Newcastle Utd (h) Helter-skelter
I’ll start with the positives. The obvious one being Moise Kean getting his first goal and DCL continuing on his current streak. Bernard was back to his energetic best and Holgate and Mina showing how good a partnership they’re developing, undisputedly our best pairing. At times in this game some of the football that was played, and the way it was played was a joy to watch.
Newcastle came for a point and got it, even if it was in the most unusual set of circumstances. Unusual in respect of Newcastle replacing their striker with a centre half and him getting both goals in the space of 2 injury time minutes. Crazy, ludicrous, devastating.
It should have been all about Kean, and a routine yet deserving 2-0 win. It’s not the footballing gods or a curse that have caused us to draw 2-2, it’s the players. Plain and simple. The same players that bottled Millwall away, Newcastle away, Liverpool u23’s in the cup, you could name 20+ games. If you can’t see out 90 seconds of football without conceding 2 goals at home after being so dominant, it’s no longer a case of questioning ability and mentality, it’s also about professionalism. The job is the same wherever you go, the surroundings are just different.
If you’ve ever watched the second Sugar Ray Leonard vs Tommy Hearns fight you’ll have seen Hearns batter Leonard, unquestionably winning the fight, yet somehow, somewhere Leonard gets a draw. That was this game. Hearns needed to emphatically put Leonard away, he didn’t and it cost him. Sound familiar?
At the moment attack is the best form of defence for Everton. As good as Mina and Holgate have been, the team just need to keep going forward because without competent ball playing central midfielders the defence cannot cope with being overloaded and being under pressure from constant passes backwards because the midfield isn’t good enough to pass forward.
Moise Kean did everything right tonight, pace, power, spirit and determination. He looked all the money we spent on him. Very exciting today to finally get the true picture if what he can be.
Jordan Pickford sadly gave us a reminder of what he can be. Panicked, erratic, foolish and costly. Flapping at the initial ball into the box that ended up being over head kicked in the 6 yard box, and then being sat in the front row of the Gwladys St for the second goal. Polar opposite from West Ham on Saturday.
Make no mistake, for 80 minutes there was only one team in this game but pressure was invited and Newcastle took advantage. The ineffective Walcott was replaced with Davies, who was dreadfully and gave away the free kick that led to the equaliser. Coleman for Kean to ensure the game was closed out, did nothing of the sort. Niasse coming on further illustrating the need for time and patience that must be afforded to Ancelotti.
Personally I won’t blame the manager’s substitutions for the draw. I’ll blame the players that are paid tens of thousands of pounds each week to be ‘professional’ about their business. 2 goals in 90 seconds because they couldn’t cope with some
pressure is a sheer disgrace.
Ancelotti will no doubt calm it all down, he’s a master of playing the press, but those 2 points lost dropped us from 8th to 12th, within 90 seconds. And if that was the last game of the season, would have cost the club £9 million in prize money.
Time to take a well earned and deserved break away from these lot now.
UTFT💙