Dramatic? Yes. Stirring? Undoubtedly. A great night? Given the unique circumstances, definitely one of the most memorable of recent decades.
But as the dust settles on a remarkable comeback victory to secure Everton’s Premier League survival, there’s no better time to say: This was no great escape. However important avoiding relegation was, however unlikely it may have seemed at times, this was not a story of underdog success.
It is a story of missed opportunities, bad decisions and the mismanagement of a fortune. It is a horror story of excess, a hellish drama of frustration and impatience that left a beloved and historic institution vulnerable.
EVERTON VERDICT: Goodison Park never shone so brightly as Everton fans finally get what they deserve
That true catastrophe was avoided is down to a manager and group of players who just - just - managed to show the determination, resilience and resolve to save themselves. Their efforts, inspired by a passionate fanbase that rallied in the face of adversity, deserve credit. But this is not a time for celebration.
The post mortem of a miserable season has to begin now. Lessons must be learned. This cannot happen again. Questions, hard questions, need to be asked if the same mistakes are to be avoided.
The arrival of Farhad Moshiri, who passed what then club chief executive Robert Elstone described as “a lengthy due diligence process” before becoming a major shareholder in 2016, ushered in a new dawn for Everton. Six years and more than half a billion pounds in the transfer market later and Everton have flirted more intimately with relegation than Europe or silverware.
Six sets of club accounts have been released since Moshiri’s investment began. In every one of those the chairman, Bill Kenwright, has written of ambitious plans and signs of progress. In five of those, however, his words have included farewells to managers as the club has lurched between crises. For all the rhetoric of chasing success during this period, Everton supporters have endured more sleepless nights than good times.
In the first set of accounts since becoming chief executive, Denise Barrett-Baxendale wrote in 2018: “My role... is to provide leadership, direction and strategy. Making sure we are clear on who we are, where we are going and what resources we need to achieve sustainable success as a football club are my priorities.”
In the years that have followed the direction and strategy on the pitch have been unclear while, off it, Everton have posted hundreds of millions of pounds in losses.
Coronavirus has played a significant and unavoidable role in this. Everton, particularly in the past 12 months, has also been buffeted by bad luck - from the unexpected departure of Carlo Ancelotti to the worst injury record of any club in the Premier League this season. The club has been impacted by significant events far outside its control too. But a narrative of misfortune cannot be used to cover up this nadir of the club’s modern history. Everton was more exposed to injuries and global shocks because of questionable and, at times, divisive decisions.
Change is said to be underway. Those inside the club say there is an acceptance that mistakes have been made since Moshiri’s arrival. They point to the resilience of the new stadium project amid the pandemic and the posting of record turnover as evidence for optimism in the work being done from the Liver Building. And they insist, on the pitch, the club is months into implementing a more sustainable strategy for success.
A strategic review into the footballing side of the club does appear to have yielded positive developments. The appointment of Frank Lampard, whose pragmatism and professionalism helped pull Everton from the depths of despair, is said to have been inspired by the initial findings of that scrutiny. The arrival of director of football Kevin Thelwell and the move to split the departed David Unsworth’s academy roles into separate jobs also represent signs of a more coherent, sensible approach.
Only time will tell whether true progress is being made but an immediate step forward would be to simply place faith in Lampard and Thelwell, to give them the patience, resources and control to lead the club forward. Everton cannot afford for next year’s accounts, already expected to include a further £50m of losses attributed to Covid, to feature another goodbye message to a senior Finch Farm figure. Greater openness and dialogue with those who live and breathe the Blues would also be a significant move in a better direction. How are the big decisions being made, by whom, and what checks and balances are in place? The club can no longer be undermined by rash and ill-considered meddling. This cannot be another false dawn.
This all matters because Everton is more than a football club.
Its connection to the city and to the communities of Merseyside is rightly a source of immense pride for the club and supporters. From helping vulnerable children exploited by criminal gangs to supporting mental health projects, the Blues are vital to some of those in most need - regardless of their football allegiances or interests. Over a decade in which a Government has inflicted its cruel policy of austerity, Everton in the Community has saved lives.
The struggles of a business hit all of its interests though. Relegation would likely have put livelihoods and projects at risk. They include the Bramley-Moore stadium plans. The stadium is an initiative that exists for footballing reasons but offers the best chance of regeneration in decades for one of the most deprived areas of the UK. While the club insisted the development would continue regardless of this season’s outcome, it is difficult to see how the plans could have been completely safeguarded from the turmoil of at least one season in the Championship.
Everton is not subject to the same rules of transparency as public bodies such as councils and police forces. But a club that puts so much stake in its role as a community asset, that has drawn so much on the passion and patience of a fanbase so important in making Goodison Park a fortress when the players really needed it, must now repay those supporters by showing their love and loyalty is not being taken for granted.
The fans deserve better. The city needs better. This cannot happen again.
