Phil McNulty: Everton board must take blame for ‘Frankenstein’s monster’ of a first-team
BBC Sport journalist Phil McNulty has ripped into the Everton board for their role in creating a “Frankenstein’s monster’ of a team that Frank Lampard currently has to deal with in the Premier League.
The club has fallen into dire straights in recent weeks, as they plummeted into the relegation zone following a dire 2-1 defeat to Southampton at Goodison Park, with fans subsequently calling for the board to leave after years of underperformance.
Prior to the match, the Everton board were told to steer clear of the ground due to security concerns and fans were filmed in an angry confrontations with Yerry Mina later on after the defeat.
Writing in his column for BBC Sport, chief football writer McNulty admitted the blame must be laid at the board’s door following some horrific recruitment and managerial choices.
He wrote: “In reality, Everton’s board have presided over years of managerial churn, horrendous decision-making and financial waste in the transfer market on an industrial scale under Moshiri’s tenure.
“Moshiri has sacked Roberto Martinez, Ronald Koeman, Sam Allardyce, Marco Silva and Rafael Benitez.
“The last appointment was a divisive, high-risk gamble in the face of fierce fan opposition that was destined to end in the sort of acrimony and dissent that it did when the former Liverpool manager was sacked almost exactly a year ago.
“It has resulted in a Frankenstein’s monster of a squad – the starting 11 in the 2-1 home defeat by Southampton featuring players acquired by six different managers.”
Decline
Everton are in a real mess, and McNulty’s dissection of the issues are spot on. The decisions made at the top of the club simply have not been good enough, and the managerial merry-go-round has not helped the Toffees create a stabilised squad.
No wonder Lampard is struggling to get a tune from his players. The fact the starting line-up against Southampton consisted of players signed by six different managers is quite ridiculous and highlights the many different style’s of player Everton have signed in recent years.
Lampard has continued to chop and change his tactics this season – moving from a back-five to a 4-3-3 on a weekly basis – but you can hardly blame him.
There is no stability in the decision-making made at the top of the club, and it is due time Farhad Moshiri is called out by fans for his role in the football club’s decline.