Reading Between the Lines

Good piece, Lyndon. Hackney at £16.5m is smart business and George returning is a positive sign.

On Moyes, I agree TFG are right not to pay him off—better to invest in the squad.

The concern is coaching and development. Barry is raw but hasn't been properly developed (I think he's in the squad on height, typical Moyes and Finch Farm that), and last summer's signings have barely progressed. It's the old culture still lingering—that cautious mentality that holds young players back. But as you say, recruitment seems to be on the same track as last summer, so plans haven't been totally derailed by the manager, which is a saving grace.

There's also a pace issue in defence. We drop too deep to compensate, which leaves gaps on the counter. A tactical and selection tweak (hopefully a signing) could fix that, but it would require reversing Moyes's lifetime habits.

But the "two-window" plan is the right path. Early business is encouraging. If we address the striker issue and defensive pace, and finally coach these players properly, we could be in for a good season.

It looks like TFG are playing their cards close to their chests, which is encouraging.

Actions speak louder than words. I think this is a good response to the concerns raised over the last month.

Jerome, you would hope that there are defensive players lined. Much may depend on Branthwaite's fitness over the course of pre-season. I would be doubtful of depending on it until he has played a full season.

I would disagree slightly on the cost of paying Moyes off. 7m is two league placing. He may be more comfortable with, and confident of, this squad with a full season and a pre-season under his belt. The football may become more expensive come the new season. We may well shoot up the table. Or, he may revert to type and the football might be dreadful and drift around the bottom of the table.

It's a gamble, but time will tell.

Branthwaite we need a upturn on.I don't his development has been managed well either.Kieran you have a point regarding the difference in two places.

The Hackney deal has now been confirmed. Bringing players in before the start of the pre-season build-up can make such a huge difference to their integration to the squad as well as their fitness. Steadily a group of young players with room for development is being created. Once again we will need to be patient until they achieve consistency of application and fully acclimatise to the physical demands of the Premier League.

I've nothing specific to object to about these new arrivals but they aren't the answer to the current issues facing the team. We need 4 players who can go straight into the first team, and that isn't around the £16m range. these signings feel a little like padding, but at the moment we've not much to pad.

Paying Moyes off was the only credible option after his failure to qualify for Europe and subsequent loss of PL prize money dropping to 13th.

Glasner or possibly Iraola could have been snapped up if Moyes had been fired the day after the Spurs defeat. Instead we face another season of “stability” going nowhere.

Makes sense just to buy another CB with speed and mobility. Branthwaite’s injury probably cost us the 2 wins we needed for a European place last season. He doesn’t now look reliable.

We might be able to get by if OBrien partners Keane - but hopefully the club is serious enough about this season to invest in a new CB.

Kevin # 5 I think that’s a bit unfair. Hackney is probably “worth” about £30m or so. The only reason he is cheap is because (a) Boro failed to get promoted and (b) he’s coming to the end of his contract. I think it’s a really good signing - not just padding. Not as exciting as £100m for Matheus Fernandes perhaps but still good.

George too is of the right sort of profile for us.

I’d be very pleased to see us build up the squad this summer with other low cost signings like this.

Robert you may be right about the valuation. I still think though that neither would currently be in Moyes first eleven. A pretty poor first eleven at that.

Having just turned 24, Hackney is no fledgling. He will rightly expect to be a first team regular very quickly. Having signed him on a five year contract Moyes will be counting on him to improve our use of the ball, linking with Garner and Dewsbury-Hall in a more fluid midfield section. Also our potency in attack will be improved if he can add something like the five goals per season output of his last two years in the Championship.

I agree John. Obviously a lot of the squad still needs sorting out but a central midfield trio of Hackney, Garner and Dewsbury-Hall has a very nice balance to it. And you can see it being the core of a good side over the next 3 seasons as we continue to develop into a side with Champions League standard players.

Rohl and Armstrong should play a part too but I suspect Iroegbunam will now be sold - and maybe Alcaraz too.

I agree with Kevin’s sentiments at 5,

I’m surprised by the Hackney deal as it’s not a priority, apparently he was one of the championships standout players last term other than that I know very little about him, having said that it’s good to see our window is finally gathering momentum.

As we know Right back needs addressing immediately as does centre back, with Tarks and Keane on the decline I’d like to think they’d be options from the bench, also given Jarrad’s injury concerns it’s paramount we sign a cb who is ready for first team football, just as important is a striker as Beto and a very green and in my opinion not good enough Barry won’t do. These are problems that need sorting straight away ready for a good pre season and bedding in never mind anything else.

