It’s not that. I mean it’s about time the players were made to put the required effort in.
They looked goosed and it’s ace.
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They looked goosed and it’s ace.
he’s got an opinion leave him!
Lord Buckethead
Player Valuation: £35m
That would require me to face up to a fundementally broken reality where RaFail Beneathez (of all people) could be forced upon Everton by a inept, out of touch Owner.
I'll stick with Burst Spanish Knacker, it sums him up much better.
Mutzo Nutzo
Player Valuation: £70m
You can pipe down as well
davek
Player Valuation: £150m
When Benitez states frequenty that he'll fight for Everton, I think what he's doing is drawing a distinction between his style of management and the come day-go day couldn't be arsed management of Ancelotti's.
Saint Domingo
Player Valuation: £90m
Ive got an odd feeling we might do well with him. The hipsters will forever moan about his style of football (or anyone who manages Everton and isn’t the next shiny media obsession) but the majority of the premier league is of such variable quality that if you can put in place an organised defensive system, have players working hard, and have an ounce of quality in the key positions you can win a good number of games. Ancelotti even had us in a decent position for most of the season based on nothing more than a solid defence, good set pieces and a half decent striker.
If Benitez can keep the defensive solidity, have Gbamin Docuoure Allan fit, and maybe get some extra quality in key positions then we might see something a whole lot better than the same players we’ve seen for the past few years sauntering around not putting any effort in,
davek
Player Valuation: £150m
I'm in the same place now with Everton as I was when Moyes came in back in 2002 after years of drift: I want to see organisation, hard work and team spirit again.
The Kendall Mk III and Smith years nearly finished me. The Last few years under Koeman / Allardyce / Silva / Ancelotti have had the same effect.
I just want commitment and some coherent plan. And we are in a better position now than we were under Moyes' early period to consolidate on any fruit from such a successfully implemented back-to-basics plan.
catcherintherye
Player Valuation: £80m
My issue with Benitez was never really the football. While he's a loathsome individual as well, I am quite happy to park that. To me the big warning lights were how committed he would be at the age he is at, and secondly how much of a long term vision he would have (or would we be straddled with more big name, older players).
On the former question, he does look to be really interested in the job. His effort level seems better than others we have had and he seems to really want to succeed. So I can't really knock him there. On the latter, it's far too early to tell yet.
As for the style of football, I'm in favour of him doing something different. That's how Atletico Madrid win the league. They don't try and outdo Barca/Real Madrid on half the wage bill. In the same way if we try to outdo City's pure football, or Liverpool intense kick and rush with about half the wage bill we are destined to lose. You have to try and find a different way, and be the best at it. To a degree Leicester have embraced that with Rodgers, who have a lot of technical players who are fast.
I have said multiple times, while Ancelotti did well last season, we left a lot of points in the bag, by moving away from a system that worked (the 4 cb's) to something more aesthetically pleasing. Had we have kept the 4 cb's for as many games as possible, we would have likely finished 3rd. I don't think Benitez would have any truck or ego in sticking to something that works, even if it's boring or unpopular. I actually think had he managed us the 2nd half of last season we would have got top 6 and probably top 4.
None of this means we have the 3/4th best squad as we clearly don't. But you don't always have to have. Football as with life is about finding the best way to arrange your chess pieces on the board and getting the most from them. Liverpool are not the 1st or 2nd best squad in the league, but they finished 1st and 2nd. That's the art.
I think this team suits playing defensive, tactically aware football. If we add 2 or 3 more players with a bit more power to help us on the break (like Dumfries) and become well drilled defensively I think there is room for further growth. The one thing we looked good at last season was maintaining defensive shape.
catcherintherye
Player Valuation: £80m
The thing is compared to that time, is that there is a bit more money available too, so the potential ceiling we hit doesn't have to be hit in the same way.
What's also worth saying, is there were a lot of players back then who were written off, who Moyes managed to get a bit more out of. Ferguson, Stubbs, Campbell, Carsley, Pembridge, Unsworth etc were all not massively popular when he came in, but he found by moving a few chess pieces, adding some legs around them and in many ways simplifying what he did he got a fair bit more out of them.
Strangely I see a fair bit of Benitez in Moyes, in that he's quite a stubborn man who is not massively likeable, but he's ultimately not trying to be liked. I don't think he's trying to convince anyone he's something he's not, and maybe some of the players will get on board with it.
I thought Silva tried this, but probably didn't have the gravity or experience to manage it.
I don't think Moyes massive gave a F about what he was doing, there was an arrogance that he knew what he was doing and you just have to watch the results. I see a similar attitude from Benitez. It's worth saying for long periods at Anfield he was hated there, and he was hounded out quite brutally.But when push comes to shove, he slaps his medals on the table, and like Geoff Boycott of old goes "that's why we do it my way".
To some extent Ancelotti did that, but I think he was probably too nice and if I'm honest by the end I think he was running out of ideas. He is a bit too charming to ever let that be seen, but there was some concern to me that he didn't know quite what to do with the players. A lot of that IS on the players too, but ultimately they're not going to be able to play like Real Madrid, however nicely you ask them. That doesn't automatically make them terrible pro's.
Saint Domingo
Player Valuation: £90m
There has to be a break in the cycle of Everton teams bereft by a lack of pace, and at times a lack of effort.
We saw in the Moyes era players who would give everything to the short but against top opposition in the big games that is not enough as our players were slower, weaker, and often smaller than the oppositions who when equally motivated would always edge us out.
After that we’ve had every season bar one of players often being too slow to compete but also not even putting in the bare minimum of effort. It’s no surprise to me that 13/14 went a lot better as you look through the team in Stones Distin Baines Coleman McCarthy Barkley Lukaku Mirallas Deulofeu. They were all quick.
We need to get to a position where our players are as fast and powerful as the top opposition. Then there might be an occasion in a big game when the opposition are not quite at the right level of motivation and our effort can ensure we come out on top and finally win a trophy. At the moment though top 6 teams who are not even that bothered during games can see us off because we do not have the necessary pace to put the hammer down and take games away from them. Even the likes of Southampton Leeds Wolves can all do this on their day. That day might not be often but when it comes they can put away a top side easily. Everton will never have that day because even when we’re on top we can’t enforce our dominance as the pace of the players is not at premier league level. Minute by minute the opposition just play their way out of their blip and before long we’re back to being unable to get out of a defensive low block.
deipnosophist
Player Valuation: £80m
....I'm feeling like Matthew McConaughey, skimming 'round vertices in a tesseract!!
davek
Player Valuation: £150m
The big difference with Moyes' arrival and Benitez is that the fanbase welcomed Moyes and were desperate for him to do well; Benitez doesn't get that good will, so he'll have to have the very reasonable start Moyes had back in 2002.
Moyes also injected a bit of pace into the defence with Yobo AND got shut ASAP of a lot of dead wood to streamline the organisation - and we need to see that from Benitez.
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