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A Tale of Two Kitties

By Jay Harris :  22/09/2010 :  Comments (30) :
First off let me say I was one of those who,unusually for me, let my heart rule my head during the close season as we carried on our successful run of form into pre-season, albeit against lowly opposition. One of the reasons was this real spiritual feeling going around, almost like some Karma, that this was going to be a watershed season for us when we could at last re-establish ourselves at the top table. My heart could not convince my head that we would win the league, even though many Blues felt the 24-year rule would kick in... but I still had "THAT" feeling.

I know we are only a few matches into what I always refer to as "a Marathon, not a sprint" but the realisation is starting to hit home that all those doubts in my mind were true. A lot of fans including myself felt we were lacking a top goalscorer, a quality right mid and, certainly for me, a quality centre back. So, while 'Appy 'Arry and Co were shopping at Harrods and even Woy, with a late burst of spending, Davey boy got all of £1 million to buy a couple of promising kids.

Now we all have our opinions on tactics and team selection and whether Moyes is the right man to take us forward but enough has been said on those subjects already. My point is that, if we'd have had a slightly bigger kitty, then it might have brought Donovan and/ or Bellamy and just think of the difference their skill, enthusiasm and goalscoring ability would have brought to the squad.

Now I don't criticise Kenwright for being potless but I do feel that the club is being totally mismanaged when we have a succession of top 6 finishes and can't even generate the finances to build on those achievements, despite the Rooney and Lescott money. Our net spend as a club since Moyes has been manager is estimated as amongst the lowest in the Premier league.

Do any of us really believe that a better manager than Moyes would settle for inheriting that squad and no money to spend? Liverpool, despite all their debts and claimed lack of support from the American version of the Two Ronnies still go out and buy top quality players. I am starting to worry that Kenwright and his buddies' poor fiscal management will come home to roost this season and the good feeling that many of us had in our hearts pre-season will come to nothing.

I just hope and pray that we can put some form together before January and then take that opportunity to get the players we should have got pre-season without a sell-to-buy policy!! In the meantime, I dont think "Scrooge" should escape the criticism that is flying around right now.

Reader Comments (30)

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Callum Wilson
1 Posted 22/09/2010 at 04:53:27
This makes for interesting reading... yes, it's off Wikipedia but it's getting quite accurate these days... haha!

!http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_English_football_club_owners

Now we aren't just poor by Premier League standards, most of the Championship have more dough to spend than us! We are falling behind further every year but, as long as investment is being looked for 24/7, I am sure we will be ok... in fact, I will watch the countdown until then.

Mike McLean
2 Posted 22/09/2010 at 06:19:19
Kudos on the title of the article!
John Nelson
3 Posted 22/09/2010 at 08:18:01
Totally agree Jay. Moyes is to blame for the shit start, but when you get past the hype surrounding pre-season and the optimism that was flying around due to tieing key players down and having the best squad in years (and I count myself in that category of believing we were on to something special), the manager being given £1 million to "aid" our assault on the top 4 is fucking shocking. It's even worse that despite the hype, nearly every fan and his fucking dog knew that we were - sorry, ARE - crying out for a qualtiy right winger, and still BK didn't acknowledge this.

Also, I would like to know why we didn't go in for Ben Arfa, who on Saturday was superb - fast, skillful, direct and a great goal to boot. He's 21, a French international and Newcastle got him ON LOAN.
Richard Dodd
4 Posted 22/09/2010 at 09:36:32
Suspect under-performing players may have had more to do with our poor start than Blue Bill,don`t you? But he`s an easy mark for all the malcontents like Jay Harris! By the way Marshy`s holding his water,ain`t he?
Mike McLean
5 Posted 22/09/2010 at 10:56:23
And who is paid to manage the players, Richard?
Richard Dodd
6 Posted 22/09/2010 at 11:29:21
Moyes, of course, but he can`t kick every ball for them, can he?
Dick Fearon
7 Posted 22/09/2010 at 10:53:41
I have raged with the rest of you at Moyes awful tactics and team selection.He can identify a bottle thrower yet is blind to what happens on the field. Our dug out is packed solid with men whispering into head sets yet the message is just not getting through. Who the hell are they whispering to anyway.

