An Englishman, a Scotsman and a Dutch man. A Xeno-tastic tale from Goodison Park

[TopToffee]

So, Everton stories really are like buses. You wait ages for one, then two come along at once. I'm shamelessly taking inspiration from Nadessico here - have been toying with the idea of doing an Everton story again, and his thread has tipped me over the edge.

The one thing that needs explaining is that some of the beginning part of this story is lies. I had a save game that i was really enjoying on the go, near the end of Season 1, and didn't want to start a new one.

Going back over the whole season to figure out stuff for the narrative would have been a pain in the backside, so, for the purposes of the story, i take over as manager towards the end of 04/05. This of course means that David Moyes gets credit for my signings and for having the team doing well, but I can live with that.

So, are you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin...

[TopToffee]

So, Everton stories really are like buses. You wait ages for one, then two come along at once. I'm shamelessly taking inspiration from Nadessico here - have been toying with the idea of doing an Everton story again, and his thread has tipped me over the edge.

The one thing that needs explaining is that some of the beginning part of this story is lies. I had a save game that i was really enjoying on the go, near the end of Season 1, and didn't want to start a new one.

Going back over the whole season to figure out stuff for the narrative would have been a pain in the backside, so, for the purposes of the story, i take over as manager towards the end of 04/05. This of course means that David Moyes gets credit for my signings and for having the team doing well, but I can live with that.

So, are you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin...

[TopToffee]

Monday 2nd May 2005

Shock Goodison Exit for the Moyesiah

Despite leading Everton to an incredible 2nd place in the Premiership with 3 games of the season remaining (along with a Carling Cup win, and a place in the FA Cup final to boot), David Moyes today left the club to take over the vacant managerial position at his boyhood club Celtic. Speaking to the assembled press, Moyes said, "We've had an incredible season at Everton this year, and in any other situation, there is no way I would even think about leaving. However, it has long been an ambition of mine to manage Celtic, and the opportunity might not come around again."

"I hope the Everton fans understand my decision, even if they aren't very happy with it. I very much enjoyed my time at Goodison Park, and wish them all the best for the rest of the season, and for seasons yet to come. And who knows, perhaps I will be back at the club one day."

With so little of the season remaining, Chairman Bill Kenwright said that he did not want to rush into making an appointment to the position of manager, and confirmed that highly rated Youth coach Jamie Mellor would take control of first team affairs at least until the end of the season.

"Jamie, with help from Assistant Manager Alan Irvine, will take charge of the first team, for the final three league games, and the FA Cup Final. After that, we will re-evaluate the situation in the summer."

Speaking for the first time as Everton boss, Mellor stated, "This is like a dream come true for me. I've been an Evertonian my entire life, and to be given the chance to manage the club, for however long - and of course to take them to a major cup final - is an incredible honour."

"I will be looking to do the very best I can for the club, and to continue David's good work for as long as I am here. My first concern is staying ahead of Chelsea, who have been closing quickly of late. Going into the last 3 games, we have a 5pt cushion, but with matches against Arsenal, Newcastle and Bolton still to come, that is FAR from a comfortable lead."

When asked whether he thought he had a chance of actually retaining the job past the end of the season, Mellor responded, "All I can do is my best for whatever time I have. Hopefully the players will react well to me, and we'll finish the season as strongly as we have performed for the rest of it. Obviously I would love to have this job permanently - but that isn't at the front of my mind right now."

[TopToffee]

Tuesday 3rd May

As I sat down behind my desk for the first time, I could scarcely believe this was happening. 24hrs earlier I had just been coach of the U18 side at Everton, and now, here I was, sitting in the Manager's seat. When I had discovered that I was to be given the role of caretaker manager (on David Moyes' recommendation) I didn't know what to say. This truely was my dream, and I knew that I had to make the most of it.

Knowing that this was probably only a short term appointment, I turned my attention to the match against Arsenal at Highbury in two days time. Talk about a baptism of fire! Arsenal had already run away with the league, sitting 11pts ahead of us, AND with a game in hand. First thing first, and I took a closer look at the first team squad now available to me.

Goalkeepers

Nigel Martyn

Age: 38

Caps: 23

Nigel had been first team goalkeeper throughout the season, and I wasn't about to change that. Despite his advancing years, he had performed admirably, playing in almost every game the team played, and conceding less than a goal a game. He orchestrates the back four as well as any goalkeeper I've seen, and would remain in place (barring injury) at least until the end of the season.

Richard Wright

Age: 27

Caps: 2

Despite arriving at Everton with a big (if marginally tarnished) reputation, Wright has struggled to make an impact since Martyn came into the side midway through the previous season. Questions have been raised in the media about his handling, and his confidence has taken something of a battering. Has yet to feature in a first team game this season, and I would not be surprised to see him leaving Goodison this summer (whether I am still in charge or not).

Iain Turner

Age: 21

Caps: 2 (U21)

This young Scottish stopper was very highly rated by Moyes before his departure, and I expect him to be making a push for the first team within the next season or so. Has performed impressively for the reserves this term. I shall probably use him as backup for Nigel Martyn (if any is needed) for the remainder of the season.

John Ruddy

Age: 18

Caps: 0

Another fine young goalkeeper. This England U19 international worked with me in our youth set up before my unexpected promotion. One of the stars of our run to the U18 title, I firmly believe he has what it takes to make a top notch goalkeeper, who could play at any level. Too early for consideration for a first team spot right now, but maybe not for long.

[TopToffee]

Defenders

Alan Stubbs

Pos: DC

Age: 33

Caps: 0

Club Captain, and defensive stalwart, Stubbs has featured in most games this season (barring a month's spell out injured) and his presence in the first team has been a great influence. Not the paciest of players, but his reading of the game makes him an important player for us. Possibly his final season as a first team regular, but has signed a year's extension, taking him to the end of 2005/06.

