Brace yerselves, semi-serious match report coming up.
It seems a lifetime ago that we played Southampton in those green/khaki 3rd strip shirts earlier in the season. It seemed as if so many of our concerns from the previous season, which if we're honest, was a season in which we looked good in Europe and beat Wolfsburg twice, convincingly, even if we underwhelmed in the league. Also, a season in which we reached 40 points at a later point than we have this season, but that's really nothing to boast about is it? And just look where Wolfsburg were this season....
At St. Mary' in August, the endless passing had gone, we no longer looked like we were going to be the first team ever to pass a penalty straight back to the goalkeeper. The team were playing with more intent, we'd managed to keep hold of John Stones in the face of adversity, signed Deulofeu and won 3-0, again convincingly. Had the dreaded "second season syndrome" come and gone, leaving us free of Thursday/Sunday games to finally push on for that 4th spot?
Well no. Things don't seem to have turned out quite so rosy since then. It's strange in that a season in which we have got to two cup semi finals, with the possibility of winning one still, has turned out to be so dreary and miserable. We could be on the cusp of winning our first trophy in 21 years (Jesus Christ), and yet we're all mostly sad. Is it quantifiable, or are our expectations higher than when Walter Smith was in charge?
Anyway, premature season review over, if you're only as good as your last match then things don't bode well for us against a decent Southampton side, managed by someone several members here tout for Martinez' replacement. Not my choice, and I don't think he'd leave somewhere where he is happy but that's another matter.
Against Crystal Palace (God how I dislike Pardew) we were probably just the beneficiaries of them being crap in front of goal. Robles looks like a decent goalie and at 25 will only improve (hopefully), and Seamus Coleman seemed to have found his old eagerness. He's been recently married and had a child, I know from experience how that can knacker a man. Aaron Lennon is a decent player but seems to be hauled off when playing well for a variety of excuses. He'll have the ebola virus at half time against these or something. And then there's the talented Gerard Deulofeu - he, like so many of the players, seem to tire after 70 minutes. Why? So many young men, so much fatigue. Do they just sit off at Finch Farm eating sweets all day?
Southampton, well, they seem to have done ok since selling most of their players to Liverpool and losing their manager to Tottenham. Obligatory sentence about Southampton, full of grocks, oddballs, and bad, bad meffs. Here's their squad, obviously 11 of these will play:
No. Position Player
1 GK Kelvin Davis (vice-captain)
2 DF Cédric Soares
3 DF Maya Yoshida
4 MF Jordy Clasie
5 DF Florin Gardoș
6 DF José Fonte (captain)
7 FW Shane Long
8 MF Steven Davis (third-captain)
9 FW Jay Rodriguez
10 MF Sadio Mané
11 MF Dušan Tadić
12 MF Victor Wanyama
14 MF Oriol Romeu
15 DF Cuco Martina
16 MF James Ward-Prowse
17 DF Virgil van Dijk
18 MF Harrison Reed
19 FW Graziano Pellè
20 FW Juanmi
21 DF Ryan Bertrand
28 FW Charlie Austin
33 DF Matt Targett
44 GK Fraser Forster
Virgil Van Dijk there, weren't we in for him? Shane Long and Wanyama there too. Tadic, Davis, these have a semi-decent side,but on paper we should tonk these all over the place. Story of our season I suppose. Will we have a go against them? We need to. We also need to give Lukaku some service to score from, that may help. I just want some effort to be shown.
As ever, as much as I'm disappointed by the underachievement of our current team, I still, and always will love Everton so I'm going 3-1 Everton. @chicoazul obviously we can merge if you want to stick yours here and not just on the front page.
Please Everton, just win. Remember that?
It seems a lifetime ago that we played Southampton in those green/khaki 3rd strip shirts earlier in the season. It seemed as if so many of our concerns from the previous season, which if we're honest, was a season in which we looked good in Europe and beat Wolfsburg twice, convincingly, even if we underwhelmed in the league. Also, a season in which we reached 40 points at a later point than we have this season, but that's really nothing to boast about is it? And just look where Wolfsburg were this season....
At St. Mary' in August, the endless passing had gone, we no longer looked like we were going to be the first team ever to pass a penalty straight back to the goalkeeper. The team were playing with more intent, we'd managed to keep hold of John Stones in the face of adversity, signed Deulofeu and won 3-0, again convincingly. Had the dreaded "second season syndrome" come and gone, leaving us free of Thursday/Sunday games to finally push on for that 4th spot?
Well no. Things don't seem to have turned out quite so rosy since then. It's strange in that a season in which we have got to two cup semi finals, with the possibility of winning one still, has turned out to be so dreary and miserable. We could be on the cusp of winning our first trophy in 21 years (Jesus Christ), and yet we're all mostly sad. Is it quantifiable, or are our expectations higher than when Walter Smith was in charge?
Anyway, premature season review over, if you're only as good as your last match then things don't bode well for us against a decent Southampton side, managed by someone several members here tout for Martinez' replacement. Not my choice, and I don't think he'd leave somewhere where he is happy but that's another matter.
Against Crystal Palace (God how I dislike Pardew) we were probably just the beneficiaries of them being crap in front of goal. Robles looks like a decent goalie and at 25 will only improve (hopefully), and Seamus Coleman seemed to have found his old eagerness. He's been recently married and had a child, I know from experience how that can knacker a man. Aaron Lennon is a decent player but seems to be hauled off when playing well for a variety of excuses. He'll have the ebola virus at half time against these or something. And then there's the talented Gerard Deulofeu - he, like so many of the players, seem to tire after 70 minutes. Why? So many young men, so much fatigue. Do they just sit off at Finch Farm eating sweets all day?
Southampton, well, they seem to have done ok since selling most of their players to Liverpool and losing their manager to Tottenham. Obligatory sentence about Southampton, full of grocks, oddballs, and bad, bad meffs. Here's their squad, obviously 11 of these will play:
No. Position Player
1 GK Kelvin Davis (vice-captain)
2 DF Cédric Soares
3 DF Maya Yoshida
4 MF Jordy Clasie
5 DF Florin Gardoș
6 DF José Fonte (captain)
7 FW Shane Long
8 MF Steven Davis (third-captain)
9 FW Jay Rodriguez
10 MF Sadio Mané
11 MF Dušan Tadić
12 MF Victor Wanyama
14 MF Oriol Romeu
15 DF Cuco Martina
16 MF James Ward-Prowse
17 DF Virgil van Dijk
18 MF Harrison Reed
19 FW Graziano Pellè
20 FW Juanmi
21 DF Ryan Bertrand
28 FW Charlie Austin
33 DF Matt Targett
44 GK Fraser Forster
Virgil Van Dijk there, weren't we in for him? Shane Long and Wanyama there too. Tadic, Davis, these have a semi-decent side,but on paper we should tonk these all over the place. Story of our season I suppose. Will we have a go against them? We need to. We also need to give Lukaku some service to score from, that may help. I just want some effort to be shown.
As ever, as much as I'm disappointed by the underachievement of our current team, I still, and always will love Everton so I'm going 3-1 Everton. @chicoazul obviously we can merge if you want to stick yours here and not just on the front page.
Please Everton, just win. Remember that?
