Bolton V Everton

Everton's victory over Bolton on Saturday was completely overshadowed the day after by the sad news about Gary Speed.

Speed, a boyhood Evertonian, was signed from Leeds in the summer of 1996 by Joe Royle. He was an instant hit, scoring ten goals in his first season as Everton looked like genuine contenders for a while, before the team faded badly around the time of Royle's departure. The next season, under new boss Howard Kendall, Speed was made captain. His departure that winter was, to say the least, acrimonious and shrouded in secrecy. If the rumour mill is to be believed, Speed could have had a lot to say about the club and more celebrated ex-employees. Tellingly, he has never criticised Everton in the press, however - quite the opposite. The man was clearly a blue.

Here's 5 Gary Speed things:

1. Linking up brilliantly with Ferguson on his debut against Newcastle, and capping it with a trademark goal;

2. Scoring a late headed equaliser at the Kop end, complete with comedy David James dive;

3. Bagging a hat-trick in the 7-1 demolition of Southampton, one of the best Everton performances I've ever seen;

4. A flashing header to win a vital game against Spurs later that season, after Royle's departure;

5. Converting a nerveless penalty in the most pressured of situations the following year, injury time away at Leicester City for a 1-0 win.

RIP to a fellow Evertonian.

 

Bolton Wanderers 0-2 Everton

Turning to Saturday's game, and Everton put together back to back wins for the first time this season by seeing off the truly awful Bolton Wanderers. There was one change from the Wolves line-up, with Diniyar Bilyaletdinov replacing the injured Royston Drenthe. Distin, Rodwell and Neville were also unfit, so it was really 'bare bones' on the bench - but in the end the Blues never even had to get out of third gear.

The early stages were slightly cagey but Everton were well on top - Coleman looked very lively again and was the first to test Jussi Jaaskelainen after skinning Paul Robinson, before the Bolton keeper also saved well from Phil Jagielka's header. Bolton's sole riposte - amidst the continual hoofed balls to the still horrible Kevin Davies, was a 20 yard drive from Ivan Klasnic which Howard saved well.

Then the game changer - On 20 minutes, Bilyaletdinov, who enjoyed a much improved performance, seized on David Wheater's big grock touch and got clattered by his big grock lunge. It looked a bad one at the time, and TV replays later showed that the referee, Michael Oliver, was spot on in sending Wheater off. Bolton down to ten - advantage Toffeemen, surely.

The remainder of the first half was almost total Everton pressure, but the Blues were guilty of snatching at chances and a bit of impatience in front of goal. Saha, Cahill and Bilyaletdinov all had half chances, and David Moyes noted after the game that he wanted to get them in at half time to change a few things about the approach - presumably a bit more composure and patience in possession. This was clearly evident in the second half, as Everton were much more happy to switch play and move Bolton around - with John Heitinga, who had his best game in a long while, playing a key role with crisp passing from the back to the wings. Everton just looked a bit more 'at it', and a goal soon followed.

It started out on the right - Coleman whipped a peach of a cross in towards Tim Cahill, who was only denied by a fantastic clearing header by his namesake, Gary. Everton quickly switched the play, and some neat interplay between Osman and Baines released Bilyaletdinov. The Russian fizzed in a fantastic low cross and Marouane Fellaini - head and shoulders the best player on the park - slid in to convert. Get in.

Everton continued to push, and apart from a mad 60 seconds where Klasnic had a half chance saved well by Howard, it was more a question of when the second goal came. Saha shot too close to Jaaskelainen after being brilliantly released by Cahill, Osman and Coleman both had deflected shots saved, Cahill went close with a header and there should have been a penalty when Davies - who was also lucky to be on the pitch after a two-footer on Bilyaletdinov in the first half - handled. Maybe a change was needed, and Moyes's switch of Saha for Vellios did the trick.

Another switch of play led to Fellaini finding Baines in space. He sent a beautiful serving delivery to the back post, which the tireless Tim Cahill did brilliantly to cut back, straight onto Vellios's left foot. The young Greek - who you've got to love, he looks completely star struck by it all and his interview about coaching sessions with Big Dunc couldn't fail to raise a smile - made no mistake. There was just time for a lively cameo by Ross Barkley - but in effect that was game over.

