Everton, as much as I wouldn’t have it any other way, you’ve really got to stop making games more difficult than they should be. Granted, the referee certainly didn’t help matters on this occasion – as we got the lesser spotted instance of a referee being awful for both teams – as Southampton probably should have had two players sent off, and there were a few suspect offside decisions.
But anyway, we won, and that’s all we’ll remember in two weeks time. And if the game ended after 45 minutes, we’d have turned the style on to win, as we looked every bit as exciting as everyone’s expectations had promised, with quick, free flowing football and some impressive calmness at the back. Theo Walcott and Richarlison got us off to a flyer with two equally-if-opposite beautiful goals, one with a sharp set piece and the other with a dominant header.
The second half was dicey, but after the door was opened through a Danny Ings goal, it was slammed shut by a much improved defensive display.
We can walk out of Goodison knowing that the manager has a plan, and that plan is already in place, it just needs time to come to fruition.
