SEPT 10 — It's been a tough summer for Everton; unfortunately the approaching autumn and winter months might be even harder.
Fans from the blue half of Merseyside have enjoyed a period of relative overachievement in the last few years. Under the sensible management of David Moyes, the Toffees have been solid if not spectacular, regularly finishing comfortably in the top half in the Premier League despite operating on a budget significantly smaller than many of their rivals.
That has all changed now. The club is in severe financial difficulties, with owner Bill Kenwright publicly acknowledging that there is no money to spend and that selling off player assets is the only option until new investment arrives.
Last month's dramatic deadline-day sale of their star player, playmaking Spaniard Mikel Arteta moving to Arsenal for £12 million (RM57 million), was merely the latest in a fairly lengthy line of departures from Goodison Park this year, including strikers Yakubu, Jermaine Beckford and James Vaughan, midfielder Steven Pienaar and experienced defender Joseph Yobo.
Slowly, Everton are losing their most talented players — and not replacing them. The most significant arrivals during the summer transfer window were Dutch international Royston Drenthe and Argentine striker Denis Stracqualursi, neither of whom have done much to excite the increasingly concerned Everton faithful.
Pacey left-sided player Drenthe made a sparkling start to his career, impressing sufficiently for the Netherlands' under-21 side during a summer tournament in 2007 to earn a high-profile move to Real Madrid. But he never looked comfortable at the Spanish giants, and his career has steadily declined since those heady early days.
Moyes will be hoping that Drenthe's move to the Premier League will allow him to rekindle former glories, but that looks a forlorn hope for a player who has done very little in the last three years. (Incidentally, Drenthe wasn't the only member of that Dutch under-21 side to show misleadingly early promise that has not yet been fulfilled: one of his teammates was Ryan Babel, whose subsequent move to Liverpool was a fairly spectacular failure.)
Nor should Everton fans set their expectations too high for Stracqualursi, who has signed on loan from top flight Argentine club Tigre. He's a basic, old-fashioned striker of limited ability — powerful, hard-working, good in the air and with a goalscorer's instinct for a chance, but pretty poor technically and painfully slow.
Having seen Stracqualursi in action for Tigre on a number of occasions last season, I'd be surprised if he's able to establish a regular place in Everton's starting line-up. He might have been the leading scorer in the Primera Division, but he achieved that accolade without ever looking a particularly good player — it bore more resemblance to one of those golden yet never-to-be-repeated runs of goalscoring form that many strikers occasionally enjoy.
Unless Stracqualursi proves me wrong, the big question for Everton is where the goals will come from. A large burden of responsibility will continue to rest on the shoulders of attacking midfielder Tim Cahill, who has been one of the most under-rated players in the Premier League during his consistently excellent seven-year period with the Toffees.
But Cahill can't go on forever, and at the age of 31 there must be doubts over whether the Australian can continue to deliver the 8-10 goals per season to which Everton have become accustomed. And if he doesn't, who will? The current squad looks decidedly shot-shy.
The growing worries of Everton fans have led to a number of supporters banding together to form the Blue Union protest group. Around 400 fans were estimated to attend last week's launch of the group, which is now organising a peaceful protest march towards the directors' box before this afternoon's meeting with Aston Villa.
Their frustration is understandable, but it's difficult to see how much they can achieve. Owner Kenwright's failure to sell the club is the main object of their dissatisfaction, but he's already publicly acknowledged that he's happy to sell if a suitable buyer comes along. The danger of the Blue Union group's actions is that potential purchasers may be put off if they perceive a club in disarray, so they could end up being counter-productive.
On the pitch, it's been a mixed start to the season for David Moyes and his team with one win and one defeat so far. But clouds are gathering in the background, and a couple of bad results could be all it takes for an almighty storm to erupt. Will the first raindrops start falling today?
* The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the columnist.
The Malaysian Insider :: Sports
MONZA, Sept 10 – Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel chalked up Red Bull's 13th pole position in 13 races this season with the fastest lap in Italian Grand Prix qualifying today.
