Lampard: “Without a doubt, I feel like an Evertonian!”

Sorry to do this to you, Frank, but no matter what else you do in your life, it will never match what you feel now.

All you have to do now is be brilliant in everything you do with players, staff, passion, not really asking too much are we!

Welcome to the best days of your life.

He seems to find a level field here with his own passions for the game and the fact he's relatively new to management, it's a challenge for him to see where he can take this team.

I was pleased when Frank was appointed, and still am. This wasn't a ready-made squad 9 months ago; very slowly he's making a change.

Who would have guessed he would be able to galvanise the relationship between club, players and fans? He has done those things extremely well, A+ from me on communications and spirit.

He needs time and our patience. I said it on another thread yesterday that we would have all settled at the beginning of the campaign for signs of improvement, more solidity and a mid-table finish. It doesn't sound very ambitious but building a team and transforming dynamics and mentality take time.

Love him, he has aged considerably since taking over though, I worry about what another couple of years in post will do to him! In Frank We Trust.

Something much needed after last season alone, notwithstanding the past several seasons of turbulence. In fact decades of neglect apart from the odd highlight and brief moment of hope. Too much false hope, so I'm both cautious but as usual, optimistic.

I know words don't matter if the results don't come, but I can genuinely see it in him at every match I attend. He always comes to the supporters but I like how he often leaves the players with us. That picture on the thread from the recent Southampton away game is a good example of that.

Actions speak louder than words and he always speaks honestly, but at face value, he seems really bought in.

I said I was on the fence. He has done a good job on Phase 1 (stop the rot, as I called it). Now take us further, Frank. Become an Everton legend as a manager. If it's only half as successful as your playing career, we'll be dancing in the blue-smoked streets that you have quickly come to understand and the football world won't know what's hit it.

Lampard grew up in a football household and has been around football all his life, so it was obvious that he'd love Everton and the Evertonians who both wanted and embraced him, simply because Everton are a proper football club.

So now we finally have a manager who will fight for us, a manager who will give every last drop for us, let him learn, and hopefully one day we can dance in the stands, whilst our manager finally dances around the corner flag celebrating for us, rather than against us. 🤞

He was born in 1978 so would have started taking a real interest in football from his early primary school days. Who were the best team in England between 1982 and 1986?

It is between those ages that little boys (and nowadays little girls, I expect) start to follow the fortunes of the "best" team around at the time.

He said it himself, following his appointment, when asked "Why Everton?" as he had passed up several other jobs after being sacked by Chelsea.

His reply was, "They are a team with a great history, they were League Champions when I was a kid".

If these were his KPIs on appointment, his review would be straight As.
In addition, he has helped to restore the pride and heart back into the club.

We are still nearer to the relegation trap door than we are to European football. But the good news is that, for once, nobody is panicking. We can all see the playing transformation. Every player is giving it all for us.

Selling Richarlison could have been a disaster as his work rate alone was worth a goal. But we finally have a balanced squad that knows what it wants to do. So we lose to the current top sides, but we aren't being out-classed, out-muscled or out-run by any team.

There is a belief that has been lacking for years. Frank has earned the time and space to build slowly. In short, he has the trust and respect of the fans. Seemingly also the same from the owners and players.

He has a long way to go to reach those heady '80s years. But I believe that he will point us in the right direction.

As others have said, he's balanced the squad, tightened the defence and stopped the rot.

I've always thought we'd achieve mid-table safety this season and I haven't changed my mind. But the signs are good for the future if he stays focussed and the board back him. NSNO.

When highly paid players don't perform, the manager gets it in the neck and will get the sack. Players don't.

Frank took on an enormous task at Everton after a run of managers being fired and I believe he has steered them away from disaster and set them on a course of respectability.

Granted, we fickle fans want a lot more and there is a lot more work to be done but it all takes time.

We need to show more patience and not have knee-jerk reactions when the team lose a game, disappointing though it is.