Joseph Yobo

Pos: D/DMC

Age: 24

Caps: 27 (1 goal)

Will become the second Everton player within a year to make the move to the Bernabau, when he leaves for Real Madrid at the end of this season. If I am still in charge, I will need to make it my number one priority to adequately replace him for the next campaign. Quick, strong and almost unbeatable in the air, Yobo has been an absolute fixture in the first team this season. Will be a great loss - a player I would have liked to try to build a team around.

Tony Hibbert

Pos: D/DMR

Age: 24

Caps: 0

Has had the best season of his young career this term. An ever present in the right back squad throughout the season, this tough tackling local lad has played himself into contention for an England call-up, only missing out earlier in the season due to a slight injury.

Alessandro Pistone

Pos: DRLC

Age: 30

Caps: 1

This versatile Italian has made the left back slot his own throughout this season, turning in solid performances throughout. Will face greater competition next season, with the expected return of former Blue Michael Ball from Rangers.

David Weir

Pos: DC

Age: 34

Caps: 43 (1 goal)

Has functioned mostly as backup this season, Everton's longest serving current player (arrived from Hearts in 1999) is reliably solid, good in the tackle, and in the air. However, time is starting to catch up with him, and he is a little slower across the ground than he used to be. Contract expiring at the end of the season.

Steve Watson

Pos: D/MR

Age: 31

Caps: 12 (U21)

Another out of contract player. Has featured only sparsely this season, and expected to leave at the end of the term. Decent back up for Tony Hibbert - however, first team opportunities limited by the youngster's form and reliability.

Eddie Bosnar

Pos: DLC

Age: 25

Caps: 4

The Australian was brought in strictly as backup by Moyes, and backup he has remained. Yet to feature this season, and leaving for Sydney in the summer.

[TopToffee]

Midfielders

Tim Cahill

Pos: AMC

Age: 25

Caps: 11 (8 goals)

The Australian has been an absolute revelation since his move from Championship side Millwall last summer. What can you say about a player who so far, in his first Premiership season, has grabbed 16 goals from midfield. Has been attracting interest from some of England's (and Europe's) top teams, but I have absolutely no intention of letting him go anywhere.

Mikel Arteta

Pos: AMC

Age: 23

Caps: 4 (2 goals)

The young Spaniard was signed by David Moyes just before the start of the season from Real Sociedad. Along with Cahill, has formed two thirds of Everton's central midfield trio. While Cahill has been banging in the goals in the league, Arteta has been laying them on, setting up 13 goals in the league so far this season, while knocking in 9 himself. One of the two dead ball specialists in the side. A mainstay of the team for some time to come.

James McFadden

Pos: AM/FLC

Age: 22

Caps: 23 (5 goals)

This young Scottish left winger has been one of many stars of the side this season. Has had great success both scoring and providing goals, while his willingness to run at players has caused many a defence serious problems. A rising star on the international scene with Scotland too, where he has been mostly playing upfront.

Sebastian Deisler

Pos: AMRC

Age: 25

Caps: 27 (3 goals)

Once the rising star of German football, Deisler fell out of favour at Bayern Munich, and was picked up for just £2.9m at the start of the season. Since then, barring the occasional injury he has picked up, he has been a fixture on the right wing, and a useful asset from dead balls. So far this season, he has scored 5 goals, and set up 13.

Scott Parker

Pos: DMC

Age: 24

Caps: 4

Another Moyes signing from the beginning of the season, the former Young Player of the Year's Chelsea career never really got off the ground. Began the season on the bench, before supplanting Lee Carsley just before the turn of the year. Since then, he has patrolled the midfield, breaking up opposition attacks, and getting his team's own forward momentum going. Has also chipped in with an astonishing number of goals for a (essentially) defensively minded player - 12 in the league so far. Most of these have come from outside of the box - his rasping right footed drives have given many goalkeepers cause for concern.

Peter Luccin

Pos: DMC

Age: 26

Caps: 7

This French midfielder was brought in during the January transfer window, as backup for Scott Parker. Has performed this role well, even being called up for the French national side on several occasions. Not a world beater, but good, solid backup.

Leon Osman

Pos: AMRLC

Age: 23

Caps: 0

This product of the Everton youth system has taken longer than he would have hoped to break into the first team, but finally made it this season. Has mostly started from the bench, but has had extended runs in the team due to injuries, mostly to Seb Deisler, but has also provided backup for Cahill and Arteta at times. Has performed this range of roles fairly well. His versatility is a great asset.

Kevin Kilbane

Pos: AML

Age: 28

Caps: 60 (4 goals)

Has featured in most games this season, but almost all as substitute - McFadden's high intensity role on the left wing often necessitating his withdrawal before the end of games. I expect Kilbane to remain at the club for the forseeable future, as he provides more than adequate backup for the young Scot.

Christian Seargeant

Pos: AMC

Age: 16

Caps: 0

Has featured only very sparingly for the first team this season. However he has been THE star player of my U18 side this year. This lad is destined for a great future, and I sincerely hope that I will be around to see him make the grade.

[TopToffee]

Forwards

James Beattie

Pos: SC

Age: 27

Caps: 7 (1 goal)

Has contributed a MAJOR goal threat this season, scoring 27 goals so far in all competitions. Has broken back into the England set up, scoring his first international goal against Northern Ireland in March. Despite attracting the attention of both Man Utd and Chelsea, he will be going nowhere if I have any say in the matter.

Marcus Bent

Pos: SC

Age: 26

Caps: 2 (U21)

Has provided backup for James Beattie since joining the club for just £450k. Has only started a handful of games, but has contributed some vital goals throughout the campaign.

Duncan Ferguson

Pos: SC

Age: 33

Caps: 7

Has not featured so far this season. This Everton "Legend" is out of contract in the summer, and it is expected that he will move on. Losing his £35k p/w from the wage bill will be a large weight off the club, especially given his appauling injury record.

