Season 2002-03
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Everton 2 - 0 Arsenal
Half-time: 0 - 0
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FA Carling Premiership 2000-01 Game #14
3 pm Saturday 18 November 2000
Goodison Park, Merseyside
Att: 33,106
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MATCH SUMMARY
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With no less than ELEVEN senior players missing, the injury crisis that has
been cited as the official excuse for Everton's utterly disappointing start
to the season escalates to new levels of madness... but those excuses began
to fail after a tremendous performance by all the replacement Blues.
A patched up Everton team surely could not stand a chance against Arsenal –
championship challengers and Goodison boggy team when it comes to wins –
or the lack thereof – against them at home in the Premiership? Well,
all the form and all the pundits were proved wrong by Everton's greater
desire and enthusiasm.
Everton started brightly but Arsenal soon began to show their class, creating a number of early chances.
But Everton matched them for much of the first half.
Idan Tal had a good chance with a free-kick, but it swirled just wide of the post.
All things considered, this weakened Everton team did themselves
proud.
Early in the second half, Kevin Campbell was all alone in front of the
Arsenal goal but he scuffed an easy shot. Then, a long ball from
Naysmith caught out Luzhny who lost it to Campbell, Cadamarteri
stole in with a good first touch, and a great second touch, volleying home
past Manninger and into the back of the Gwladys Street net.
Goodison Park and the match burst into life, with more dirty play from
the cockney foreign legion being looked on kindly by a very lenient Mike
Riley.
Danny Cadamarteri turned brilliantly, bore down on goal, and slipped a
brilliant ball through to Campbell as he was hacked form behind, and
Campbell coolly slotted it home. YES!
This pivotal match also marked a key moment in Everton's history, when
the fans were ballotted for their views on a possible new ground at Kings
Dock. A disappointing attendance considering the importance of the
decision, and an implicit indictment of Everton's "Premium Ticket
Pricing" – to watch the Reserves!!!
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MATCH FACTS
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GOALSCORERS
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EVERTON:
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Cadamarteri (54'), Campbell (73')
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Arsenal:
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–
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LINEUPS
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Subs Not Used
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EVERTON:
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Gerrard; Cleland, Weir, Ball, Naysmith; Hughes, Pembridge, Gemmill;
Tal (65' McLeod), Campbell, Cadamarteri.
Unavailable: Alexandersson, Ferguson, Gascoigne,
Gough, Jeffers, Pistone, S Watson
Unsworth, Xavier (injured);
Nyarko (sick); Gravesen (suspended).
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Simonsen, Clarke, Osman, Moore.
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Arsenal:
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Manninger; Dixon (80' Upson), Keown, Pires, Cole;
Ljungberg, Wiltord, Parlour, Luzhny, Kanu, Bergkamp.
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Lukic, Stepanovs, Wreh, Vernazza.
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Playing Strips
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Formations
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EVERTON:
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Royal Blue shirts; white shorts; blue socks.
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4-4-2
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Arsenal:
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Red shirts; white shorts; red socks.
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4-4-2
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Yellow Cards
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Red Cards
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EVERTON:
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Gemmill (45'), Tal (48'), McLeod (70').
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Arsenal:
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Dixon (55'), Ljungberg (57').
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Sports.com
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Detailed
Match Stats and Full
Match Commentary
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Did the ground move for you too, darling?
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Mickey Blue Eyes
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I voted YES of course. If the opinions I’ve heard are anything to go by,
then so did about 80% of the rest of the fans. Quite right too. But alas I cannot believe the directors are serious.
Quite apart from some
other information I have, you need only consult the amateurish graphics
released by the club in the ballot leaflet. These are merely the Millennium
Stadium graphics transported to Kings Dock. Two pages are taken up with the
GFE proposals for an obviously inferior design. Erk.
So, either:
(a) The architects HOK gave the graphics for the Kings Dock cut-and-paste
job to an eighteen years old internee named Monica Lewinsky; or
(b) Whoever reviewed the graphics at the club is an incompetent
arsehole
who likes giving blow-jobs… perhaps Monica herself.
In either case, you can’t avoid the implication that it’s all a PR
exercise and nothing more. Such an anomaly won’t escape the reviewers at
English Partnerships who are the sole owners and decision-makers in the
process. Forget everybody else.... it’s just window dressing. Ho hum.
Add all this to the previous week’s hackpig-inspired trough-fest that
Smiffy is leaving, so is Bally and The Ears, and gawd knows anybody else,
including our overwrought bank manager and the man who sells you your NTL TV
services, and it was a relief to get to see an actual match. Search me why
people give any credence to this kind of media muck. But some do.
Sadly it
leads to the kind of corruption which sometimes sees hacks paying weak club
“insiders” for “information.” Usually it’s a storeman or
ticket-seller or some such, the kind of insecure souls who hate their
meniality and thus everyone else. I know for certain there’s one at
Anfield and there’s no reason to doubt we have one or two of our “own.”
Ah to hell with them. I hope they all incinerate together. Only the fans,
players and managers matter. All the rest are hangers-on.