In terms of that, I mean I like them and I feel that, even with Martinez and Silva, they both put their heart and soul into the time they had here, and I genuinely believe it hurt them failing.

Koeman and Benitez were passers by that had little connection with the club or fans. And unfortunately so too was Carlo, he had fried much bigger fish and continues to do so.

For this reason alone, I want Frank Lampard to be a success here at Everton.

And we all know his football instincts are to attack: when we have the personnel, that will come. My new worry is when that tedious muppet Southgate fails, Frank gets poached…

We've done the tried and trusted appointments and not progressed as we desire; I feel we need one of the next generation of managers, an innovator. Not sure Lampard is yet but his impressive overhaul of the defense speaks to a certain level of astuteness.

I think his backroom staff is also a major asset; they should improve the players. Clement is a wise head and the younger Cole and Edwards have decent reputations and that potential for innovation.

All-in-all, it is a good management team that I hope can achieve if given time. There are no guarantees as this is one tough league and, lest we forget, our 'billionaire' owner merely makes him about the 17th richest in the league so that is the reality we face. Patience.

I've just been talking to a very good friend. He's from Warwick and we met on the very first day we both joined the Army. Two young lads from very different backgrounds and areas. We served together literally all over the globe for more than 20 years.

He couldn't play football and didn't even follow a team. He is now, and has been for years, a devout Evertonian. I've taken him to Celtic away (pre-season, where we got into a bit of a rumble with Rangers fans at the station), Goodison on a number of occasions, and met at Wembley without tickets to just enjoy the atmosphere in the pubs amongst fellow Evertonians.

His two children are Evertonians and I met them with my son and brother at a pre-season friendly at MK Dons a few years back as he lives in that area now. His daughter is a really good footballer. She was with Cambridge United and is looking towards a US College scholarship. Great opportunity, so fingers crossed.

A personal story, but back to the thread, theme and Frank's words. Everton infects you. Once it's inside you, there's no going back or getting rid of it, no matter what.

In his short time at Everton, he has been tortured by the threat of relegation and ridden the emotion of surviving it after the Crystal Palace game. That took a lot out of him, though, so he won't want that again.

Now in his second season with us, he is still being held back by a mixture of his own inexperience and having some bang-average players in his team. His two big signings are helping out at the back but we lack so much going forward.

I hope he has identified a couple of players who can transform us into a progressive entertaining team that will fulfill both ours and his ambitions. I want our success to be his success too.

He says all of the right things and is such a likable guy that I hope he is the person who leads us out for our first game down the Dock Road because, if he is, then he will have been doing a lot more than just keeping us up.

Life amongst things is a balance, and I'm a music fan also, so many of my decades have been taken with following bands (particularly New Model Army).

Obviously there is several decades of Everton also, but my commitment has never been like yours. Your wisdom and stories of Everton over the years is stuff of a proper football fan.

I'm rambling now so I'll shut up. In a nutshell, you are a Top Bloke!

I've read enough of your comments to know that you know as much as me about the blues and football. I said often, my family frequently shake their heads at me in disbelief, whereas I'm looking back at them wondering what they're talking about.

I never really got into the music scene early in life or in depth but I was a bit of a '90s Indies fan. I watched Snow Patrol live and they were great. I also watched what ended up being Oasis's last performance at Wembley. As much as I liked their songs over the years, way too refined for me for a live concert.

I never really got into the New Model Army, but let's go with the Love of Hopeful Causes. A play with the title!!

Keep talking, Joe. You're as big an Evertonian as any of us.

If we can get the finances back on track and back him in the transfer market, Lampard will lead us into at least the Top 6, and maybe the Top 4 and back into Europe, and that will fit in nicely with our new stadium.

I love Frank's honesty and realism but remain concerned about his relative inexperience in a very tough league full of experienced "winners" in management terms.

The Brighton model shows what can be done even with relatively inexperienced coaches and I hope Frank gets that support sooner rather than later as we continue to rebuild from the mediocrity instilled by Kenwright.