Paul Hopkins

Pos: FRC

Age: 19

Caps: 1 (U21)

Another decent youngster, who has been putting in some fine performances for the reserves throughout the season - currently the second string's top goalscorer with 16 goals. Remains to be seen if and when he will be able to make the step up to seriously challenging for a first team berth.

[TopToffee]

Wed 4th May

David Moyes had spent the majority of the season playing a "flat" 4-5-1 formation, and I did not want to stray too far from that, given how well the team has performed. However, given the high standard of our upcoming opponents, and the fact that it is an away game, I have decided to move Scott Parker into the "hole" between midfield and defence, allowing him to track at least some of the many runners that Arsenal are likely to throw at us.

We received VERY bad news however, when James Beattie pulled up with a calf strain during the warm up, and he was replaced in the starting line-up by Marcus Bent.

FA Barclays Premiership

Arsenal 1 - 3 Everton

Starting XI

Martyn, Hibbert, Stubbs, Yobo, Pistone

Deisler, Arteta, Parker, Cahill, McFadden

Bent

In Jamie Mellor's first game in charge, Everton pulled off a truly remarkable victory, beating Arsenal at Highbury just two days after the sudden loss of former manager David Moyes.

Arsenal came out of the traps at pace, forcing veteran Everton goalkeeper Nigel Martyn into several fine saves in the first 20mins. However, it was Everton who struck first. The goal came from a familiar source, with Tim Cahill, so often a threat this season, taking the ball past Kolo Toure and stroking past Jens Lehmann on 37mins, after fine work around half way by Mikel Arteta and James McFadden.

This provoked a period of intense activity. Everton had barely finished celebrating their unlikely lead, when Arsenal hit back. On 40mins, Touré played a long raking pass from the right wing, finding Reyes on the far side of the penalty area. The Spaniard took the ball down with a deft touch, before cutting inside Joseph Yobo, and firing low into the bottom corner.

Arsenal thought they had levelled things up going into the break, but 2mins into added time, Everton grabbed a second. Marcus Bent picked the ball up on the right side, made it to the byline and crossed. Lehmann was on hand to punch the ball away, but only as far as Scott Parker, who took control on the edge of the box. The England international took one touch before lashing the ball into the top corner past the despairing keeper.

The second half consisted of Arsenal pounding on the everton defence over and over, with Martyn saving well from Pires, Reyes, and Henry twice. However, the Toffee's defence stood firm and, in injury time, the match was sealed. Leon Osman picked up possession on the edge of the box, playing it outside to fellow substitute Kevin Kilbane. The Republic of Ireland international ran at Cesc Fabregas, but then cut a pass back inside to Osman, who calmly shot past Lehmann.

The final whistle blew shortly afterwards, and Mellor sprinted onto the pitch to celebrate with his new charges, who certainly seem to have taken to the young boss quickly.

In his post match interview, Mellor said, "Well, I couldn't really ask for more than that, could I? When I saw what our first match together was, I have to say I was worried, but that performance showed just why this team is where it is in the table. Every player out there played out of their skin. Our defence were rock solid, and Joey Yobo showed why Real Madrid want him. Those 3pts have left us needing only 2pts from our remaining two games to ENSURE 2nd place, even if Chelsea win all three of their games."

[Nadessico]

3-1 vs Arsenal :O

this is bringing bad memories lol i remember winning vs Arsenal then not winning a match for 15 games lol

nice to see u started your story top toffee I'll be watching this with interest

[TopToffee]

cheers mate. thankfully, beating Arsenal doesn't seem to have had quite that same effect on my boys

[TopToffee]

Sun 8th May

The team had been buzzing in training the last few days, after our unexpected away win against champions Arsenal in midweek. There were a couple of changes for my first home match as manager, with a fit-again James Beattie returned to the starting lineup in place of Marcus Bent, who dropped to the bench, and Leon Osman coming in for Tim Cahill, who was rested.

FA Barclays Premiership

Everton 1 - 0 Newcastle Utd

Starting XI

Martyn, Hibbert, Stubbs ©, Yobo, Pistone

Deisler, Arteta, Parker, Osman, McFadden

Beattie

Everton put in another stellar performance under rookie boss Jamie Mellor today, completely outclassing Newcastle, and restricting the Magpies to just a single shot on goal. However, in spite of their dominance, it took until the 82nd minute for the goal which would ultimately settle the contest.

After a period of sustained Everton pressure, Aaron Hughes was forced to thump the ball out for a throw-in, deep inside Newcastle's half. Sebastian Deisler took the throw, and hurled it long towards the goal area.

Andy O'Brien missed what should have been a routine header, and the ball dropped at the feet of Mikel Arteta, no more than seven yards out. The Spaniard used some nifty footwork to give himself just enough space, and slotted the ball past the helpess Shay Given to give Everton the points, and ensure that they will end this season in a remarkable 2nd place in the Premiership.

"Another great performance from the lads today - they're really doing everything I'm asking of them at the moment. I think it would be fair to say that we really deserved to win by more than a goal, but I'll certainly take it." said a delighted Mellor after the final whistle, "Those points mean that we now KNOW we'll stay ahead of Chelsea until the end of the season, and maybe we can start to focus on the FA Cup Final in a little under three weeks. This is truly turning into a remarkable season for Everton, and I'm so thrilled to have played some part in it."

Thurs 12th May

McFadden to Miss Cup Final

Bad news today, as influential young winger James McFadden broke down in training with a shin injury. The Scottish midfielder is expected to be out for around 2-3 weeks, and will miss Everton's first FA Cup Final since 1995, along with our final league game away to Bolton on Saturday.

Saturday 14th May

And so to the final game of the Barclays Premiership season. With my team knowing that whatever today's results we were guaranteed to finish in 2nd place, where we started the day. Due to the injury to James McFadden, Kevin Kilbane was drafted into the starting XI, and Tim Cahill came back in for Osman. Ideally I wanted a win from this game, but didn't really mind, so long as I didn't pick up any injuries going into the Cup Final.

