Mikel Arteta was not fit to return but Cahill did make the bench against Man Utd's reserves. It started as a nice open passing game from both sides in the glorious sunshine, most of the possession dominated by the home side. Rooney set as the playmaker with the Blues backing off and showing respect
A free kick on 10 mins given away by Fabio was delivered really well by Baines but the line advanced too far and could not profit. A nervy corner at the other end bounced around dangerously. The Man Utd attacks increased in intensity and as Everton seemed a little intimidated by the hosts and the location, losing possession with little if any end product.
Bilyaletdinov was having an odd game, Fabio robbing him easily, Bily diving poorly, failing to get a free-kick, then fouling Fabio to end a rare attack. Meanwhile Hernandez got a sight of goal but Howard stood firm. Everton were concentrating on defence but it was being penetrated a little too easily at times.
Beckford was getting little service and showed his poor touch when coming out wide, putting a ball straight out of play under no pressure. Hernandez got another golden chance, set up by a brilliant ball from Rooney that sliced diagonally through the Everton defence but Howard pulled off an excellent reaction save, and even came to punch the resulting corner!!
Beckford did finally get a nice ball in from Osman but lost it all too easily under dubious pressure. As half-time approached, Man Utd looked to score easily when Valencia was allowed to blatantly push Baines away and cross for Nani to score easiy but Hernandez on the ground bizarrely deflected it wide!
Rooney then beat the offside trap and looked odds on to punish the Blues but Everton defenders were back to prevent his cross when he chickened out of a direct shot. The Blues gameplan of "we have what we hold" worked effectively to get rhe Blues to teh half-time.
At the restart, a very surprising decision by Moyes, pulling off both Beckford and Bily to bring on Anichebe and Cahill! I didn't see that one coming at all... Everton looked calmer and moved the ball more confidently, looking more inclined to move the ball forward. A smart Jagielka free-kick was laid back well by Cahill but Coleman's shot barely troubled the corner flag.
Everton were having a lot more of the play but Utd attacked quickly after easily dispossessing Coleman and Jagielka needed to be alert to slide in and whip the ball dramatically away from the incoming Rooney. Anderson went in the book for a poor foul on Coleman, the Cahilll foolwed him for a clumsy challenge. Anichebe then got free of Ferdinand and had a run into the United box but he went down a little too easily by what looked like a foul from Ferdinand... but off course no penalty was given.
It was a much more even game since the break, but near the hour, a determined attack by United put Everton under pressure, but some excellent blocks by Jagielka and Distin broke things down. But around the hour mark, United increased the pressure again and Nani was replace by Michael Owen.
Into the last 25 mins and Everton started to play a bit. Osman made a good roun down the left but his cross was deflected away. Osman then set up Rodwell for an all-too-rare shot that deflected off Evans's leg and forced a superb save by Van der Saar to deflect it inches past the post.
Anderson looked to get a god cross in but Jagielka was there again and Baines was soon off on a run; however, his cross was easily blocked. Another very dangerous cross from Evra was clipped out of the Everton goal area by Jagielka, then the post rescued Everton off Distin's clearance under pressure from Owen as Ryan Giggs came on; also, Gueye for Coleman with 15 tantalizing minutes left. Could Everton grab that vital goal? Or would one of United's increasingly desperate attacks succeed?
Cahill was poor when relieving the pressure failing to release Anichebe and inviting yet another unrelenting United attack. Jagielka then caught Hernandez to give away a free-kick that Rooney fired to the top corner but Howard had it well covered. Rooney then screwed a shot wide as Everton entered the last 10 mins still frustrating their illustrious hosts.
More nervy moments followed as United attacked again, Valencia's fierce pile-driver was blocked away, and his follow-up chip to the far post setting up Hernandez to head in but Howard produced a wonderful save to deny him. But minutes later and a similar move did beat Howard off a deflected cross, the American unable to do anything about it as Everton's too predictable gameplan finally collapsed in ruins.
Ultimately, Moyes's familiar tactic of holding out and hoping to perhaps grab something lay in tatters and all that desperate defending counted for nothing. Once again, this was a game and an opportunity, against Ferguson's second string, where a more adventurous approach from the supposed form team of the moment ? yes, Everton ? might have paid off. But Moyes, despite that ultimately meaningless half-time change, all too predictably came a cropper again to his old Glasgow neighbour.
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I was delighted when I saw Cahill coming on at half time but when I saw Anichebe with him my heart literally sank. This is like playing with ten men. He has no impact whatsoever at any time. This is not to say Beckford was any better in the first half, but with Cahill on, Beckford might have found more space for himself. Anichebe is only interested in one thing ? getting off work and collecting the pay. Even his dive was amateurish.
Why is Moyes getting a going over for being positive at half-time and making subs early? From a limited bench I thought decent subs. Moyes was cautious and I would have left Beckford on and played Anichebe as a 4-4-2, but I thought we were doing well up to Distin's seemingly inevitable howler of a clearance.
The problem is the manner of the performance: whenever we play them at OT, it's always the same outcome ? play shite, and look like we just rolled over.
We got fuck all off Walton today. Bily wouldn't put the Everton shirt on again if it was up to me and Beckford was a disgrace. Fair enough, he didn't get much service, but to not challenge for one ball in the whole of the first half is criminal.
I think the Valencia push was the most disgusting decision, it wasn't a shoulder charge, he simply pushed Baines over.
