If losing four home games in a row, including twice to the bottom team, wasn’t bad enough, the antics of an inept, arrogant board behaving like a collapsing East European dictatorship, have dragged the club to a lower point than any I can remember in over 50 years of supporting. If any directors of other clubs are asking, ‘What would the Everton board do’, it’s only because they want to piss themselves laughing.
But the board don’t matter now. They haven’t shot themselves in the foot, they have blown the whole bloody leg off. There is no way back for them. They will go in due course.
As for the team, right now, it looks like we’ve got no money for new players. A creative loan here or there might be the best we can hope for. It also looks like we can’t afford to sack and pay off Lampard and his coaching team. It’s an ugly trap, a perfect football storm, all of our own board’s making.
So, assuming it doesn’t go completely tits-up against West Ham and Lampard is still at the helm next week, where do we go from here? I have flirted with the idea of Dele Alli returning, rediscovering his form and leading us out of the mire but what a desperate hope that is. It looks like he can’t be bothered anymore and it would apparently cost us millions if he played a game or two for us.
All we are left with is motivation. Can Frank Lampard motivate? It might help if he had a smoke before games, chilled out a bit and took a few risks. At the moment, he is picking more or less the same team, playing the same way and getting the same results. For God’s sake, just be bold, man!
A few things stick out a mile. Gueye can only do one thing well: break up play in front of a back four – don’t ask him to do anything else or just leave him out altogether. Onana and Iwobi are at least offering something; get them into the game in offensive areas as much as possible. Get someone playing around Calvert-Lewin, he can’t do it on his own. If Maupay can do one thing, it is this.
The wide players are erratic, so pick one and change him if it’s not his day, and then change him again if necessary – they could have 30 minutes each. Use subs, you’ve got 5, you know. You can sub the wide man twice, replace Mina and still have two left.
Play Mina for as long as you can, he seems to frighten some opposition. One of your favourites, Coady or Tarkowski, will have to go. Make a decision about Mykolenko, he offers very little going forward. If you’re playing 3 centre-backs, play Vinagre, if he’s still around, there has got to be more threat down the left. And why isn’t Holgate involved? He was up for the fight last season.
The most shocking aspect of last Saturday for me wasn’t the pathetic declaration of a propaganda war by the board on its own fans, it was the reaction of the crowd to the players at the final whistle. The outburst of booing and “You're not fit to wear the shirt” chanting was not what I expected.
We didn’t do it last season and didn’t have morons chasing the players down the street either. The effect on the players of that chanting is yet to be seen. Hopefully, it’s out of our system now and we can get back to unqualified support right to the end.
So, Frank, you seem to be an intelligent man. Motivate them. Dust off some speeches or some quotes and bloody well motivate them. Be Bold!!!
For some strange reason, the only man I could remember quotes from when writing history essays years ago was Franklin D Roosevelt, so here’s one of his that will do for now:
“There are many ways of going forward, but only one way of standing still.”
Go forward, Frank, and if it doesn’t work, change it and go forward again.
Reader Comments (20)
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2 Posted 20/01/2023 at 21:33:23
Take your cue from the title, play the UFO! But if I may, it will be Lights Out London! not Lights Out Everton.
Moyes gets Schenk-ed.
3 Posted 20/01/2023 at 21:49:49
You're right about motivation and unfortunately I've come to the conclusion it's not a strong point of Frank's. The players are still playing for him, they're just not playing like their lives depend on it, which is a prerequisite given our perilous state.
4 Posted 20/01/2023 at 21:54:22
Stay clean if you can, it's a constant battle.
5 Posted 20/01/2023 at 21:59:36
I think part of the issue is that no-one seems to know what they're doing. The back four line up on the 6-yard box. Calvert-Lewin loiters in the opposition box, Gordon stays within a few feet of the corner flag, Onana and Gueye are rooted to the halfway line, while Iwobi scurries all over the place like Pacman.
If someone from the opposition wanders into one of the various "no man's lands" the static table-football like players don't know what to do.
6 Posted 20/01/2023 at 22:07:52
I think we could a lot worse than to make Coady captain or even Mina when he actually gets a game.
7 Posted 20/01/2023 at 22:08:05
8 Posted 20/01/2023 at 22:17:52
I agree on the Captain options and the lack of leadership – especially in the midfield.
10 Posted 20/01/2023 at 23:52:40
11 Posted 20/01/2023 at 00:00:04
12 Posted 21/01/2023 at 00:02:22
13 Posted 20/01/2023 at 00:15:09
Jeez, they've tarmacced every sodding inch of our disgusting road to relegation whilst at the same time also ruining the road back to mere mediocrity for seasons to come.
And that's not a threat, it's an opinion.
14 Posted 21/01/2023 at 00:42:49
15 Posted 21/01/2023 at 01:30:57
16 Posted 21/01/2023 at 08:05:18
That means if they do stump up the 1m, Everton have half dozen games in which he could be considered. Its a free hit so to speak.
Ali would be in the last chance saloon with everything riding on 6 games, could he make the difference? He has the creative talent we are so lacking but his confidence has been shot to hell.
6 games with even a hint of his talent could be decisive. God knows who else have we got to do it? Desperation does funny things to players and fans,,,
17 Posted 21/01/2023 at 08:39:49
18 Posted 21/01/2023 at 09:23:49
19 Posted 21/01/2023 at 11:10:41
20 Posted 21/01/2023 at 14:48:15
21 Posted 21/01/2023 at 16:12:21
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1 Posted 20/01/2023 at 21:25:00
He obviously (or his friend) has put millions into Everton but, if you buy from Poundland, expect shite. I believe Kenwright and not Lampard is involved in the transfers and now because of P&S Rules, many are on the drip over a few years. We have our hands tied so technically we don't have a pot to piss in.
We can only hope that we don't go down, but if we do the stadium gets finished and someone comes along, buys us and kicks the conman Kenwright out. Frank is in the experimental phase of keep trying and maybe it will all work out. It won't – just ask Albert.