FA Barclays Premiership

Bolton Wanderers 2 - 2 Everton

Starting XI

Martyn, Hibbert, Stubbs ©, Yobo, Pistone

Deisler, Arteta, Parker, Cahill, Kilbane

Beattie

A surprisingly exciting match, played out between two teams who essentially had nothing to play for. Everton had already secured 2nd place in the Premiership with their deceptively comprehensive victory over Newcastle last weekend, and the spectre of relegation had vanished from Bolton's horizon, with the three promoted sides all making an immediate return to the Championship.

The Toffees must have thought they had this match sewn up, as they were leading by two goals with an hour gone. Firstly, on 30mins, Scott Parker picked up possession in midfield. He slipped a sublime through ball to James Beattie, but the England striker was dispossessed by Hunt. The loose ball, however, dropped to Parker inside the box, and he finished confidently, beating Jaaskelainen at his near post.

The score remained at 0-1 until 58mins, and it was again the combination of Parker and Beattie which was Bolton's undoing. Again, Parker found Beattie with a nice through pass, but Beattie's first time shot was stopped by Jaaskelainen. However, the Finnish keeper could only parry the ball, which left him hopelessly out of position when it dropped kindly at Parker's feet, and he passed the ball into the unguarded net. The Everton fans were jubilant, breaking out into song, "We're going to win the Cup" amongst them, in anticipation of their Cardiff match up with Chelsea in a fortnight's time.

However, Bolton were not going to lie down so easily, and hit back just 3mins later. Jaidi's long ball found Giannakopoulos on the right wing. His cross was met by Pedersen, whose first time shot was headed straight for keeper Nigel Martyn, when it took a wicked deflection off Tony Hibbert and trickled past the stranded goalkeeper.

Then, with 13mins left on the clock, Bolton were level. Nigel Martyn's goal kick was met by the head of Nicky Hunt, a little inside the Bolton half. The ball arrived with Pedersen, and he slipped a neat pass thru to Ricardo Vaz Te, who advanced on Martyn's goal, and slid the ball past the onrushing goalkeeper. Now it was Bolton's fans' turn to celebrate, as their team rescued an unlikely point.

"Well, that wasn't one of our better performances," conceded Jamie Mellor after the match, "but I still felt we had probably done enough to win. However, when you defend like we did at times today, you're always going to have trouble, and Bolton made us pay, so fair play to them. We'll certainly need to be more organised at the back against Chelsea."

[Bagpuss]

Pfft

the 4-5-1 is so last year

I've been using a 4-3-1-2 although i am considering switching to a 3-5-2 as that is a damn good formation and one that Sven should be forced to use.

Looking good so far anyway.

[TopToffee]

4-5-1 >>>>>>>>>> *

[RedmanJB]

I enjoy this story.

If possible, would you mind bolding the name of the scorer/s for the other side?

[TopToffee]

i'll do my best... might try putting them in italics for the next post, to see how that looks (so you can easily tell which team the player scores for)

[TopToffee]

Wed 18th May

Today, Borussia Dortmund notched a relatively straightforward win against Lyon in Lisbon to win the UEFA Cup final. Dortmund were two goals up by halftime, through strikes from Jan Koller and Brazilian Dagoberto (33,38). Lyon did their best to muster a fightback in the second period, grabbing a goal through Juninho after 68mins. However, they could not further their response, and the Cup went to Germany.

Wed 25th May

Bayern Munich scored an impressively comprensive victory against much fancied Inter Milan in today's UEFA Champions League Final in Istanbul, making it a clean sweet of Europe's two major competitions for German clubs. Early goals from Roy Makaay and Roque Santa Cruz (18 and 28) put Bayern firmly in control. Despite everyone in the ground expecting Inter to put up a furious fightback in the second half, it never materialised, and the win was completed in the final minute, a Bayern fast break giving Makaay his second of the game, and Munich the trophy.

[TopToffee]

Saturday 28th May

And so, to the biggest day of my career so far. Everton's first FA Cup final since 1995, when Paul Rideout's goal had secured a famous win over Manchester United. Today's match was, on paper, even tougher, if that were possible. Despite Chelsea's less than spectacular league form, they had easily the most impressive looking squad in the Premiership. An already impressive lineup having been augmented further with the big money purchases of Steven Gerrard and Ronaldinho before the start of the season, and Brazilian sensation Adriano in the January transfer window.

However, my hopes were improved as the news filtered through to our dressing room that Steven Gerrard had picked up a knock in the warm up, and would be unable to play. While this was good news, his replacement, Claude Makelele wasn't exactly a slouch. We meanwhile, would be without one of our key performers this season, James McFadden - but I had confidence that Kevin Kilbane could fill in effectively.

As I stood in the tunnel with my players waiting to emerge onto the Millenium Stadium pitch, shivers ran up and down my spine. I knew that this was a true chance to write my name in Everton history for ever, and moreover, to give myself a very good chance at being awarded the permanent position of manager. Here goes nothing...

FA Cup Final

Everton -vs- Chelsea

Starting Lineups:

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">Everton Chelsea

GK : Martyn GK: Cech

DR : Hibbert DR: Ferreira

DC : Stubbs © DC: Terry ©

DC : Yobo DC: Radoi

DL : Pistone DL: Bridge

DMC: Parker MR: Robben

MR : Deisler MC: Lampard

MC : Cahill MC: Makelele

MC : Arteta ML: Duff

ML : Kilbane SC: Drogba

SC : Beattie SC: Adriano

</pre>

Referee: Rob Styles

Attendance: 72500

The first few minutes of the game passed without any major incident, both midfields trying to get a grip on the game, and a few tough challenges flying back and forth, with Chelsea having marginally the better of it. The first attempt of goal arrived in the 7th minute.

