Our Everton jury have returned to have their say as the Blues remain firmly in the hunt for European football next season
Hill Dickinson Stadium before Everton's Premier League game against Brighton & Hove Albion
Hill Dickinson Stadium before Everton's Premier League game against Brighton & Hove Albion(Image: (Ryan Jenkinson/Everton FC))
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Everton’s wait to return to Premier League action goes on with the Blues not in action until a week on Saturday. Due to the FA Cup taking place this weekend, David Moyes’ side are without a game.
However, when Everton do return to Premier League action, they will be right in the mix for European football next season. The Blues head into their final seven games of the season eighth in the Premier League and just three points off the top five.
And with a top-eight finish now within touching distance, our Everton jury have returned to have their say.
Paul McParlan
There have been occasions when an international break has arrived at the right time for Everton. In recent seasons, with the team struggling at the wrong end of the table and an understrength squad missing key players through injury, the scheduling of the break has often provided some welcome respite for fans.
However, for most Blues, this was undoubtedly the wrong period to have such a long-enforced gap between league fixtures. The win against Chelsea on March 21 seems like a long time ago now!
The team was playing its best football of the season, we had won two home games on the bounce, Hill Dickinson Stadium was rocking and we were challenging for a place in Europe. Everyone was on a high and looking forward to the next game to build on our momentum.
Except we weren’t able to, because after the Chelsea game, the combination of an international break and an FA Cup weekend meant it would be three weeks until our next fixture at Brentford on April 11! It really is a ludicrously long spell between matches, particularly as the football season is approaching its climax.
David Moyes and mebers of his Everton team following the 3-0 win over Chelsea
David Moyes and mebers of his Everton team following the 3-0 win over Chelsea(Image: (Carl Recine/Getty Images))
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We wanted to see our players in action for Everton, rather than heading off to various parts of the globe, often for meaningless friendlies.
In the pre-Premier League days (yes, football existed before 1992 despite what Sky TV wants you to believe), titles could be won or lost over the Easter weekend. Not anymore! Even though most people have an extended break from work, if you were planning to take in a Premier League game, forget it – there aren’t any! Am I the only one who thinks this makes no sense?
Like most Blues, I always worry about injuries to our best players in some pointless friendly match. Fortunately, that doesn’t appear to have happened.
In fact, it was brilliant to see James Garner produce a superb performance on his England debut and make a strong case for inclusion in Thomas Tuchel’s World Cup squad. In my opinion Garner has been our most improved player this season and deserves to be on the plane to the USA.
Everton midfielder James Garner looks on during the international friendly match between England and Uruguay at Wembley Stadium. Photo by Eddie Keogh - The FA/The FA via Getty Images
Everton midfielder James Garner looks on during the international friendly match between England and Uruguay at Wembley Stadium. Photo by Eddie Keogh - The FA/The FA via Getty Images
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Talking of internationals, it was good to see our iconic new stadium hosting its first-ever international game on Tuesday when Scotland faced Côte d'Ivoire. If we are to establish Everton as a team that challenges regularly for Europe, then maximising our revenue stream from Hill Dickinson Stadium is going to be crucial.
Momentum is such an important factor in football, and having our recent run of encouraging results and positive performances paused by the international break is so frustrating.
At this stage, three weeks without a game may not have done Everton any favours. Let’s hope we can generate that momentum again at Brentford!
Mark McParlan
Tuesday night saw the pubs in town and on Regent Road full of fans all afternoon and early evening, heading off to the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
This time it was not the Evertonians but the Tartan Army. I enjoyed hearing their supporters raving about our new home at the turnstile queues pre-match, or walking back after full-time, or on social media later.
There’s an interesting contrast to be made between some of our fans who can only moan, while visitors, be they Scots, rugby fans, or other Premier League fans, sing its praises.
I said to one Scottish fan that we had here the finest new-build stadium in the country, and that I firmly believe. The announcement of another Monday night match, this time against Manchester City in early May, certainly doesn’t help, however.
Steve Clarke during an international friendly match between Scotland and Ivory Coast at Hill Dickinson Stadium
Steve Clarke during an international friendly match between Scotland and Ivory Coast at Hill Dickinson Stadium(Image: (Kate McShane/Getty Images))
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Meanwhile, we have seen Everton’s accounts released for the previous 24/25 season. Club record turnover is obviously good, and seeing annual losses cut down to ‘just’ £8million positive news as well, even if that figure bears the heavy caveat of the sale of the women’s team and Goodison Park for £49m. But things appear to be heading in the right direction off the pitch after Farhad Moshiri’s madness years.
Back onto the pitch, the home derby is still at a sufficient distance for me that I’m looking forward to it. The crippling day-before nerves are a distant feeling yet.
Concerningly, I promised everyone who would listen after the respective second-half performances at the Anfield derby that we would beat them at Bramley-Moore, so my reputation is on the line, just like our European dream.
Even if sporting merit on the pitch qualifies us for continental football, we still have two hurdles to overcome. The first is the situation if Roma also qualify for the same competition as Everton – this is something on which we would appreciate clarification and reassurance.
The second is UEFA having stricter financial rules on losses than the Premier League, which (so I have read online) would, for example, not allow the women’s team sale into the calculations.
In any case, we might lose to Brentford and Liverpool both and resign ourselves to a 13th-place finish, which we are only four points ahead of now anyway.