Where are we going? The hungry or the wise?

We can't even do heroic failure any more.

Nil Satis Nisi Mediocritate.

If we were a 'nearly team' like Spurs, people would only be complaining that we bottle things at the final hurdle, and they'd be as frustrated as Spurs supporters have been, and Liverpool supporters for a long time. Leicester supporters are just happy to be in the Premier League, the title win being something they'll dine out on for a long time.

Of course, we'd be better off than we are now by being a 'nearly team' or one-time league winner, but we're supposed to be aiming for consistently competing for trophies like in the 60s and 80s, and for that purpose the better models are those of Utd, City and Chelsea, the big money teams like we were under Moores in the 60s. It is possible that a manager like Ancelotti combined with sufficiently large funds could achieve this. Without the big money it's all pie in the sky.

It could be argued that Leicester City's title win was the worst thing that could have happened as far as Everton FC were concerned because it led to many clubs increasing the fees they were asking for their squad players in case they allowed a diamond to leave on the cheap. Plus, suddenly it became a signpost for many supporters of many clubs to believe that it was possible to win the league, when in truth it wasn't, it was a blip in normal proceedings. I'm not saying that Leicester aren't a good side, they are, but they are not as impressive as many seem to believe them to be.

I can't agree that the standard of the Premier League has improved over the last few years either, in fact City, Liverpool and Leicester apart the standard has fallen dramatically. There might be little to choose between 4th place and relegation threatened teams because most of the league is bang average, with bang average players. Where are the edge of seat players which many of the clubs had a decade or more ago? How many classic matches have been seen in the last five years or so?

As for stability, yeah that served every team didn't it? Only Ferguson and Wenger managed to stay at their clubs for more than a few years and regularly win stuff, because they were able to purchase the best players available and with a lot less competition in the market.

I think producing a consistent winning team is as much about luck as it is judgement, plus you need a very good manager, top level players and a shed load of cash. Everton have had some of those elements in the recent past, but not all of them at the same time, who knows, one day they might.

There is no magic formula and I'm sure Liverpool fans can't believe that the moment they started to become a real threat to become champions, the other clubs, United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Spurs and to a lesser extent Man City suddenly and inexplicably fell off their respected perches and left them to rule the roost. That is the most galling thing about Everton's failure in the recent past, but we have previous for this type of thing, think early 1970s - I just hope this decade doesn't pan out like that one did.

A well thought out and written piece and a lot of what you say is very true, but when you talk of young hungry coaches you really cant put Guardiola or Klopp or Rodgers in that category these are very experienced managers. The younger ones you mention well I am sure Nuno would be delighted to be described as a young hungry coach. So lets deal with the young coaches you mention Lamphard, Arteta and I will be generous and call Pochettino a young coach. So far these young coaches have won nothing, so I would be careful in suggesting that having a young coach is the way forward.

Most leagues are won with experienced coaches, and the same goes for the Champions league. I know its easy to say the older coaches have had their day, but for me to have someone of the quality of Ancelotti managing the club, he given time will raise the stature of this club. His experience is invaluable and we must be patient and allow him to begin to restructure this club. And put forward a structure and a coherent plan that will stand the test of time. To often have we gone for the quick fix which isn't the way to build a stable and successful football club.

Your right when you talk of decisions being taken by the owner on a whim, I think the introduction of a DOF has been a complete disaster. Hopefully now we have a manager who has won everything our purchase of players will be left to him. I read a piece were someone described the DOF role as having a head chef but letting the waitress buy the ingredients. Many have said that Ancelotti is not a good fit and only here to top up his pension pot. Well if it was money he was interested in then China are paying managers who have won far less than him £30 million a year. I also think he has more integrity than that, without doubt the biggest job he has taken on in years, but maybe thats what motivated him to take the job.

The club it seems lacks professionalism which is magnified severely in most of the big games we’ve played the last 30 years.

Mentally consistently fatigued and weak. To the point, hand on heart, most us no longer expect to win, or play consistently with style.

