Sam Allardyce has stated that he hates the fact that he is seen as a ‘relegation firefighter’ in the past. However, the label should not necessarily be a bad thing. The former England boss has managed to get results in the English top-flight with some very poor teams.
What he does is takes a poor group of individuals and makes them more difficult to beat. Style goes out of the window. All that matters is the results. I am not Sam Allardyce’s biggest fan, but I am not a football snob either.
Football is a results-based business. Allardyce for most of his career has helped teams overachieve with some very poor players at times. That brings us nicely to Everton.
At the moment the Toffees are in a giant mess. A terrible 2-0 defeat at Leicester on Sunday illustrated their flaws perfectly. They cannot defend and they cannot score goals. It does not take a weatherman to know when it is raining. It seems it is pouring down on the grand old team.
Everton are playing like a team in big trouble and something has to change for them survive the drop this season.
David Unsworth is not ready
As an Evertonian, I love David Unsworth. Yesterday was his first Premier League game in charge of the team on an interim basis. There is a sense he may not be in charge for much longer.
He always gave a hundred percent as a player and obviously loves the club. The former Toffees defender comes across as a nice guy too.
‘Rhino’ has even shown some decent managerial skills with the clubs under-23 side by winning the Premier League 2 title last season. His team managed to beat many highly rated rivals to the crown.
The step up from Premier League 2 to the Premier League is a giant leap. While most Evertonian’s would love Unsworth to shine as the first teams boss, it is difficult to see many positives from the two games that he has managed the team in.
Granted, he has only been in charge a week, which even by Premier League standards is a very short time. His team selection and tactics at Leicester were questionable to say the least, though.
Every time Leicester attacked on Sunday, they looked like they were going to score. The Foxes hit Everton repeatedly on the counter-attack, which everybody knows is one of their strengths. Unsworth’s team selection was naïve.
He decided to field two wingers in Kevin Mirallas and Aaron Lennon, with Wayne Rooney playing behind lone striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin. Leicester then found space in the middle of the park to use the pace of Riyad Mahrez, Jamie Vardy and the impressive Demarai Gray.
His decisions during the game showed that maybe David Unsworth is not quite ready to manage Everton’s first team.
Allardyce’s odds have suddenly shortened
A number of big-name bosses have been mentioned in connection with the Everton job, names such as Carlo Ancelotti, Thomas Tuchel and Watford’s rising star Marco Silva since Ronald Koeman’s dismissal a week ago.
It seems that the job at Everton is even tougher than most anticipated. I doubt Tuchel, Ancelotti or even Silva are looking at the Toffees and thinking they offer good prospects at the moment.
The job could do massive damage to a managerial career, so I doubt any of the aforementioned three will be turning up on Merseyside anytime soon. Maybe that is why Sam Allardyce’s odds to get the job are now 4/1, having been far longer in the last week or so.
Allardyce may not be a glamorous choice for the Merseyside club. However, Allardyce has never suffered relegation in his managerial career. He has already stated that he believes it will be difficult for the Toffees to get out of their current situation.
The 63-year-old is not one to back down from a challenge though and has stated he would have to consider the job if he was offered it. He has talked about Everton ‘going back to basics’ and that may just be what Everton need right now.
At the start of the campaign, Everton were tipped by many to challenge for a top-four spot. However, the season is fast turning into a nightmare and for Everton, it may just be a case of needs must with their next boss.
Should Everton appoint Sam Allardyce as their next boss?
