Everton Discussion

[Stan]

Wasn't he labelled as some kind of saviour for Everton at the time he joined?

 

[LFCMike]

10 minutes ago, Stan said:

Wasn't he labelled as some kind of saviour for Everton at the time he joined?

 

When they were signing rejects from Barcelona he was a genius

[Whiskey]

19 minutes ago, Stan said:

Wasn't he labelled as some kind of saviour for Everton at the time he joined?

 

He's not been allowed to do his job. Despite us having many people at board level, the only person that seems to actually do what he wants is the owner without any discussion with those around him. Hence why we look nothing like the PSV team Brands built and why despite much concern Benitez was hired.

[RandoEFC+]

Who even fucking knows whether he was shite or good after all these years? Nobody knows who signs who at our club even though the Director of Football should oversee the whole strategy. Moshiri invested in the Director of Football model then just fucked it off like a child with a short attention span when we appointed Ancelotti because Brands sure as shit didn't mastermind the James Rodriguez or Allan transfers.

The boardroom is too dysfunctional for anyone to know, for example, whether it's even Brands' fault that we never signed a right back. You hear all sorts about how he had Dumfries over the line for example but Kenwright/Moshiri/Ancelotti/Benitez wouldn't sign it off. Then there was that deal for Nunes from Lisbon that was just waiting to be signed off for half of the summer but apparently Benitez didn't fancy him because he only wants to sign midtable journeymen that he reckons he can get another year or two out of.

And we were excited when we signed him because we thought our owner had learnt from the failed Steve Walsh experiment and would let someone who had actually been a successful Director of Football elsewhere do the role properly but it turns out he's a lunatic instead.

Good to see the hindsight police out in force though. How dare anyone try and be positive about their football club in the Internet just in case they look silly in 5 years. 

[Stan]

1 minute ago, RandoEFC said:

Good to see the hindsight police out in force though. How dare anyone try and be positive about their football club in the Internet just in case they look silly in 5 years. 

My comment wasn't meant to be spiteful. Genuinely just asked a question. There were high hopes for him, perhaps rightly so. Was only asking! 

Sometimes you can be as touchy as the Liverpool fans in here and they get slaughtered for it

[RandoEFC+]

5 minutes ago, Stan said:

My comment wasn't meant to be spiteful. Genuinely just asked a question. There were high hopes for him, perhaps rightly so. Was only asking! 

Sometimes you can be as touchy as the Liverpool fans in here and they get slaughtered for it

What's touchy about that? Just trying to explain why it's impossible to know whether he was bad or whether he wasn't allowed to do his job because of the lack of transparency and muddy structure of the boardroom. If you're going to exaggerate by saying stuff like "hailed as a saviour" for extra effect then I think it's fair game to give a slightly barbed comment in response, whilst including the token emoji to clarify that it's all in good fun.

Don't compare me to that lot though. At each other’s throats about whether they should have signed Andros Townsend after their latest 4-0 win. 

[Dave]

I saw a video of a fan taking his frustration out on Brands after the Liverpool game and my initial thought was the money must be too sweet for him to stay if everything that's been printed in the reputable columns are true about the lack of actual responsibilities he's had over the previous two years. He did say something about it not just being the players fault which I imagine didn't go down too well.

Hopefully he can take on a 'blank template' type club overseas as his next project and then we can make a fair assessment over whether Everton would have been putting more faith in him over Carlo and Rafa.

[RandoEFC+]

Brands probably will succeed somewhere else like he did at PSV. Not sure he'll prove to be a world beater but certainly competent at a reasonably high level.

Some fairly well placed sources suggesting that he's been looking for alternative employment since the summer where he has apparently been sidelined by Moshiri who has been dealing directly with the manager.

Also the CEO Denise Barrett-Baxendale is openly looking for a new career opportunity.

Not sad to see the back of any of them but that leaves behind Moshiri, Kenwright and Benitez which doesn't inspire me with any confidence. Sounds like Moshiri has full on drunk the cool-aid where Benitez is concerned, and I don't like it. Say what you will about what he's achieved in his career but we're talking about a guy who was washed up in China a year ago and is currently overseeing the club's worst run of league results in something like 20 years.

