Why I Don't Ever Want Everton To Be "Big Four" Again

Gnawed lips, knotted entrails, throttled match day programmes, and for yesterday's Anfield game - cringing behind the sofa; as an Evertonian born at the wrong time I am not accustomed to success...but times are beginning to change.

For me Everton used to be pugnacious relegation fighters, and only in the deepest recesses of my mind can I remember vague snippets of success. I recall looking at an Everton team photo, wondering with a child's logic that, if my Dad said he loved Gary Lineker like a son, did that make him my brother? Tragically as time was called on the 1980's, with Lord of the Sod inevitability, my footballing consciousness sprouted just as Everton began to wilt.

My dad's boyhood team contained the 'Holy Trinity' and had a full to the brim trophy cabinet, but the team I fell in love with was Joe Royle's Moyes-esque band of brothers. In many ways Carsley, Osman, and Cahill are direct descendants of the plucky midfield mongrels Horne, Ebbrell, and Stuart. And who could forget Duncan Ferguson? The Yossarian of Everton's treatment table, whose career statistics bring a tear to the eye for all the wrong reasons, but the ex-con pigeon fancier was over six feet of contradictions and in many ways the perfect totem for that team; who mixed rough dogfights with one glorious moment in the sun.

That team's poke in the eye of the Premier League behemoths was FA Cup victory over Man Utd - and upstart usher usurping Royalty at their Wembley coronation. Move to 2008 and that one-off battle has now become a war, the prize being entry into the exclusive top four. Liverpool are now once again favourites to bag that final spot, having dispensed with West Ham with depressing ease - but we will breathe down their necks and stare at them from over Stanley Park all the way to the end of the season.

Although I'd love for us to grab fourth place, I wouldn't ever want Everton to be labelled "Big 4", that term is now something of an insult in my mind, and conjours up images of prawn sandwiches, the habitual masturbation of trophies on demand, mausoleum stadia, and owners with more Roubles than scruples. Putting us in the "Big 4" is like putting Joe Strummer in Girls Aloud, we simply don't belong. I am fully aware of our glorious history, but I want Everton to break the 'Big 4' cartel, not break into it.

Liverpool, Arsenal, and Chelsea all drink from the European Cup to forget, to obliterate memories of recent domestic league and cup wobbles. Everton, on the other hand, drink from the UEFA Cup to remember, an aide memoire to rekindle past successes. Victory in Europe for Liverpool will be a distraction, and often proves to be a temporary placebo for their domestic impotence, but UEFA successes for us will give us belief, lift us and inspire.

The Moyesiah has catapulted us from lowly basement scrappers into high altitude competitors without the usual gap in between. That sick feeling in my stomach? I'm used to it, but it is for different reasons now. Tonight we play Fiorentina, and my guts are churning like a relegation six pointer of old.

Ed Bottomley

Comments

[Mike Oldfield]

Nice piece
Couple of inexplicable metaphors though, Yossarian constantly faked illness to avoid combat in Catch22....how can you compare Dunc to that? I was never his greatest fan but I don't think he ever pretended to be injured to avoid conflict.

Also I suspect you got your medical terms mixed up, when you said placebo I think you meant panacea. Doesn't make sense as it is.

Anyway, prepare for the feeling in your stomach again on Wednesday, specially if we get an early goal....I'm your dad's generation, it never goes away.

[Phil J Noonan]

I thought this was a well written article.
It seems as if the only qualification and pre-requisite to being pilloried by the masses, is if you have an opinion that doesnt comply with the bleatings of the sheep. I found myself on the end of a veritable cornucopia of tongue-lashings and loyalty bashing accusations myself when I had the temerity to write a piece for the Fanzone asking for Rafael Benitez to "not let the door slap your ass on the way out".
As a Liverpudlian born and bred, and coming from a family of Evertonians, I can recall the days long before Lineker. For me their "Blue period" was when Joe Royle played, with Ball, Labone, Sandy Brown, and the man mountain Gordon West in goal.
Everton have been underachievers for a lot longer than you whiney ne`er-do-wells can recall... certainly for long before you claim that massive moolah from foreign investors are to blame.
Everton have always been dogged, tenacious, terrier like, with occasional seasons of polish and promise, but never really had the courage or conviction to settle and build.
This tends to happen when you carry chips on your shoulder the size of a small sequoia , its a weight that holds you back.
Envy is an insidious thing, and its never more obvious a trait than when listening to football fans vent their spleen.
As a Liverpool fan of many years, I actually think Moyes has done a damned good job in removing some of that weight off your players shoulders, and freed the squad of the burden of expectation to allow them to do what they do best..compete on equal grounds.
As far as me interfering in an Everton based supporters zone goes, let me just say that I do qualify.. Ive actually paid to watch Everton at Goodison a few times, because unlike what seems like most of the football fanbase these days, I`m not polarised by hatred and spite.
Well... not as bad as some are anyway.
Good luck Everton, I hope you grind your way up to second place in the top four, behind Liverpool of course.. hehehe!

[Nick]

i been a blue all my life. moyes can't bring us to greater heights. get mourinho.

[sean long]

Re Graham A, whats with all the stats undermining Davey the Moysiah and Everton FC in general?? Insecure i'd say at the resurgence across Stanley Park and with the enemy at the gates and much more of a rival than any of the Big 3(who've all won multiple Premiership titles unlike a certain american team who play in red)....level on points pressure back on rafa and his medium sized club

[Jini Sebakunzi]

You want to change the term ''Big Four'' being used?

Then change the system of ownership in The English Premier League and add in a salary cap.

That happening is about as close as Derby staying up though...

[Peter Barnes]

Graham A, you must be a Kopite, because in no way at all do your views reflect Evertonians point of view.

