Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
V..FOR VICTORIES
So Everton’s best start for 116 years is down to loads of new players? Wrong. Ten of this team were playing 12 months ago.. but it’s a whole new mentality now under Carlo the Calm
SOMETIMES, amid all the bluster and banter, it is easy to lose a sense of scale.
Take Everton.
Precisely a year ago today, they had just lost their fourth Premier League game on the bounce to slip into the Premier League bottom three under Marco Silva. The difference those months have made cannot be overstated.
Four straight wins make it Everton’s best League start since 1969-70 when they won the title. They have now won their first seven games in all competitions in a season , which is their best start since 1894-95. Let that sink in. Their best in 116 years.
No fewer than 10 players who started the defeat at Burnley that pulled them into the relegation zone a year ago appeared against Brighton. They are a team transformed and clearly Carlo Ancelotti has made a huge difference.
As young midfielder Tom Davies explained, the mentality at the club has changed.
Since Davies made his debut as a teenager in 2016, he has played under eight managers, if you include caretakers. But Ancelotti brings experience, he brings knowledge, and he brings calm.
“T h e g a f f e r h a s ma d e changes and they have worked,” said Davies. “He and the staff here are fantastic. From the start they gave us the confidence to go out and play. It’s exciting to be part of and to be around the players we have here now, to see the work they do and the attitude they have.”
Brighton were bang in it as halftime approached after Neal Maupay had cancelled out Dominic Calvert-lewin’s opener
But Yerry Mina’s header in f i r s t - half stoppage time appeared to knock the stuffing out of them and Everton new boy James Rodriguez took advantage with two close-range finishes.
A l ate goal from Yves Bissouma was more than Brighton, who have lost three of their first four matches, deserved.
Goodison pin-up Rodriguez trashed the theory that he would not adapt to English football, catching the eye in Briti sh midwint er conditions against physical opponents. But for Davies, it was the Colombia star’s work-rate that impressed most.
“He’s incredible to watch. He can produce things from nothing,” he said. “We have players who can win games, and it takes the pressure off.
“I can learn so much from him, just by watching what he does. Even in the gym...i can see what he’s doing and it shows me I can do more. What people don’t see is the amount of work he’s prepared to do.”
That is the Ancelotti influence – getting his players to put in the hard yards as well as the dazzling ones.
No matter whether Everton maintain this run, they are still a club transformed.