David Moyes made his position clear when he was asked about Everton’s cup ambitions this week. Every manager wants to win trophies, he said, but would lifting one be more important than staying in the Premier League?
Former Everton striker Yakubu sees things rather differently.
Speaking to our friends at ToffeeWeb ahead of Wednesday’s Carabao Cup tie at Preston, the Nigerian urged Everton to take the competition seriously.
“Go for it!” was his message.
Yakubu argued there should be “no excuse” for not fielding the strongest available team and said Everton need to win a trophy.
For supporters who have waited since 1995 to see the club lift one, it is an argument that will resonate.
Yakubu wants Everton to attack the cups
Moyes’ comments have prompted debate among Evertonians.
Asked about the importance of the cups, he questioned whether journalists were “dead stupid” for repeatedly asking managers if they wanted to win them.
“Of course we all want to win the cups,” Moyes said. “Yes, the cups are hugely important, would it be more important than staying in the Premier League?”
His wider point was reasonable. Relegation would have serious consequences, and Premier League football remains fundamental to Everton’s plans.
But should Everton still be talking about survival as the alternative to winning a trophy?
That is where Yakubu’s comment is interesting.
Everton are in their second season at the Hill Dickinson. The Friedkin Group have invested in the squad, and chief executive Angus Kinnear has spoken about challenging for silverware.
Kinnear has cited Newcastle United and Crystal Palace as examples of clubs who have shown what is possible in the domestic cups.
The expectations are different now.
Moyes knows how difficult the final step can be
Yakubu also knows Moyes well.
He joined Everton from Middlesbrough in 2007 and scored 21 goals in his first season as the Blues finished fifth and reached the last 16 of the UEFA Cup.
Speaking to ToffeeWeb earlier this summer, he described Moyes as “brilliant” and spoke warmly about an Everton side packed with strong characters.
It was one of the best teams of Moyes’ first spell.
It did not win anything.
Everton came closest the following season when they reached the FA Cup final, although an Achilles injury meant Yakubu missed the defeat by Chelsea at Wembley.
That remains the closest Moyes has come to winning a domestic trophy as Everton manager.
Wednesday at Preston is only the second round of the Carabao Cup. Nobody will be talking about Wembley yet.
But Everton’s team selection will give some indication of how Moyes intends to approach the competition.
Rotation is inevitable over a long season. Yakubu argues that Everton are now in a position where the cups should be attacked rather than treated as an opportunity to protect players for the league.
After 31 years without a major trophy, it is difficult to argue with the ambition.
Moyes wants Everton to become an established Premier League club again.
Evertonians also want something to celebrate.
The challenge this season is to show that those two things do not have to be exclusive
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