Everton must find a way to play a more modern game

One issue that keeps surfacing as the current crisis at Everton continues is that this team needs to find a way to play a more modern and dynamic game if they are ever to compete again.

As the fallout from a dreadful run of form and a humiliating derby defeat continues with news of emergency board meetings, it seems clear to me that whatever happens behind the scenes Everton need to update the way they play their football.

One of the recurrent themes of recent seasons is the number of times this Blues’ team have reverted to a slow and methodical way of playing and the lack of pace, energy and precision in so much of their football.

We saw this again on Wednesday night when the Toffees’ at first played without exhibiting any of those qualities.

They seemed unable to string more than a few passes together before giving the ball away with an almost nonchalant lack of care against a very good side playing in exactly the way Everton simply cannot do.

And, the gulf in the quickness of thinking and execution between the two sides with the Reds playing a game of such pace and incisiveness impossible for Everton to match, was frightening and depressing to see. They were playing modern professional football while the home side at times, especially early on, wouldn’t have looked out of place on a local park at the weekend.

The reasons behind this problem seem to be multi-layed. And again as with so much at this club, it goes back to the chronic issues of a lack of overall strategy, constant turnover of managers and incessent tactical change.

In addition, a transfer recruitment strategy (if you can call it that) which has left the squad filled with too many average and underperforming players.

Under Farhad Moshiri the club have flip-flopped from offensive-minded coaches like Roberto Martinez and Marco Silva to defensive counter-attacking football such as that played by Ronald Koeman and Sam Allardyce (although to be fair Allardyce was of course just doing his fireman Sam act to keep the team up!).