager, that's why. He's learning from one of the very best. When Ancelotti leaves, he's a candidate to step in.

Lukaku, Calvert-Lewin have credited him with improving their game no end.

Really is cringeworthy how fans start to blame coaches like Ferguson and Davide Ancelotti when things aren't going well.

Let’s not forget that Duncs back to basics approach stabilised us and got us some points to the point where Ancelotti kept it rolling for his first few games.

 

[Brett Angell Delight]

Its same with the coaching staff - why is Big Dunc Carlo's assistant? Is it because he's one of the games best up and coming assistant coaches? Is he a master tactician? Did Carlo truly want him? Or is it because he's an Everton Cult Hero who tossed kids around Goodison on the touchline at the Chelsea game?

Nothing will change at this club until the culture changes thats the reality not many fans like to admit.

The Spectre of Bill Kenwright still looms largely over this club make no mistake.

In general terms I don’t disagree with you at all, mate. The “jobs for the boys” culture has been a joke for years and has held us back in certain areas. This season, though, DCL has been one of very few success stories and he himself attributes that in part to Dunc, so I think there’s a coach of some value in there, somewhere.

Is he the best coach available? Far from it. Is he having some success, in combination with Carlo, in improving our main (only!) number 9? Defo.

 

[maccavennie]

View attachment 128214

She probably had that typed out about 6 weeks ago ago when it was looking like we would finish 7th at worst and 4th at best.

She hadn't counted on us doing an Everton last day and putting in zero effort to finish 10th

 

[Brett Angell Delight]

10 points, 2 cup QFs, players who have improved the squad.

We need to be seeing another increase in ~10 points for next season and to go further in the cups, let's see if we can keep it up.

This is exactly how I choose to see it. If we can repeat the progress - and there has been progress, no matter how depressing the season was overall - of this year, next year, we’ll be in a healthy spot.

Assuming we repeat the trick with transfers we’ll be another 4 or so solid outfield players better off 7 or 8 (depending on what happens with James) in total over the two seasons, or the majority of a XI.

10 more points would get us top 4 based on this season and that bit of extra quality will hopefully take us past QF in at least one of the cups.

Of course we’re Everton and will probably somehow manage to achieve relegation directly to League 2 and somehow be stripped of the 1995 FA Cup next season but such is life as a blue.