It was, er, raining in sheets prior to the match. I know this will
surprise you (like all Englishmen are surprised by inclement weather during
the winter) but apparently a centre of high meteorological pressure was
moving in from the north Atlantic and pissing on everything in it’s path,
a bit like trying to relieve yourself in the loo in the away section at
Leicester. If you’re not careful you just don’t make it. Me, I was well
prepared as usual. Which is more than can be said, he he, for some of my
compadres. While they got soaked, I stayed dry during the walk to the ground
from the Black Horse. I read the weather report, you see.
I was also well prepared for the creaming we were going to get. I was
quite prepared to have Arsenal pissing on me Saturday Parade. But not
without a fight to the death. Imminent demise concentrates the mind
wonderfully. What was it in Blackadder? “Readyaimfire!!”?
Smiffy had an interesting formation again and some interesting selections
to boot. Cleland was in at, erm, right back; Bally moved to, erm, I’m not
sure but I think it was, erm, centre back; Gary was left back, Scott Gemmill
was right centre midfield, Pembo was left centre midfield, Idan Tal was wide
left midfield, Danny was wide right midfield and SuperKev was upfront again
on his own. Have I missed anybody out?
Oh aye yeh. Davey Weir was centre
back and Yozzer was seemingly nowhere in particular. Paul held his place on
the goal line, which sounds deadly familiar. We had ten missing, they had
six missing. Sometimes life pulls your head off and shits down your neck.
Smiffy’s team selections occasionally do the same. But this was an
emergency.
We had a chance in the first few minutes straight into the Street End but
Idan sent it wide with huge determination. I like the boy… he looks hungry
for now. Then inevitably Arsenal started patting it around and it began to
look ominous. Not as bad as I thought though. Scott and Pembo were giving it
loads in midfield, all of it unceasing and valiant, if not a lot of skill.
Arsenal simply passed their way through us time and again until, inevitably
a chance fell their way in the Park End, left side edge of the box, and the
ball went past Paul on the left side. Gary was standing on the line, a job
Bally was always reluctant to do, and he got his forehead on it, up, against
the bar and out. Hey… a stroke of luck! Maybe we’ll get something out of
this after all...
By the time the half closed, Scott and Pembo had gradually
learned their existential lesson and noticeably were winning a good deal
more than they were losing, something we have achieved only against Toon
this season. Everyone else took their lead and started doing the same.
In
the meantime, Lee Dixon was doing a wonderful impression of an over-the-hill
owl arse trying to compensate for lack of pace by kicking everyone who came
near him. The crowd had found their pantomime villain. Well, it’s that
time of year...
We started well in the second half and began to close them down much
more efficiently. Smiffy’s body language was completely different this
week – out at the dotted line and dead narky. Nice sight. After ten minutes
we got a goal that Arsène Wenger’s gonna crucify someone for. Gary was
wide left on the half-way line and crossed a long one to the right penalty-area edge.
It bounded once, skidded over two mesmerised Gooners and Danny
was on it in a flash, shouldered one of the defenders aside, took two
strides and smashed it low and hard into the bottom left. Arsenal’s heads
and shoulders sagged almost immediately. We were up for it and they weren’t.
It was only a matter of time.
Maybe twenty minutes later, we got a second. The game had become a
ferocious midfield battle which we were winning hands down. Arsenal had
stopped trying to pass it around, which was probably just as well for us.
Typically, there was a group of players on the wide-right touchline midway
in their half. The ball ping-ponged around until Danny nicked it, turned and
got clear closing quickly into the penalty area, taking a couple of
defenders with him – the way we know he can when he decides to play.
SuperKev
dropped back slightly, just right of the penalty spot and, as the ball came
into him, he extended his right leg and scooped it over the keeper while
falling back, doubtless in case anybody came in from the rear to close him
down. He’s an owl arse too.
Talking of which, Lee Dixon eventually got the yellow card he’d been
pleading for all afternoon after attempting an unauthorised autopsy on Pembo.
Tsk tsk. You might at least have used anaesthetic, Lee. Substitution
beckoned and he went off to a storm of well earned boos, daft bastard.
Apart
from him, sad to say, Dennis Bergkamp looks finished. His pace and hard
determination seem to have deserted him. I hope not. The game needs players
like him. The truth is, after early flourishes, Arsenal folded the way we
did against Ipswich.
In the circumstances, we played really well. In my view, it was all down to
Mark Pembridge and his attitude. As he’s regained fitness, he’s got
harder and harder and more determined. He and Scott Gemmill did well to
outplay the Gooners where it mattered. We certainly won’t miss Alex if the
rumours fester into fact. Danny had his best game in ages and took the
pressure off SuperKev for a change – who promptly missed a couple of good
chances. Paul got glued on his line because he had fuck all to do.
And at
the heart of the defence, Davey Weir was once again magnificent. Only Yozzer
was anonymous.
It was a well earned win against top class opponents in the most
difficult circumstances imaginable. Smiffy appears to have recovered his
motivational abilities after a very worrying run when we seemed to be back
at square one. If we can beat a stuttering Chelsea side then that will be
the magic-three-in-a-row. Some of our injuries will be restored to fitness
and the hacks will have to go stick their snouts in some other trough.