I really love that he gets Everton far more than even Moyes ever did and uniting the club is a major achievement already.

The next step involves some hardnosed management decisions and I hope he is not "too" nice to implement them.

Since big Joe, nobody bar Martinez has worked the miracle of nearly getting a proper challenging team out of effectively zip-all… but, even then, squad deficiencies eventually cut his bollocks off.

Frank hasn't gone too effusive nor ultra-cautious in his statements suggesting he's clever enough to avoid becoming a hostage to fortune. If he's that astute around the players, he's got half a chance of doing very well here but, as ever, money – or lack of – is the key.

The 'Young Lampard' that you want to see in our team could already be with us.

In the 2 cameo performances I've seen, James Garner looks to have all the attributes of a Lampard-style midfielder. Alongside Onana, we could have two of them. It is early days, but the future is looking brighter than it has done for a long time.

Yes, we have a long way to go. But this is, generally, a young team that is evolving together. If we can avoid the chopping and changing of recent years, the path forward looks very positive.

I wasn't comparing Frank's career to Martinez or Silva, I meant in terms of a genuine feeling and personality.

I believe Martinez wanted badly to succeed at Everton and he tried to connect with the club; however, it became a massive toil for him and it showed in his final year.

Marco Silva too, you could see he had the passion, a more reserved character but clearly a man with inner strength and desire.

The likes of Koeman, Benitez and, as I say, Carlo Ancelotti, they were colder more professional-type characters, maybe Carlo did have a good feeling here but still it always just felt like business.

I feel the same heart-on-sleeve passion in Lampard as I did with Martinez and Silva; that's all I meant really.

Personally, I didn't feel that either of them "got" Everton and always thought "Bobby Brown Shoes" was too self-interested.

As I said, it's only my opinion and I respect and understand yours.

The fear I had in appointing a Wigan manager who'd been relegated. The initial Sin Miedo (without fear) that got us all excited… only to revert back into type. I believe he's still saying that with Belgium.

Silva worried me, but a more reserved character and a good coach. Let's see how he gets on over the course of the season at Fulham though. They seem to be the team on the promotion bounce in a tight league.

Koeman disappointed. A player I admired as a youngster, but I think he didn't want to really be at Everton. There's the difference between him and Lampard.

Benitez… let's not go there. My youngest brother has choice words to say about that one. He makes me sound diplomatic – and he's the sensible one!

If the Everton way is to be accepting of 30 years of mediocrity, with a DVD released every time we win the coin toss against that lot, then I for one would hope he never gets it.

I'm not sure he still knows what a set-piece is supposed to do or has learned from it. Steer well clear.

Hold tight with Frank as this last part may get frustrating and sometimes painful but the creative part always is.

I think Carlo did have a connection with the fans, and always said how much he loved living in Formby and loved his bike rides in the area.

Let's also not forget that he had us in the top half of the league and, for most of that season, he was pushing towards a Top 4 spot, with a worse group than Frank has now.

Also, he brought in two players, James and Allan; the other two purchases in his time were Doucouré and Godfrey who he admitted he had never seen before arriving at Goodison.

Obviously the break-in to his house with his daughter there spooked him, as it would any father, and I think from that moment on he was looking for pastures new.

Being the great manager he is, he then made Real Madrid league winners and European Champions, beating PSG and our neighbours on the way, so not an easy ride.

I just wish we could have got him when first Moshiri took over the club, instead of appointing the waste of space that Koeman was. I think we would now be in the mix for a Champions League spot.

I do think Frank has embraced the club and the fans and we all hope he succeeds, but it's the results that will be the most important thing. Whether he gets the fans or not, Moshiri cannot be in the Championship entering the new Everton stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock.

Also, let's remember Carlo played many of his games under Covid restrictions. But still managed to win away games at places were we traditionally struggle to pick up points.

Regarding Koeman, I believe the board had reservations over appointing him after initial interviews but pressed ahead anyway; none of us complained at the time but I guess we were naive to this new regime back then.

