1. Everton Were Found Out
It was a deeply disappointing season for Everton. Most of us started the season full of optimism- confident that we’d build on last year’s impressive campaign- but a combination of injuries, poor managerial decisions and individual errors has meant that the club grossly underperformed.
Really, an 11th place finish, behind the likes of Palace, Stoke and Swansea isn’t anywhere near good enough for a club that is used to competing for European places- the Toffees ended with an astonishing 25 points less than in the previous campaign, and for that the manager must take a fair portion of the blame.
Evertonians, in general, are split on Roberto Martinez’s credentials, yet it’s hard to gloss over the lack of tactical flexibility shown by the Catalan over the course of the season. He will argue that his side are among the most adaptable in the league formation-wise, yet teams came to Goodison, in particular, expecting the Blues to set up in a predictable, rigid 4-2-3-1 formation- used in 27 of the 38 Premier League matches (via WhoScored)- and Martinez rarely broke the mould.
Occasionally, a more defensive 4-3-3 was employed against the likes of Liverpool and Manchester United (away) in order to stifle the attacking threat of the opposition and a seemingly more cohesive 4-1-4-1 was used later in the season as the Blues found some form, however, the norm was often a dysfunctional, asymmetrical variation of 4-2-3-1 that placed too much emphasis on the attacking prowess of messrs Baines and Coleman. Most Premier League outfits countered this with a fairly high defensive line- as the Blues regularly played without conventional wingers in the first half of the season- and pressed our full-backs high up the pitch, massively negating their influence and forcing Everton into a league high number of goals conceded from defensive errors (15). That such tactics were deployed to great success time and time again at Goodison only serves to strengthen the argument that teams had, quite simply, worked out a way to play against a predictable Everton side lacking in creativity. Next season may well be make or break for Martinez on this front.
2. Blues Lack Guile
As mentioned above, one of the biggest flaws in the malfunctioning Everton machine was the lack of creativity from a misfiring midfield. With veteran attacking midfielders Steven Pienaar and Leon Osman out injured for much of the campaign, the responsibility fell on the shoulders of Ross Barkley and co., who failed to contribute in any meaningful way, shape or form. Statistics, here, are damning: Leighton Baines weighed in with 9 league assists to comfortably top the Everton rankings, Romelu Lukaku managed a not too shabby 5, yet no other player in a royal blue shirt managed more than a paltry 2.
This is something that must be remedied during the summer transfer window if Everton are to have any hope of progressing beyond their current mid-table placing. New signing Tom Cleverley may help in this regard, but the former Manchester United player is not a proven creative midfielder, and the feeling lingers that the Goodison club will need more than the 25-year-old if they are to address this problem over the course of next season. Yohan Cabaye, anyone?
3. Squad Not Big Enough to Cope with Demands of Europe
Coming into the season, most associated with the club felt that Martinez had assembled the strongest Everton squad in recent memory however this, unfortunately, has proven to be extreme short-sightedness with the benefit of hindsight- the Blues accumulated injuries with regularity and the porous squad suffered from fatigue-induced poor performances after Thursday nights in Europe.
It is, of course, unfair to lay the blame for the Everton’s woes solely on the Europa League. Indeed, the Toffees would have been better prepared to cope with the demands of Europe’s second-tier club competition had the likes of Darron Gibson, Steven Pienaar, Leon Osman, Tony Hibbert and James McCarthy stayed fit for larger parts of the season- a further oversight from manager and chairman alike. In the end, underperforming players like Gareth Barry and Tim Howard were asked to play far too many games, and results suffered. Clearing out the deadwood will thus be an important part of Martinez’s squad rebuilding.
No Europe obviously means increased focus on the domestic cup competitions next time around. If the Blues are to have a real tilt at winning them- and thus putting a trophyless period of 20 years to an end, while also maintaining a solid league position, the outgoing Sylvain Distin and Antolin Alcaraz, as well as the injury-prone masses listed above, must be replaced with quality, both from the club’s excellent academy and from further afield.
4. Lukaku Does Need Help
The big Belgian came in for a fair amount of criticism in the early part of the season, but still managed to catch the eye with a 20-goal haul and a string of impressive performances in Europe. Lukaku performed admirably in the second half of the season for one so young- leading the line both at home and abroad with distinction, in the absence of recognisable alternatives- Steven Naismith (8) scored vital goals in spells, as did Kevin Mirallas (11), yet neither can be classed as a true number 9, while Arouna Kone (1) flattered to deceive following his return from injury.
Everton scored 48 goals in 2014-15, compared to 61 in 2013-14. It is to be hoped that Martinez reneges on his promise not to invest in a centre-forward this summer, otherwise the Blues will yet again fail to score enough to meet their targets.