Moyes is the best thing to happen to Everton since Howard Kendall in the 1980s. Moyes took a side that was headed the same way as Nottingham Forest, and in 6 years, has transformed them in to a perrenial top 6/7 side, with European aspirations every single season. The 6 seasons prior to Moyes, we finished 13th or below every single season.

Under Moyes we have a young vibrant squad, with an average age of 25, packed full of internationals. We have a striker in Yakubu who is our highest scorer in a league season for 15 years. We finished above the European Champions in the league in 2005. We finished in the top 7 in two other seasons, and certainly look on course for a European place this season, barring any slip ups. Under Moyes we have achieved our biggest home win in the league for 11 years. Under Moyes we have scored more goals in a season (currently 72 in all competitions) than we have done in nearly 20 years. Under Moyes we have beaten Liverpool on several occasions, including a 3-0 win, our biggest win against them in 92 years.

Fiorentina may have been a bad performance, but stuff happens. The tie isn't dead. Even if we get knocked out, we'll be back. European football is a big learning curve.

[Peter B]

Nice article. The truth is that unless some action to restrict the impact of the financial clout of the "big four" is taken the gap between them and the rest will just get wider and wider. And inevitably what will follow is the atrophy of the clubs outside the magic circle. So everyone out there get used to the same 4 clubs in the champions league, the same 4 clubs fighting for the Premier League title and the same 4 fighting for the FA Cup -which they of course have devalued from the fabulous competition it used to be. And boy isn't that an exciting prospect - not!
Anyone out there remember the allegory of the man that kills the golden goose; well his name is Rupert Murdoch!
Oh and it's no use calling David Moyes and what he has done with Everton a "disgrace"...given his RELATIVE budget it is a "miracle" you bonehead!

[Viking Skelhorn]

Not 'drinking from the UEFA cup' this morning eh!'

Well written piece though. You might get a job at the Times if anyone there sees it!

[Graham A]

Everton manager Moyes is patently not up to the job, 6 years and counting and not a sniff of any silverware - go and go now. Push the boat out and get Jose in at Goodison.

[John]

The reality is that the so called "Big Four" would more or less stay intact for at least a few more seasons. The reason for this is the Champions League, which almost guarantees them an extra 15-20 million pounds every season. With that they go out and replenish their squads, so the gap with the rest continues to widen. Although Platini did mention a limitation of 3 from each league in the CL at the start, yet now the plan seems to be going nowhere.

[frank]

'UEFA successes for us will give us belief, lift us and inspire' Laughable....you have a right to dream, maybe leave it for next season though

[Graham A]

After all the hope and great expectations,once again this Everton team has failed to deliver. Living in the shadow of their more illustrious neighbours is one thing but this was the season that Everton manager David Moyes stated "he wants to win something", yet once again, they are left red faced and embarassed at a shameful performance with little or no imagination.
Moyes approaching 6 years at the helm at Goodison Park and yet he holds the record for the lowest ever points totoal in the club's history(2005/2006),the lowest goals total of 37 in their history(2005/2006) and their heaviest defeat in the club's history in the Premier League(0-7 versus Arsenal(2004/2005).
In that time he has also only ever taken them on one decent cup run, this season in the Carling cup before being knocked out by Chelsea in the semi-final.
It is a shameful record, and when you consider that since 1966 the club has only finished 4 times above Liverpool in the league(1970, 1985, 1987, 2005),it is a disgrace. Moyes the messiah, don't make me laugh..

[john g]

if everton dont finish 4th i will quit watching football , to tell you the truth it is not fair that liverpool, man united , asrenal and chelsea always finish in the top 4. come on everton do it iknow you can do it. how can chelsea a team that was born and promoted into the league be laballed a big 4 i think that is an insult come on jose destroy chelsea such that it becames weak and gets relegated to the bottom league last sunday 24 february i was happy that spurs burid then in the carling cup . i think me everton is the 4 th biggest team not chelsea tottenham are 5th newcastle 6th chelsea 2oth what is chelsea because they are rich that is madness

[Rob]

Ouch. A far more graceful response than my graceless comment deserved.

All the same, it's sides of the same coin, no? We're all fighting for bites from the same trough to perpetuate the money-go-round of the Premiership.

[Ed B]

Rob - Bill Kenwright is looking for an investor, and we are moving to a new stadium, and that, combined with our new success could turn us into a corporate behemoth again (we were the Merseyside Millionaires in the 60's) - it will just be a bitter pill to swallow.
Thanks for the spelling help re:wilt/wily I'd blame spellcheck but a bad workman blames his tools etc etc.

[Rob]

Much as I admire the way you've written this - do you mean "wilt" rather than "wily", though? - aren't you setting yourself up as every bit as nauseating a proposition as the hegemony you purport to detest?

Sounds to me as though you're desperately trying to persuade yourself that should you be a team outside the "Big 4" (and by the way, surely it's "Big 3"... Liverpool can hardly claim to be challenging for the title) that somehow exempts you from any accusation of being obsessed with the pound, or dollar, or rouble.

Whereas the situation, whether you like or indeed recognise it, is that the entire Premier League, from high-flying Manc to stumbling Derby-ite, is inexorably wedded to cold hard cash. Money drives the League. Money greases all the wheels. Why else would a competition called the Champions League exist? To produce ever more fat for the cats to slurp down, no? But no, Everton are nothing to do with this. Everton alone fly the flag for the working class fan. It is to Everton that we must look, brothers, for inspiration in the face of capitalism.

Two words. Piss off.

Four more. Get back in your box.

Nicely written article, though.

[Nik Coyne]

I just want a decent result tonight, it will set the tone for the rest of this crucial month.