I think Silva got a bit unlucky in the summer of 2019. losing Zouma who was immense at the end of that first season, and also Gana to PSG, the backbone of the team.

He signed Gbamin who then got injured straight away and pretty much his career went up in smoke.

Benitez was only here because it was close to home and it was never going to work out; we gave it a try but weren't realistic.

I liked Carlo, I felt disappointed when he left but couldn't harbour the ill-feeling towards him that some people did.

To give him his due, he brought in the right experienced coaches, and with the knowledge that he had to bring in new players, he worked with, "and has been the first to do so" the new DOF and worked with him to update the club's system – from the junior academy players to the first team.

The biggest influence on him for him to make that statement are the supporters.
He was used to supporters who got behind a team when winning but I think the way the crowd got behind him when they were struggling really made him realize the type of people that mattered in the club was the loyal supporters, home and away.

As I said, it's nice to hear a manager saying he feels like he has become an Evertonian. Here's hoping he realizes that being an Evertonian is not always a bed of roses.

The squad is becoming more reliable in terms of performance, week-in & and week-out. Overall, we are improving in a stable manner that everyone appreciates but there are moments where we're expecting the gamewinner Frank in manager's clothes and it ain't happening.

We'll know by end of the season whether he can make the properly taken gambles pay off. The problem is Everton is a fairly predictable side in terms of setup and relying on young temperamental wingers is a rollercoaster ride for everyone.

At some point, Frank should dictate play or anoint Iwobi as the playmaker and demand some leadership from him. He has the respect of the squad and may be able to settle the young ones down… but, for now, we are still very disjointed up front.

Frank doesn't really want to try the Battleship Carlo routine but hasn't figured out how to change games with this squad. Maybe it happens on its own but there seems to be a lack of leadership up front whereas the back line and midfield look solid enough.

Jay #25, Silva has changed his philosophy on defending set-pieces since his Everton sides gave up 24 goals in a year and a half, so in that area he has improved. But Fulham are still giving up a lot of bad goals on defensive disorganization. I believe Frank will grow into a much superior manager with time.

Martin #23, couldn't agree more re Onana and Garner. The latter impressed me hugely in the Championship promotion playoffs a few months ago. And remember, Iwobi is only 26, Gordon is 21, McNeil turning 23, Mills a teenager. I haven't been this excited about our midfield future in a long time.

I suppose only time will tell, and I personally hope that he stays, and also is given time before the ejector seat is activated.

How many times in the past, when we had the money, was the appointment not only wrong in the first place, and the incumbent given mega-wonga, to buy also-rans?

Maybe the FFP thing had a silver lining after all as Thelwell has basically used what money that was available fairly wisely, and I honestly believe that another couple of windows will see us not only have stability, but be a decent unit.

Remember that, in snooker, one Blue is worth five Reds!

In a way, him and Mikel Arteta have learned their managerial skills in the same way, learning from the best there is, Frank whilst playing under the likes of Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti at Chelsea, and Arteta whilst sitting alongside Pep at Man City for a few years. Learning under those three must surely stand you in good stead as you begin management.

Time will tell regards Frank, while Arteta already has one trophy, I think, under his belt and his team are flying this season.

Of course, having good players in your squad helps, and this might be Frank's biggest challenge, attracting top quality players to join us. His other biggest stumbling block will be funds, how much will be made available to him in the upcoming transfer windows?

Possibly less talented and less visionary than Martinez – but also less of a slave to his own philosophy.

As Dale says, he's a good fit for us right now.

He's the Man!!!

In Frank I Trust.

IMO, he was treated badly as Chelsea manager. He was building for the future there, like he is now. Fortunately for us, Chelsea were too impatient. Please, let us be patient with him.

Listen to him speak! He's not talking clichés, he's an intelligent guy, who's got players playing better than last season, improving players that were lost causes or so we thought (Iwobi).

He's going to come good.