We never seem to do the sensible thing, the right thing, no solution to our squad problems, start of the season just weeks away and where is our manager? Other teams are strengthening in key areas ie Spurs, Newcastle etc why we procrastinate. I’m hoping there’s activity going on this week and players coming in very soon.

Robert I think the writing is definitely on the wall for Alcaraz. He only has 12 months left on his contract so get some money while we can as Moyes clearly doesn't rate him.
A decision is needed on Armstrong and Iregbounam is needed as well. If we sell Iregbounam we need to keep Armstrong. If we keep Iregbounam Armstrong needs to go on loan.

Harry # 12, to get Hackney in for just €19.30m is an absolute steal in a market where Elliot Anderson cost €135.00m. I know it's not the top priority position - but it's a really good deal and I think he'll be a popular player.

Right back probably is the key priority and I am sure that will be addressed this window. But as with last summer, TFG appear to be patient in order to secure value out of a crazy market. They are not building the squad just for the year ahead - they are building the squad for the next 3 to 5 years and beyond (and rightly so).

The likeliest RB remains Rico Lewis and City probably want something like £35m for him. Still a pretty low cost signing in the current market but our spending power is limited so we may yet lose out to Sunderland, Forest or Fulham for him. If do we get him, I think he'd be really popular too - and could be our RB for more than 10 years which would be a very good investment.

If not him though, there are absolutely loads of other RB options and we will get one (maybe two).

Hopefully a CB too who will give us the cover you're after. There are persistent links to Harwood-Bellis and a handful of foreign CBs.

Harry (12), I think most of us agree that full-back is the priority area but just because the Hackney deal was done first doesn't mean the club don't feel the same way. I don't care what order they're signed in as long as we plug the holes that need to be filled.

By all accounts, they are working on signing a right-back. Hopefully it's two, as well as a left-back but we'll have to wait and see.

I think that we will still look to raise cash in this window. The list of players being sold will be a short one. Patterson and Alcaraz seem the obvious ones at present. They may not raise huge sums but if their sale covered the cost of Hackney then I'll take it.

Tim I would keep, and I think given the game time he is getting he would be happy to stay. But if the right offer came in I think the club would take it. Moyes seems to like him as well so it may depend on him. I know hes out of contract but I wouldn't be that bothered in keepung Gueye. At his age it's the law of diminishing returns, even with his renouned fitness levels

N'diaye may well be leaving too but I don't think it's the disaster many think it is. There is value to be had in the market and I think he can be replaced for a profit.

The Alcaraz situation highlights a real contradiction in Everton's transfer policy.

Under Dyche, he thrived as a roaming #10 — quick combinations, risky passes, making things happen. Under Moyes, he's been pushed out wide or into a deeper role. Unsurprisingly, he's looked less effective.

Moyes values control, defensive shape, and low-risk football. Alcaraz is naturally a gambler — he'll lose the ball trying to create.The Man City pass may have finished his Everton career, where as in defense it would be accepted. That trade-off was worth it in a Dyche relegation scrap. In a Moyes side trying to manage games, it's viewed as a liability.

Everton's attack hasn't exactly been firing under Moyes either. So is Alcaraz the problem, or is the system just a poor fit?

But the real issue goes beyond one player.
The Hackney signing fits the "young with potential" model perfectly — Championship Player of the Season, Moyes's track record of developing that level, a calculated gamble on upside. But Alcaraz — £13m, aged 23, showed promise on loan — has been marginalised despite fitting a similar profile.

And it's not just Alcaraz. Last summer's big-money buys tell the same story. Tyler Dibling (£35m) has managed just 157 league minutes — his value has already plummeted to £16.6m. Thierno Barry ( the eternal sub)and Adam Aznou (combined £70m) have just three Premier League starts between them. Even Mykolenko's value has dropped €3m.

Then there's the financial cost.Everton are still navigating PSR constraints, so watching over £100m of young talent sit on the bench isn't just frustrating — it's financially damaging. Depreciating assets with no resale value and no on-pitch return. In a PSR world, that's a double blow: the club can't sell them for a profit to balance the books, and they're not contributing enough to justify the outlay.

The irony stings: The policy was meant to build sell-on value and reduce the squad's age. Instead, the club is watching its biggest assets depreciate on the bench while Moyes leans on Grealish and Dewsbury-Hall. The policy is sound on paper, but the execution is actively destroying value.