[Dr. Gonzo]

17 minutes ago, RandoEFC said:

Brands probably will succeed somewhere else like he did at PSV. Not sure he'll prove to be a world beater but certainly competent at a reasonably high level.

Some fairly well placed sources suggesting that he's been looking for alternative employment since the summer where he has apparently been sidelined by Moshiri who has been dealing directly with the manager.

Also the CEO Denise Barrett-Baxendale is openly looking for a new career opportunity.

Not sad to see the back of any of them but that leaves behind Moshiri, Kenwright and Benitez which doesn't inspire me with any confidence. Sounds like Moshiri has full on drunk the cool-aid where Benitez is concerned, and I don't like it. Say what you will about what he's achieved in his career but we're talking about a guy who was washed up in China a year ago and is currently overseeing the club's worst run of league results in something like 20 years.

Tbf Klopp was our manager over our worst run in our history as a club and I wouldn’t want anyone else in as manager

[Smiley Culture]

In fairness they’re paying this fella a wage and seemingly not letting him sign players so it’s a waste of money technically but it begs the question “why bring him in, in the first place?” and “What has changed that dramatically that he’s no longer of use to Everton?”. I’m not sure Everton are in any shape to answer those two questions anyway. 

[RandoEFC+]

2 hours ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

Tbf Klopp was our manager over our worst run in our history as a club and I wouldn’t want anyone else in as manager

Benitez has overseen 4 wins since becoming Everton manager. Not really comparable.

2 hours ago, Smiley Culture said:

In fairness they’re paying this fella a wage and seemingly not letting him sign players so it’s a waste of money technically but it begs the question “why bring him in, in the first place?” and “What has changed that dramatically that he’s no longer of use to Everton?”. I’m not sure Everton are in any shape to answer those two questions anyway. 

Moshiri was wooed by the Director of Football model, then he was wooed by Steve Walsh signing Mahrez and Kante and winning Leicester the league, then he was wooed by the idea of someone who had done it before, then he was wooed by Carlo Ancelotti, now he's wooed by Benitez because he apparently did a full in depth analysis of the squad before his interview. The man's crazy, he jumps from one big "this is the way to overnight success" idea to the next like a child with ADHD. There's no sustainable logic to any of it.

[RandoEFC+]

 

Thread on Brands' departure which paints a picture of a man who basically wasn't allowed to do his job. Of course this will be him and his allies leaking his version of events to the press but it isn't exactly hard to believe. Any of it. The Allan/Rodriguez/Townsend/Rondon signings were clearly not anything to do with him and now it's claimed that Iwobi, the biggest waste of money we've had who wasn't blatantly linked to the manager at the time, was nothing to do with him either. Benitez/Moshiri also blocking the Dumfries deal and not signing an alternative too.

Of course, there's another side to some of these stories but it's broadly very believable and fits with the evidence that's already publicly visible.

Perhaps they got spooked by the protest organised for tomorrow and initiated action over the weekend in the hope it would act as a bit of red meat for the fans and put them off the walkout. Looking like this will have the opposite effect. More anger now at Moshiri on social media than before. 

[RandoEFC+]

Also, perhaps most incredibly of all, is that this is being reported all over the print media and the Liverpool Echo yet there's not a peep from the club's official website or social media channels. This is the level of communication you get from the club and the owner.

[RandoEFC+]

Dysfunction FC released a statement at 23:45 last night announcing the departure of Marcel Brands. 

[MUFC]

Rafa gets vote of confidence.

[The Artful Dodger]

Heard a rumour Benitez might be off shortly. Can’t see anything on Twitter though. Would seem very early.

[Stan]

Richarlison and Townsend out for the foreseeable 

 

[RandoEFC+]

 

Gathering pace on Twitter. Shouldn't be downhearted about us signing anyone to be honest, but it will accelerate rumours that Digne is off to Juventus or Chelsea.

