WILLIAN: NOW EVERY GAME IS A MUST-WIN
Royle’s unforgettable past and hope for Everton future
THE emotional scene is for ever seared into the mind’s eye of Joe Royle: the legendary Everton striker, then a teenager, standing arms aloft and eye-to-eye with the Kop after scoring in the 2-0 win against Liverpool.
Now, almost 49 years on from the Anfield day he’ll never forget, Royle believes the Goodison side are on the brink of a return to the good times.
Now a director at Wigan and working under his son Darren, the club’s new executive chairman, Royle said: “I think their performance at Chelsea was the best I’d seen from an Everton side against a top-six side since David Moyes.
“They were terrific. It’s looking good. It’s looking promising. Everton definitely look capable of getting into the top six.”
And ahead of today’s derby clash at Anfield, Royle added: “I remember that game in 1970. I was still 18 at the time and I scored in front of the Kop. I stood there with my arms wide open. I’ve never seen so many unhappy faces.” EVERTON destroyer Idrissa Gueye has revealed he’s struck a pact of silence with Kop pal Sadio Mane. As fellow Senegalese stars a long way from home on Merseyside, Gueye and Mane are usually talking, texting and meeting up.
Gueye revealed:
“We are good friends but one week before the derby we always stop talking.
“We can start talking again after the game – and if we win I will call him straight away.” CHELSEA ace Willian has almost waved the white flag in the title race.
The Blues’ first defeat of the season at Tottenham last weekend left them trailing leaders Manchester City by seven points.
And ahead of today’s derby at home to Fulham, Willian (right) conceded there is now no margin for error if Chelsea are to lift the Premier League for
CThe answer for Arsenal boss Unai Emery is a resounding yes as he sings the praises of his derby rival today, Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino. “I think he deserves to be considered with the best coaches in the world, like Pep Guardiola and Diego Simeone,” is the considered verdict of Emery.
“Tottenham are now one of the best teams around. In five years under Pochettino they have improved a lot. They are up there with Manchester City and Chelsea.”
If such stirring sentiments jar with one-eyed Arsenal fans on the day of an eagerly anticipated derby clash, the first for Emery since his arrival at the club, then so be it.
The new Gunners supremo knows what he thinks and has eight major trophies during his career to prove his own worth.
Simeone has captured six pieces of silverware and twice taken Atletico Madrid to the final of the Champions League.
Guardiola has a phenomenal tally of 20 major trophies at Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester City, but above all it is the beautiful football he cultivates that makes him so admired.
Why does Pochettino belong on their level? How can it be so?
The reason for Emery is the consistency of performance and style while selecting rookies in the first team.
It is a rare success in the modern game, where managers are mostly fearful of trusting in youth.
“Every young player improves under him and his staff,” says
Emery. “It is part of every the third time in five years. Only a 100 per cent run over the next six months will suffice, according to the flying winger.
Willian, who played in the 4-0 Europa League rout of Greek outfit PAOK Salonica on Thursday, initially insisted the Premier League gap could be closed.
He said: “We know it’s coach’s job. It is part of my job too – to develop young players.
“And he does that. He gives young players a chance. He has worked in Spain with Espanyol and in England with Southampton and Tottenham.
“His career is very consistent. His team structure is very clear and he produces good performances.
“He has a lot of respect from other coaches in the Premier League and he is doing very well at Tottenham.”
That, for once, the rival north London managers are also good friends is by the by. Emery just tells it as he sees it, which is why he had no compunction in dropping superstar midfielder Mesut Ozil last weekend.
He will be just as brutal and realistic in team selection for the passionate, crucial derby encounter which both clubs enter with high morale thanks to an 18-match unbeaten run for Arsenal and a six-game winning streak for Spurs.
Another compelling statistic is that Tottenham have only a single away victory over the Gunners in 15 years and none under Pochettino so far.
Emery is a veteran of derby collisions right across the continent, including the Basque bust-up that is Real Sociedad against Athletic Bilbao and the French classic of Paris St-German against Marseille.
He was sacked when Spartak Moscow lost against city rivals CSKA but reckons the Seville derby is the most passionate he has encountered so far.
“That was a big one because football is a way of life there,” says Emery. “Sometimes Sevilla have been better and at other times Real Betis.
“At this moment Tottenham are better than us in the Premier League table and they were better than us last year. They are in very difficult and we must do it step by step.”
But he added it would require maximum points between now and May for Chelsea to be champions again.
“I think we have to win every game. We cannot afford to lose any more points,” he added.
Blues boss Maurizio Sarri had written off his side as genuine title contenders even before the Spurs defeat ended Chelsea’s 18-game unbeaten start to the campaign.