And I bet we don’t need a recount on OUR ballot papers. Not unless the
Electoral Reform Society is run by a director named Jebediah Bush and his
brother is designing the stadium and his father owns the Kings Dock. Tut
tut,
America. What HAVE you come to?
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They don't know what they missed
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Steve Bickerton
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Much of the pre-match talk was about a ground move, another topic was the
much publicised injury crisis at Arsenal which saw 8 full internationals
unavailable today, with another seven full and one U-21 replacing
them! Not a lot of talk centred on Walter Smith's plight of 10
injuries and 1 suspension, which had decimated the squad. But no
longer being fashionable meant a less sympathetic view of the situation at
Goodison had been written in the press.
Such changes enforced upon both managers had left pundits predicting a
bore draw. Having flown home from Spain in the early hours of the
morning, the last thing I wanted was a bore draw – my wishes were answered
and I witnessed a feast.
The game started at a frenetic pace. Within two minutes, a
Cadamarteri/Cleland link-up saw the ball fizz across the Arsenal box only
for Tal to sent a volley over the bar. Arsenal failed to make any
impression as Everton bit ankles at every chance, not allowing the visitors
to string meaningful passes together. The early aggression shown by
the blues was a throw back to the "dogs of war" approach, which
served us so well under Joe Royle. But it lasted for a mere 10 minutes
as the Champions League side managed to take a grip on the game and play
some smooth football.
But it didn't take much to disrupt them again as Lee Dixon's nerve broke
as he was skinned by a lively Idan Tal. How Dixon remained unbooked
during the first half I have no idea, as Tal ran him ragged with twists and
turns that were a delight to watch. Dixon, with digs and trips and
pushes aplenty, managed to stay just the right side of Mr Riley in the
middle as the yellow card stayed in the referee's pocket.
Having bemoaned the state of our squad, with so many out and the likely
hiding at the hands of the so-called superstars of Arsenal, the midfield
marshalls of Pembridge and Gemmill were a revelation. Out-tackling,
out-running and out-passing their illustrious counterparts, they showed that
spirit and determination allied to a modicum of skill goes a long way
towards overpowering a skilled but under-committed opposition. It was
a delight to watch.
But not only did the midfield shine, the defence played
immaculately. So it should have done though as you look at its
credentials. Internationals all. Naysmith, Weir and Cleland all
full caps for Scotland and Ball, so nearly an English full cap.
Between them, they shackled Bergkamp, Kanu and Wiltord....
easily!
Ball was magnificent. With Naysmith likely to hang on to the
left-back slot, Bally will probably need to find a new role. Today at
Centre Back he was a giant, belying his lack of height. He was assured
on the ground and passed the ball well out of defence. He may struggle
there against more robust attackers (Viduka for example), but maybe, just
maybe he can develop a sweeper role that allows him to work at the back and
roam forward as the opportunity arises.
But I digress, the game.
Arsenal had their moments too: in the first half as Gerrard raced (yes raced)
off his line to block a fierce drive from (I think) Pires, which then
rebounded out to another red-shirted attacker, who blasted it against Weir,
the ball again rebounding Arsenal's way only for Ljungberg to see a
goal-bound effort twice deflected by Everton players, with Naysmith's goal
line headed deflection clearing the bar for a corner. Madness!
In reality that was Arsenal's best moment of the match as Everton out-did
them in every department. Yet the first half remained goalless and we
were left breathless at 0-0 and fearful of another 'good for 45 minutes'
story.
Yet why should we have worried? There followed a second half
performance to match and beat anything I've seen over the last three years
with Arsenal folding under the pressure.
Good defensive work at by Everton saw Naysmith release a long ball
upfield. The ball missed out Campbell and raced on into the Arsenal
box, where Danny Cadamarteri took the ball well on his chest, beat the young
Arsenal full back Ashley Cole for guile and pace with a quite turn and
calmly drove the ball passed the oncoming Manninger. Danny went
mad. He'd scored against the team he'd supported as a boy. It
was no more than he had deserved, however, as he had harried the Arsenal
defence all game, maybe not purposefully at all times, but he'd shown the
endeavour and the intent.
1-0 to Everton and we needed to settle the game for 5 minutes or
so. There was no need to worry, however, as Tal eventually drove Dixon
to overstep the mark and see yellow for a reckless challenge. But he
too fell foul of the referee's displeasure for a "dive" under a
challenge from both Dixon and Parlour. Tal was distraught at this
decision and rightly so, as it was Parlour rather than Dixon who upended
him, yet the referee seemed to have a picture of him diving to engineer the
dismissal of Dixon.
Walter diffused things by taking Tal out of the fray. To a rousing
ovation he left the field to be replaced by Kevin McLeod, who had shown some
bright touches against Ipswich earlier in the
season. He made an instant impression on this game, though, as his
first "touch" saw Dixon get his comeuppance. A strong
challenge for a 50-50 ball saw MacLeod send Dixon to the deck. His
treatment by the Arsenal physio saw Mr Riley add on 4 minutes at the end,
such was the extent of his discomfort.
