The Rank Outsider

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Roberto Martinez Sacked

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After a less than successful season it appears that Bill Kenwright has lost his patience with Everton manager Roberto Martinez and has decided to give him the bullet.

With the news coming as such a shock it is yet to be seen who is the favourite to replace him but early front runners are believed to be previous manager David Moyes and Tim Sherwood, who were both recently sacked by their respective clubs.

More news as we get it...

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In what appears to be a complete rush of blood to the head, Everton owner Bill Kenwright has given the vacant managers job to unproven coach, Niall Cross.

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The move is unlikely to improve the Everton chairman's popularity amongst the fans having recently been subject to protests outside the ground and banners displayed during the match.

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The last few days really have been a roller coaster ride.

Who would have thought I would one day be offered the opportunity to manage the team I have supported since I was a child, but here I am and I'm here to stay.

Convincing myself I'm the right man for the job is a tough enough challenge for me never mind a dressing room full of ego filled men who all want to be top dog.

I must have only been sat in my new office about an hour or so and the phone started ringing... Who could it be?

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I should have known. The pursuit for John Stones continues and I have no intention of letting one of the best young players this country has produced in recent years leave my new look team.

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After rejecting the bid for John Stones unsurprisingly he wanted to chat to me.

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And I actually managed to convince him to stay. At least for this season.

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I wasn't lying to him either, we have some remarkable young talent in the squad.

Squad Depth

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The spine of the team looks promising with youngsters John Stones, Ross Barkley and Romelu Lukaku filling the central positions.

We also have a lot of quality in the wide positions with Coleman and Baines in the full back slots and very direct wingers in Mirallas and Deulofeu, who also has a big future in the game.

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My first press conference was a little daunting but I feel like I held my own.

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Exactly what I was expecting. Everyone is questioning my ability without having seen me take charge of a competitive match yet, but I guess that's understandable.

Season Expectations

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Quite achievable targets in my opinion. Everton are easily a top 10 team and a cup run isn't out the question.

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It appears Chelsea seem determined to poach one of our young talents.

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I invited Ross into my office so we could have a little chat about the situation

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That didn't go as planned. I told him exactly what I told John Stones, we are a young side with great potential but that didn't appear to wash with him and now he wants out. Oh ****.

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Excellent news for the club as it appears the early unrest amongst the players has settled down and we look forward to a good pre-season.

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John Stones becomes one of the highest paid players at the club but in my opinion he deserves every penny. The only downside of the deal being his agent demanding a 44m buy out clause.

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Ross Barkley has also committed his immediate future to the club.

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Pre-Season

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We enjoyed an almost perfect pre-season apart from the result at home to Guingamp.
The defence is looking really strong and we are always a danger going forward, although the Premier League is a bit more unforgiving.

The one downside...

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Ross Barkley is now set to miss our opening match. Disappointing.

Fixtures

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We will start our campaign with an away trip to West Ham. A tough test to begin with but one I am looking forward to and will really give an insight into what we are capable of.

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Has anyone else had any problems with the game freezing since doing the update today? :S

Every time I finish a match and try and progress to the next screen the game just packs in.

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West Ham - Away

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A strong starting 11 for both teams, our only obvious absentees being Baines and Barkley.

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Although the headline suggests we were fortunate to win this game I would have to disagree. We performed a counter attacking master class and I couldn't be happier with the lads. Twice we broke from midfield with McCarthy providing the killer pass to slot Mirallas and Lennon in on goal and both produced clinical finishes. Victor Moses did pull one back before half time with a well placed shot but we held out in the second half and claimed all 3 points. What a start!



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The draw for the Capital One Cup has been extremely kind to us, a home tie against Accrington Stanley awaits.

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Arsenal - Away

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An unchanged side for us against a very strong looking Arsenal team.

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Arsenal were a class apart today and although it finished 1-0 they really could have had more. Koscielny scored a thumping header from a corner and that was that. We now look forward to our first home game of the season against Newcastle.

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Another bombshell as Seamus Coleman declares his intentions to leave the club.

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Newcastle - Home

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A slight change in formation today as we set up with a more attacking 4-2-3-1 formation and welcome Ross Barkley back to the starting 11.

