Oliver Kay raises Everton ‘concern’ after Merseyside derby defeat to Liverpool
Oliver Kay says it must be a “concern” for Everton that they find themselves in relegation trouble heading into a tough run of fixtures.
The Toffees were beaten 2-0 by Liverpool in Saturday’s (21 October) Merseyside derby and sit just three points above the bottom three.
Being embroiled in a relegation scrap is nothing new for Everton in recent years, but they have tended to start well before fading off.
Writing for The Athletic (22 October), Kay said that has to be a worry for Sean Dyche’s side.
“In the past two seasons, Everton have started reasonably well before enduring an awful period over the winter months,” he said.
“The concern, with only seven points from the first nine games, is that this was the start of a less-forgiving stretch of fixtures – Liverpool away, West Ham away, Brighton at home, Crystal Palace away, Manchester United at home, then Newcastle United, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City all to come during December.
“That is the worry when it comes to the feeling that Everton, after years of mismanagement, are stuck in a cycle they are struggling to escape.”
Tough run
Let’s face it, the fixture computer was very kind to Everton in the summer when giving us games against Fulham, Aston Villa, Wolves, Sheffield United, Arsenal, Brentford, Luton Town and Bournemouth to begin the season.
Of those, only the Arsenal game looked daunting on the face of it when the fixtures were released in July. But after taking just seven points from a possible 24, Everton are already left playing catch up in the Premier League.
The trip to Liverpool was the start of a difficult run, as pointed out by Kay, that will see the Toffees face each of the Premier League’s elite clubs.
There is a serious worry that, come the end of this run around the turn of the new year, Everton will be inside the bottom three.
However, as they have showed over the past couple of campaigns, the Toffees do tend to find a way to drag themselves out of danger.
Besides, it is not like Manchester United and Chelsea are flying this season, so let’s just hope for an ‘upset’ or two against the heavyweight clubs.
In other Everton news, a behind-the-scenes figure at Goodison Park has proved his worth to the club after a transfer development emerged.