7mins: Paulo Ferreira beat Mikel Arteta in getting his head to a Nigel Martyn goalkick, and nodded the ball forwards to Arjen Robben on the Chelsea right. Robben used his dribbling ability to ghost past Alessandro Pistone, and slip the ball to Didier Drogba on the right hand corner of the Everton box. Drogba turned and hit a vicious, dipping shot on goal, but Martyn was equal to it, saving and holding the ball.

15mins: Mirel Radoi nodded the ball back to Peter Cech, and the Chelsea keeper thumped it up to halfway, where it was met by the head of Adriano, rising above Joseph Yobo. The header fell at the feet of Frank Lampard, who ran forwards about 15yards, before chipping the ball on to Duff on the edge of the box. The Irishman switched play over to Robben on the right, who hit a powerful shot. However, the effort was always rising, and flew harmlessly over the Everton bar.

19mins: The best chance of the game so far, again falling to Chelsea. A Ferreira throw in picked up wide right by Frank Lampard, who played a beautiful raking ball to Duff out on the opposite wing. Duff controlled deftly, and crossed well. The ball was met by the head of Drogba, who planted it back across goal, aiming for inside the far post. However, he was a little off, and the ball flew just wide.

28mins: Wayne Bridge took a throw in for Chelsea on the left hand side, about level with the edge of the Everton penalty area. Joseph Yobo rose to head away, but only as far as Damien Duff, who immediately put the ball back into the mixer. This time it was met by Alan Stubbs, but his clearing header only reached the edge of the box, where it was met by Paulo Ferreira. The Portuguese full-back took one touch to control, before unleashing an unstoppable drive, which flew past Nigel Martyn, and into the top corner. Everton 0 - 1 Chelsea

31mins: Having posed little threat beforehand, the Chelsea goal seemed to act as something of a catalyst, stirring Everton into action. Sebastian Deisler picked the ball up in midfield, cutting a pass inside to playmaker Mikel Arteta. The young Spaniard wriggled past the challenge of Lampard, and played a beautifully weighted through ball to James Beattie. Under pressure from Radoi, Beattie shot powerfully at goal, but Cech was equal to it, diving to his right to parry the ball away. Unfortunately for Everton, the rebound fell to Ferreira, who hoofed it into touch.

37mins: With Everton coming into the game more and more, Didier Drogba was disposessed by Alan Stubbs, and the veteran centre back played an excellent long ball to James Beattie. The England man rose, and cushioned his header back to Arteta, who with his first touch swung the ball out wide right to Deisler. The German winger took the ball on the half volley, and smashed a curling, ambitious shot at goal. Peter Cech was taken completely by surprise, but luckily for him, it whistles just over the crossbar.

40mins: After something of a scramble on the edge of the Everton box (following a Chelsea corner), the ball fell to Deisler, who flicked it out to the left hand side, finding Kilbane. The Irish winger knocked the ball forwards to Arteta, who had moved quickly to support the counter attack. With vision typical of his season at Everton, Arteta turned and played an absolutely exsquisite ball through to Tim Cahill, who had broken clear of the Chelsea defence, perfectly beating the offside trap. Cahill advanced on Cech, and with confidence and composure belying his relative lack of top level experience, finished powerfully and precisely into the bottom left corner. Everton 1 - 1 Chelsea

44mins: After a heavy challenge from Claude Makelele, Kevin Kilbane went down clutching his right shin. After being attended to by physio Mick Rathbone, it was determined that he could not play on, and he was replaced by Leon Osman.

45mins: Referee Rob Styles blows the whistle for half time.

46mins: Both teams emerged from half time unchanged, but it was Chelsea who started stronger, trying to take back the initiative, which Everton had been gaining for the last 15mins of the opening period. Ferreira took a throw in just inside the Everton half, finding Lampard, who swept the ball out to Robben on the left wing. The Dutch winger controlled, and with his second shot fired in a powerful shot. Thankfully for Everton though, it was aimed straight at Nigel Martyn, and the Cornishman held comfortably.

56mins: Wayne Bridge moved down the left with the ball, and fed it forwards to Arjen Robben. Tony Hibbert did well to stay with him, and got an outstretched boot to the Dutchman's cross. The deflection, however, only landed at the feet of Adriano inside the box, but his vicious drive flew inches over Nigel Martyn's crossbar.

61mins: Ronaldinho and Gudjohnsen replace Duff and Drogba as Chelsea go looking for the win.

66mins: A mazy run from Robben took him past 3 Everton players, and into the box. He aimed his shot for the top corner, but Martyn was just able to get his fingertips to the ball and tip it round the post.

71mins: A Ronaldinho corner from the left was headed to safety by Tim Cahill, and met wide on the right, near halfway by James Beattie. Beattie took the ball past Wayne Bridge, and swung it into the middle to Scott Parker, about 35 yards out. Parker took the ball in his stride, wrongfooting Paulo Ferreira in the process, and taking the ball past him, and into the box. He waited for Cech to start to move towards him, before picking his spot and finishing coolly, putting Everton into the lead. Everton 2 - 1 Chelsea

77mins: After enduring several minutes of Chelsea pressure, Everton break away, and Leon Osman is tripped wide on the left by Arjen Robben. Stepping up to take the freekick, Sebastian Deisler plays a wickedly inswinging ball into the box where defender Joseph Yobo, up from the back rises well, and nods the ball past an outrushing Peter Cech, and into the unguarded Chelsea net for his first goal of the season, and possibly his last for Everton, sending the Everton fans inside the Millenium Stadium into raptures. Everton 3 - 1 Chelsea

84mins: Adriano makes a powerful, surging run from deep, beating two Everton players then finding Ronaldinho out on the right hand side. The Brazilian moves forwards, looking up and playing a beautiful ball in to Eidur Gudjohnsen, who deftly beat Nigel Martyn at his near post, reducing Everton's lead to a solitary goal. Everton 3 - 2 Chelsea

