We can all agree that the season just gone was not one to remember. In fact it is one that I hope to truly forget in the coming months. The highlights included a wonder strike from our skipper into the kop end net to salvage a draw and, well, that’s about it. However, I believe that as a team Everton can only improve. We let ourselves down last season but now it’s time to turn over a new leaf, dust ourselves down, rise from the ashes, and all those other boring clichés.
Firstly our squad will be a younger one than last year. The average age will plummet with the departure of Sylvain Distin and Antolin Alcaraz and the arrival of Tom Cleverley. However, even though the average age has gone down, our young players have had another year to develop; a hard year which hopefully they will have learned a lot from. The likes of Mo Besic will be more involved as Gareth Barry will have a reduced role in front of the defence. Ross Barkley will become a more prominent part of our attacking play as he looks to cement a place for both club and country. Tom Cleverley will come in to provide both increased competition for places and will be looking to settle down at a club coming into his prime footballing years. John Stones will be fighting for a starting role for England and will benefit from more competition if Martinez gets the centre back that he desires.
Hopefully our more established players will step up and allow our younger talents to express themselves in the best possible manner. The older heads in the squad will no doubt be asked to mentor the younger players, moulding them into better players. Besic will learn from Barry as Stones will learn from Jagielka. If Luke Garbutt stays then there is no better role model for him than Leighton Baines. My only worry is that Ross Barkley is unique to our squad in that we don’t have another player who plays quite like him. He does what no one else in our squad can do in turning and running directly at the opposition. He has recently admitted to watching the likes of Yaya Toure in an attempt to learn how to improve his own game. This can only bode well for the future if he can incorporate aspects of the best players into his game.
Another giant factor will be the lack of European football. While it was a nice distraction until a disastrous night in Kiev crushed any hope of lifting silverware, we will not feature on the continent next season. This means fewer games, more rest, fewer injuries and, most importantly, less heartbreak. As much as we want European football at Goodison, its effects on a team’s season is undeniably detrimental.
Hopefully the new season will bring about a more positive atmosphere along with more positive football akin to that displayed in the 2013/14 season. As Evertonians we might have a lot to moan about, but we can’t forget the positives too. We have a core of younger players who we can build around and have all the potential in the world. I have a feeling that the season just gone will prove to be the exception rather than the rule, and I’m uncharacteristically optimistic about our future on the pitch.
