Rafa Benitez has a phrase he’s fond of – football is a lie.
On the back of a run of form that is threatening to undermine his time at Everton before he has managed to lay any sort of foundations at Goodison Park, it seems a fairly apt summary of his troubles so far.
Benitez’s favourite line refers to the fact that what fans, pundits and media reflect on is driven almost solely by results.
But the Everton manager feels that those with deeper knowledge of the game understand that you should be measured by your input, because output can sometimes be skewed by resources or the state of the squad inherited.
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But Benitez pinched Jamie Harley, a respected sports scientist, from Newcastle in the summer and will feel the methods that consistently enabled his Magpies team to flourish from February onwards will stand Everton in good stead for a sprint finish to this season. It is no coincide that his teams tend to finish campaigns well.
For better or for worse, Benitez’s confidence in his methods won’t waver as results wilt. That is what Everton appointed in the close season, against a backdrop of supporter unease, and that is what they are sticking with for now. He went on a worse run of results in his previous posting at Newcastle and told critics at the time that things would recover. They did and this time too there will be no manoeuvring from the process.
Immediate results though are – to put it politely – problematic. Performances have been equally troubling and the feeling persists that Benitez’s tactical approach barely suits some of Everton’s better players.
With Chelsea looming on Thursday – one of the three Premier League juggernauts currently mowing down opposition – immediate respite is unlikely.
Four games that could decide Everton’s season then follow. Benitez will be targeting those as salvation before a January where he will utilise loans and a crunched budget to bring in reinforcements ready to tap into his way of playing.
None of this is sexy stuff for Evertonians in mutinous mood at the club’s inexplicable frittering of a chance of a generation. They deserve better and have been let down by big promises and bigger reputations.
Benitez, stung by criticism, might reflect that Newcastle’s new owners were desperate to bring him back to Tyneside. It was an offer he wouldn’t even entertain, such is belief in the sanctity of his word and contracts he’s signed. A hero in the North East, that job would have brought time and patience – two virtues he needs at Everton.
They shot for the stars with previous appointments and recruitment but got burned and Everton’s review of football operations is a timely one. A total restructure is needed and sacking Farhad Moshiri probably understands that Benitez, by his nature a club builder, is probably the right man to weather the storm while correcting some of the fundamentals that they’ve got wrong.
With a new stadium due in 2024, Everton are at a crossroads and what they need right now might not be what supporters necessarily want. The storm clouds may take time to dissipate, but if Everton’s hierarchy give him time, Benitez might end up completing the salvage job they appointed him for.
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3yrajDb
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