We play with one striker because our coaching panel is comprised soley of ex defenders who have no idea of what a strikers job is. We play a supposedly creative right midfielder who creates next to nothing, he has no presence, can't tackle, head, shoot or sprint. He falls over at the slightest of nudges and hears footsteps. Of our three centre forwards, one seems permanently injured and uses witchcraft for his problem. Another is ridiculously out of his depth and the third is obviously very much overweight.

Who is responsible for fitness at Finch Farm? Against Spurs not that long ago a vociferous crowd demonstration forced Moyes to change tactics. It is time to publicly and loudly let him know that his methods are unnacceptable.

Mick Gallagher
8 Posted 22/09/2010 at 11:41:20
So why doesn't he change it, Richard, when it's not working?
Peter Raynor
9 Posted 22/09/2010 at 11:05:46
Most clubs are spending what they haven't got and have no quality youth setup. Everton will prosper when these clubs fail.
Mick Gallagher
10 Posted 22/09/2010 at 11:54:16
How many teams are we going to fail for us to prosper?
Dermot O'Brien
11 Posted 22/09/2010 at 12:10:41
@ Dick #8 your description of attacking RM made me laugh. Apart from all that he's good though.
Thomas Christensen
12 Posted 22/09/2010 at 11:48:13
True enough Jay, it is not Kenwrights fault that he doesn't have £10b in the bank.

However I do think our manager is now playing a game of politics in media. I suspect the continous reference to the fact that we don't have a scorer and cannot score goals and it not being Moyes' failure or the fault of our players being used out of position. I think his repeatative post match rants is his way of digging at the board for failure to sign either Bellamy and Donovan.

After all wasn't his stand-off with the board at the beginning of last season, over signing his contract, his way of getting commitment from them to plough money into the club...Perhaps this plays a part in what he says.

Also, although it came to nothing, it was very interesting to read / hear that Moyes was RED HOT favourite for the Villa job!! Well where did that come - I cannot actually remember Moyes coming out and saying...'no no no' as soon as the odds were slashed. Granted he did say he had unfinished business here, but that was days after we all got wind of it.

If the board fail to bring in the reinforcements Moyes wants in January this might be his last with us - and I suspect he will walk.
Matt Garen
13 Posted 22/09/2010 at 12:32:46
Richard @ ..Suspect under-performing players may have had more to do with our poor start than Blue Bill,don`t you?
Also, Bellamy was NEVER EVER going to sign for Everton. Take it from me, honestly as a local, he was going to stay at City if he couldnt go to Cardiff.
Denis Aghaizu
14 Posted 22/09/2010 at 12:32:01
Moyes may not have been given much money compared to other clubs but that is no excuse for the shambles in team selection against Newcastle, where nearly half the side were playing in the wrong positions.

If we were playing players in their proper positions (Osman should not be in the starting 11 so I count him on the right as not being in his proper position) and we then keep losing, then the no cash argument works.
Mike Rourke
15 Posted 22/09/2010 at 12:48:30
"it is not Kenwrights fault that he doesn't have £10b in the bank"

If the lazy bastard had the same sort of vision as Andrew Lloyd Webber then maybe he would have £10billion in the bank!
Brian Waring
16 Posted 22/09/2010 at 13:44:07
Richard, what Moyes could start doing, is playing players in their proper positions, and grow a pair of balls, and actually go out to win a game.

The problem is Richard, while we have fans like you, who won't for one sec take of their blue tinted specs, Moyes will always be untouchable.
Jay Harris
17 Posted 22/09/2010 at 13:44:49
Doddy
you do come out and make a fool of yourself at times.

Of course I am a malcontent and right now any Evertonian who is content with "the best squad we've ever had" who cant even put out a right sided MF player, who relies an a 3rd Division inexperienced striker for goals and who cant keep a clean sheet against poor opposition is an absolute idiot but there again you know that already.
Albert Perkins
18 Posted 22/09/2010 at 15:49:55
It's a good job my sex life is going OK or I'd be in a right funk.
Albert Perkins
19 Posted 22/09/2010 at 15:59:15
At least one of us is scoring.
Jay Harris
20 Posted 22/09/2010 at 16:32:51
Thomas
you may have touched on a few home truths there.

