Bournemouth exit in Carabao Cup comes back to haunt Frank Lampard as Everton face Manchester United in FA Cup
When Everton got thumped by Bournemouth in the Carabao Cup just before the World Cup break, opinions were split on Frank Lampard.
The boss made 11 changes for the game that night as he prioritised the Premier League campaign, and the Toffees were well beaten 4-1 at the Vitality Stadium, before returning for a Premier League clash that weekend and losing 3-0.
Some pundits wanted Everton to go for it as a cup run is owed to the fans, while others demanded that people ease up on Lampard as they were never going to win the competition anyway.
But while most fans were more annoyed by the performance than the result and team news, a cup run this season now looks even less likely after they were drawn against Manchester United at Old Trafford in the FA Cup third round.
Regardless of the team Lampard puts out on the day, nobody will bat an eyelid if Everton are beaten by United and eliminated from the competition.
United have been in good form this season, have already beaten us at Goodison in dominant fashion and quite simply they’re better than us.
But it makes the defeat to Bournemouth even more infuriating because most people would have expected us to win that game with relative comfort and we should be competing in the latter stages of that cup.
Lampard’s goal at Everton this season isn’t to win trophies or compete at that level, but it would still be nice if a genuine attempt was made and there was a little run for fans to enjoy.
The last few years have been nothing but stress for fans, and a bit of enjoyment wouldn’t go amiss, especially in a cup competition where there is no expectation to really win it.
Now though it seems the second half of the season will simply be filled with nail biting fixtures and hopes that we don’t get dragged into another battle like last season.