Player and system just don't match right now. But the bigger concern is that Everton's transfer strategy and matchday approach are working against each other — and it's costing the club millions.

I’d be surprised if anyone is willing to pay a fee for Patterson given his track record of failure at Premier League level and injury. Loan much more likely and then free transfer when his contract is up.

Robert#18.

Moyes will probably say that he does not need a right back and will name Patterson as available for selection, just like in Sept last season.He will also give us a bit of spiel on his first hand pundit views of his World Cup positives.It would be against Moyes inate Scottishness to give away anything for nothing.

Kieran you missed McNeil from the list who Palace were prepared to pay £20m for in January!

Jerome you are right in identifying we must do better maximising the value of our signings/transfers. Sibling has lost millions in value while you look at Vuskovic at Spurs. Bought for £12m 3 years ago. Never kicked a ball for them, a season long loan to Hamburg, now being sold for £50m +20% profit on sale!

The Alcaraz situation is depressing alright Jerome. I thought he was brilliant when on loan and was worth the fee last summer. It made no sense to then not play him. It is as you say also a contradiction in policy.

You are right on Grealish as well. It's twice the rub.

It’s a bit selective to compare Dibling to Vuskovic. You could equally compare him to the two Greek teenage strikers Brighton bought for a combined €65m and returned 3 goals last season. Does that make Brighton rubbish at scouting / buying players?

And Dibling may yet be a good player for us too. Gareth Bale was shit when he first arrived at Spurs. Lots of other players take time.

Robert I’m not having a go at Dibbling, more questioning why we couldn’t identify him a couple of years earlier for say £20 m, hopefully like we are doing with George now.
I appreciate buying any youngster is always a risk but since Branthwaite our track record of buying anyone under the age of about 21 and developing them either into a first team regular or an asset that returns value is pretty poor

Since we brought Branthwaite the club has operated financially as though it has been relegated and also lost any direction from the owners.

The club has done remarkably well not going bust and getting relegated in such circumstances (no other club has managed that). But it is not surprising that investment in youth development was dialled down while the club attempted against the odds to stay afloat.

Happily we are now afloat but years behind clubs that have good player trading and development arrangements.

If you want to be good at this, you need to invest in infrastructure and a very high volume of recruitment at age 14 and above (and indeed younger too).

We’re right at the start of our journey on this. And the market is now much more competitive - as it is no longer an innovative thing to do (and also Saudi is buying up a reasonably high volume of the best teenagers from South America and France etc).

Well written article & some interesting subsequent commets that certainly give food for thought.

It's partly good the way we are standing firm & won't be held to ransom in the transfer market as other clubs splash out ridiculos amonts that only serves to inflate the market.

I'll mention a few positions.

We need experieced backup for Jordan Pickford. Then there is the glaringly obvious need for a right back. Patterson is simply not good enough. Scotland or the lower echelons of the English league is his level.

Then an attacking midfielder.Alcaraz if he stays, but it is obvious Moyes doesn't fancy him. How he is supposed to make an impression is beyond me.

Barry is an enigma & despite the young potentia, he flatters to decieve & will be sold. RB Leipzig are rumored to have approached Everton

So, a big summer of prepation & squad rebuilding lay ahead. My only plea is don't let Moyes anywhere near it.

I guesstimate that with paying off the manager's contract combined with player incomings, we will need somewhere between £150-£200M, nicely covered by the most recent inject of the Hill Dickinson sponsership money.

I trust Everton to remain prudent in their activities & maximise use of loans.

I wonder if players have turned down the opportunity to sign for us because they know Moyes’ contract is up at the end of this coming season? Some players don’t like that kind of uncertainty when committing themselves to a new club, a new contract, maybe a different part of the country, or a new country entirely if they’ve been playing abroad.They may well be thinking that signing a 3/4 year deal with us might not make sense for them if Moyes is gone in a year’s time and the new man doesn’t fancy them.Especially if they’ve got young families to think about.
Personally, I think Moyes should have left at the end of last season.I’ve had a bellyful of his containing, dour, safety first football.But I also know that unless something disastrous happens he’s going to be here for the entirety of this next season.But it worries me that younger players could seriously be thinking twice about signing for us, not only because of what they’ve seen happen to the younger players already at the club under Moyes (Alcaraz, Aznou, Armstrong, Dibling) but also because they’ll have no idea of who the manager will be in a year’s time.

David # 26, players and their agents are after 1 thing. Money. Look at how many Premier League managers are sacked and replaced every season. Moyes could outlast 5 or more Premier League managers this season. Players all know and understand they are signing for a club and a wage, not a manager.