Arsenal stepped things up a bit a but they never really troubled Everton
at all. Dixon hobbled of to be replaced by Upson, but it made no
difference as Cadamarteri again engineered a goal, driving through the
Arsenal defence and sliding the ball to Campbell, who made amends for an
earlier miss (or two) by finding the back of Manninger's net. 2-0, oh,
yes!!
After that, it was a case of playing out time. No better
illustration of this than a small cameo by Kevin MacLeod, who was racing
towards goal, with real support, he looked up, took stock and made a 90°
change of direction and headed for the corner flag. Keown was furious
and took the youngster's legs from under him. Such unusual behaviour
for former blue Martin!
When the whistle finally came, it was with Everton on the attack and
Arsenal struggling to stay with us. A home win, but a win produced
from style and commitment. If these were the dogs of war, they weren't
the rotweillers of old, these were the greyhounds who were smooth and
stylish in full flow, but when confronted with a prey which was ready to be
taken, took every delight in moving in for the kill.
With a fantastic performance on the field, it has to be conceded that
there was a suitably charged display from the crowd off the field too.
Behind the boys in blue all the way. Long may it continue and quickly
may news of the performance seep out and cause the missing thousands to turn
up again, to see what they might possibly be missing.
As for the ground move, well it did move today – to the sound of glory,
to the sweat of application and to the passion of desire. Oh yes, it
moved for me, too.
Man of the Match
A difficult choice today, for all of the right reasons. Naysmith
was again impressive, but Michael Ball at Centre Back, deserves special
praise for his marshalling of Bergkamp all game. That alone wasn't
enough as the whole midfield deserves credit, with Gemmill just edging it in
that department for a 'dogs of war' display of enormous proportions.
Up front, Cadamarteri shaded it from Campbell, for his contribution to both
goals and his overall work rate. He looks to be back on track.
But who gets the overall prize, this week? It has to go to Scot
Gemmill, who was in inspired form in the middle of the park.
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Who let the Dogs out?
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Rob Burns
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I was starting to think that there genuinely was a black cloud
hanging over Goodison Park as I wearily trudged through more of that
disgusting drizzle to the ground yesterday. Laid low by flu for much of the
week, I had been lucky enough to share illness with new signing Gary Naysmith
and our African enigma Alex Nyarko – does that count as obsession?
The scene
was more than depressing – parallels drawn in the media between Everton's
injury crisis and Arsenal's were at best grossly unfair. The Gunners picked
from the likes of Ljungberg, Bergkamp, Kanu... Everton from Gemmill, Pembridge
and Cleland.
Sincerely, I felt it was a case of keeping the score down. You
see Derby, Leicester and Ipswich take points of the top sides but, sadly, we
never do. The jury was definitely out on whether I should have bothered.
The side picked itself. Even Walter couldn't have fiddled with that
selection. But it was how he played them that mattered. Interesting that
suspicions of religious bias have been levelled at Smith & Knox in the
past but these were quickly dispelled as he fielded a side made up
predominantly of left footers. His use of them was probably the most
original formation I have seen at Goodison for some time.
A flat back-four brought in Cleland at right back, Naysmith on the left, and Ball
partnering Weir in central defence. Arsenal are not prone to using height in
open attack and the cool head and confidence of Ball would surely remain
calm facing the size 14's of Kanu.
The midfield was a mixture of steel and
as yet undiscovered talent. Gemmill and Pembridge provided the engine, with
Hughes playing in between as the spare man and link between defence and
attack.
Up front was probably the most innovative area with the two wide
players, Cadamarteri and Tal, playing off lone striker Campbell in the
middle. This effectively gave us three strikers but maintaining width and
reducing dramatically the effectiveness of Luhzny and Don Keowne in the
centre of Arsenal's defence.
From the start, Everton showed their
determination to succeed, and it was blindingly obvious that – regardless of
instructions – this team had the will to win the match. Whether they would be
overrun by the class normally shown by Arsenal at GP was another matter....
100% honesty was the name of the game, and Gemmill and Pembridge particularly
worked tirelessly, biting in the tackle and being up and out quick enough
to start the counter attack.
The only worry with the formation was the
reliance on Cadamarteri to support Gemmill on the right side against Cole and
the drifting Pires. Instead of the three middle men drifting left to right
when out of possession, Pembridge and Hughes tended to leave Gemmill to it, and
the lack of understanding was obvious as occasionally Gemmill took his
frustration out on Cada rather than his central midfield colleagues.
One such attack down the Arsenal left did break through and, passing by
Cleland, Kanu found himself with Gerrard rushing low towards him. An unusual
moment of quick decision by the keeper brought an excellent save, the ball
broke loose outside the area and was crossed with Gerrard now stranded.
Ljungberg shot from around the edge of the box and Naysmith, on the
line, manage to head the ball onto the bar and out for the corner. Heart in
mouth time.
Arsenal looked generally out of sorts in their forward play,
and desperate in defence – particularly in dealing with the tricky
winger Idan Tal. Three times in succession, Tal was fed on the break and
felled. Parlour was guilty on two occasions seconds after each other,
referee Riley incredibly seeing nothing worthy of a yellow card. The third occasion led
to a free kick on the left, which Tal curled across the face of goal and
just wide of the far post. Despite ending near the corner flag the slightest
change in angle would have resulted in a goal. The Israeli Kevin Sheedy?