In his first season, he got them to 4th in the Premier League and got to the FA Cup Final. In his second season, he was top of the league at Christmas before we played and beat Chelsea, when big Dunc was caretaker manager.

Unfortunately for Frank, Chelsea lost five out of eight games in that period, culminating in his sacking. His team did go on to win the Champions League that season, so yeah, very harsh on Frank.

I like Frank's realism, humility and passion; he gets Everton.

Long may this last, but patience is needed; Everton are now on the right track.

Yes, and the lesson there is patience. It took 3 years for Arteta to build the club he wanted. As recently as 13 months ago, he had the shortest odds in the sack race, and this summer Nicol pegged him as the likely first manager to be sacked this season.

We will have plenty of rough times ahead of us, and we will need to be as patient with our young manager as Arsenal was with theirs.

I do wonder though if he has been fortunate that perhaps Kevin Thelwell, and maybe P&S rules, has stopped interference from above (no, not that high) and I wonder if he might need the assistance of his own Colin Harvey, on or off the field?

And on that matter, who was the most influential on-field player during his playing career?

No, neither can I, and that's why he was wrong for the club. He never, ever, could have been an Evertonian – no matter how we performed. Then, like now, he is someone not to trust, not to believe in. Just the right appointment in the executives' eyes.

I hope your tenure is a great one, Frank.

Despite the question-marks of many West Ham fans, Lampard must have already been a decent player, but he became a great player, simply because he never scoffed at hard work.

This is the reason I'm prepared to give him as long as he needs at Everton, especially when I consider that he came into one of the hardest jobs in football, and an absolutely disgraceful and dysfunctional club.

I've said many times Benitez was a Usmanov appointment, so my biggest wish now, is that Big Al's second-in-command is still making plans to sell.

I've got a vision in my head of Kenwright digging his claws into the top of the Bramley-Moore Dock walls, screaming "You can't sell now, I've kept this club afloat for years!" as he slides down that listed building wall. 🙏

Kenwright has done a lot wrong but he didn't appoint Benitez that was solely down to Usmanov and Moshiri, Benitez spent 3 days on Usmanov's yacht with Usmanov and Moshiri. Prior to the Ukraine war, Usmanov made all the big calls, he spent a few hours with Ancelotti before he signed.

As Ian Bennet in his post suggested that Dele Alli isn't setting the world alight he was replaced after 52 minutes the other day and replaced by, yes, Cenk Tosun. So I doubt Besiktas will be making that into a permanent move.

So come the summer he will be back getting his 𧴜,000 per week and maybe yet another 㾶 million heading into Spurs coffers. I think given the wages he is on and the way the payments are structured, this is a very expensive mistake which was all down to Frank listening to uncle Harry.

He seems to have lost his desire to play football to the standard he can or could have.

I'm no working class hero and I don't begrudge anyone for bettering themselves in life, but allegedly turning up in a Rolls-Royce in one of the most deprived areas of the UK? Show some humility.

I don't have many football tales to tell outside of my Everton ramblings, but I did get told on my Level 2 FA Coaching Course that Harry Redknapp couldn't coach and rarely took a session. He was a people person who made players feel good either by the arm around the shoulder or through wages.

The guy was high up in the Army coaching system and also coached at youth level at Portsmouth for a few years when Redknapp was Manager, so I don't doubt his observation.

I spent four years at Forest and never saw Brian Clough taking a training session… although the standard definitely went up whenever he was on the training ground walking his dog.

It's a good counterpoint though. A lot of managers don't necessarily get directly involved. Many stand, observe and give instruction to the coaches, stepping in occasionally.

I was just told that Redknapp very rarely got involved at all and was almost a complete man manager.

All say so and hearsay. But the guy running the course wasn't very complimentary from a footballing perspective. Maybe he was a bit bitter or just didn't like him?

Lampard doesn't appear to be a great tactical coach. I always thought Colin Harvey was a lot of the footballing brain behind Kendall, but Howard was probably a much better people's man.