Danny # 25, I hope we do not sell Barry. 8 goals in 38 games (21 starts) is really not a bad return at all in a debut season. More so since we were a really poor attacking outfit. He is obviously not the finished article but if we upgrade the flanks and move the defensive line higher he will benefit (as will any striker).

Given our limited spending power, it will be extremely difficult to find a striker who will score more than 8 to 12 goals in their debut season. There are a few who could beat that over time, but it might take a few years. I would rather we kept Barry and bought someone of genuine talent(like Peter Prosper or Kevin Filling etc etc) with the potential to be proper Champions League standard striker one day.

Someone in a US skyscraper is asking the most obvious question that really does scream for an answer. "What the hell did you buy them for if their not ready or not good enough?"
Quickly followed by, "No more! Or else your neck is on the line! Remember, it's MY money you idiot"
Certainly Angus will be getting it the neck, if not Moyes, because Desperate Dan will not be amused.
Alcaraz for me has never been really wanted, I think he was a back up insurance on a two year deal. Odd. And a shame because I like his intent..he is always looking to go forward, but that's a big no, no for Moyes. Defence first then a measured approach to attacking. A classic example of defensive, low block mentality.

Aye, Christine. I hope they'll also have calculated what a points return of merely 3 from the last 7 matches has cost the Club. Suddenly, the cost of replacing Moyes this summer may look like value for money.

Robert @27, our strikers have been feeding off scraps. While not world beaters, Beto and Barry just haven't been given proper service. Look at Beto when he gets through balls to run on to. He has shown he can be a great finisher.

John @ 20. Yep, forgot McNeill. Glasner may still be interested and may take him to Forest if he signs on as manager.

Forest will have the Anderson money burning a hole in their pocket. How much of it will see the transfer window and how much of it will go towards keeping the Pl financial rules at arms length remains to be seen.

Christine, a low block mentality is right. One that you would think is no longer required. However, if we carry last season into next, we may need it more than ever.

In fairness to Moyes - first time around he weaned us off the low block by bringing in pacier more mobile CBs like Yobo, Distin, Lescott and Jagielka.

Had Branthwaite been fit last season we’d have played a higher line - and despite all the negativity I think everyone is expecting a new RB and a first choice CB pairing of Branthwaite and O’Brien.

He’s not a brave manager by any stretch but he is not fixated with a low block either.

Jerome (17) Alcaraz did not thrive under Dyche. He arrived three weeks after Dyche departed, making his debut under Moyes at Crystal Palace. In that game, probably his best for the club, he collected a Palace throw-in before laying on the opening goal for Beto. He went on to score our late winner.

Charly is indeed a gambler. I liked his direct approach, best exemplified last season in his role in our late equaliser at Brighton. When a team is chasing a game he is a decent last resort option. Unfortunately his decisions are erratic, he is prone to giving the ball away in central areas and as you say he is incompatible in a Moyes team seeking to control games. It will be interesting to see where he goes next.

I think that's a good assessment, John. What a strange career some of these players have - effectively traded like a commodity from a young age. 23 years old and 5 clubs already across 4 countries and 2 continents. He's clearly got some ability but there's loads of players like that across South America, Europe, Saudi and the MLS. Nothing special and no reason to get sentimental. He was cheap. If he goes, he goes. If he stays, he'll be behind the likes of KDH, Rohl and Armstrong so won't play much. Good luck to him.

John#32
Thought he had. Didn't check( Thanks for pointing out), just went on the memory( Which isn't, good anyway. of his performances, which where not too bad imo.But last season he rarely played, which would suggest he wasn't developed or he did not respond or wasn't given the chance to respond. At 23 he is still developing and you would have thought sone game time would have helped his value.That doesn't seem to be a priority at Everton.

Jerome (34) I would suggest Charly failed to respond. His big chance to stake his claim for a place in the starting line-up came in December and January. When Dewsbury-Hall succumbed to a hamstring injury in the twelfth minute at Chelsea, Charly was the replacement. While overall he didn’t play too badly in that match my abiding memory of his performance was his careless ball across his own area straight to Garnacho who fortunately shot wide. He started the following week against Arsenal but ran into too many blind alleys in what was generally a weak team performance.

Having kept his place for the dire game at Burnley just after Christmas he was then injured, joining a lengthy list of absentees and missing games for which he would surely have been a starter. While he was unlucky to be injured Charly had in any event failed to press his case when the opportunity was there for him in the preceding games. I should add that in each of those games he was played in his favoured position, the number ten role.

