£200m for what?
Silva spending brings little return
YOU do not get much for £200milion these days. That is what Everton have spent on new players since Marco Silva arrived in the summer of 2018 and yet they could finish this weekend in the bottom three.
Last season, Everton won 5-1 at Turf Moor but this time it was disaster everywhere you looked. Skipper Seamus Coleman was sent off for the first time since 2011 and Jeff Hendrick’s volleyed winner represented the 21st goal the visitors have conceded from a set piece under Silva.
While Burnley’s unbeaten run has now stretched to four matches and temporarily moved them up to fourth, Everton are still seeking their first l eague win outside Goodison Park since March.
Not great considering their forwards included £50m Richarlison and a £36m substitute Moise Kean, whereas Burnley have never spent more than £15m on any player.
Disgruntled away fans shouted at director of football Marcel Brands to sack manager Silva as he trooped past them on his way to the away dressing-room. To Silva’s credit, he went to applaud the the away support at the end, even though some of his players did not.
‘ Our front players have to be more assertive because we did get in dangerous positions but of course our confidence is not the best,’ Silva said. ‘The next game is a must-win for us. We have to play with more confidence.’
For now, Silva must hope he gets the next game, against West Ham on October 19. There was no indication from the club after the game of an immediate sacking but the international break is always a dangerous time for managers.
They stand a point ahead of the relegation zone and will fall into it if Newcastle defeat Manchester Untied on Sunday.
As for Burnley, another hardfought win temporarily lifted them to the giddy heights of fourth.
‘When our game isn’t as technically pure as it could be, there is a shape and energy about our team and a relentless nature trying to win the game,’ said manager Sean Dyche.
‘Our goalkeeper and two centrehalves were outstanding and it was a great finish for the goal. Roughly 25 or 30 per cent of goals are still scored from set pieces. The details we work on are important.’
Everton shaded a poor first half with Alex Iwobi and Dominic Calvert-Lewin failing with the best openings but the touchpaper was really lit just before the interval when Coleman slid in for a tackle and his follow-through caught Erik Pieters on the right shin.
‘It wasn’t a great challenge and probably a red in the modern day,’ said Dyche, but Coleman escaped on that occasion with a yellow.
His luck ran out however after 56 minutes when he jumped i nto Dwight McNeil by the halfway line, winded the winger and got a second caution and his marching orders.
This time it was Silva who was irked. ‘The second yellow looked a really harsh decision and had a big impact on the game,’ he said. Then again, the Everton manager said he had not seen the earlier challenge that Coleman had made.
It was the Irishman’s first dismissal for Everton since facing Chelsea eight years ago.
Initially Burnley struggled to make the extra man count but ultimately they exploited Everton’s weakness at defending corners.
Ashley Westwood drove a cross beyond the far post after 72 minutes and with no Everton defender rushing outside the box to block, Hendrick was unmarked to lash home his shot.
Silva took his medicine by going to the Everton fans at the end and tried to be as upbeat as he could in his post-match press conference. Truth is, he looked a bit lonely, a losing manager is not someone surrounded by well-wishers.
‘I respect every manager. It’s a tough job,’ sympathised Dyche. He himself has suffered the pain of relegation but is now sitting high in the Premier League.