Our records the last three decades prove this.

Onwards and upwards and hope eternal.

When you look at the news about LFC, nearly every day seems to be one of sunshine with positive announcements such as stadium expansion, new sponsorships, new training ground, fringe squad players getting sold for unbelievable amounts, signing top players for minimal fees to supplement the superstar purchases,Club stores being opened world wide and so much more. I wont even mention their on field successes.

Meanwhile over here, the leaders stumble from one mess to the next. Poor management choices, poor scouting and signing players that don't seem to fit any clear pattern to improve the club, practically no movement on sponsorship or the comercial side ( unless you count Moshiri/Usmanov attempts to bypass FFP with their own sponsorship). A stadium saga that's dragged on since kings dock and before, top players getting sold and not sufficiently replaced. The next major announcement will be about the huge losses the club has made in the last financial year, all as a result of such poor decisions.

However, Everton now have Ancellotti and one would hope his specific expertise will rub off in the not too distant future.

Okay, the Anfield game was a shock to the system and despite the final score and the poor second half Everton should have scored early and paid the penalty big time.

We have to move on to the rest of the season and get the house in order and I am sure the gaffer as seen all he needs to see to discard some of the dross and get some new blood soon.

Forgetting the last performance it has to be said that the team was beginning to play better since Silva went and whilst they weren't setting the world on fire there was a big improvement in spirit. A few more decent results against average opponents will ensure a safe league position which is the most important target at the moment.

We all have had our say about the cup game and we have all stated our opinions about many of the players some justified and some arguably unjustified.

It would be hard to believe that they could produce that kind of performance in the next game.

It is almost unbelievable the incompetence that has been displayed since Moshiri and his ' Holy Grail Fortune' came to the Club, one has to ask where does it emanate from?

One also has to look at who has been with the Club for the last thirty years, and has also been 'advising' Mr Moshiri. Talk about the 'blind leading the blind' an analogy which I mean with no disrespect whatsoever to the visually impaired.

Hopefully (a word that is used so often with Everton Football Club) now we have one of the best and most respected Managers in Football, things may change.

This kid in a sweet shop attitude has to be replaced with a considered and financially equated approach to not only buying players, but to the everyday running at Finch Farm, culminating in a well drilled team to tackle any team in the Prem home or away.

Stan 3- these aren't my thoughts to make us a great club or what we should be and are more just really observations as to why teams like Leicester and Wolves can overachieve where the likes of Utd, Ars and us have recently underperformed.

John 4-My argument was the problem was not sacking Roberto but that Moshiri should have been looking at a Rodgers,Poch type alternative who would carry on with the positives and be better with the negatives i.e. organisation, aggression and game management. Mind you there is an argument had he gave the war chest to Martinez we would be in a much healthier position.
John I also wasn't comparing eras and teams. Would Milner and Henderson get on Utd's great team? No way. Since Guardiolas introduction English teams not qualifying for last 16 in the CL would be a catastrophe and EL teams field 2nd strings and still get to the business end. My argument is that the PL is now well ahead of its main competitors due to the raising of coaching.

Brian 6- Sorry didn't mean to come across as ageist, more about innovation and hunger was my point. As you can see I didn't speak of Solsjaer as I feel he's trying to copy Fergie when the game has moved to a new level.You speak about other leagues but my argument is that we are in the PL and the standard of coaching here is at the highest. Look at Silvas success in Portugal but couldn't replicate it here as the bar is so high. Mourinho is still a great tactician but it's not enough anymore.

In terms of style Koeman also was not a natural replacement from an ideological perspective. His Southampton side were a lot more functional than Pochettinos dynamic team. I think it may have been Darren Hind who joked Moshiri behaved like a paranoid schizophrenic and its spot on.

As regards Koeman at Southampton, they sold practically his entire side before he came in, then did it again the following summer. I remember he had a funny moment when he posted a picture of an empty Southampton training pitch with a few of those freekick mannequins and said it was time to meet his new players.