Everton received a much-needed boost as Sean Dyche led his new side to victory against Arsenal in his first game in charge.
All four stands at Goodison Park were united in approval of the performance after the club’s first competitive win since October - one that also ended a run of four defeats at home. It meant February began with hope after a damaging post-Christmas slump that saw the Blues drop into the relegation zone, Frank Lampard lose his job, and Everton emerge from a vital transfer window weaker than when it started.
The win over Arsenal offered reassurance that Everton’s Premier League fate may lie in its own hands. Yet while Dyche may have inspired a sense of optimism, there is a belief among some that the problems that have emerged over recent weeks run too deep for results to completely solve. Before the match a protest called for boardroom changes while, during the 90 minutes that followed, the seats of those on the board remained empty. With the club battling relegation on the pitch, and the relationship between those at the top and supporters having broken down off it, the key question is this: What happens next?
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January was a month of turmoil as Everton endured a dismal run of form and a transfer window to forget. Defeats to Brighton, Southampton and West Ham in the league sealed the fate of Lampard as the Blues slumped to second from bottom. When combined with the Boxing Day defeat to Wolves, the post-Christmas run saw Everton lose to three sides that occupied the bottom three when those games kicked-off. Off the pitch, they saw the same clubs outmuscle an Everton side in desperate need of strengthening as Blues targets Matheus Cunha, Danny Ings and Kamaldeen Sulemana signed for Wolves, West Ham and Southampton respectively. It was a period that highlighted the chastening reality of the financial situation created by years of poorly considered spending that has sent the club backwards.
Against that backdrop, concerns over the running of the club turned into vocal demonstrations of frustration and anger. Audible chants of 'Sack the Board' from some sections of the home crowd followed three goals in six humiliating minutes against Brighton. Days later the same message was sung with greater fervour in the away end at Old Trafford in the FA Cup defeat at Manchester United. After Southampton there was a sit-in demonstration and before Arsenal there was a well-attended march towards the ground. The relationship between the supporters and those at the top of the club reached a nadir ahead of the Southampton defeat, before which Everton said board members including chairman Bill Kenwright and chief executive Denise Barrett-Baxendale had been instructed not to attend due to what it claimed were "credible" security concerns. The same instruction, again from the club's own security team, was passed to the same people before the Arsenal game, leading to empty seats in the directors box for Dyche's debut.
The role of board members in the struggles of Everton over recent years is the primary focus of the NSNOW group, one of the most prominent vehicles to have called for action within the club and peaceful protest among those who care deeply for it. The organisation, named in reference to Everton's club motto, has urged majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri to make sweeping boardroom changes. Following the defeat to Brighton it called for a ‘sit-in’ demonstration for the home match against Arsenal. That protest was then moved to the Southampton game, after which several thousand supporters stayed in their seats following the final whistle at Goodison Park. Another demonstration then took place ahead of the Arsenal game as a significant number of fans marched up Spellow Lane towards the ground.
Zack Threlfall, a spokesperson for NSNOW, said he believed the action taken so far has been a success, pointing to the dozens of fan groups and supporters' clubs that have backed the group’s calls for change. He explained: “This unity sends a resounding message to the powers that be that change is desired and necessary for our beloved club.”
Of the goals of the campaign, he said there was an understanding changes at board level may take time but said he believed there was a case for action to be taken that “would breathe new life and inject novel perspectives throughout the entire club”.
Mr Threlfall said NSNOW would continue to engage with supporters and advocate peaceful action for change, adding: “We acknowledge that the composition of the board cannot be altered instantaneously, however, we implore Mr Moshiri to effect the crucial changes at the highest level of the club in a timely manner. In a matter of months at most, or, in the event that these changes cannot be made, to consider selling the club to an individual or group who will. Only by transforming the club culture can we overcome years of declining performance on and off the pitch.”
Much of the focus of recent weeks has been on those at the top of the club. It was notable that even in Lampard's final games the frustration of most supporters was directed at the club's board and not him. Upon his departure there appeared an acceptance the manager who had saved Everton last season had been undermined by the legacy he inherited at the club.
With NSNOW among those raising questions over the club's boardroom performance, and amid increasing calls for communication over what was being done to address the core issues at Everton, Mr Moshiri was vocal in January. Questions may linger about the methods through which he delivered his messages, and in some cases the content of them, but few can say he did not attempt to make clear his position on the key issues. Through the platforms he did use - an open letter, an appearance on talkSPORT that surprised those at the club, and a meeting with the Everton Fan Advisory Board (FAB) - he was emphatic in his belief those on the board maintained his faith.
In a recorded interview during which FAB chair Jazz Bal put a series of questions to him on behalf of supporters, he said: "Bill Kenwright is one of the most loved and respected men in football. Denise, my CEO, I have seen first hand the work she does on the stadium, on all facets of club development. We have a very able finance director - a very experienced Premier League finance director who is a chartered accountant [Grant Ingles] - and one of our former legends on the board [non-executive director Graeme Sharp] so the skillset, the mix, is good. I have faith in this board. In the past I have removed directors and I have appointed directors. I am not shy to make changes. We make changes when there is a need and we will be ruthless."
Mr Moshiri's position was that this is a time for "calm" but he stressed he was aware of the concerns of supporters and keen to address them where possible. As a club, Everton has sought to direct those with concerns through the FAB, committing to a process through which it has said it will respond to issues raised.
