On the eve of our trip to Goodison Park, we corner Tom, the Vital Everton editor, for a quick chat about some controversial subjects. Hold tight and enjoy the read.
1. Can Fulham win at Goodison? If so how?
Probably not because at the moment for the first time in ages the Everton team has a massive amount of self belief and there displays of recent reflect this. We have home advantage and David Moyes is inclined to be a different type of manager at home preferring a more attacking approach, and we have the added boost that your away form is woeful………but there`s a starting point to make amends for everything and we may possibly be it for your team. Its simple really to beat Everton – that is the tactics employed; its just pulling them off. All is needed is a quick striker and some precise balls over the top for him to run onto, plus get the crowd on Everton’s backs.
2. How do you feel about leaving Goodison considering we fought tooth and nail to get back to Craven Cottage.
Personally I don’t like change. I cannot imagine having to move grounds and ask myself ‘where are all the people from the Gwladys Street End’ going to sit……….where`s the local pub etc……..maybe you moved because although we may narrowly not fill a new stadium your club certainly wouldn’t fill a new ground, plus I believe sections of Craven Cottage are Grade II listed buildings so beaurocracy got in your way. It just irritates me that Walton is were we are from and were we were first before Liverpool who have all the out of town fans yet ironically its us who’s getting almost ‘evicted’ out with councillors feeding us emotional blackmail via a propaganda machine that Goodison Park is ‘falling down’ to quell any talk of re-developing it and re-distribute talk back to where Everton want it – the only place their interested in and the one place the fans are not, Kirkby – they wouldn’t of signed an exclusivity contract otherwise.
3. Would you ground-share with Liverpool?
I will tell you what I told the Aston Villa editor…….because I think the reason some think there is a possibility of our two clubs ground-sharing is that they seem to think the ‘friendly rivalry’ lives on. It does not!
It used to be a ‘friendly’ rivalry – other fans from the outside looking in will remember the 1986/9 FA Cup finals were both sets of supporters travelled down, drank in pubs and sat together. Many fans did say though at the 89 final that this trend was starting to wane though, basically because of bitterness on Evertonians part over Heysel not allowing us to participate in the European cup at the time where we had the greatest ever team in our history, had just won the CWC (a hallmark to win the European Cup) and with the quality of teams winning the EC on a downturn post 85 I reckon we may have won it……..instead we get ignorant Liverpudlians wearing 4 scarves in summer giving us the 5 times fingered gesture in ignorance that WE NEVER HAD OUR CHANCE. Even the local paper loves them, we sign a new player and they have a player injured………..what gets the big page spread? Igor Biscan being injured – how awful…….there wasn’t even an interview with our new signing. We qualify for the Champions League – and the ‘Echo’ talks about how Liverpool failed to do so rather than our amazing efforts to get in in the first place. Some papers even argued giving them the trophy holders the place in the CL INSTEAD of us. Cheeky sods. Now I have to cope with all these whoppers giving me the ‘5 times’ who NEVER go to the fricking game and give me the ‘can’t get a ticket’ rubbish. I genuinely do not know a Liverpool fan who goes EVERY game home and away – As I and all my mates do for Everton………as Moyesy said go into the streets on Liverpool and find the REAL FOOTBALL ENTHUSIASTS and they will support Everton – not glory-hunting non-interested ‘fans’ who don’t pay the game much attention and therefore say they support the kopites because they win everything, because apparently its ‘cool’ to support Liverpool. There support makes me sick with all the fancy dress, out of town ‘wools’ and people from Warwick supporting them (most scousers support Everton believe me) and allegations of bluenose obsession with them – funny how they have loads of flags about us on trips abroad.
To Evertonians they are just so high and mighty – like wanting Bob Paisley to have a POSTHUMOUS knighthood…..now yes ok, Bob when alive DID deserve one – but he is gone now so giving him one would mean setting a precedent……..that wouldn’t be fair. Funny how Spurs fans have been going on for years about knighting Bill Nic with little success yet when Liverpool make a suggestion of a knighthood the earth moves and a policy forum is opened up at Buckingham palace. All this and the Michael Shields thing has seen the death of the ‘friendly derby’ and contributed to the hatred between the two clubs…..I’d seriously have it alongside Celtic and Rangers……our grounds are literally 2 minutes away from each other unlike Brum and Villa. It annoys me that we applied to the council in 1995 for a site on Stanley Park and were rejected, yet when Liverpool recently applied the council moved the earth (again) for them and browbeat all the local residents into agreeing. Why is it that the Woolyback club (60% ST holders for them are not scouse) is staying in Liverpool and we, the club with the most ‘inner city’ support are moving out and are being goading by the animals with ‘LFC, one love ONE CLUB ONE CITY’. Jesus Christ we were in Walton first and we were in existence first so WE MADE THEIR HISTORY (great chant at Anfield this year) so why the hell are we moving out? To me this will just result in the usual array of kids who would’ve been supporting Everton not noticing them any more with Kirkby being so far away its the capital of Kazahstan, the poor kid will probably say ‘daddy, where’s the nearest football team?’ – Liverpool he’ll say because it’ll be in Liverpool and Everton won’t if morons like Tesco Terry and Uncle Ron Round of Knowsley get their way.