Agree with a couple of people on here regarding Moyes’ use, or rather lack of use regarding Alcaraz.Alcaraz isn’t world class obviously, and makes mistakes.But he’s a young lad who, as Christine has pointed out, wants to get forward and play on the front foot.And he’s got a goal in him too.I thought his goal against Mansfield in that League Cup tie at Hill Dickinson last season was very good.I get the impression that Alcaraz is a player who could seriously thrive under a manager who truly believed in him and encouraged him to always play to his strengths.But it looks increasingly clear that the Dour One won’t be the manager who gets the best from Alcaraz, unfortunately.

John#35

Alcaraz is a gambler, direct, willing to take risks, capable of moments of magic (like his role in the late equaliser at Brighton). It was something that was seen as a plus and developed and encouraged before he arrived at Everton.He's at his best when a team is chasing a game and needs something different. His direct approach and willingness to drive forward are exactly the qualities that can unlock stubborn defences.

In my book passing a ball across ones own backline is a cardinal error.He would not do it again after the sever bollocking he would get had I been Manager, It is common and for me it is annoying how many times Everton players run into blind alleys and lose possession under Moyes's deliberate predictable attacking system, more born out of defence, rather than attack.It is as if Moyes at his age is transfering his wishes onto the pitch.

Alcartz injury was unfortunate, but a season to recover is a bit much. A player with his talent doesn't become useless overnight. The Alcaraz who assisted and scored on his debut didn't suddenly forget how to play football. What's changed is the system, and the manager's willingness to work with what he has.

Moyes values control above all. Alcaraz is chaos, in the best and worst sense. He is also young and learning.That mismatch explains the drop in form, but not the exile. Especially when the alternatives haven't exactly set the world alight?

The Hackney signing fits the "young with potential" model perfectly. But Alcaraz — £13m, aged 23 — fits a similar profile and has been marginalised. And it's not just him. Dibling (£35m) has seen his value plummet to £16.6m after just 157 league minutes. Barry and Aznou (combined £70m) have three Premier League starts between them.I they been judged by Moyes the same. In the League Cup game where they where thrown on together they didn't looked coached for Moyes system

Then there's the Financial cost. Everton are navigating PSR constraints. Watching over £100m of young talent depreciate on the bench isn't just frustrating, it's financially damaging and costs more than the mistakes of a 22 year old. Assets losing value with no resale return and no on-pitch contribution. In a PSR world, that's a double blow.

If Alcaraz's errors are enough to banish him, what does that say about a transfer policy that keeps signing similar profiles, only for them to suffer the same fate? The policy is sound on paper. But the execution, under a manager who demands control over creativity, is actively destroying value.

Player and system don't match. Alcaraz made mistakes,but complete exile, while the attack still struggles, feels like a failure to adapt on both sides.

The bigger concern is that Everton's transfer strategy and matchday approach are working against each other and is still costing the club millions and it's future.

Incompatible in a Moyes team seeking to control games John?

I personally think he his incompatible because the team don’t play forward aggressively enough.

I think it’s clear that Alkaraz, is seen by his manager as a decent last resort because in that game when he replaced KDH, at Chelsea, he had actually been on the winning team twice in the previous seven days, and was subsequently replaced with Gueye, who was leaving for the AFCON, after this game.

I’ve just realised I criticise Moyes, for not integrating enough players into his squad and rotating them, and now I’m criticising him for dropping Alkaraz, after two straight wins on the bounce!

Actions speak louder than words, so I can’t wait to see an Everton team, (not just under Moyes) seeking to control a game of football by playing on the front foot.

Or we could just do what pretty much every other Premier League club would do and sell bargain bin Alcaraz and buy a much better player.

I think some fans have got so used to us being being poor they’ve lost sight of how other Premier League clubs actually operate.

Robert, price is just a quarter of the package. Wages alone make a £40m 'upgrade' cost an extra £4.7m a year, nearly £19m over a four-year deal. On the PSR side, selling Alcaraz for £20m gives us a £5m book profit, but replacing him with a £40m player adds a net £5m annual hit to our amortisation because we go from £3m a year to £8m.

Tactically, Moyes needs pressing grafters, not innovative flair that ends up benched by Moyes(Not a progressive Everton ). And on resale, Alcaraz is 21 with £40m+ upside, while a 27-year-old 'upgrade' bought today is worth nothing in three years.