As part of that, the FAB held open meetings with supporters in January in order to collect opinions on the state of the club. It then submitted dozens of questions to Everton chiefs on behalf of supporters who contributed, with topics ranging from financial issues to boardroom performance. Acknowledging the concern widely expressed by fans as the club emerged from such an important transfer window having signed no-one and sold the club's joint league top scorer Anthony Gordon, the group posted on Twitter: “We’re in a weaker position now than when we entered the transfer window. Evertonians deserve an explanation as to why the commitments haven’t been delivered. We’ve asked for that explanation to be provided as soon as possible.”
One of the commitments referred to was made by Mr Moshiri during the interview with Mr Bal at Mr Moshiri's north London home last month. Within that meeting Mr Moshiri said the club would sign a forward. His words came as the club appeared to have lined up winger Arnaut Danjuma on loan from Villarreal, only for him to later decide to join Tottenham Hotspur in an 11th hour change of heart. Everton were unable to source another incoming player in the days that followed. For Mr Bal, engagement is pivotal to what happens next. At the FAB, essentially a bridge for discussion and representation between the club and its supporters, the hope is Everton respond to the full list of questions posed as soon as possible. On Tuesday the group said the club had offered reassurances this was being done.
Mr Bal called for further communication regardless of whether form improves under the new manager. He added: "I think fans are right to have serious concerns and the club does need to make efforts to rebuild trust with the fanbase. It would not be acceptable to hope results get better, it has gone further than that." He said the FAB would continue to represent all supporters and urged the club to make steps to "rebuild bridges".
The perception that the onus is on the club to try and repair damaged relationships is one that flows through a significant proportion of fans who have raised concerns about its current predicament, with some calling on the club to fill what they view is a vacuum of leadership and communication. This was a theme of the frustration after the transfer window closed without a signing despite Everton clearly aware the squad could do with support. After the window closed at 11pm on Tuesday, January 31, the first club representative to become available for questioning was Dyche at his pre-Arsenal press conference at Finch Farm on Friday, February 3. The new manager played down concerns over the strength of the squad as he put in a confident and assertive display during his first public appearance as Blues boss.
Accountability is a key theme for another group that has raised concerns surrounding the management of the club, Everton’s Shareholders Association. The organisation, founded in 1938, launched an online petition last month as it sought a vote of no confidence in the board. This was an extraordinary step for a body whose chair, Dave Kelly, explained has a “tendency, historically, not to air dirty washing out in public”. While performances on the pitch and the lack of transfer activity off it provided the backdrop for discontent among some supporters in January, the association’s move was prompted by another issue - the removal of the club’s official commitment to holding general meetings from its articles of association.
While the club has sought to make clear fan engagement would remain important - pointing to the establishment of the FAB as one example - and informal meetings with the Shareholders Association remain on the cards, this had been a source of concern for the group for months. By January, frustration over the issue led to the group making its feelings public. The group is not opposed to hybrid meetings, in which some members are present with the board and others take part online.
It just wants a commitment to an official opportunity to be able to provide scrutiny towards the management of the club, Mr Kelly said. He added: "The only thing left to us was to try and make the club understand the depth of feeling, not just within the Shareholders Association but within the wider fanbase as well. It was a reluctant decision but the move to launch an online petition for a vote of no confidence was unanimously agreed upon by the 14 members of the executive committee.”
That petition has now attracted more than 15,000 signatories and Mr Kelly does not regret what was an unprecedented move. He told the ECHO: “I think it was the right thing to do because we had no other alternative at our disposal. It was totally unrelated to what was going on on the pitch. This isn't about us having a poor spell of results. It is about us underperforming on and off the pitch and over a number of years and it was not dependent on results. It is far bigger and far wider."
The campaign has attracted a significant degree of support but Mr Kelly said the Shareholders Association is open to reconciliation with the club and a delegation would be happy to meet Mr Moshiri anywhere, at any time. He explained: “It is in no-one's benefit if the board of directors do not feel safe enough to attend Goodison Park. I think a far better alternative is to have a recognition that we do not want to go to war and have a fight with our beloved football club. We just want them to have a discussion, not just with the Shareholders Association but with the wider fanbase."
As a key run of fixtures approaches for Everton, the Merseyside derby up next, there appears to be a clear desire from sections of the fanbase for, at the very least, an acknowledgement of the severity of the situation and communication over how that will be dealt with. This may come through the FAB process, which the club remains committed to. While opinions may differ on the best course of action for Mr Moshiri to take, all believe it is incumbent on the club to take the first steps in attempting to rebuild relations with the fanbase.
One open question now is, after members of the board once again missed the Arsenal game at Goodison Park, when will they return? Their absence for the Southampton game followed a statement released by Everton in which it was said a “real and credible threat to their safety and security" had been identified. It was later established by outlets, including the ECHO, that Merseyside Police had been made aware of this position but had not been part of the decision-making process and no formal complaints had been made by the club to the force.
Board members were once again instructed not to attend on Saturday - a decision that again came from the club's security team and not one that involved Merseyside Police. The club's own position is understood to be under consistent assessment and the next home game, against Leeds United, has not been analysed fully yet. In response to a request for an update on its position in relation to matters involving Everton, Merseyside Police said it was investigating two potential counts of malicious communications but provided no further context over the allegations. The force is yet to assess which category the match will fall into in terms of policing requirements.
With the derby fast approaching and the game against Leeds set to be a crunch tie with a relegation rival that will likely be the club's first match with Jesse Marsch's replacement in the dugout, on the pitch matters will take centre stage in the coming days. But, as Everton's passionate fanbase showed on Saturday, it is possible for supporters to back the team while still raising concerns about the running of the club and therefore whatever happens on the pitch, issues off it will remain under focus.
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