Yes, Bolton are awful. Yes, they were down to 10 men. In those circumstances though, all you ask is for Everton to be professional and do the job. This they did, comfortably, and secured another three points. It would be churlish to criticise, but we have to expect a much tougher test when that other set of horrible grocks, Stoke City, visit next week.

COYB

calcioEFC

Everton - Howard, Hibbert, Baines, Jagielka, Heitinga, Coleman, Osman, Fellaini, BilyaletdinovCahill, Saha.

Subs - Mucha, Mustafi, McAleny, Barkley, Vellios, Stracqualursi, Gueye

Goals - Fellaini (49), Vellios (78)

MOTM - Fellaini.

Bolton Preview

After breaking up a run of bad results with three hard fought points against Wolves, Everton travel to another team having a horrible season, Bolton Wanderers.

 

At this point it is obligatory to say 'yes it was over the line, but it was a foul on Southall and you had 36 other games to sort yourselves out, you bulbs'.

 

The arse seems to have completely fallen out of Owen Coyle's men this season. This looks to be a combination of a few things - they have been desperately unlucky with injuries to their best players, Stuart Holden and Chung-Yong Lee, but are also paying the price for over-reliance on 'babysitting' loans for the likes of Jack Wilshere and Daniel Sturridge in recent years. Those sort of loans, which David Moyes never seems to go for (the link to Lukaku this week was utterly absurd, given that he couldn't play for us this season anyway), undermine the idea of building a team, and certainly, without Sturridge, Bolton look like a much lesser threat.

 

That said, this game will be far from a walkover. Bolton are still big, tough and horrible and Everton, as Tim Howard has already anticipated in interviews this week, are in for a scrap. Sylvain Distin will surely come in if fit, and you get the feeling Moyes will want Jack Rodwell in there too to add more height and athleticism. If the Toffees can get their heads down and play their game, however, the game is there for the taking. Confidence should have been boosted by the Wolves result, if not the performance, and whoever plays in our midfield - Fellaini, Osman or Rodwell - should be able to get hold of Nigel Reo-Coker and Fabrice Muamba.

 

Another three points please, Everton.

 

Last 5 at Bolton:

 

Feb 2011: Bolton 2-0 Everton (FAPL) - Anything on Saturday has got to be better than this. Everton turn in 90 minutes of utter dross which Moyes describes as one of the worst of his time at the club. He's not wrong.

 

Oct 2009: Bolton 3-2 Everton (FAPL) - Fresh from a battering at Benfica, Everton are two down in no time but come back to level with crackers from Louis Saha and Marouane Fellaini. A couple of missed chances and some horrible defending later, however, and the Toffees dip to an Ivan Klasnic goal.

 

Oct 2008: Bolton 0-1 Everton (FAPL) - A truly awful game where absolutely nothing happens is settled by emerging cult hero Marouane Fellaini's injury time header. Christ it was cold that night.

 

Sept 2007: Bolton 1-2 Everton (FAPL) - Everton secure an early lead through new record signing Yakubu on debut, before Bolton equalise through a Nicolas Anelka howitzer. The returning Thomas Gravesen then takes centre stage, sticking a perfect corner onto the head of Joleon Lescott for a last minute decider, before going bonkers in front of the travelling Evertonians and lashing Lucozade bottles everywhere. Loon.

 

Apr 2007: Bolton 1-1 Everton (FAPL) - Everton continue their push for a UEFA Cup place as James Vaughan, playing the best football of his Everton career, scores an equaliser before, typically, rupturing an artery in a second half challenge.  

 

 

calcioEFC

Everton V Wolves - Match Report

It's stating the obvious but it's true - after Everton's recent run of defeats, the result - not the performance - was the most important thing on Saturday. Wolves came to Goodison on the back of a good home win, and despite some obvious nervousness Everton managed to get the job done with an ugly win, albeit a deserved one.

Whilst a few hundred are determined to make off the field matters the focus of attention, Saturday was all about matters on the pitch. 

Fans' Rights Movement: 'The standard of trainers amongst us has dropped significantly during Kenwright's tenure'

Make no mistake, this was a massive game, and losing it just didn't bear thinking about. David Moyes had revealed some injury problems, and whilst Phil Neville and Sylvain Distin's absence wasn't too much of a surprise, the revelation that Jack Rodwell has a rib injury was. The young midfielder has been much improved in recent weeks, and his impressive England performances suggested a surge in confidence that Everton would benefit from. It wasn't to be, and we can only hope the injury is not as serious as Moyes has warned.

