It was a massive win for Everton against Brentford, although it would be nicer to be able to put ourselves in a more comfortable position for my own health though as that second half seemed to go on for a very long time and every time I looked at my watch it seemed to have stopped!
We all know that between now and the end of the season, our home games are going to be vital to trying to stay in the Premier League and while we’ve played one more game than most of the other teams in or around us and the result in the early match didn’t go for us but we’ve got to concentrate on our own performance and our battles and the lads did that. I thought that it might have been a bit nervy but Everton were at it from the off, asking questions and causing Brentford lots of problems.
It was obviously a fantastic start – a great strike, a great goal – but we didn’t sit back after that and kept trying to go for the jugular. The first half reminded me of the previous game at Nottingham Forest in that we were on top but credit to the players, they kept trying to get that second goal but just lacked that killer instinct with a number of chances for Amadou Onana and one from Alex Iwobi that was cleared off the line.
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We were disappointed to go in just one nil up at half-time but I was still really impressed with Brentford, they looked like a top side. They reset themselves after the goal and almost played in what I’d describe as an ‘NFL style’ in that they looked to have an agenda of how they wanted to play but they just couldn’t execute it correctly with their final ball letting them down on the wet pitch.
That was a bit down to ourselves, forcing the issue and making them rush their passes here and there but they showed why they were 12 Premier League games unbeaten before coming to Goodison Park. They’re a very effective football team who caused us problems but the lads dug in and put their bodies on the line.
I was right on line with the referee when we thought Demarai Gray had doubled our lead but I saw Brentford’s Ben Mee, who I know and is quite honest, go straight over to him. I’ve not seen anything since though in any of the footage that says that was a handball.
Whether VAR have got another angle that I’ve not seen, I don’t know, but it felt to me like ‘here we go again.’ Gray went off celebrating but I’m just used to VAR going against us now.
I saw the referee’s reaction straight away so I didn’t lose my pie this time. I’ve never been a player under VAR, it came in after I retired, so I can’t get my heard around how one moment there is utter joy and you’re celebrating with your team-mates and then all of a sudden it’s taken away and you’ve got to switch your mind back on to the game again and reset yourself.
It’s not ‘clear and obvious’ to me, I haven’t seen any evidence that it’s hit Gray’s arm. I still don’t think we’ve got the technology to cover all angles of the pitch and until we have that, there are always going to be doubts.
In a similar manner to the Forest game, Brentford were able to freshen things up earlier than us, bringing on five substitutes before we made our first one but right now it’s all about getting points on the board rather than performances and we thoroughly deserved it for our first half showing. I’ve questioned the players’ physicality in the past but when the final whistle went, Abdoulaye Doucoure was down on his knees while earlier, Onana had given himself a breather as they were absolutely pushing themselves to the limits and looked absolutely shattered.
You wondered whether Sean Dyche could make a change without messing things up too much but although Brentford were picking us off at times in the second half I think he’s found a way of getting the best out of us by just defending the goal. Our goal is the opposition target but we weren’t getting sucked in and we defended the goal area, expecting the cross and knowing what was happening, we were all set with Michael Keane, James Tarkowski and the midfield players packing the box and not giving Brentford the space to hurt us.
Players seem to know their roles better now
Since Sean Dyche came to the football club, I think Dwight McNeil understands his role and knows what he needs to do. He’s been more productive like I’ve been asking him to, trying to get crosses in whenever possible.
Whether those crosses are on the money or not it doesn’t matter as you might get a corner from it or an opportunity if a defender makes a mistake. He also took his goal really well, it was a fantastic strike.
He seems to have that bit more confidence on the ball and he knows what he’s doing when he receives it. He has an objective and he’s trying to achieve it.
Everybody seemed to know their roles. Idrissa Gueye looked to be back to his best, putting out fires and dealing with issues.
Three points is the most important thing but as a defender, having that clean sheet just gives you an extra boost in that you’ve been rewarded for the hard work of putting your body on the line. We’ll all have our own reasons for who we’d like to see in our starting 11 but Sean Dyche is the main man and we’ve got to trust what he sees every day at Finch Farm and who he can trust.
With Michael Keane and Conor Coady, I think it might just be height, especially going forward. Keane again caused problems with our set-pieces.
He doesn’t look comfortable if we’re passing it around at the back like under the previous manager but up against Ivan Toney who has been on fire this season, he understood his role and did his job well. Many might question why Coady or even Yerry Mina – whose record when he does start is good – aren’t in there but perhaps Dyche might think the latter would slow the game down too much with his passing around at the back and wants to be a bit more proactive on the ball with a quicker turnover.
Lineker row perhaps took us away from the real issues
Gary Lineker is now returning to the BBC but the whole affair over his Tweet certainly resulted in a very different kind of Match of the Day. It’s someone’s opinion and to me it was mad how much it all blew up.
A lot of a high-profile people use Twitter and at times it’s a place to vent your anger or frustration. How it reached these proportions is baffling to me and has perhaps taken us away from the real issues for both the BBC and the Government, rather than the thoughts of a former footballer who was never booked during his playing career.
It’s a free world and you might not agree with what Gary said but it’s his opinion. He’s been working for the BBC for years but for Match of the Day to have to be aired without a presenter showed just how daft the situation was and in some ways was quite indicative of how crazy the modern world can be at times.
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