Who knows? I think the biggest success for most people in professional football stems from arriving and just staying in the game. There are very few real winners, but it's created thousands of millionaires out of players and managers with zero honours, god knows we've seen enough of them at Everton over the years.

Back to your point @49. We often all talk about production of quality players from the youth system. West Ham must be up there even if they've often cashed in and moved them on.

The Lampards. "There's only two Frank Lampards" should become a chant. He'd love that.

The Ferdinand brothers.
Joe Cole.
Tony Cottee.
John Terry.
Glen Johnson (I know!!).
Paul Ince (I know again!!!).
Declan Rice. Started at Chelsea, but developed and polished by West Ham.

And who can forget Trevor Brooking and that goal for England that got wedged on the angle of the goal? For those of us who saw it obviously!

Our academy and youth system over the years may have produced players and set them up with a solid future in the game. But the overall consistent quality of West Ham's seems superior to most over the years at first glance. For them, it's a shame they never hung onto them... I can see Rice going after the World Cup too.

On the question of people management, a pal of mine who has been successful in business recently had a long conversation with Frank. He said he was a very engaging character who genuinely seems to be enjoying life at Everton. He was quite open about the fact that people management played very little part in gaining coaching badges.

Fortunately, Frank seems to have good inter-personal skills and his desire to win has never been in doubt, qualities which convince me that we must be patient with him.

The Crystal Palace cameo version of Alli would slot right in and transform our goal threat. Not to be.

Maybe we can find an up-and-coming one in the lower leagues (like Alli) or at least in the better-value leagues abroad. I'm not keen on another faded superstar on a very high wage but a very steep decline.

Lampard and Thelwell were keen on Gibbs-White and Jackson (who stayed at Villarreal in the end) over the summer, so maybe that is a priority going forwards.

Labone, Tommy Wright, Stevens (Gary), Harvey, Royle, Whittle, Jeffers and Rooney. I am sure I may have missed one or two off the list no doubt Dave Abrahams will mention other players to come through our academy.

I was thinking more in the line of a possible sounding board from somebody he respects through their playing time together.

Whilst it's hard not to like Lampard, I don't see him as some genius manager unfortunately. As such, recruitment will be driver of how successful we become and we will continue to have a ceiling of 7th.

Jeffers was a huge disappointment for me. Similar to Barkley in a way, although the latter kept the optimism going for longer at Everton.

Didn't Ratcliffe also come through our youth system?

My point might be wrong, but in my years, West Ham seem to have produced a steady stream of quality players who play at and stay at the top level. Not usually with West Ham.

We produce good players. We can point to Davies and Rodwell too. But often, that early optimism of being the next great thing fizzles out.

Anthony Gordon will hopefully stay at the top and with Everton.

I'm sure it happens at West Ham too and I don't know the statistics, but they seem have a relatively recent history of producing a list of top-drawer players.

For those of that generation, I forgot Bobby Moore, but that was before my time.

Three (Hs) for starters: Hurst, Husband and Higgins.

Danny (63) threw Ratcliffe in.

I knew I could rely on you; I was trying to pick players who played for their countries. I know Alan Whittle didn't but he played in our league-winning team.

My memory is going a bit but I don't think Mark Higgins or John Hurst did either and not sure Jimmy Husband did.

How did I forget Kevin Ratcliffe, and Chris in his post has added Steve McMahon. I think we are well on the way to rivalling Danny's West Ham list of academy players who rose to the top.

Kevin Richardson – we also got a decent fee for and he won a First Division Championship medal with Arsenal to match the ones he won at Everton.

[Apologies if already mentioned, not read the entire thread.]

I've mentioned before, my best friend's dad used to take him to Goodison on the bus from Halewood.

I used to see him in the bars in Woolton years later. Obnoxious shit to be honest.

But no denying a good footballer.

Dave Abrahams, that reference to Kevin Richardson makes me sad. Won a title and trophies with Everton but couldn't nail down a regular place. Yet was a regular at Arsenal and won the league with them too.