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We ran riot in the first half against Newcastle scoring 3 goals in the first 30 minutes. Lukaku opened his account for the season with a towering header from a pinpoint Aaron Lennon cross before Mirallas doubled our lead with a wonderful curled effort from the edge of the box. John Stones then rose highest to plant a header into the back of the net from a corner kick. We seemed to lose focus after half time and allowed Ayoze Perez to walk through the defence with 57 minutes gone and rifle the ball past Tim Howard. Tim Howard then made a massive blunder with 74 minutes on the clock as he punched a cross into the path of Siem de Jong allowing him to slot the ball into an open goal. Luckily enough we held on and claimed another 3 points.

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Accrington Stanley - Home

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Pretty much a second choice 11 for us bar a few first teamers. Accrington set up with a very narrow 4-2-3-1 formation which should play into our hands with the quality we possess in wide areas.

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A very straight forward victory as was expected. Aaron Lennon scored two identical goals from free kicks delivered into the box from Deulofeu, the smallest man on the field was unmarked not once but twice! And took full advantage. Steven Naismith then capitalized on a defensive error to give us an unassailable lead. Accrington were very aggressive in their play and picked up an astonishing 7 yellow cards.
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The draw for the next round of the Capital One Cup will see us face Chelsea at Goodison Park.

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Aston Villa - Away

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We set up in our counter attacking style for today's game. Hopefully the quality we possess in the wide areas will play a major factor due to villa's lack of width. Robles remains in goal following his clean sheet in the Capital One Cup and my lack of confidence in Tim Howard.

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A bore draw. Not a lot to say about this game, another point on the board I suppose.

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August 2015

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A decent start to the season in my opinion. The only game we didn't take any points was the away game at Arsenal which I didn't really expect anything from.

Transfer deadline day

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It turned out to be a really quiet window in England. The biggest signing being Gokhan Tore joining United from Besiktas.

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An even quieter window for Everton. I was hoping to bring in a new first choice Goalkeeper but due to limited transfer funds it was unrealistic. We did keep hold of Stones, Barkley and Coleman though, who had all declared they wish to leave the club if teams playing in the Champions League came in for them.


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We have four games this month, two of which are at Home to Chelsea.

The first of which is in the Premier League.

Chelsea - Home

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A hard fought victory against a really strong Chelsea side. Lukaku gave us the lead from the penalty spot against his old club with 25 minutes gone. Kevin Mirallas then doubled our lead on the hour mark as he flew in at the back post to tap in from a cross. Eden Hazard did pull a goal back for Chelsea but we managed to hold on for the three points.

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Leicester - Away

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A good away point against an in form Leicester side who found themselves in the top 4 before this game. We kept better possession of the ball but Leicester did create the better chances so I guess a draw is a fair result.

At least we weren't the only side on Merseyside struggling to find the back of the net

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Chelsea - Home

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A really disappointing performance results in us bowing out of the Capital One Cup in just the 3rd round. Diego Costa tormented us from the word go and bagged himself a goal with just 2 minutes gone. We were offered a lifeline back into the game when John Terry conceded a penalty but Lukaku was unable to take full advantage. To rub salt into the wounds McCarthy then picked up his second yellow card on 68 minutes and we spent the rest of the game chasing Chelsea around the field desperately trying to get the ball back.

I'm sure the fans won't be happy about this.

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We faced some serious selection issues before our next game against Southampton.

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Mirallas, Barkley, Besic and McCarthy will all be unavailable leaving the team really short of numbers in midfield.

Southampton - Home

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Another 0-0 draw. I'm starting to wonder if my tactics aren't up to scratch or if the players just aren't motivated to play for me, what am I to do. We would of actually won this game if it wasn't for a wonder save from 17 year old Goalkeeper - Harry Lewis. Hence the MOTM award I guess.

September 2015

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Not the best month we will ever have by a long stretch. A fantastic result to start the month with a 2-1 victory over Chelsea but no goals in the following three games has left me a bit concerned.

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A quick look at how the league table is shaping up.

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A good start to the season. West Brom are the early surprise package accumulating 16 points and a +12 goal difference. Southampton are struggling and have yet to win a game.

Early days I suppose.

October Fixtures

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Four games to play this month. A difficult away trip to City and my first Merseyside derby await.

Watford - Away

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A really lacklustre first half performance seen us go in at the break a goal down. Troy Deeney slotted in from a low cross into the box to give Watford the lead. A few tactical changes during the break seen us take the initiative and we leveled the scores on the hour mark as Lukaku stole a yard and unleashed a shot which hit the post before finding the net. James McCarthy then completed the comeback scoring a header from a free kick into the box to secure the three points.

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