2010-2011 EPL Previews: Everton

The English Premier League (suck it, Barclays!) season is just around the corner, so we here at UF are giving you everything you need to know about all 20 teams with our award-winning analysis. And no, we haven’t really won any awards, but neither has Arsenal in five years and people still seem to care about them.

Official Name:
Everton Football Club

Nickname:

The Blues, The Toffees

Home Colors:

Blue

Trophy Case:
Amply filled. Everton have won the league nine times, most recently in 1987. They have won the FA Cup five times, lifting the trophy at Wembley the last time in 1995. The trophy cabinent also includes two league cups, nine Charity shields, and one piece of European silverware, from the Cup Winners Cup in 1985.

2009-10 League Finish:

Eighth. Early struggles mostly due to injuries caused the club to miss out on European football, but Everton was phenomenal in the last three months of the season.

2009-10 Cup Finish:

Everton failed to make it out of the fourth round in either domestic Cup competition, losing to Tottenham in the Carling Cup and Birmingham in the FA Cup. They lost to Sporting Lisbon in the round of 32 in the Europa League.

Stadium:

Goodison Park. Everton’s home since 1892 and the host of the most top flight league matches in the history of English football. There has been talk of a new stadium since the mid 1990s, but as of now nothing concrete is on the table. Its not exactly the best time to be financing a new sporting boondoggle, and a ground share with Liverpool at the proposed Stanley Park is not a preferred option for most Toffee’s supporters.

History:
Everton are the oldest club in Liverpool, having been founded in 1878, 14 years before their cross town rivals. They have been in the top flight since inception and have never been relegated.

Gaffer:

Happy face

David Moyes. One of the best managers in the Premiership, the Glaswegian is tipped to be the next manager of Manchester United (if SAF ever retires). He has been at Everton since 2002, which is ages in the Premiership, and has led the club to its best run of top half success since the mid 80s, even if silverware (or consistent Champions League football), has remained out of his grasp.

First Team:

GK: Tim Howard, Iain Turner, Jan Mucha

DEF: Tony Hibbert, Leighton Baines, Joseph Yobo, John Heitinga, Phil Jagielka, Sylvain Distin, Seamus Coleman, Shane Duffy

MID: Diniyar Bilyaletdinov, Mikel Arteta, Tim Cahill, Phillip Neville, Steven Pienaar, Leon Osman, Maroune Fellaini, Jack Rodwell, James Wallace

ST: Louis Saha, James Vaughan, Jermaine Beckford, Magaye Gueye (who?), Yakubu, Joao Silva, Kieran Agard, Jose Baxter

Transfers In:

Transfers Out:

As is clear from above, Everton had a really quiet summer. There was some BS Arteta to Barca transfer talk, and the embarrassing release of Dan Gosling after forgetting to offer him a contract.

Key Players:
Mikel Arteta: Has dealt with injuries lately, but when he’s on, he could start in the midfield for nearly any side on earth. Except for his own national team, of course. Recently signed a five year extension which should keep his name out of the transfer rumors for a while.

Tim Cahill: One of my top five most loathed players in England, but its hard to argue with the Aussie’s goal scoring return, especially from a midfield position. More of a poacher than anything, but goals are goals.

Nice 'do

Marouane Felliani: One of the breakout stars of last season for me, if he can can come back strong from his injury than Everton’s midfield would be amongst the best in England.

Drama:
Not much. Everton brass are out telling everyone within earshot that signing the likes of Cahill, Arteta, and Rodwell to longer term deals this summer means they are not a selling club.

Tactics!:
Moyes is a mix and matcher. Everton will tend to run out in a 4-5-1, with Cahill playing as almost a withdrawn forward in support of the striker. This shape can at times turn into the trendy 4-2-3-1 or the 4-1-4-1.

Question Marks:

Is the injury bug over? Moyes was quiet in the summer transfer window, reckoning that getting all of his star players back from injury meant that he didn’t need to buy. However, there have been so many injuries lately that you have to wonder if some of the Everton players are simply injury prone, and therefore shouldn’t be counted on to play a full season.

Will Jermaine Beckford replicate his lower level goalscoring ability? Because if he doesn’t, the front line is looking a bit thin and petulant.

Important Fixtures:

Home games against everyone, including the big dogs. Everton was only 7th in home points last year, as Goodison was slightly less fortress-like than in years past. If they want to play European football, then they must rack up the points on home turf.

Prediction:
Last spring’s form carries over, the injury bug mostly stays away, some of the younger players develop…….and Everton finish 6th. Just not enough depth and quality for me to pick them over Man City or Liverpool.