Everton: Kenwright has lost fans forever after what has happened amid ‘bad to worse’ verdict – Sky Sports pundit
We’re delighted to welcome former Everton striker Kevin Campbell as our exclusive columnist. Each week the former Toffees captain will be giving his views on the biggest talking points at Goodison Park…
Bill Kenwright and the Everton fans will never rebuild their relationship now as the situation has only gone from “bad to worse”, says Kevin Campbell.
The chairman’s picture was removed from the timeline running round the outside of Goodison Park and reportedly found dumped in a canal [BBC Sport, 16 March], amid repeated fan protests calling for the board to be sacked ahead of home games since the turn of the year [Daily Mail, 3 April].
Kenwright and company have been absent from home games since the 14 January defeat to Southampton amid a “real and credible threat” to their safety [Guardian, 14 January], in the words of their own security advisors, while none of the board attended a twice-rearranged Fan Advisory Board meeting at the start of the month, and Campbell feels the situation has now gone beyond the point of no return.
Asked if the relationship between fans and chairman could ever be mended the Sky Sports pundit exclusively told Goodison News: “No I don’t think so.
“Look, Bill Kenwright is an Evertonian. He loves the club.
“But he’s been at the club that long that many fans are starting to question, not his love, but the importance of having him there.
“Because under his tenure things have gone from bad to worse.
“Once that happens it’s right that the fanbase are going to question him, because everyone has to be accountable.
“The one constant at that football club is the fanbase, and long after we’re gone the fans are still going to be there.
“So I think the fans have asked the right questions but sometimes the big problem is there’s not a lot of dialogue.
“There’s a not a lot of Bill Kenwright coming out to the fans and giving honest dialogue, and that’s what frustrates the fanbase.”
Supporters can just about look past incompetence and mismanagement off the field when the team is performing on it, but when neither is working properly over a sustained period those in charge will take the heat.
Given the disconnect between statements from the club and tangible evidence, some fans may be sceptical about the Kenwright panel disappearing into a canal in itself.
The last time supporters heard from the chairman he was hastily leaving the London Stadium after defeat to West Ham on 21 January telling Sky Sports he would “never say that to you” about a potential Frank Lampard sacking [Liverpool Echo] – the current Chelsea boss was fired two days later.
And a year earlier he was telling fans outside Goodison after 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa with Duncan Ferguson in interim charge for a second time they’ve “had good times” [Liverpool Echo, 22 January 2022].
He may love the club and he may have tried his best, but popular opinion has long since turned against him and it is hard to see that changing.