Joe Thomas and Chris Beesley discuss their thoughts on the Blues' season so far
Jack Grealish acknowledges the crowd after the Premier League match between Everton and Brighton & Hove Albion at Hill Dickinson Stadium. Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images
Jack Grealish acknowledges the crowd after the Premier League match between Everton and Brighton & Hove Albion at Hill Dickinson Stadium. Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images
Everton went into the first international break with real momentum after three consecutive wins.
The new attack purred at Wolves to leave Blues dreaming of what could be after years of toil - Jack Grealish, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye tearing through their hosts.
It is early days, and the break came at a bad time for David Moyes’ side, but have Everton specialists Joe Thomas and Chris Beesley learnt anything from the glimpse of the team so far? And have their expectations for the campaign changed as a result?
Joe Thomas
I don’t think I had a grasp of how much fun this season could be when it began. I fully expected this season to be different to recent years - I remain convinced that for the first time in five campaigns there will be no threat of a relegation fight. That, combined with the move to the stunning new stadium, convinced me this would be an easier, more comfortable and therefore more enjoyable experience. But I suspected there would be lots of teething issues for a side in transition and there would be times when the old Everton of a resolute defence and lack of creativity would jar with the Everton Moyes wants them to become - one that poses a greater threat going forward.
There have been signs of that - the Leeds defeat was poor and that match showed how just one injury (Vitalii Mykolenko) can completely knock the side out of shape. Brighton, too, had chances.
There is already a vibrancy about the new-look Blues that has surprised me, though. Jack Grealish’s instant connection with Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye, who has not shown a severe drop in impact despite moving to the right, has been exhilarating. Everton attacked in a way that seemed so alien at Wolves, they were sharp, confident and merciless in the final third. That was so refreshing.
If you add in a fully fit Jarrad Branthwaite and midfield support in Merlin Rohl, then the ceiling only gets higher. It is early days and my expectation remains largely the same - that Everton will end up in that clutch of teams between about ninth and 13th who will have their ups and downs but be completely safe.
There is always the possibility of going better if the club can build real momentum, but I need to see more to believe that Europe is a real possibility. I do, however, think Everton are capable of a good cup run and I am confident they will turn over a Champions League team this season. Someone will end up turning up underprepared after an international break or European tie and being ripped apart by that attack. This side still has its frailties but can generate genuine excitement.
Chris Beesley
I’d say the biggest surprise so far this season was James Garner’s sensational clinching goal in the 2-0 win over Brighton in the first competitive game at Hill Dickinson Stadium.However, given his long-range free-kick winner in the Everton senior side’s first match at their new home – a behind closed doors friendly against League One Port Vale – perhaps I should not have been so shocked. After all, when interviewing him in New York later that week, the Birkenhead-born star told me: “It’s something that I definitely feel I’ve got in my locker, but I just need to show it.”Everton’s season so far has kind of panned out how you might have expected, with something of a fair wind. We were all disappointed after what we saw in the opening fixture, but there was a large degree of inevitability about the proceedings at Leeds that night as, FA Cup semi-finals against Tottenham Hotspur apart, Elland Road has generally been a bogey ground for Everton for decades and Leeds United’s players and fans were raring to go on their Premier League return. Brighton, Wolverhampton Wanderers – and Mansfield Town, who arrived for their Carabao Cup tie on the back of three straight wins – all had to be despatched though and none of those results were formalities.The Seagulls showed their quality by the banks of the Mersey but, roared on by their supporters on an historic day, the Blues earned their breaks in crucial moments. It was a game of patience to some extent before quality prevailed against Nigel Clough’s Stags and despite five wins on the road under Moyes in the second half of last season, any Premier League away day success like that at Molineux last time out cannot be sniffed at.Before a ball was kicked, and indeed before all the signings were made, we were asked to make our Everton predictions for this season and with Moyes having steered the club to nine top eight finishes first time around, I felt he could get them into the top half again and went for 10th. I reckon that’s still about right but hopefully with Iliman Ndiaye carrying on from where he left off last season and the additional creativity brought by Jack Grealish, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, and Tyler Dibling, the biggest signing of the summer who we’re yet to see in action against top flight opposition, plus Jarrad Branthwaite yet to return, it should be a much more entertaining ride than the slogs of recent times.
Also, after breaking his silverware duck with West Ham United, the Premier League’s oldest manager should continue to take the cups seriously as the Blues look to end their own record-breaking trophy drought.