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Everton legend says players can’t handle the pressure

By Paul Taylor

LONDON, ENGLAND: Liverpool captain Alan Hansen (l) shares a joke with Everton captain Kevin Ratcliffe after the teams had shared the 1986 FA Charity shield after a 1-1 draw at Wembley Stadium on August 16, 1986 in London, England. (Photo Allsport/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND: Liverpool captain Alan Hansen (l) shares a joke with Everton captain Kevin Ratcliffe after the teams had shared the 1986 FA Charity shield after a 1-1 draw at Wembley Stadium on August 16, 1986 in London, England. (Photo Allsport/Getty Images) /
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Former captain Kevin Ratcliffe accuses some of the new signings of being unable to deal with the demands of playing for Everton, but is he right?

When Kevin Ratcliffe speaks, you listen. As captain of Everton during their successful spell in the 1980s, he’s earned that respect.

As such, Ratcliffe’s recent comments regarding the Blues’ inconsistent form this season were always going to be worth listening to. He essentially believes the players are struggling to cope with the pressures that come with being at a club like Everton.

The two-time league winner discussed his former team with The Mirror. As reported by sportsmole.co.uk, he said:

"“At the moment, Everton don’t look a better side than last season – and we’ve spent £140m. Are some of the new players like Davy Klaassen or Gylfi Sigurdsson better than Gareth Barry for ­instance?“Are they ­better than James McCarthy? Probably not on what we have seen so far. They were big fish at their old clubs, who weren’t expected to be beat the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United. But at Everton you are ­expected to compete and win against these teams. It is a different type of ­pressure and you are taken out of your comfort zone.”"

Certainly, a lot of what Ratcliffe says is understandable. In addition, he’s better-placed than most — including a journalist with not even one percent of his footballing talent — to know what the problem is.

Regardless, we would still like to play devil’s advocate, specifically with Sigurdsson. There’s no doubt he has struggled since coming to Merseyside, possibly burdened by his big transfer fee.

However, the 28-year-old hasn’t been helped by being used differently by Everton, who have not played to his strengths. He is also having to compete with Wayne Rooney and Klaassen — who we’ll get to shortly — who both also prefer to play in the Number 10 role.

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In addition, it’s not as if Sigurdsson isn’t used to dealing with pressure, having competed regularly at the international level. And surely he still faced pressure at Swansea — albeit of a different kind — with opponents wanting to shut him down as the main threat?

Turning to Klaassen, again, you have to imagine he knows all about pressure. He was captain at Ajax, where you are expected to win, and he has already starting to prove himself for his country, with four goals in just 15 games for the Netherlands.

Again, we should stress we’re not claiming Ratcliffe is wrong per se. He’s right when saying attempting to beat the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United is a different type of pressure.

Regardless, we still believe Sigurdsson and Klaassen have the mentality to cope with the demands of playing for Everton. It is — at least partly — down to Ronald Koeman finding a way to use them, and the other players, more effectively.

In respect of Koeman, Ratcliffe believes patience is key, referring to a similar situation with legendary manager Howard Kendall. The former Welsh international told The Mirror:

"“If ­Everton had dumped ­Kendall, then the club’s history would probably have been ­rewritten – and not for the better.”"

While Koeman’s ability to take Everton to a similar level of success of Kendall seems optimistic at this point, we agree with Ratcliffe – patience is key. At the very least, let’s wait until the end of October, before revisiting the topic of the Dutchman’s future on Merseyside.

Next: Deadline set for Koeman to save his job

What did you take away from Ratcliffe’s comments? Do you agree with him regarding the pressure? Or do you give any benefit of the doubt to the likes of Sigurddson and Klaassen? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

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