Again absolutely mystified as to what the owner sees in this manager that makes him worth not just keeping in charge of the team but tolerating the complete alienation of the rest of the board,  the fanbase, the scouting team, at least a part of the medical team, and now one of our key players to keep him happy because he dared to express his frustration over the tactics that had the club in its worst run in 20 years.

[Whiskey]

Our XI tonight 

[Guest]

On 16/12/2021 at 18:51, Whiskey said:

Our XI tonight 

How come on your profile it says you support Porto? 

[Whiskey]

3 hours ago, Gunnersauraus said:

How come on your profile it says you support Porto? 

sorry wrong thread I was talking about Porto vs. Benfica mate.

[RandoEFC+]

Right back and left back signed up for at least about £30m. Even if there's a way back for Digne now, it seems like we're going to have to sell him for FFP. A shame to lose a player of his calibre but Mykolenko and Patterson are a good age and will be good assets for us if they're decent. Still a bit concerning that we only have one left back in the squad if it's a case of Digne out, Mykolenko in. I'm growing to like Godfrey in that position but prefer to see him get game time in central defence if that's going to be his position long term.

[RandoEFC+]

We spent the last 5 windows prioritising manager favourites over the scouting team's recommendations and now, after the Director of Football and his scouting leave depart the club, we go and sign two of their recommendations.

Every day, we find more ways to show what a circus we are.

[RandoEFC+]

More news: Graeme Sharp has now been appointed to the Board of Directors.

What to think of this appointment? Is he passionate about Everton Football Club? Yes. Is the Board of Directors lightweight now following the departure of Marcel Brands and the open secret that CEO Denise Barrett-Baxendale is actively seeking other opportunities? Certainly. Are these two reasons combined enough to justify this appointment? You wouldn't say so.

My reading of the situation is this. Bill Kenwright is once again sitting on a lot of influence when, regardless of how bonkers his replacement continues to be, he should have been put out to pasture after overseeing the least successful period in the club's history. An accusation is made by a lot of our fanbase towards the board (well, mainly Kenwright) of "it's Jobs for the Boys FC", and I think it's justified. The backroom staff is packed with former players who haven't made a name for themselves anywhere else in football, most notably Duncan Ferguson and David Unsworth. Based on the development of Calvert-Lewin in his time at Everton, I actually think Ferguson is probably pulling his weight, but there are question marks over Unsworth who has led the under 23 team to the PL2 title, but is arguably partially responsible for the fact that Anthony Gordon is the first academy prospect since Tom Davies to really find a pathway into the first team squad. Denise Barrett-Baxendale herself is another example of "he/she knows the club" being given far too much weight when making key appointments, having been lifted from Everton in the Community. Then you have a history of Kenwright being the driving force behind bringing Wayne Rooney back to the club from Manchester United, Francis Jeffers being given a role with the academy with few prior qualifications, Jose Baxter being given a professional contract at the club after falling on addiction-related hard times, Leighton Baines staying on as some sort of coach at the conclusion of his playing career and now former player Graeme Sharp joining the Board of Directors. I'm sure there are others I've forgotten. Individually, these are all things that happen at other clubs and sometimes they've even been successful. But at Everton, it happens too often.

I don't necessarily think this appointment is going to be particularly damaging but I don't think it'll take us forward either. The club needs outsiders to come in and challenge the decision making processes that have led us down the path we're on. Hopefully we can find some who are qualified football people unlike Moshiri and Usmanov, who are the only real outsiders who have been involved in the club, and Moshiri's flat out insanity has somehow made the management of the club even worse.

Maybe I'll be proven wrong and Graeme Sharp will be a genius whose input at board level will transform the club's fortunes in the long term but I don't think anyone expects that to be remotely likely.

[Guest]

Just a reminder that the tff legend @Dr. Gonzo said that benitez will probably be Evertons best ever premier league manager.  The last post that aged as badly was on the old forum where someone said messi would end up at arsenal