Hmm.
It was largely expected that, given an ear bashing from Wenger at
half-time, a renewed Arsenal would enter the arena... but it was
Everton who upped the pace after the break. The central defence
looked solid – Ball playing the parent to Weir and giving him the confidence
to move coolly out of defence and sweep up efficiently. Ball never looked in
trouble in a position he has not seen since youth team days.
Campbell
provided the extra height to defend corners whilst Weir did well to tie up
the mobile Keown regardless of his position at the start of the set plays.
Cleland looked as good as I have seen him, playing purely as a full-back
without having to push forward and risk being caught out.
Everton played
football out of defence and the passing from Pembridge, Gemmill and Hughes
until he tired later on was accurate and effective. The ability of these
players to tackle and come out with the ball and play it is the key to their
success as, with a midfield that was light in numbers, they were able to
recover their own second ball.
But it was the left side which really
turned the screw. Quick thinking and fast movement from Naysmith was the
perfect foil for Tal as, time and again, the two combined down the left.
Tal's pace and carrying of the ball was superb and Lee Dixon quickly made 30,000 enemies as he cut the winger down twice from full flight and was
eventually booked.
Campbell found himself free on two occasions, the first
sprinting clear of the defence and then miscontrolling just outside the area
under no pressure; the second with only Manninger to beat and chipping over
the bar.
On the right, Cadamarteri finally found the power and pace that
exposed Liverpool in his early first team career. Wrestling away from
Cole, he accelerated into the box and shot cleanly into the net on 54
minutes.
I thought at that point that all we had to do was to hold on for
the final few minutes – when I looked up and realised we had another half hour
to sweat on! But the second goal came in due course, and was almost a replica as
Cada broke on the
diagonal into the box. Good running from Campbell and an unselfish pass
sealed the game with Campbell's strike finding the net.
KC generally looked
lively and pacey and seems now to be somewhere near the fitness levels we
saw last season. Arsenal were shell-shocked and there was no way that we were
going to concede now. Due to censorship I am unable to refer to the bare-arsed invader at the end.
Everton's play was based on 100% effort and commitment from players who find themselves a place on the bench or worse
in the reserves on many occasions. This is not a criticism of Walter's
signings but could be a lesson to them. I cannot see a reason to change the
team for Chelsea next week as the threat is relatively the same. Perhaps, to
return players to the side, it would be worth introducing them one by one,
letting them play in a side like that and learn that they cannot expect to
be carried.
This was Joe Royle's Dogs of War, played on a football theme. Now
the dilemma I have to face is whether I want to be a top side with top
players, and the possibility of much bigger falls, or an honest, hard
working side grinding out results. For this weekend I am extremely contented
with the latter.
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The perfect birthday
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Richard Marland
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Watching the players warming up today was a bit of an alarming
experience. Who were they? A quick check showed Unsworth and
Nyarko AWOL but Naysmith there. It took me a while to work it all
out. Cleland was there as were a whole batch of youngsters; a process
of elimination and guesswork had them as McLeod, Clarke and one other who
turned out to be Osman. This really was bare-bones stuff.
Strangely enough, I have half fancied us to do something. The
perverse nature of this football club decrees that they will do something
when you least expect them. There was even an interesting precedent
displayed on the screen prior to the game, the Arsenal game from a few
seasons back when they were flying, we were struggling and injury plagued
and expected to lose heavily. That day a creditable performance, fired
by goals from Cadamarteri and Michael Ball saw us gain a largely unexpected
2-2 draw. Clutching at straws maybe, but why not?
Walter's team selection was largely made for him. It was a question
of who was fit to play. The only real decision was the inclusion of
Danny ahead of Joe-Max Moore. Gerrard was in goal, a flat back four
consisted of Cleland, Naysmith, Weir and Ball at centre back. We
strung five across midfield, Hughes, Gemmill and Pembridge in the middle
with Cadamarteri and Tal on the flanks. Campbell was the lone striker.
The bench showed how thinly our squad was stretched – Simonsen, Clarke,
McLeod, Osman and Moore – of the outfield players Moore was the only one
whose first team experience amounted to anything more than minutes.
Right from the start we were chasing and harrying and making life
difficult for Arsenal. As soon as we lost possession, we dropped back
in numbers presenting a line of five and four strung across the field for
Arsenal to work through. Suddenly, my optimism didn't look unfounded
– we looked pretty good out there!
Crucially, despite our injury problems, we were able to field a
recognisable team with a real balance to it. We had full backs at full
back, centre backs at centre back (at least that's what Bally looked like),
central midfielders in centre midfield, and wide men who stayed wide.
Allied to a prodigious work rate, it was working out nicely. The crowd
also responded. They saw the effort and commitment, saw that we were
unsettling Arsenal and became the most supportive they have been in a while.
In the first half in particular, there were moments when Arsenal played
the ball about nicely as they looked for an opening. For the most
part, though, we managed to keep them at arms length. There was one
amazing scramble following a clearance that ricocheted kindly for Arsenal,
which ultimately saw Ljunberg hit the woodwork. That was the closest
they were to get, and the fact that it started from a fortunate rebound
highlighted the good work we were doing defensively.
