Why The Biggest Test For Everton This Summer Is To Make Supporters Believe Again

Why The Biggest Test For Everton This Summer Is To Make Supporters Believe Again
11:29, 01 May 2018

They started shortly after kick-off at the John Smith's Stadium and continued again after Everton had assumed a 1-0 lead over hosts Huddersfield. While not something that united the entirety of the away end in west Yorkshire or the entire Goodison Park fanbase, it was no less significant given the current context at the Merseyside club.

Songs calling for the departure of a manager, after all, are always bound to attract media attention. Especially one as polarising as Sam Allardyce.

And attract media attention they did.

Although far from the first time the songs have been aired in the terraces at Everton games - the recent defeat to Burnley was another notable example - the reaction in the immediate aftermath was surprisingly swift and overwhelmingly damning. Pundits from Garth Crooks to Alan Shearer rushed to condemn the actions of all those involved.

For the last few days, it's been hard to move for comment pieces, social media posts and radio broadcasts slating not just the treatment of Allardyce, but also the very belief that the former Crystal Palace manager should not be in charge in L4 after the summer. Everton, we have been told, should know their place in the pre-existing hierarchy and readily accept it.

The problem is, though, that this has never been the nature of football support. Nor should it be. And in ignoring the manifestations of disappointment in the stands of late, Blues chiefs would be further sapping the energy out of a club that already appears to be drifting towards obscurity.

Allardyce and his methods have merely been the tip of the iceberg for success-starved fans concerned at the rate at which Everton have squandered money only to go backwards. Indeed, despite an outlay in excess of £200 million, the Toffees seem further away from challenging than ever before. Few, in truth, had banked on it being this way - but a new reality has been created with a vastly different tone.

In an era in which titles and cup wins are increasingly reserved for the privileged few - all across Europe, there has been a movement towards a one-club monopoly of each of the major leagues - and ticket prices continue to spiral upwards, success has been redefined and enjoyment takes on greater significance. Results are not the only factor at work any more, even if they remain an important one.

It's why, despite Sam Allardyce having taken Everton from 13th to 8th during his tenure to date, fans are right to demand more. 19th in the Premier League in terms of shots, shots on target and chances created since the 63-year-old's arrival, the Blues have risen up the table playing a defensive brand of football that has seen them beat the bloated list of sides engulfed in a relegation scrap below them in the table. Tellingly, they are yet to taste victory anyone above them under Allardyce, including Burnley.

In the four games preceding Huddersfield, main striker Cenk Tosun was presented with one solitary chance on goal. Supporters have also been told that draws against rivals Liverpool constituted success, while the stats above suggest a model that is neither sustainable nor enjoyable.

Even if you are prepared to accept - and some aren't - that Allardyce was necessary short-term medicine for an ailing club, what has been implemented is a style and structure that places severe constraints upon Everton's progression both domestically and in Europe. In telling supporters that 'Big Sam' is the right man to take the Blues forward, the likes of Crooks and Shearer are imposing their own glass ceiling upon expectations. The misguided view seemingly suggests that fans should not aspire for their club to be anything better than it currently is.

Yet apart from the tribal, quasi-religious aspect, sport is all about joy, euphoria and hope. Every fan craves silverware, big wins and memorable moments - and they are right to do so.

Allardyce, for the majority, is a symbol of the polar opposite - but he is far from the only thing that needs to change at Goodison. The present mix of apathy and anger in the stands serves to get Everton nowhere. As has been evidenced with rivals Liverpool, it is only when all parts of a club are in sync that tangible progress becomes achievable. This is the scale of the challenge facing major shareholder Farhad Moshiri and his team this summer.

Such is the nature of football support, Blues fans will want to believe that more is possible - even if it may not be. Part of the reason why anti-Allardyce songs have taken hold of late is that most have lost complete faith in the direction of travel.

And so, whatever happens, Everton's first task this summer is to make their supporters believe again.

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