A Level Playing Field?

Cards on the table. No complaints about the result. The lads put a good shift in, but were beaten by a much, much better team. It’s about as simple as that really.

Yes, Everton were frustrating in possession. I thought in the second half we were far too careless and lost the ball way too easily. There’s plenty for Sean Dyche to correct there. There’s a lot to improve on. But with players returning and getting into their groove, plus the opportunities created against the teams we “should” do well against, I’m encouraged enough that we can get this right.

Once Beto gets a few games under his belt. Once Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Dwight McNeil get more minutes in them. Once Jack Harrison gets fit. Once Seamus Coleman is back to lead us…there’s a lot that will get better.

But there’s a few things Sean really needs to get right quick-smart. Is Ashley Young’s set-pieces really the hill Sean is going to die on? Why the self-nullification of one of our most potent attacking weapons? Nathan Patterson needs a run of games too…is he third choice right back now? What does that say to a young player? He’ll be wanting to leave soon if he gets overlooked. We need to let him learn.

Sean really needs to alter that midfield too. James Garner has to be in it. We need that improvement in quality. The other three, though pretty faultless with effort, seem muddled in our plan. And when we are in trouble and chasing a game, James is quickly called upon to try and rescue it, often from the flank, which is asking a lot really and isn’t very fair. Give him a role in the midfield and games to learn. We’ll lose him if we don’t, which would be a shame as he is quite the gem.

I don’t want Sean sacked. I hjaven’t the faintest idea who we would turn to if we do, and we need as much of a feeling of stability as we can possibly get. But if you keep on losing games, no matter how unfortuitously, eventually the axe will fall, and Sean is in grave danger of that if we don’t improve quickly.

But on the day, Arsenal were much better than us. They have stability with a manager. Enormous resource, much superior players, coaching staff and analysis. They are flying high and were always going to be a huge mountain to overcome despite the best efforts from the vociferous crowd. From the Gwladys Street their goal looked a brilliantly worked one though I’ll have to see it again.

Matching these team is very tough. Out-gunning them even more so. The better team won by a country mile. But you need a level playing field. Does corruption run that deep that one team miles better than another one gets all the 50-50s their way? That a referee will call a game back for a foul once the better team has lost possession, though then not do the same for the lesser team? On a weekend when we’ve seen five injury time goals with games now going on for an extra 10-15 minutes, but we only get four minutes in a very niggly stop-start game. And then most of that four minutes is spent with the ball out of play, only for the referee to blow for full time to second Everton boot it forward? It’s a scenario we’ve seen many times before, but if they are going to show such favouritism, could they do us the courtesy of making it a little less obvious?

The boos rang out at full time were aimed at Simon Hooper and his mates. Did Everton play well? No. But they did give it their all. They made poor decisions in attacking areas but defended heroically, and the defenders will feel hard done to coming out of the wrong side of that.

Like it or not, we know what Sean Dyche is about. He’ll set up not to lose against the big teams and hope for a break. But he’ll go for it in the games we stand much mote of a chance with.

Get behind the lads. Get behind the manager. If the form continues something would have to be done. But by uniting behind them gives them much more of a chance. And if Sean does get the bullet, who exactly are we expecting to come in to our sorry mess of a club and take us forward?

My man of the match: Jarrad Branthwaite

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