Moyes is limited here, he treats number 10s as rentals, not appreciating assets, and those enabling him are the real problem.

Other clubs buy big because they developed big first, skipping that step is exactly why we're stuck.

Tony (38) Yes, you’re right of course. Charly played in the number ten role in both the wins against Bournemouth and Forest. In fact he played in 22 matches in all competitions last season, more than I realised.

I acknowledge he might produce more end product in a team playing on the front foot with greater possession and set up to attack in central areas. We were obviously not that sort of team, with Moyes preferring to attack from the flanks, predominantly the left, in a low risk approach. It will be fascinating to see if the summer recruitment, notably the signing of Hackney, brings forth a more expansive outlook from the manager. I think it will but as always the proof will be on the pitch.

For your first paragraph@39, I would change the player for the current manager, Robert, and for your second paragraph, I would say that it seems like we have been that poor for that long, that it now feels like a lot of fans are happy bumping along with a manager who offers nothing much more, than boring stability.

According to the stats, I’ve just researched then Alkaraz, has got 6 goals and six assists in 54 appearances, for Everton, but when you calculate his minutes on the pitch this amounts to around 27 full appearances!

Football is all about opinions, mine is that players only get better once they are trusted by their manager and in this modern game, football has definitely become a squad game.

Tony - I think there's still this emotional stance on here that because we are Everton, our players and squad must be better than those at the likes of Brighton, Brentford, Forest, Bournemouth and Palace etc. And it just takes ambition and a decent manager for our cream to rise to the top.

Sadly that is just not the case. It hasn't been for a long time. We're historically bigger of course but our players are not better and we're not richer either - so we can't outspend them to get ahead. In fact, we're poorer than both Brighton and Palace in overall revenue terms and spending power - and not materially ahead of Brentford and Bournemouth.

We've got much, much bigger revenue potential than all of these clubs, of course, but it's not like a new manager is going to benefit from that any time soon. We're right at the start of a journey on that one.

Fans don't see it this way, fine, but clubs rate their manager's performance by reference to the level of investment. And on that basis Moyes, boring though he is, isn't actually underperforming. That's why he has not been sacked. TFG may not like the guy particularly, but will I expect be unconcerned by his managerial performance.

There's been an angry reaction on here and other fan sites to the RS sacking and replacing Slot despite scraping into the Champions League - and why can't we show the same kind of ambition.

But let's look at what the RS have really done. They spent nearly £500m in just one summer on a title winning team - in the expectation of domestic and Champions League dominance. They finished 5th and got schooled again by PSG in the Champions League. And yet who do they turn to to sort this out - well the man who finished 6th - behind Slot's Liverpool.

Surely if they had any ambition they wouldn't have done that - surely that just subjects them to the Iraola glass ceiling. Unless what really matters is performance relative to investment. In that case Iraola scores well, although is still a risky appointment.

The thing really holding us back in the short term, more than anything, is our over-reliance on the unreliable Branthwaite, our shit full backs and our cheap, clumsy striking options. If we resolve that in the summer market then there's every chance Moyes (again, boring and unlikeable as he is) could take us to Europe. Indeed he's got a decent track record in that respect.

I totally disagree with everything you have said about Liverpool, surely lacking ambition Robert, but my concern is only about Everton, mate.

Moyes, underachieved imo, but only because we only took 3 points out of the last possible 21 points. Why did we only take three points? All about options, but mine is because the man is reluctant to change.

Everyone talks about Europe, my own view is that it’s a lot more important for Everton, to try and win a trophy, simply because this was what our club had always been built on trying to achieve, until along came a con-man.

Jerome, talks about Moyes’s need for pressing grafters, and not innovative flair, and if I’m being honest the thing that I believe Everton, need more than anything, is a team of pressing grafters, simply because I know how much the Everton crowd always responds to sheer effort.

Tony, I didn’t say they lack ambition. They clearly don’t. I was explaining the point about clubs rating their manager’s performance as being relative to investment in the playing squad.

For me, I agree cup trophies and Europe is the short term focus - but really I just want us to be regular champions league contenders and build proper title contender squads too. That’s what I want us to be absolutely focussed on

We are on the same page Robert, but before we start thinking about European football,
(especially when you view our record when we get there) we have got to identify what this club, was always built on and go and win a cup.

Everyone talks about money. It’s clear that it’s very important but, going back to the times when I was a footballing geek, something that I now think has never been more underrated, is discipline (real fucking discipline - which is completely different than just being disciplined, IMO) hard work and innovation.