Rival Lines
Match Preview: Everton v AFCB
Blogger Interview: Royal Blue Mersey
twitter: @chandler98_
For the final Rival Lines of the season, I was contacted by Matthew Chandler of the Royal Blue Mersey website. Everton have stabilise din mid-table but perhaps they expect better now that they have a highly acclaimed manager. While Eddie Howe has faced Ancelotti before in a friendly match against Real Madrid, to be hie Everton is rather a must on Sunday.twitter: @chandler98_
CC: What have Everton fans felt about Ancelotti since his arrival?
RBM: Almost unanimous support for him, I'd say. We were so tepid and mentally fragile under Marco Silva that we realise Ancelotti was not going to turn us into world-beaters overnight, and the squad is still a poor squad, but he's made us harder to beat and more resilient. Fans just want this slog of a season out of the way so we can start looking forward to what will hopefully be a better campaign next year.
CC: Theo Walcott did Bournemouth and some other teams a big favour with his last few minutes goal against Aston Villa. Is he really good enough though for the Everton fans?
RBM: Hard to say. Walcott works hard but his end product just often isn't there, not to mention he's 31 now so is unlikely to drastically improve from here. He probably shouldn't be starting for us next season but there are other players who need getting rid of more urgently this summer. I'd be content with him staying as a squad player.
CC: Where do Everton need to strengthen to finish higher next season?
RBM: In central midfield, above all else, because we haven't really had one this season. It's just been one big gaping void in our team for much of it. Gylfi Sigurdsson is finished and can't run, Tom Davies probably just isn't good enough unfortunately, Jean-Philippe Gbamin was supposed to replace the excellent Idrissa Gueye following his PSG move but has been injured since August, Fabian Delph has been a disaster, and André Gomes will take time to get going after that horrific injury. In fact, for some of the season, our best midfielder has looked like being Mason Holgate, who has also probably been our best central defender. So an overhaul is needed there.
I'd also be after probably two wingers, a right-back to be Seamus Coleman's long-term successor, and a new goalkeeper, because Jordan Pickford is totally unreliable.
RBM: It was projected to be finished by 2023, but it remains to be seen how much that will be held up by coronavirus. The plans along Liverpool's waterfront all look spectacular and have been carried out with constant consultation with supporters, which has been heartening. Though, the stadium architect Dan Meis left the project last month which, having built up a strong rapport with fans, was disappointing. I'm sure that won't have a disastrous effect on the entire project, though.
CC: Who has been Everton's player of the season in your view?
RBM: Richarlison. Took a while to get going but has been consistently one of Everton's best players for much of the season. Closely followed by Holgate, who only broke into the team in late October but has probably been Everton's most-improved player.
CC: Everton really got up for the Liverpool derby in June, but do you feel that Everton have got after other teams as well since the restart?
RBM: Probably not, but I think it's a combination of a sub-par squad and tired legs, to be honest. Like I alluded to before, it's hard to win games when your midfield is basically bypassed. You need legs to press so aggressively game after game; Everton don't have that. Plus, the necessary evil of playing multiple games each week since the restart hasn't helped the side, either.
CC: Everton are unbeaten at home this calendar year. So, is it a good time to play Bournemouth at Goodison on the last day of the season, knowing we need a win to have any chance to stay up?
RBM: I have to say I'm fairly confident about beating Bournemouth. Not only because Bournemouth are in such a predicament, but because we're unbeaten at Goodison since Ancelotti's arrival and have been pretty good at seeing off the non-top 6 sides under him, certainly at home. The issue will be whether Bournemouth are simply more motivated because they must win, and there's not much riding on this game for Everton besides pride. We saw against fellow strugglers Aston Villa last week at Goodison how Everton struggled to match their intensity there. They must learn from that game and be stronger here.
CC: Which Bournemouth player do you most fear about spoiling the last day of the season for Everton?
RBM: I like Callum Wilson and Josh King and both have struck against Everton before, so even if they're obvious choices as strikers, I'd go with them. But Everton do have a knack of conceding to forwards who barely score, so maybe Dominic Solanke should be the one to worry us.
CC: What is your score prediction for the game?
RBM: 3-1 Everton (sorry!). I just think Bournemouth will have to go for it and can see Everton picking them off, not least because Bournemouth's defence has leaked so many goals this season. It's not nice to relegate teams, but I would suggest that it won't be this game that really sent Bournemouth down over the course of this season. Eddie Howe was my initial choice to replace Silva before Ancelotti became available, though, and I'm sure you'll bounce back under him.
