In the midst of one of the Premier League’s most competitive seasons for years, Everton are closing out the first month of 2016 lying in 11th place.
10 years ago under David Moyes, they had been dangerously close to the drop zone before a Tim Cahill goal at Sunderland on New Years’ Eve was enough for a 1-0 win and a second-half turnaround to finish 11th. Since then, the Toffees have been a top eight side for all except for last season. In a time when many clubs did struggle to find their feet this was probably no small achievement, but for the supporters this was minimal standard fare. Everton stand there, or thereabouts in 2015-16, in a dramatically different environment.
Different because this is a season where the big guns of the game have had their mortality revealed, to the delight of many fans. A season where Leicester City are top of the table while big names stumble and flail. The relegation battle, by contrast does not capture the usual headlines, perhaps because the identity of the bottom three is already known. And for Everton? No wins in the League since Boxing Day and a twice-blown lead at Chelsea has been followed up by an insipid home loss to Swansea.
WIN: A £50 voucher from Classic Football Shirts up for grabs!
Fans and pundits want to know why, with a glimpse of a squad that, on paper, would seem to be the club’s strongest in years. A team that, on its day, can be as entertaining as any in the league, but may not mask its deficiencies. Consequently, frustration has grown and with it questions about Roberto Martinez.
Yet there is a feeling of deja vu. It could all end in one of two ways – the current manager comes up with something to turn the team’s fortunes around, or Martinez succumbs and someone else will. History, as always, is a reference guide, so an overview of Everton’s previous manager’s fortunes is required.
Cliff Britton (1948-56): Oversaw relegation, promotion and the re-establishment of Everton as a First Division club. In one season (1954-55, the first after promotion), the Merseysiders even flirted with the top end of a hotly contested league before finishing 11th in a season where Chelsea won their first title. Resigned February the following season with Everton still in mid-table.
Ian Buchan (1956-58): In this period the club had the occasional eye-catching result, but never finished out of the lower-half of the table. Sacked following a disastrous start to the 1958-59 season.
Johnny Carey (1958-61): Took over after an gap in 1958 during which Everton went from losing 10-4 at Tottenham to beating Manchester United 3-2 the following week! Laid the foundations for the glories of the 1960s, when a number of big signings to compliment an improving team saw the Toffees open the 1960s strongly, recording the club’s highest post-war finish at the time in 1961 – coincidentally the year he was sacked in the back of a London taxi. This gave rise to the use of the term ‘Taxi’ whenever a manager is shown the door.
POPULAR ARTICLES
Roberto Firmino starting to prove his price tag at Liverpool
Out of form Eden Hazard faces uncertain future at Chelsea
Capital One Cup – Top Three Performers – Liverpool 0(6) Stoke City 1(5)
Harry Catterick (1961-73): Inherited the side built by Carey which was the basis for the first post-war Championship win in 1963. Everton were consistently a top-half side during the decade, an FA Cup win in 1966 was followed by a rebuilding of the team that culminated in the 1970 Championship triumph. However, a decline followed after that and three years of bottom-half finishes would see a change upstairs.
Billy Bingham (1973-77): Undertook an expensive rebuilding of the team, but did come close one season to winning silverware in 1974-75. The fact is that he would indeed put together what was a rather a decent side, but he bagan slipping after his high point. With this poor form he would be sacked in January 1977, also a time when Liverpool were becoming dominant in the League.
Gordon Lee (1977-81): Was given the reins on Bingham’s team and began well. Came close in both the League Cup Final and FA Cup semi-final (where Everton were denied by Clive Thomas), followed by two top four finishes and some very entertaining games. It is known, however, that some of his decisions at the time did not sit well with many fans. After two strong seasons, two very poor campaigns in the League (albeit with good Cup runs) followed, which was ended by his sacking.