86mins: The furious finale to this Cup Final continued, with Chelsea pressing hard for an equaliser, and Everton refusing to rest on their laurels, looking to hurt them on the break at every opportunity. And so it was that, after a foul by substitute William Gallas on the Chelsea right, Deisler stepped up to take the freekick. With everyone expecting a ball into the box, the German surprised them all by knocking a short ball down the wing to Leon Osman. The young Everton midfielder then played a quick one two with Deisler, before crossing deep into the box, where Tim Cahill, making one of his late runs into the box, rose above Wayne Bridge, and planted his header past Peter Cech, and into the bottom corner, restoring the underdogs' two goal cushion with his own second of the match. Everton 4 - 2 Chelsea

90mins: Peter Cech's thumped clearance is met by a firm header from substitute Luccin in midfield. Cahill cushions the ball well, turning and continuing his vintage performance by slipping an excellent ball through to James Beattie in the Chelsea box. Beattie hits the ball first time on the turn, planting a powerful finish past the despairing Chelsea goalkeeper, completing Everton's fantastic victory.

92mins: Referee Rob Styles blows the final whistle, drawing to a close one of the best FA Cup Finals of recent years. Everton have defeated Chelsea to win the 2005 FA Cup Final!!

The Everton players celebrate ecstatically on the pitch, as two sides of the ground erupt in frantic cheers. Manager Jamie Mellor celebrates with his Assistant Alan Irvine, before running out onto the pitch to rejoice with his players as they dance and cheer in the centre circle.

Final Score: Everton 5 - 2 Chelsea

After the presentation ceremony, Jamie Mellor had the following to say, "Well, I just can't believe it, this is just an incredible day. I knew we had what it took to get a result here, but we were all still very nervous beforehand which is understandabe - but what a performance! Every single player in the side absolutely did themselves proud today. Yobo was absolutely imperious, and even grabbed a goal in his last match for us. I'd like to take this opportunity to wish him all the best for his time in Madrid, and hope that maybe one day, we might see him back at Goodison."

"As for Tim Cahill, what can you say about him? He was absolutely magnificent here today, two goals from midfield, and a great all round showing. I expect there will be teams sniffing round him in the summer, but I can tell them now, he's going nowhere. Finally, I'd like to say thankyou to our fans - they've turned up in force today, and they've done us proud. The noise coming from our sides of the ground was incredible - it felt like a home game at times. This is obviously the first trophy I've won with Everton, and hopefully it will be the first of many."

[TopToffee]

June 2005

June was a relatively quiet month, with one obvious exception. A couple of weeks after the FA Cup Final, I received a call, telling me that the Chairman wanted to see me late that afternoon, and that a decision had been made about the long term management of the club. Obviously, this call made me exceptionally nervous. I'd known that this day was going to have to arrive eventually, but the wait to hear what my fate would be was still tough. I knew that I could not have done more during my four games in charge to endear myself to the fans, players and board, and that the Chairman would have to at least consider seriously the possibility of appointing me as permanent manager.

However, a little voice at the back of my mind also kept reminding me that I had NO senior management experience, and how could a club the size of Everton, a club that would be playing the Champions League next season POSSIBLY appoint me?

So, it was with some trepidation, that at 4pm that day, I found myself seated across the desk from Bill Kenwright. He started off by saying that he was grateful for what I'd done with the team at the end of last season, and that he was hugely impressed with the results I'd achieved. Then it arrived.... the "but".

"But," he said, "Myself and the other board members don't believe you have the necessary experience to lead this team on your own full time at the moment." My head was swimming - I'd had my dream job, and I'd done everything that was asked of me far better than anyone could have expected... and STILL they were going to take it away from me? I tried to remain outwardly composed as I listened to the Chairman speak... listened as he snatched my dreams out of my grasp.

Or so I thought...

"However, as I said, the results you achieved after being in the job for such a short time were nothing short of incredible - and we also believe that it would be drastically unfair to not give you the opportunity to continue them." These words snapped me out of my sense of anger and resentment - and also confused the hell out of me.

"What we propose, is that you continue in your role as manager of Everton Football Club, but with one condition. As you know, Alan Irvine is leaving the club to join Celtic as David's assistant once again, so obviously a new assistant manager will be needed here. Our proposal is that to fill this role, we find an experienced manager, one who has worked at the top levels of English or European football, and that he works with you, to further your education in football management."

"Look," I said, "obviously I'm incredibly grateful to be given the opportunity to carry on as manager, but I'm not sure how well a situation like this would work. I mean, having joint managers didn't work for Liverpool, did it? If we disagreed on something, who are the players expected to follow? Surely it would cause massive confusion?"

"No, this wouldn't be a joint management team. You would have the final say on all team matters. The Assistant would simply be there to help you, to advise you when you need it - to offer you the benefit of his experience." replied Kenwright, obviously having expected my reaction.

I considered for a few seconds, although really there was little decision to make. I knew that there was no way I was going to turn down the opportunity to become the full time Everton manager. "OK, let's do it. Who do you have in mind for the Assistant role?"

For the next several hours, we worked through a list of names, plus a few I added in myself, eventually coming up with a shortlist of 5 managers currently out of work, who we would approach to see if they were willing to come to the club to work with me. The names on the list were nothing if not ambitious - and we both knew that if it had not been for the exceptional season the club had just had, not one of them would even consider signing up. The list comprised of the following names: Claudio Ranieri, Bo Johansson, Fatih Terim, Louis van Gaal and Otto Renhagel, who had recently stepped down as manager of Greece.

Ranieri and Terim turned us down almost immediately, due to other pending offers of employment, while Renhagel seemed to want to bide his time and see what other offers came his way. This cut the list down to two, both of whom seemed interested in taking up the role we were offering. So, it came down to a straight choice. I met with both men, and instantly struck up a rapport with van Gaal. We shared many of the same ideas on how a club should be run, and I informed the Chairman that he was the man I wanted to work with.

