02 May 2017 14:48:08
Try not to take this as a negative post about Everton, try and see it as a truthful post from a supporter who has loved this club for over half a Century.

Let me start off by saying the club, on the surface, is in wonderful condition we are on the brink of a new State of the art stadium, we are now starting to attract big money sponsors, we are debt free (the only debt being an interest free loan from one of our owners) . Our backroom staff are about 20% shy off being one of the ultimate any club could wish for, Our Academy and under 23s are rapidly gaining a stronger reputation week in week out, All of this coupled with a super rich owner who is not afraid of spending, and an ambition to dominate English and European football, what could possibly be wrong?

In my humble opinion the only things wrong with the above is our ambition and our super rich owner. Now don't get me wrong I love the way our club is at the moment, and with a few more backroom staff tweaks we will be exceptionally strong and the envy of many teams out there, but they are not the problem.

One of our BIGGEST problems is that we as fans have lapped up all the gossip regarding ambition, we have then carved our own interpretation of what we thought we have heard deep into stone, so much so that we have become blinkered. We have become blinkered to such a degree we are willing to forget just how far away we are from achieving them, and every time we are reminded we look back at what we ourselves have carved in stone and bury our heads in denial.

I agree we have made some tremendous headway towards it and we realistically could not expect the club to have improved behind the scenes as much as it has done, so now the only thing hampering our ambitions is the team it'self, There I've said it, even a blind man can see just how far we are behind being a regular top 4 side, as we are we would count ourselves lucky being a regular Europa side. Now if we had zero injuries then maybe, just maybe, we could be a regular Europa team.

Whilst that is a massive improvement on where we were the divide between the top 5 and where we are is just to big. We are all hoping (Expecting) Champions league Football within 2 seasons, I would be willing to wager now that does not happen, and here are my reasons,
1) Rich Owner
2) Steve Walsh
3) Financial Fair Play
We as fans think we have a rich owner, whilst he is a very rich man compared to you and I we still do not get into the top 10 for having the richest owners in the premiership, so that's at least 10 teams who have the potential to offer more money for a player and offer higher wages. What we do have going for us is an owner that is willing to spend money, Sadly for us other teams know this as well and as a result put a premium on their players thinking we will buy at any costs. Look at Gabbiadini and Napoli holding out for even more money from us, we may pay a little over the odds but not stupid money.
Whilst having a DoF like Steve Walsh is a fantastic asset for the club it does make the job of signing players just a little bit more difficult, when it becomes known we have a bit of interest in player X it automatically alerts other teams of a potential diamond which results in higher asking price or offering more incentives for the player to join.
This is where the FFP step in to make life even more difficult for us to reach our ambitions, you see it does not matter if our owner was a trillionaire and we were the richest team in the world. We would only have so much money that we would be allowed to spend on players including wage bills.

Now it is not only going to be Everton who will find it hard to get a regular top 4 slot but every other team not getting into Europe year in year out. This three year dream we have all adopted and carved into stone is not going to happen, at least not within the three year year time frame, I think it will be more like year five or six before we hit the top 4 and that is providing we hit the Europa for all of those years. I just hope the fans stay off the backs of everyone and let them continue rebuilding the club on solid foundations, We will get there but sadly not during this decade.

1.) 02 May 2017
02 May 2017 17:21:48
Pretty pessimistic post but had to agree with some of your observations. Disagree on the SW point though. Just because he has looked, at is looking at a player, does not mean that the price will automatically go up. I don't think clubs would necessarily appoint a scout to scout SW targets so there would need to be other interest in the player prior to a bidding war taking place. I do think the current squad is good enough to be consistently in the top 8 and with a couple of additions should be fighting for regular Europa league spot.

2.) 02 May 2017
02 May 2017 19:30:43
Interesting post GT, I can see where you are coming from to a degree. I think it is impossible to put a time frame on cracking the top four but as long as we improve the quality and depth of the squad window by window then we can't complain. There's loads of factors to consider, say we went and won the europa league then we have guaranteed champs league the following season. I'm sure our ability to attract higher quality players would increase considerably, we would have to adhere to ffp obviously. That's the beauty of football, so many things can happen over the course of a season and especially in our league. I'm just going to enjoy the ride and see where it takes us. I'm lucky to have seen the great teams we had in the 80's but had to sit through some dross since then. FM is reshaping the club on and off the pitch, us fans just need to be patient and let him get on with it.

3.) 02 May 2017
02 May 2017 20:40:50
Thats really the main thing I am trying to put across Spudv, everytime we qualify we will attract the better player. One thing we have to remember is the frailty of fans, people will moan that we have not reached the CL by season 3 no matter how much we have improved. 3 - 4 seasons in the Europa along with income from the new ground we can then buy CL capable players.

If we were to win the Europa the maximum of 25 million Euros prize money (includes bonuses winning is worth only 6.5 million Euros) is not really going to help us spend on the quality we need.

The thing with the FFP is that it covers three years of the clubs finances, now this season we are showing a much better balance of finances especially as the interest from the loan has gone but it is still another 2 seasons before we see the full benefit. Increased and new sponsorship deals are also stuck in this three year trap.

I watched teams of the 70's and 80's and it has been so frustrating watching good talent leave us because we had nothing to offer them. In 2 seasons we will have enough spending power to attract the right players and have them be part of the dream, in three season we almost peak financially and will on the third year of the new stadium.

SA90, I agree and withdraw my comments regards SW although I still believe the odd club will put in cheeky bids on players we are after but it is probably the same with all teams.

4.) 03 May 2017
03 May 2017 06:21:10
Grumpytoffee, I see you withdrew your comment about Walsh. I am pleased you did that because I firmly believe that he will prove to be a big asset. You talk about ambition. I am not really sure if you mean our ambition is too great? I believe that without hopes and dreams, nothing will happen. I was one of the most negative posters on here last 2 seasons. I suddenly have hope again. I am realistic enough to accept that it might take 5 or 6 years. Then it will be difficult to maintain. Look at Arsenal, Man Utd, Spurs, Man City and Liverpool. All fighting for a top 4 place that already has Chelsea certain to be in. The sums suggest that if we join in this fight, then at least 3 clubs will need to budget well for the lack of Champions League football over possibly a few seasons. There will effectively be a top 7 fighting for 4 Champions League places! But right now at least we are on the up and not the way down! I believe that's all we can realistically hope for.

5.) 03 May 2017
03 May 2017 12:47:00
Degsy, you are saying in fewer words what my post is on about. I am saying that the time span we the fans believe things will happen is unrealistic. Just by the three thumbs down indicate that at least 3 people on these forums think it will happen.

With everything spelt out to them do they really believe that within 2 years we will be in the top 4 teams of this country. Let's see how loud they start shouting when they realise the time span is too short and they are 3 or 4 years out.

The FFP will make it nion impossible to achieve all we want in a two year period and I am glad that you are also looking at the full picture and see that it will take a little longer. I don't believe our ambition is too great, at least not in the long term, but for us to get there within the next two years is just wishful thinking from some impatient fans.