How good were we? And how far did we fall quickly?

It will be crucial how the next two transfer windows pan out for him and getting the right type of players in the forward and creative areas will be key to his success. We then should have a very strong team to compete at the upper end of the table.

He seems to get the club and Evertonians, which is great, and I think he will give us a couple more seasons, but I still believe he has some unfinished business at Chelsea and will go back there and manage them again.

A combination of not being given a fair crack of the whip and under the new ownership. Similar to Carlo when Madrid came knocking, I think that may well happen with Frank… though just not yet.

Seeing as you selected players at West Ham academy who had played for their country, apart from Anton Ferdinand, I thought it only fair to draw a list of Everton players who played for their countries.

I can't believe I didn't include Kevin Ratcliffe. I know some have mentioned other players who came through our academy but, apart from Ratcliffe and McMahon, I don't think any of them played for their country.

I was a bit surprised that you didn't mention the 3 players from West Ham who won the World Cup: Moore, Peters and Hurst.

I guess my first shout was shooting from the hip from what I'd seen in my lifetime.

I think my main point is West Ham punch above their weight in terms of producing top players considering where they have been most of their footballing life, if that makes sense?

That's why we have to be patient. It's unfair on Lampard to expect him to walk in and have us in Europe in Season 1.

I'd suggest any manager would have come up against the same obstacles Frank has to overcome and they would struggle.

Overpaid, underperforming players in a bloated squad, a lack of team spirit, many just going through motions, picking up their fat wages, the boardroom mess, fan unrest, P&S restrictions.

He hasn't even had 12 months!!!

I'd suggest if he had the budget of Chelsea he'd have us in them European places already.

In his words, managers wouldn't have the "bollocks" to take the Everton job at the time, but he did and we should be grateful he did or we could be in the Championship.

I'm not saying everything is perfect, Frank knows that himself. I think last season will have taught him and his staff so much that they would never have learnt at Chelsea.

I know he came through the schoolboy ranks at Everton, so guessing that qualifies him.

On being an Evertonian, when I see the women and kids in the crowd on the tele before the match, for some reason, I feel very, very proud of them.

I had my time as a young boy and was a fortunate 80s teenager. I still vividly remember that seemingly endless trip from Speke to Norwich and back. I only recall Pat's goal in about the first minute.

The rest of the match was irrelevant. A blur, knowing that we were Champions. Hand it over, Liverpool!

Those young lads I stood alongside at Fulham at the weekend give me faith. I love standing and just watching them. I'm too old to join in now.

Spirit of Blues. It never goes away. Great to see it in the young Evertonians who are picking up the mantle.

Nothing but pride in watching them.

“Nothing but pride in watching them”.

I get that and am sure their dedication will be rewarded. As my wonderful father (God rest his soul) said to me during the Moyes years, “We will be great again”. It's a lifetime ago since he lifted me over the Goodison Road turnstiles in 1961.

My hope faltered after the Burnley game but was restored by the fans in the lead-up to the Palace game. Our manager has tapped into something very special.

What's Our Name?

Polar opposite to that stroppy cry-arse from across the park. Regularly making a tit out of himself now the results aren't going their way.

As a side note – just discovered Lampard's series of kids' books – "Frankie's Magic Football" at the library. Perfect bedtime reading with my 8-year-old.

Through all his years of fame and fortune, he's taken the time to write stories for kids! Like I said – impossible not to like the man!

Just in case you're placing money on this... it was actually against Brentford in the game before the famous victory against Palace.

Whisper it very quietly but we did have a manager like that 10 years ago, but he is now universally hated on this site because he made us difficult to beat, never won anything, nor away at the Sky darlings.

Sorry, Michael K!

I remember Richardson scoring for Arsenal in a 3-0 win at Goodison and celebrating like mad at the Park End with the Arsenal fans! It was like a "Fuck you" to us for not giving him a proper chance!