Mr Kenwright agreed, and Louis van Gaal signed on as Assistant Manager of Everton Football Club on 27th June. So, with the new management team in place, Mr Kenwright informed me that there would be around £12m available to spend on transfers. Despite privately thinking that we needed more than this to have a realistic chance of repeating last years successes, I kept that opinion to myself, and set about looking for potential targets.

[TopToffee]

Season 04/05 Final League Table

Season 04/05 Premiership Records

[TopToffee]

btw, RedmanJB, hope bolding the opposition scorers helped in the last match report.

Obviously i won't be doing every report like that (in such an extended fashion) just did it for the cup final - if i did them all like that, i'd have a verrrrry slow moving story

anyone else who's reading (if there is anyone ) feel free to drop in comments/criticisms/suggestions/requests as appropriate

[TopToffee]

Friday 1st July 2005

Several Everton players' contracts ran out today, including David Weir and Steve Watson, both of whom were released, and Eddie Bosnar moved on a free to Sydney.

Coming into the club were former favourite Michael Ball (for a bargain £130k) from Rangers and promising French youngster Jean Christophe Lourde (£275k)

Sunday 3rd July

A sad day for Everton Football Club, as Joseph Yobo finally completed his big money move to Real Madrid. The sale will leave a big hole in Everton's back four, a hole which will need to be addressed. Thankfully the deal was, financially at least, a good one for the club, breaking down as follows:

£9m upfront; £5m spread over the next 6 months; and a further £5m after just 10 league appearances for Madrid.

Given Madrid's traditional defensive frailties, I had no worries that Yobo wouldn't make those appearances in short order. The money would need to be spent wisely, and indeed, a deal for a potential replacement for Yobo was already taking shape. I was also looking at the possibility of replacing Alan Stubbs, whose advancing years would possibly limit the amount of first team football he would be able to play this coming season.

Tuesday 5th July

Just two days after the potentially damaging loss of Joseph Yobo to Real Madrid, Everton today filled the void, by signing the highly rated Italian centre back Daniele Bonera from Serie A crisis club Parma for £5m.

"I'm delighted that we've been able to bring Daniele to the club. He's an excellent defender already, and he will only get better as he progresses through his career," stated Mellor at the press conference marking Bonera's unveiling as an Everton player, "Obviously he has some very big shoes to fill in replacing Joseph Yobo, but I have every confidence that he will do a great job for us."

When asked about his further plans for the strengthening of Everton's squad, Mellor had the following to say, "At the moment, I am looking to bring in another one, maybe even two central defenders to bolster our numbers at the back. We've had a couple of players' contracts run out this summer, and obviously they will need replacing. I'm also having a few goalkeepers scouted, as Nigel Martyn has told me over the summer that he isn't sure he feels up to playing another full season of top flight football. Nigel has been a great servant of the club over his short time here, and we're all very grateful for his performances last season especially."

Saturday 9th July

As my search for another centre back continued, I made an offer to Chelsea for their young German defender Robert Huth, who was transfer listed, having been effectively frozen out of the first team picture at Stamford Bridge, with Terry, Radoi, Gallas and Carvalho all ahead of him in the pecking order. My offer of £2m was accepted by the London club with almost indecent haste, and I prepared to travel down south to meet with the player.

Sunday 10th July

Negotiations with Huth were concluded quickly, the player expressing that he was very impressed with what the club had achieved last season, and eager to join in with what we were trying to accomplish. The 20 year old put pen to paper on a 4 year deal, at £13,500 p/w. He was unveiled at a press conference that evening.

Tuesday 12th July

And so we arrived at our first pre-season friendly. We had travelled to Turkey for a three game tour, both to give the lads some match practice, and to help the newcomers get acquainted with the regulars. Daniele Bonera, who had now been working with us for a week, started the match, as did Michael Ball. Meanwhile Robert Huth would begin on the bench. It was my intention to change most of the team at half time, so his chance would surely come.

Friendly

EGOspor 0 - 4 Everton

Starting XI

Martyn, Hibbert, Stubbs ©, Bonera, Bal

Deisler, Arteta, Parker, Cahill, Kilbane

Beattie

Second Half

Turner, Pistone, Huth, Bonera, Ball ©

Hopkins, Seargeant, Luccin, Osman, McFadden

Bent

A comprehensive victory for Everton who, despite lacking sharpness, swept away a vastly inferior opposition with relative ease.

The rout began in the 7th minute, with James Beattie finding Kilbane after a neat one-two with Seb Deisler. The Irish international squared the ball to Tim Cahill, whose shot from around 20 yards clipped a defender and looped over the EGOspor goalkeeper and into the net.

If the first goal was a little fortunate, the second was anything but. Kevin Kilbane was brought down right on the left hand corner of the box on the half hour, and Deisler stepped up to take charge of the dead ball. With minimal run up, the German hit a vicious, curling drive, which flew into the top left corner of the goal before the goalkeeper had a chance to even move.

The third goal killed off the match as anything resembling a contest after 53mins. Christian Seargeant received the ball from Pistone's defensive header, and turned neatly just inside the EGOspor half, before slipping a clever ball forwards into the path of Marcus Bent. The striker advance on goal, waiting for the keeper to move a little way off his line, and slipped the ball inside his near post.

An emphatic victory was completed a mere 6mins later, when Peter Luccin's corner was powerfully headed in at the near post by Daniele Bonera, giving the Italian a goal in his first game in and Everton shirt.

"That was a good work out for the lads," remarked manager Mellor afterwards, "It was nice to get a result, and score a few goals, but right now it's all about getting match fitness. I was pleased for Daniele though. He's only recently joined us, and the goal he got today capped a really impressive, assured performance."