Let me make myself very clear, and I’m sure our horrible Kopite counterparts will say the same – and I mean this………..NEVER EVER would I let the club I love share a stadium and be ‘the tenants’ of those animals. I’d RATHER DIE. Am I clear?
4. Does their recent success get up your nose? I know that lot down the road from me get up mine!
Of course, but then again call me bitter and twisted but I always have steadfastly refused to watch them anyway, so have been spared the horror of seeing Stevie G-String live European and FA Cup. Obviously them winning things has an effect on young kids decisions on which team to support, which at the moment is why we`re losing out in the supporters stakes. You will find however that the real ‘enthusiasts’ that watch and go the match to watch the football will be the Evertonians in this city, the rest just glory-hunt and support Liverpool because its ‘cool’ to do so – But of course it hurts to see them win everything and go everywhere because we are just as famous as them and to see my dad (a kopite) winding me up about just coming back from Sevilla away and telling me whilst a I go to Pompey he goes to Betis is something I envy and that hurts me. The only positive in all this is that they cannot bare to beaten or topped in the table by us, and they very easy throw the dummy out of their mouths with cries to sack the manager which we’ve never done in situations far more dire than them, so we just laugh to ourselves – especially after they churned on about ‘Istanbul’ for over 2 years and we kept telling them ‘where`s your premier league if your so good’. All their success is almost making Liverpool the city known as a ‘one club city’ and that hurts.
5. Which Fulham player could give you trouble on Friday?
I have to share David Moyes’s opinion that I am an admirer of Collins John. Deceivingly strong for a small lad, very quick and against us at least knows how to finish. He seems rather partial to a goal against us and I also think he’d be a decent signing for us, so I’ll be looking for Joleon to shut him out Friday.
6. Your feelings on Radzinski?
Can score a goal from heaven at times and was quicker than a gazelle when running onto balls, but to supply him we had to change and disrupt our style playing banana balls mid height through the middle – which we couldn’t do having been mentally scarred for years with no brainer long balls to the head of Duncan Ferguson. He can be easily shrugged off the ball, and for 4.5m he cost us he didn’t score enough goals, and I think it was a good bit of business selling him when we did at the age of 31 when he was past his best. He didn’t endear himself to Evertonians when he praised Rooney for leaving the club (whilst still an Everton Player) and telling us how much more a better club Fulham was who were going onto ‘great things’ and that Everton were nothing…….funny that because Fulham subsequently nearly got relegated and we qualified for the Champions League. Ain’t life a bitch Tomasz!
7. David Moyes – Destined for greater things or is Everton his limit?
The man is the architect of his own destiny. It can go anywhere he wants, for he has talent in abundance. He has the eye for a bargain (Marcus Bent, Alan Stubbs, Arteta for only 2m, Joleon Lescott) , is tactically astute (an endorsement by Setanta Sports pundit Pat Nevin) and has learned off one of the best coaches in the game Alex Ferguson who thinks highly of him, and he doesn’t buy rashly and for the sake of it, although some say he ‘dithers’. Not the greatest risk taker in the world with things like signing talented but injury prone players (pulled out of Sean Davis deal) or making attacking substitutions that what some people think are necessary measures to propel us to the next level. However you can bet your bottom dollar a man who’s won 2LMA manager of the season awards during his time here will be one of the first names mentioned for the Man Utd job when Sir Alex Ferguson retires.
8. Your prediction please?
Everton to storm to a 3-1 victory. I can’t foresee anything else, only more woe for Fulham at Goodison Park, and the annual punch up between the two teams that`s happened a lot of recent during stoppage time.
Our thanks go to Tom the Vital Everton editor for a splendid exchange of views.
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