The longer the game wore on, the more we started to pose an attacking
threat. Campbell should have done better when put clean through; he
probably felt he was offside (he wasn't) and he rather tamely lobbed it over
the bar when he should have done much better. In a game of few
chances, it could have proved costly... As it was, it was merely a
warning. Not long after, a long ball from Naysmith found Cadamarteri
in the right-hand corner of the box; he brought it down well and finished
with some confidence. This really was becoming too good to be true.
Arsenal didn't like it. They were becoming increasingly tetchy but
still kept striving to find a reply. The match became increasingly
compelling, Arsenal kept on coming but we maintained our shape and
discipline, and even looked like we might sneak something on the
break. Campbell had one break where he was once again let down by his
own current lack of pace and confidence.
Again it was only minutes before we put matters right. Cadamarteri
emerged from a scrum of players with the ball, he advanced into the box
before slipping it inside to Kevin Campbell who finished well. 2-0 –
surely that was game over.
Arsenal, being Arsenal, refused to lay down. Still they kept
coming, but with us still maintaining our shape, they were largely going
through the motions. There was such a determination from the Everton
team to deny them anything. After four minutes of injury time the
whistle went and we could celebrate the most unlikely of victories.
As always on these occasions, the churlish will claim that we caught
Arsenal on an off-day. There is probably some truth in that but that
shouldn't take anything away from Everton, our game plan and the manner in
which we executed it was absolutely perfect. All this and it was my
birthday too, what a day!
- Gerrard 7 A good performance which was encouraging after his
recent problems.
- Cleland 6 A few dodgy moments but played his part.
- Naysmith 7 Another decent performance. His attacking
options were severely curtailed but defended well and worked hard.
- Weir 7 Mr. Consistency.
- Ball 7 The suggestions of him being ear-marked as the successor
to Richard Gough didn't look fanciful today. Faced by Kanu,
Wiltord and Bergkamp, he coped admirably with little or nothing getting
past. Has he found his true role?
- Cadamarteri 7 Showing his best form in years. A good
goal, and a big part in the second. Can't argue with that, also
worked hard for the team cause, and used the ball well.
- Pembridge 7 Worked hard for a full 90 minutes. Closed
down space, tracked men, got in tackles and also played a few good balls
into the box. Excellent.
- Gemmill 7 Matched Pembridge for graft and endeavour. A
player who rarely lets us down when called upon.
- Hughes 6 The weakest link. As usual had some good moments
but there seems to be large parts of the game when it just passes him
by. The contrast with the mighty work done by Gemmill and
Pembridge was striking. He's failing to make his mark, undoubtedly
talented but there's something missing.
- Tal 7 Was always lively going forward and was also well aware
of his defensive duties. Played out a fascinating personal battle
with Lee Dixon, Dixon brought out all his "old-lag" tricks,
blocking out his runs, shirt pulling, suggesting he was diving every
time he hit the deck. Tal wasn't fazed by any of this and gave as
good as he got.
- Campbell 7 Still lacking sharpness but his general fitness
level seems to be getting there, he was certainly still getting through
his workload late in the game.
- McLeod 6 A fresh pair of legs in a straight swap for Tal.
Made an instant impression on our friend Lee Dixon with a nasty looking
challenge which I thought he was going to walk for. You shouldn't
condone such stuff but at least it showed a willingness to get stuck in
and not get over-awed. Did OK again whilst still looking
inexperienced.
Team 7 A true team performance. Worked as a team and when you do
that you always give yourself a chance.
Man of the match I'm tempted to say Michael Ball but for me
the two men who really epitomised today's performance were Scott Gemmill and
Mark Pembridge. They both got through an incredible amount of work and
undoubtedly got the better of supposedly superior opponents. For me
they were the joint man of the match.
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Quick-acting Cadamarteri gives Everton new life
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Clive White, Electronic Telegraph
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IT WAS a result to make Everton forget all their woes. The problems
surrounding their ground move and financial situation all receded, if only
momentarily, with this defeat of Arsenal, a side they had never beaten at
Goodison Park in the Premiership.
They did it with
something to spare, as second-half goals by Danny Cadamarteri and former
Gunner Kevin Campbell ended their opponents' unbeaten 12-match run in the
Premiership.
There could be no excuses for Arsenal, nor did Arsène Wenger attempt to
offer any. Though without seven first-choice players, they were beaten fair
and square by a side who had been hit even harder by injury and suspension.
Rarely has an Arsenal attack looked so toothless. Apart from a remarkable
sequence of chances in one seventh-minute attack, which resulted in Gary
Naysmith heading against his own crossbar, they did not seriously threaten
Paul Gerrard's goal.
It was the worst possible precursor to the start of the second phase of
the Champions League, which resumes on Wednesday with a match against
Spartak Moscow. Arsenal will need to do better than this if they are to
progress further, particularly defensively.
Twice they were caught dozing by the effervescent Cadamarteri, given his
first start of the season in the continued absence of Francis Jeffers and
Duncan Ferguson. Arsenal must hope that Tony Adams is fit to resume in
midweek because the partnership of Oleg Luzhny and Martin Keown is not
convincing.