Howard Kendall (first spell, 1981-87): The most successful manager in the club’s history by virtue of winning the League twice, FA Cup once and the Cup-Winners’ Cup. At the same time, the first three years of his first spell were not all smooth sailing. The first two seasons saw mixed results, but measured improvement. The third (1983-84), on the other hand, looked to be going very wrong and fans were restless. Yet it all turned around in a remarkably short period, after a late equaliser at Oxford in the League Cup.
Everton's last five Premier League home games:
DLLDL
Points: 2
Goals: 8
Conceded: 11
Clean sheets: 0 pic.twitter.com/P78OunZa8m— Squawka Football (@Squawka) January 24, 2016
Colin Harvey (1987-90): Taking the throne over from Kendall, to whom he had been assistant in the glory years, Colin Harvey kept Everton in the top-half of the league for three seasons, with money spent on replacing players during that period. A poor start to 1990-91 saw Harvey sacked, only to coincidentally again become assistant manager under a returning Howard Kendall. Unfortunately, the decline of the club began to take place at this time, although fans do not pin this primarily on the manager.
Howard Kendall (second spell, 1990-93): Could not recapture the magic of his first run at the helm, but the downfall of the Merseysiders occurred at the worst possible time – one where football changed forever. After taking over from Harvey though, there was an initial upturn in form and an epic FA Cup tie with Liverpool. The following two seasons, however, saw a marked decline in League standings over this period. When he resigned in December 1993, Everton were still at least in a safe enough mid-table position.
Mike Walker (1994): A successful manager at Norwich, where he even took the Canaries to a third placed finish in the Premier League and into Europe. However, to say he was out of his depth at Everton was an understatement, plummeting down the table and into relegation danger on the last day of the season. While they ultimately survived following a come from behind win over Wimbledon, a nightmare start to the following season meant that Walker was shown the door.
Joe Royle (1994-97): With Everton in serious trouble, Joe Royle resorted to a ‘Dogs of War’ style of play to battle up the standings, though it was never going to please the purists. The FA Cup was then won and this was even followed by a sixth place finish the following season. However, this really seemed like a mirage as after a decent start to 1996-97 the club again took a nose dive and Royle resigned in March 1997, his planned signings vetoed by the board.
Howard Kendall (third spell, 1997-98): The return of Howard Kendall for a third time saw Everton face a grim struggle to avoid relegation, only doing it on the final day of the season. It is a credit to Kendall that he was able to keep them afloat when all signs pointed to the drop.
[interaction id=”56a8cde6ef54eee31e2e90fb”]
Walter Smith (1998-2002): Simply put, the four years under Walter Smith were depressing and difficult. That he was tactically out of his depth was well known, though he also made some good signings which Everton rarely held onto for long, and the club was run down and strapped for cash. Only the 1999-2000 season had any promise, the rest was a long struggle. By 2002, it was clear that Smith was taking Everton nowhere but downwards and he finally saw to the inevitable marching orders.
David Moyes (1992-2013): David Moyes’ 11-year period in charge of Everton was an eternity by the standards of the modern game. The first four -years were uneven, although somewhat understandably so. Seventh place followed by 17th, then fourth and 11th. This then gave way to seven-years of consistent top eight finishes, which seemed delightful in comparison to what came before, yet looking at the big picture, entirely standard. On one hand, Moyes’ limitations as a manager were always known, but the miserable years that preceded him may have bought time.
So, Martinez. A very good first season, added with two middling (so far) attempts and still in with a shout at the Cup competitions. One gets the sense that for fans this simply is not good enough and on the basis of the squad available to him, it is justified. Whether this means giving Martinez a chance to turn it around or not remains to be seen. For many it is already an 1tth hour situation. There is not a better chance for an Everton side to shine and seize the moment with the calibre of players available. After all, this is a time where Leicester, Crystal Palace and Stoke have all outshone many of the League’s biggest clubs in so many ways. Fans have a right, therefore, to ask the hard questions if there is no improvement. And soon.
What are your thoughts? Let us know by dropping a comment below via our Facebook comment box. Make sure you follow us on Twitter @Outside90 and like us on Facebook.
