The 12th Man

We have had lots of analysis of the quality of the squad, positions that need to be strengthened, new additions, possible line-ups, expectations for the season etc. However, one factor which I believe has more of a bearing on the team than fans give credit for is the atmosphere in the stadium (ie, the proverbial 12th man).

From what I've seen, Goodison can be one of the most intimidating places (the proverbial bear pit) for teams to visit but it can also be a toxic place for the home team. There have been periods of time over the last few seasons where Goodison has been a tough place for Everton to play and our home record is testament to that.

Away teams, especially in the lower half of the league, park the bus, then the home fans get impatient, the team gets nervy, then a mistake, and bang – we're 0-1 down.

In my opinion, a lot of this is down to unrealistic expectations of the team and players. It's been noticeable that, towards the end of the last two seasons, when we have had our backs against the wall and the crowd was fully behind the team, the home results improved dramatically.

Our team is based on a solid defence and we don't have a huge amount of creativity (or a proper No 10) so it's always going to be difficult for us to break teams down. Patience is essential and having the crowd on your back is not going to help.

Patience will also be required with new players, especially those new to the Premier League. I've seen calls for new players like Ndiaye to start ahead of Doucoure etc. Any sensible coach (and I rank Dyche as one of the most sensible coaches around) is going to start with established players and gradually introduce new players to help them acclimatise.

So, I really hope that our (home) fans can understand this and get fully behind the team right from the start of the season, no matter who is on the pitch or how the game is going. 

(ps: Our away fans are amazing!)

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