Richard Keys let down by Everton survival, says there was just one bit of ‘drama’
Richard Keys was let down by the ‘damp squib’ that was the final day of the season, when Everton secured their top flight safety.
The Toffees defeated Bournemouth 1-0 at Goodison Park on Sunday (28 May) to stay in the Premier League.
Leeds United and Leicester City meanwhile were the unfortunate clubs to join Southampton in being relegated to the Championship.
“It’s a shame the last day of the Premier League season was such a damp squib, but it wasn’t anything I didn’t expect,” Keys wrote in his blog.
“Well – no, that’s not true. I didn’t expect to see Leeds rolled over so easily by Spurs, but I always felt they’d go down because Everton would get the result they needed.
“Everton were a Championship side for 23 minutes when Leicester scored v West Ham. That was the only drama – a little anxiety until Doucoure smashed the Toffees winner in v Bournemouth. But that was it.”
No real drama
There was a bit of drama on the final day of the Premier League season, but perhaps just not as much as expected given how tight it was going into Sunday’s matches.
It won’t be remembered too well by neutrals in the years to come, but it will be remembered by Everton supporters, both for good and bad reasons.
The good reasons are that their club managed to stay in the top flight, and thus stay relevant and competitive in both football and financial terms.
The bad reasons are that the season represents the second-successive campaign that the Toffees have found themselves battling for their survival.
It’s really not a situation that anybody associated with the Merseyside outfit wants to be in, meaning big changes are needed throughout the summer in order to put things right.
That is, of course, much easier said than done, with various areas of the club in desperate need of fixing.