RBM: Almost unanimous support for him, I'd say. We were so tepid and mentally fragile under Marco Silva that we realise Ancelotti was not going to turn us into world-beaters overnight, and the squad is still a poor squad, but he's made us harder to beat and more resilient. Fans just want this slog of a season out of the way so we can start looking forward to what will hopefully be a better campaign next year.
Advertisement
RBM: Hard to say. Walcott works hard but his end product just often isn't there, not to mention he's 31 now so is unlikely to drastically improve from here. He probably shouldn't be starting for us next season but there are other players who need getting rid of more urgently this summer. I'd be content with him staying as a squad player.
CC: Where do Everton need to strengthen to finish higher next season?
RBM: In central midfield, above all else, because we haven't really had one this season. It's just been one big gaping void in our team for much of it. Gylfi Sigurdsson is finished and can't run, Tom Davies probably just isn't good enough unfortunately, Jean-Philippe Gbamin was supposed to replace the excellent Idrissa Gueye following his PSG move but has been injured since August, Fabian Delph has been a disaster, and André Gomes will take time to get going after that horrific injury. In fact, for some of the season, our best midfielder has looked like being Mason Holgate, who has also probably been our best central defender. So an overhaul is needed there.
I'd also be after probably two wingers, a right-back to be Seamus Coleman's long-term successor, and a new goalkeeper, because Jordan Pickford is totally unreliable.
Advertisement
CC: What is happening about the new ground for Everton?
RBM: It was projected to be finished by 2023, but it remains to be seen how much that will be held up by coronavirus. The plans along Liverpool's waterfront all look spectacular and have been carried out with constant consultation with supporters, which has been heartening. Though, the stadium architect Dan Meis left the project last month which, having built up a strong rapport with fans, was disappointing. I'm sure that won't have a disastrous effect on the entire project, though.
CC: Who has been Everton's player of the season in your view?
RBM: Richarlison. Took a while to get going but has been consistently one of Everton's best players for much of the season. Closely followed by Holgate, who only broke into the team in late October but has probably been Everton's most-improved player.
CC: Everton really got up for the Liverpool derby in June, but do you feel that Everton have got after other teams as well since the restart?
RBM: Probably not, but I think it's a combination of a sub-par squad and tired legs, to be honest. Like I alluded to before, it's hard to win games when your midfield is basically bypassed. You need legs to press so aggressively game after game; Everton don't have that. Plus, the necessary evil of playing multiple games each week since the restart hasn't helped the side, either.
Advertisement
RBM: I have to say I'm fairly confident about beating Bournemouth. Not only because Bournemouth are in such a predicament, but because we're unbeaten at Goodison since Ancelotti's arrival and have been pretty good at seeing off the non-top 6 sides under him, certainly at home. The issue will be whether Bournemouth are simply more motivated because they must win, and there's not much riding on this game for Everton besides pride. We saw against fellow strugglers Aston Villa last week at Goodison how Everton struggled to match their intensity there. They must learn from that game and be stronger here.
CC: Which Bournemouth player do you most fear about spoiling the last day of the season for Everton?
RBM: I like Callum Wilson and Josh King and both have struck against Everton before, so even if they're obvious choices as strikers, I'd go with them. But Everton do have a knack of conceding to forwards who barely score, so maybe Dominic Solanke should be the one to worry us.
CC: What is your score prediction for the game?
RBM: 3-1 Everton (sorry!). I just think Bournemouth will have to go for it and can see Everton picking them off, not least because Bournemouth's defence has leaked so many goals this season. It's not nice to relegate teams, but I would suggest that it won't be this game that really sent Bournemouth down over the course of this season. Eddie Howe was my initial choice to replace Silva before Ancelotti became available, though, and I'm sure you'll bounce back under him.
CC: Some great views from Matthew on Everton and Bournemouth's predicament. I don't know what will happen on Sunday, but the omens are not good when you look at Everton's home record. But if we need a positive feeling we need to go back to last September when Bournemouth last played Everton. A 3-1 win away might not be possible, but Bournemouth have to try and beat their away form duck in 2020 and it might not be too late for them if they can do it in this game. To read more of Matthew's Everton thoughts, visit Royal Blue Mersey where you will also see Cherry Chimes answer some questions ahead of the game on opposition view.
Previous post on Cherry Chimes - AFCB still have everything to play for
Previous post on Cherry Chimes - AFCB still have everything to play for
No comments:
Post a Comment