The thought crossed my mind that Moyes is playing cat and mouse with the board to ensure squad reinforcement in January which if true is a big disappointment as I thought he was more principled than that.
Mike McLean
21 Posted 22/09/2010 at 16:38:23
@ 20. No. That's way too deep in the ralm of delusion. Simply put, Moyes and his increasingly shrill band of supporter, Mr Dodd, have been found out.
Kevin Gillen
22 Posted 22/09/2010 at 16:39:19
I totally agree with the sentiments of this post by Jay. I do feel we will come good in the coming weeks, we have too many quality players, good management and a good attitude.

I am really disheartened by the failure to invest over the Summer. Removed from the wage bill this Summer are Gosling, Nash, Ruddy, Jutkiewicz, Donovan, Yobo, Senderos, Peterlin, Vaughan and Arnoux. Added are Beckford, Silva, Gueye and Mucha. That is ten out and four in and no significant transfer fees invoked.

I was very optimistic about our season but I did think that we have been conservative even by our own standards in recruiting this Summer. Other clubs are moving ahead whilst we stand still. Why is it that we have players who still appear unwilling to commit to us? These issues need urgent resolution.

Jimmy Hacking
23 Posted 22/09/2010 at 17:04:00
At the risk of sounding like the most pessimistic of all the pessimists who post here, even if we had signed a decent striker and LD in the summer I don't think we'd be playing any better, or in a different formation.

maybe we'd have three or four points instead of 2, big deal.

To challenge for a top four place we needed five or six new players, at a cost of 80-100 million.

I mean, does it really matter all that much if we finish 8th or 17th? It isn't good enough. The only thing to take this club forward is the sort of substantial cash injection which would require BK winning a Euromillions quadruple-rollover.

Denis Richardson
24 Posted 22/09/2010 at 19:35:17
@23 - this maybe the case in the long term but i, this is not going to happen anytime soon and ii, for all of Citehs billions, they have won f all since they first got wads of cash 4 years ago.

I still think people are dwelling too much on the lack of money point. We have a good squad of players when most are fit (and yes it IS one of the best squads we've had for ages). However it all means f all if the manager cannot bring himself to play the players in their best positions.

How about: Baines, Jags, Heitinga, Coleman in defence. LM Billy, DM Fellaini, AM Arteta, RM Pienaar. Up front Beckford and the Yak. Even if not all are fully match fit, the above can still start.

Anwway, theres no chance that DM will play 2 up front so why am I even bothering.
John Daley
25 Posted 22/09/2010 at 21:43:30
John #3,

Read in the press that Ben Arfa claimed a number of clubs were after him, one of whom were Everton. As an enticing sweetener, Bill supposedly sent him theatre tickets to watch his missus 'perform'. How the lad could ever resist such a tempting perk I'll never know.

David Hallwood
26 Posted 22/09/2010 at 22:36:05
Slightly off the subject, what HAS happened to Marshy? Is he dead, or has he had his computer confiscated by the nursing staff?
Austin Heath
27 Posted 23/09/2010 at 05:52:32
Like a lot of people in today's current economic climate, I have prioritise what I spend my money on. Up until this season I have gone without / made myself skint at the end of the month to go to the game. Yes, it upsets me that players get paid more money in a week than most people earn in 2 years, but that's market forces and until the "Sky" bubble bursts there is nothing we can do about it.

However, after the first 6 games of this season, I am no longer willing to go without / make myself skint to go to the game. Why should I ? I love Everton, same as you all do, but I am no longer willing to shell out my hard earned to watch a team with so many players being played out of position, the same negative tactics no matter who we are playing and constant "hoofball".

Until there is a drastic change in Moyes's mindset, I for one shall be voting with my feet. The last time I did this was under the reign of MIke Walker and I am starting to get a similar feeling again ? despair.

John Nelson
28 Posted 23/09/2010 at 12:57:23
John #25 - can't blame Ben Arfa for fucking us off then!
David Price
29 Posted 23/09/2010 at 20:02:25
post #19, how can anyone called albert perkins have a great sex life?
David Thomas
30 Posted 23/09/2010 at 20:29:28
Denis,

As i said on a previous post anyone who has watched Coleman play live when he has started at right back will tell you he has been a complete liability. He is good going forward but got skinned all night long at Brentford with regards defending. At premiership level he is not good enough defensively.

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