While Cadamarteri, who made the second goal as well as scoring his first
since last spring, was the striking difference between the two sides, it was
Everton's attitude which won the day. From the first whistle to the last
their commitment was total and such spirit should serve them well in what is
still likely to be a difficult season, one way or another, for the
Merseysiders.
One would have never known Arsenal were so hard hit by injury looking at
their line-up, which contained plenty of recognisible names. Everton, on the
other hand, were clearly down to the bare bones, their substitutes' bench
made up of relative unknowns. Yet, the discrepancy in class was never
apparent. Nevertheless, the injuries highlighted the club's desperate need
to renegotiate cable company NTL's proposed £23M bid for a 9.9% stake in the club.
United's morning victory in the Manchester derby meant that Arsenal had
no option but to go for a win here. In the absence of Thierry Henry, Kanu
partnered Sylvain Wiltord in attack, though it was in midfield where Arsenal
looked less like their usual selves with Ray Parlour and Fredrik Ljungberg
performing in unfamiliar central roles.
No-one epitomised Everton's tireless effort more than Idan Tal, an Israel
midfielder who Everton recently signed from a Spanish second division club [Not
so – Ed]. His exuberance, from the start, was an irritation to Lee Dixon, which
inevitably resulted in a booking for the increasingly harassed Arsenal
veteran for a tackle which incurred the wrath of the crowd.
When, after seven minutes, Arsenal had three attempts to score and
failed, one sensed that they might not have things all their own way. Gerrard flung himself in they way of the first effort from Wiltord, then
another former Arsenal player, Stephen Hughes, cleared off the line from
Kanu, before Naysmith finally headed Ljungberg's shot against his own bar
and away to safety.
It was the closest Arsenal were to come to scoring, as Everton worked
like Trojans to hang in there until such time that they could create an
opportunity of their own.
That chance finally arose after 54 minutes. Campbell challenged Oleg
Luzhny to a high cross from Naysmith and the man from Dinamo Kiev appeared
to nudge the ball on with his arm into Cadamarteri's path. The busy little
striker finished with a shot which nestled in the far corner of Alex
Manninger's net.
"He lacks consistency, but you can never fault his attitude,"
said Walter Smith, the Everton manager, afterwards.
Loss of concentration, brought about possibly by an Everton substitution,
was responsible for Arsenal falling further behind after 72 minutes. As Tal
went off to a well-deserved round of applause, to be replaced by Kevin
McLeod, Everton took a quick throw-in. Cadamarteri saw the opportunity to
dart between Keown and Ashley Cole before pulling the ball back for Campbell
to finish from eight yards.
All that was left was for an ecstatic Goodison crowd to heartily boo
Dixon from the pitch as he was substituted like some pantomime villain.
Come to think of it, much of Arsenal's football had been pure pantomime,
too.
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The Electronic
Telegraph
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Gunners hit by Everton bombshell
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by Ron Clarke, Sunday Times
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ARSENAL'S attempt to stay in the slipstream of leaders Manchester United
failed with this defeat, which not only leaves them off the pace but, at the
end of the season, could be the result that put them out of the race
altogether. For Everton, missing 11 players through a combination of injury
and suspension, it was a victory ground out of enthusiasm and endeavour
rather than excellence and was the first maximum return at Goodison Park
since their first home game of the season. It was also Arsenal's first
defeat here in the Premiership.
The visitors, with thoughts no doubt focused on their forthcoming
Champions League duties, were also without eight regulars. They did,
however, dominate most of the action in terms of possession rather than
chances but finally succumbed to a double strike from Everton in the second
half.
First, on 54 minutes Fredrik Ljungberg misjudged a long ball over the
top, allowing Danny Cadamarteri to nip in and curl it past the recalled Alex
Manninger in the Arsenal goal.
It was Cadamarteri's first full game this season and his first goal for
eight months. The points were secured some 20 minutes later when
Cadamarteri, this time playing the part of provider, pushed the ball into
the path of Kevin Campbell. Without hesitation, the former Arsenal forward
whipped it past the last line of defence and into the back of the net.
Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger said later: "No excuses. We didn't do
enough going forward. It was a difficult game for us. Everton defended
well."
A delighted Everton manager Walter Smith said: "I am very pleased
with the result. I couldn't have asked any more of the players. We had the
best chances and got the goals to win the game."
All this happened on a day when Everton fans were being balloted about a
possible move to a new stadium on the banks of the Mersey. For some it is
seen as a case of the club being sold down the river and for others it is
the opportunity for the dawn of a new and exciting era. Judging by
yesterday's line-ups it appeared that many of the residents had already left
Goodison, with so many unfamiliar faces on parade.
No doubt the Gunners will have more ammunition for their European
ventures but they did not have to dig as deep into their reserves as
Everton.
It cannot be a crisis when, without top scorer Thierry Henry, you are
still able to have Sylvain Wiltord and Kanu in partnership upfront, aided
and abetted just behind by Dennis Bergkamp.