With Everton down to the proverbial bare bones, therefore, Osman partnered Fellaini in midfield, with Coleman and Drenthe wide and Cahill behind Saha up front. Options on the substitutes bench looked particularly sparse, but even so, it was fucking Wolves. Surely, SURELY we'd have enough for them.

The game kicked off with Everton looking slightly cagey and pressured, and Wolves adopting the 'we'll take 0-0 thank you very much' formation. We always seem to struggle when teams do that, and were guilty at times of being impatient and rushing possession. Phil Jagielka - superb defensively - betrayed his lack of training time with far too many aimless long balls, and Tony Hibbert - again, sound at the back and as ever showing a top notch attitude - was equally wasteful. We don't create much, and whilst that's not the Huyton Cafu's fault, we can't afford for five or six crosses from good positions to float gently into the goalkeepers hands. His crossing's been better this season - hopefully this was a blip.

Everton improved towards the middle of the half with Saha and Cahill holding the ball up better and getting early balls out wide. Drenthe and Osman both flashed dangerous crosses in from the left, and Saha went closest when Cahill linked up with the impressive Coleman - the Frenchman's shot slamming into the turf and saved well by Hennessey. It wasn't free flowing dominance, but Everton were comfortably the better side with Tim Howard almost a spectator.

So what happened next? Wolves scored. Course they fucking did.

After a laboured piece of possession down the Wolves left, We again failed to stop a cross - one of the most annoying parts of this season - David Edwards got onto it, Fellaini stuck out a leg, penalty. It looked nailed on at first glance, and whilst TV replays suggested contact was minimal, we couldn't really have too many complaints. Stephen Hunt gave Howard no chance with the kick.

Frankly, it was difficult to see us scoring two from that point. The game was typically Everton this season - dominating possession without looking too dangerous, then a couple of daft mistakes and we're behind and chasing the game. It was a welcome relief, therefore, that the equaliser came quickly. Cahill was stupidly fouled by Roger Johnson, Baines whipped in a peach of a free kick and Jagielka headed past Hennessey. Thank fuck for that.

With only two minutes to go to half time, that seemed to be that for the first half, but in truth Everton should have gone in ahead. First, a brilliant lay-off by Louis Saha sent Drenthe through, but Christophe Berra recovered well to block his shot at the last minute. From the resulting corner, Hennessey saved well from Fellaini and Cahill was dragged down by Karl Henry in the area. Now, Joey Barton is right about very few things, but he's got Henry spot on - he's absolute garbage. Inexplicably though, the referee waved away the Everton protests. 1-1 at half time.

Having regained the momentum, you hoped that Everton would push on second half. Did they? Did they shite. It was turgid and laboured, and whilst we were never in trouble of conceding again - Howard must have been freezing - we only sporadically looked threatening. Cahill missed an absolute sitter after Coleman again barged down the right wing and Saha flicked on, and a couple of speculative efforts from Fellaini and Drenthe found the Upper Gwladys. When Moyes switched Cahill for Vellios (correctly), we looked more balanced - the young striker does the simple things really well, hold the ball up, lay it off, get in the box - and gradually the pressure increased. A series of corners led to another fantastic block by Berra to deny Saha, and from the next kick the Frenchman was barged by Stephen Ward - penalty. Both managers described it as 'soft' - fair enough - but it was also a stupid challenge by Ward, especially given the Henry one previously. Just about a pen then, and Baines made no mistake.

The expected barrage from Wolves never really materialised, and in truth Everton saw out the game pretty comfortably, with the exception of one free kick which Jamie O'Hara put wide.


Bilyaletdinov replaced Drenthe and apparently there were some boos from the hard-of-thinking areas of our support - and to state the obvious again, we all know the Russian's faults but really, it's just fucking stupid and pointless.

Not the hammering we all wanted then but three points to start this run of winnable games that we have coming up. Bolton next.

calcioEFC

Everton - Howard, Hibbert, Baines, Jagielka, Heitinga, Coleman, Osman, Fellaini, Drenthe, Cahill, Saha.

Subs - Mucha, Mustafi, Bilyaletdinov, Barkley, Vellios, Stracqualursi, Gueye

Goals - Jagielka (43), Baines (pen 83)

MOTM - Coleman.