All I am asking for is for us to have a little more of a go. If team further down the league can have a go at Man U then we should be able to. The Match stats say it all really, embarrassing. You say you are not making excuses for the players and manager, well you seem to be doing exactly that to me.
Regardless of where his best position is ? and it should be back in bloody Russia ? surely we can expect him to at least pass to someone, to make a tackle. to cover the full back, to stay on his feet...
He HAS to go in the close season. If we can't get anything for him just give him a free!!
Positives? Distin was excellent and the effort was fine all round. Today we lacked quality.
Two points: Howard generally played well, but is there another goalkeeper who gets so worked up over the presence of an opponent in his area?
Which leads me to the second point: I'd love to know when obstruction was officially relegated from the rules. When Valencia blocked Baines and then pushed him away, the commentator described it as his being strong. I thought there were two offences!
I can't remember when I last saw an indirect free kick awarded for obstruction.
On to my next point, why do we never perform at OT? Because you're dammed if you do and dammed if you don't. Last year, Moyes played attacking football at OT and we got beat. I personally agree with Michael though today, you can't just sit back for 90 minutes at OT and expect to get somewhere.
Isn't it funny how, when we go to Arsenal and attack last year, we get a draw. We go to Liverpool this year, attack, and get a draw. Go to Chelsea twice and attack, we get a draw; get a win at City. Yet every year against United, we rarely attack them.
I read an intresting theory about why United have always done so well, the number of managers who are good friends with Fergie. Every year, United seem to walk over us, Blackburn, Sunderland, Birmingham. I've rarely seen us or any of those sides have a proper go at United. I know I'm entering the world of the conspiracy theorist but we just have too much respect. The arse-licking that goes on before every meeting slightly devalues the game in my opinion.
The only chance we had to get anything from the game was to frustrate Man Utd and try to pinch a goal in the 2nd half. They have players sitting on the bench who would walk into our side and we have nothing to compare coming off our bench.
Considering the disparity in basic ability, we did WELL. Jags was MotM for me; all the defence earned their corn and the rest are powder puff who could not hold the ball at all in the first half.
When I saw the team today, though, I knew that Bily and Beckford , players I like, would be shite.It was never going to suit them. Normally I'd be first to put the boot into Moyes for that but I can't see what the alternative could have been.
I can see it now in Ferguson's office at the end of the game with a glass of the red stuff in their hands. Ferguson laughing and saying, "Well Davey another defeat to my boys, but at least it was no disgrace from your lads".
Moyes: "Aye, you're right Sir Alex, but maybe next year we might get a draw? Cheers", as they laugh and guffaw together! Mean while, the Everton fans have been sold down the river at OT again! Pathetic!
The positives: Howard, Hibbert, Distin, Jagielka, Baines, Neville and yes Anichibe.
The average: Coleman, Osman, Rodwell, Cahill, Gueye.
The negatives: Beckford and Bily.Tremondous defensive display from Everton and eventually only a deflected cross set up the winning goal. Yes, we rode our luck with some poor Utd play in our third at times but the one 50/50 we needed to go our way, didn't. That was the penalty claim. Ferdinand played the man with an arm across Victor and contact was there to take him down.
Put it this way: Hernandez goes down like that under a challenge from Jags and with 70,000 screaming penalty, there would be only one outcome.
With the players we had available, what does everyone expect from us against Champion League semi finalists? We have ground out results recently and today was no different in the approach. They pushed us back due to their quality and our awful first-half passing.
Moyes shook things up and it made a difference. For 20 minutes in the second half we were the better side and passed it well. In that period we could have gone in front. Their quality again took over and nailed it at the last.
Finally, to call that side Utd's second string shows an absolute lack of understanding of how the modern game is played when a team plays 60 games and competes to the end on all fronts. Don't forget, our starting eleven cost a shade over Rooney's transfer fee. So get a grip of reality please before condemning a fighting effort from most of our team today.
They didn't have a reserve team out because they can pick from 20 top class players and to class Evans as in anyway a second class player is an insult, he would walk into any Premier League team and only Vidic keeps him out and he is one of the best. If Everton could have him and or O'Shea we'd be far better for it. Tim Cahill looks as though he's finished now and I blame Moyes either for playing him injured or playing him when he has had a serious drop in form.
If we'd not defended today, we would have been massacred because we don't have the players to do it. Rooney was pretty magnificent and with gaps players like Nani and Chicharita would have had a bagful. This was one game we weren't ever going to win so let's move on get over it and get as many points as we can from the remaining games.
Dave Wilson, you're right about the nine men. Beckford and Bily were never going to threaten and at least the substitutions were made early. Even at full strength, we don't have the players suitable for the way we set out today. I'd just like to think that with a full squad we would have had a totally different approach.
Bily behind Saha and Beckford might work to break down Wolves at home but today we looked totally lightweight. Had Moyes started with Victor and Beckford up front, I'd have hooted with derision. With hindsight, I wish he had.
Colin, exactly, a class ball-winning midfielder would open up so many options.
I for one want a manager who has the same beliefs and pride in this great club as our magnificent supporters. It appears he is our Roy Hodgson ? more concerned with what Ferguson will think of him than standing up for Everton Football Club. He and Kenwright should get an appointment at Old Trafford... and get the hell out of the city.
By the way, Happy fuckin' Easter!
Ian Smitham ? it's not that I want to have a go at him; he just isn't playing very well.
"[A] great team effort to try and make sure that we didn't lose the game."This is what 9 years of managing has led to.
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