The visitors certainly had the territorial advantage throughout,
especially in the first period, but as the manager so aptly summed it up
they were unable to turn any of it into any kind of positive conclusion.
They had an early scare in the very first minute when Everton's lively
Israeli winger Idan Tal sent his volley just inches wide.
The only other highlight of a rather mundane opening 45 minutes saw Kanu
and Wiltord combine well before Ljungberg crashed the ball against the bar
from an attempted clearance. Tal whipped in a cross that only just eluded
his attacking colleagues and later fired a fierce free kick narrowly the
wrong side of Manninger's left-hand post.
The tone for the second half was set by an early rash challenge as
defender Lee Dixon ploughed straight through Tal and deservedly received a
yellow card.
As the winger had run him ragged most of the afternoon, it was a tackle
probably born more out of frustration than malice. Retribution was gained
moments later with Cadamarteri's goal and then finally completed with
Campbell's addition.
Arsenal, nominated by singer Sasha Distel as his favourite French team,
were not relishing the physical challenge. By the time they conceded the
second goal they were way off key, never mind being totally out of tune.
With Manchester United winning earlier in the day against neighbours
City, Arsenal knew exactly what they had to do to stay in touch. But even
when the referee allocated four minutes of stoppage time to extend this
pulsating encounter, it was never going to be enough to allow them to get
their championship challenge back on the road.
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Arsenal pay as their minds drift
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by Oliver Kay, The Times
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AS DEFEAT beckoned, the Arsenal supporters resorted to crowing about their
wider ambitions. “What you doing Wednesday night?” they asked of their
hosts. This snobbish attitude, where the European Cup Champions’ League
becomes an all-consuming distraction rather than a fascinating diversion,
seemed to be shared by the players on Saturday. Far too many were
uninterested, apparently saving themselves for the match against Spartak
Moscow in midweek — a fact not lost on Arsène Wenger, the manager. “Maybe
our minds were too much on the Champions’ League already,” he said.
“That’s
very bad. That’s not acceptable.”
Arsenal, having juggled their dual ambitions impressively during the
opening months of the season, appear to have slipped all too easily into
Chelsea mode. Three matches without a victory and, more alarmingly, without
a goal do not constitute a crisis, but the five-point gap that has suddenly
opened between them and Manchester United will become a chasm if they do not
sort themselves out.
Wenger sounded concerned as he attempted to explain his team’s second
defeat of the FA Carling Premiership campaign. “It is a worry,” he said.
“It may be a collective problem at the moment. We don’t look
collectively sharp going forward. It is a team problem.”
To Wenger’s immense credit, he did not use an horrific injury list as
an excuse for this strangely listless performance. “I have 20 or so
players in the first-team squad and I treat them all equally,” he said.
“We had enough players to put a good side out on to the pitch and we
should have enough good players to pick up points away from home.”
Arsenal may have been without eight senior players, Tony Adams, Patrick
Vieira and Thierry Henry among them, but Everton, with a whole team missing,
were even more seriously afflicted.
It has been a traumatic season for Walter Smith, the Everton manager, but
this victory, achieved in such trying circumstances, hinted at happier times
ahead. It has been suggested that his frustration with the club’s
persistent financial problems, compounded by the near-collapse of an
investment by ntl, the communications company, would lead him to resign, but
this performance convinced him that there is light at the end of the tunnel.
“To suggest that I would walk away at the first sign of any trouble is
totally untrue,” Smith said. “I am enjoying it here enormously.
That’s
two wins in a row now, which is very pleasing for us.
“If you look at the people who were missing from the team, it was
always going to very difficult for us, but that’s the first time since I
came here that we’ve beaten one of the top two, ie, Manchester United or
Arsenal.”
Smith’s resources may have been utterly depleted, but his makeshift
team found a collective determination to which Arsenal had no answer. While
they lacked finesse and did not manage a single shot on target apart from
their two goals, Everton were totally deserving of their first victory at
Goodison Park since the first week of the season.
Their spirit was epitomised by Danny Cadamarteri, the 21-year-old forward
who had never previously threatened to fulfil the potential he showed when
he burst on to the Premiership scene three years ago. Normally a so-called
“headless chicken”, he marked his first full appearance of the season
with a hugely impressive performance, scoring the first goal and setting up
the second for Kevin Campbell.
“That’s the type of player he is,” Smith said. “Football-wise, he
can be frustrating for me as a manager, just as he can be frustrating for
supporters to watch him play, but the one thing that you can never fault him
for is a lack of effort.”
After a strangely subdued first half, a non-event apart from a brief
early assault on the Everton goal, the home team took the lead in the 54th
minute, when Cadamarteri seized on a poor header by Oleg Luzhny to score
only his tenth league goal in 78 appearances.
Arsenal should have been stung into life, but, their minds clearly on
Moscow, they remained subdued and seemed to settle quite contentedly for
defeat. Their deficit was extended in the 73rd minute, when Cadamarteri ran
through the defence and laid the ball to Campbell, who finished in
impressive style.
There was another brief flurry as Kanu and Dennis Bergkamp, otherwise
anonymous, both threatened, but that was as much as Arsenal managed. One can
only hope that they fare better in Moscow.
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