The appointment of Sam Allardyce has left a lot of Evertonians shaking their heads. ‘The school of science, once on its way back’ mantra, looks like a distant dream, drifting off into the sunset. Instead, we have appointed a man whose football is as far away from Everton’s traditions as you can get. Or is he?
The Dogs of War
Since the return of Joe Royle in the mid 90’s, Everton have tended to have a more physical approach on the pitch, with the spells under Kendall Mark3 and Roberto Martinez as aberrations. Royle hated the term ‘Dogs of War’ which was coined by journalists who didn’t understand that you have to earn your right to play your football. Anyone who watched the 1995 FA Cup semi-final against Spurs would have seen an excellently balanced side who were strong and resolute in defence and yet fast and decisive in attack. They could mix it up physically but could also play sublime football, especially when the little magician, Anders Limpar was on form.
Kendall 3
Everton were skint, when Howard Kendall returned for his 3rd spell. Kendall was forced to get the best out of limited players such as Carl Tiler and Mitch Ward. Kendall also swapped David Unsworth for West Ham’s Danny Williamson. Williamson was a midfielder with an eye for a pass and a strong runner from midfield. Unfortunately Williamson suffered a career ending foot injury after 17 games and Everton struggled through the season. All looked doomed when Coventry equalised but Chelsea beat Bolton to keep Everton up. Kendall does not get enough credit for the job that he did that season with a poor Everton side.
Smith’s Disappointments
His replacement, Walter Smith came with a big reputation from Rangers, where he had spent a lot of money on players and won titles. He tried to play football at first bringing in John Collins, Marco Materazzi and Olivier Dacourt. Unfortunately for Smith, Everton’s financial pressures forced them to sell Materazzi, Dacourt and Duncan Ferguson. Smith was forced to rebuild. Smith was in some ways unfortunate in his time at Everton. He had to sell players constantly to keep the club afloat.
Everton were a long way from being the school of science under Smith. His later years led to Steve Watson playing up front and an aging Gazza and Ginola in the side. Some of the football under Smith reflected the manager’s on camera personality; dour and disappointing. Smith kept Everton afloat though during that time and whilst the football was poor, he deserves some credit for his efforts during that tumultuous time for the Toffees.
The Moyes Era
His successor is another manager renowned for keeping it tight at the back. David Moyes came in when Everton were in relegation trouble. He didn’t shore up the defence straight away with his coring thrillers against Derby and Newcastle before leading us to safety and 15th place.
The following season, on the back of his fitness methods and the emergence of a certain lad from Croxteth, Everton came close to finishing in Europe for the first time since 1995. After an awful season the following season, Rooney left for United on the last day of the transfer window and Moyes had one fit striker. This led to a remarkable 4th placed finish based on being hard to beat and pressing across the park.
Moyes started to use the 4-5-1 formation in 2004/05, which was to become a mainstay of his time at Everton. This formation cemented his reputation as a defensive minded coach. His side could play football on its day though. Cultured performers such as Mikel Arteta, Steven Pienaar and Leon Osman, matched craft with graft. Moyes’ time at the school of science is under appreciated for the job that he did, as transfer fees inflated around him.
He recently told reporters, “When I went into the job at Everton there wasn’t bundles of cash. In my last year we were desperate for a striker. Everton were a striker short of being top four. You were still needing somewhere like £10 or £15m to get a top striker. We had a million left.”
The Dream that became a Nightmare
Roberto Martinez most successful season was his first when he finished 5th with a record points tally. This led some supporters to wonder if he piggy backed on the defensive setup that Moyes had installed. This is harsh though on Martinez who brought in Gareth Barry and James McCarthy, both of whom were excellent in their first season. Their energy in midfield gave skilful players like Deulofeu, Barkley and Lukaku the platform to perform. His second season saw the decline of Sylvan Distin and the emergence of John Stones. Unfortunately, as the squad was ageing, there was some turnover with players like Pienaar and Osman declining. Martinez failed to adapt to this and his side finished a disappointing 11th.
Martinez – More Art School than the School of Science
Ramiro Funes Mori was brought in to add to the competition at the back the following season. Unfortunately, a combination of Martinez sides defensive naivety, a gung-ho approach and the players downing tools left Roberto’s dream a nightmare. Late goals conceded to Bournemouth and Chelsea were turning points in a season that started with a lot of promise. An abject 4-0 defeat at Anfield and another late goal conceded to in the cup semi-final increased the pressure on the Spaniard. A horrible performance against the current custodian’s Sunderland side sealed Martinez fate.
Koeman’s School
The knock on Martinez was his side’s defensive deficiencies. Everton tried to fix that with the signing of former centre half Ronald Koeman. Evertonians were happy with this in the main and after a tricky first couple of months, Koeman turned the tide with a win over Arsenal. Everton became hard to beat at home with only Chelsea and Liverpool defeating the toffees at home. It was ever thus. Stones had been sold by then with Ashley Williams coming in to replace him.
Koeman: Schools Out
The decline in Koeman’s fortunes has coincided with the decline in Williams’s ability. He seems to have lost a yard of pace and has lost confidence this season. Alongside Williams, Jagielka has also looked a yard off the pace this season and Leighton Baines has also looked shaky. Not replacing these players cost Koeman as the only defensive purchase was Michael Keane. (Jordan Pickford is certainly a help in this area.) Unfortunately, the confusion further forward led to a collapse of confidence at the back and an extended holiday for Koeman.
The New Scientist
So Sam Allardyce, whilst he has a reputation for defensive sides, may actually fit into the more recent patterns of Everton’s football. He certainly likes his sides to be physical. Players like Gueye and Davies have the ability to get stuck in although Gueyemay not have the physical attributes that Big Sam likes. Allardyce’s Bolton side earned their right to play their football and this Everton side will have to do the same.
The great Everton side of 1984/85 could certainly mixed it with aggresive players like Ratcliffe, Reid and Van Den Hauwe. They played football too. Hopefully, the current custodian of our traditions can merge the physicality, work rate and organisation of the last 20 years with the footballing beauty which we were traditionally known for. Physics is as much of a branch of science as chemistry and biology. It’s time for the school of science to get physical.