[Nadessico]

all i'm gonna say is i hate u lol

it cost me 20 mil to make a team that can challenge for europe and u've done it with 2 signings in 1 season lol

i'm gonna have to start reading on tactics

[TopToffee]

i can't account for it tbh.

the only thing i can come up with is that a couple of players for some reason are ridiculously good in this save game (Cahill, Arteta and Beattie spring to mind - don't know if they have some random attributes that have ended up really good this time or what ) and i'm also found a formation that seems to work relatively well.

i'm not expecting to do as well this season nor are the board, who are only looking for a "respectable position"... i'd be happy with a UEFA Cup spot and a couple more good cup runs. Qualifying from my group in the CL would also be nice, although i don't expect to go much further.

mind you, a couple of the signings you'll read about soon might help me out a little

[TopToffee]

Friday 15th July

Our second friendly of the week, this time against Ankaraspor, would see a new look Everton defence starting, with only Tony Hibbert remaining from last season - Huth coming in for Stubbs. Other than that, the XI was the same as the previous match. Substitutions are again going to feature prominently as I looked to improve the fitness of my squad.

Friendly

Ankaraspor 0 - 3 Everton

Starting XI

Martyn©, Hibbert, Huth, Bonera, Ball

Deisler, Arteta, Parker, Cahill, Kilbane

Beattie

Second Half

Turner, Hibbert, Stubbs©, Bonera, Pistone

Hopkins, Seargeant, Luccin, Osman, McFadden,

Bent

Another straightforward win today for Everton on their Turkish tour. They were made to work a little harder than they did on Tuesday, but still had far too much for their opponents to deal with. The opener came on 27mins, James Beattie grabbing control after a loose touch from a Ankaraspor defender, jostling his way past another, and striking a firm shot past the keeper.

The score remained the same until 70mins. Peter Luccin took control in midfield, slipping a pass square to youngster Christian Seargeant. The 16 year old turned and, with team mates perhaps in better positions, struck a powerful shot, which buried itself in the top right corner of the Turkish side's goal. The third goal came after a horrible mistake by Ankaraspor goalkeeper Ozcan Murat. Receiving the ball from a defender, and with Marcus Bent closing quickly, he tried to round the oncoming striker. Unfortunately, his feet were not nearly quick enough, and Bent snatched the ball away, and was able to finish into an empty net.

"Another decent run-out," declared Everton manager Jamie Mellor post-match, "The lads played well together, and obviously the substitutes who came on at half time did brilliantly too. Christian Seargeant had a lot of responsibility placed upon him today - he was essentially asked to perform Mikel Arteta's creative role for the second half, and he rose wonderfully to the challenge. He's a player who I'm really looking forward to watching this season, to see how he develops."

[OMDave]

Enjoyable start

Luccin is a class player in real life, and Everton could do much worse to bolster their midfield. Best of luck

[TopToffee]

cheers mate - nice to know at least a couple of people are reading and enjoying

Luccin would probably be in my starting XI, except that Parker is just playing ridiculously well - could be some time before the French man gets a chance tbh.

[TopToffee]

to anyone who's waiting for the next installment of this, sorry about the delay - gotta get a bit of the game actually PLAYED then written up... hopefully some new stuff should appear within the next couple of days

[Nadessico]

don't lie u just went awol like me lol

[TopToffee]

Sunday 17th July

Friendly

Konyaspor 0 - 5 Everton

Starting XI

Turner, Hibbert, Huth, Bonera, Ball

Deisler, Arteta, Parker, Cahill, McFadden

Beattie

Everton finished their tour of Turkey in style, with a match that was effectively over in the first half an hour. The visitors started at pace, and were ahead as early as the 3rd minute. The Turkish side's goalkeeper came well outside his penalty area to collect a back pass, then tried to clear. However, his sliced kick only found James Beattie, and the England international advanced to the edge of the box, and fired low past the despairing keeper.

The lead was doubled just 3mins later, a great long ball from Tony Hibbert finding the head of Beattie, whose knock down was met by Tim Cahill. The Australian took two touches, and dispatched his finish emphatically into the top corner. Everton's third arrived on 12 mins, a beautifully weighted through ball setting Beattie free, and allowing him to round the goalkeeper and tap into an empty net for his second of the match.

Incredibly, the scoring run continued on 27mins, a Tim Cahill flick on finding Sebastian Deisler unmarked at the back post, and the German made no mistake, burying a solid finish low into the corner. The rout was completed just 4mins later, with the finest goal of the bunch. Mikel Arteta received the ball from McFadden about thirty yards out, turning neatly before firing a viciously curling, dipping shot into the top right corner, giving the goalkeeper absolutely no chance.

The rest of the game played out without further score, despite repeated Everton attacks. After the game, Everton manager Jamie Mellor had the following comments, "Obviously, I'm delighted with the scoreline today, but as I've said before, it's really about getting the players match fit. They're looking sharper with every game, now we've got to head back to England for our last three friendlies - and we really can't wait for the season to start. This break away has really helped our squad to bond, and it will serve us well throughout the season."

19th July

Transfer Rush

A busy day today at Goodison Park, with the club unveiling two new signings. Firstly comes Argentine goalkeeper Sebastián Saja for £4m. The 26 year old is seen as the immediate successor to Nigel Martyn, who is looking to move into more of a coaching role, after a long, distinguished career. Saja broke into the national squad at the end of the previous season, and has been linked with several top European sides.

Second, and more of a surprise, is Tottenham centre back Ledley King. After Spurs' woeful season last time round, and in the wake of a falling out with manager Martin Jol, King had requested a transfer away from the club. It was widely rumoured that he would become the second Spurs defender of recent years to make the short trip to Arsenal, but Everton boss Jamie Mellor swooped in and secured the player for £5m + Richard Wright.

"I'm absolutely delighted to welcome to Goodison two players of the calibre of Sebastián and Ledley. We have some fine young goalkeepers at this club, but with Nigel taking more of a backroom role this season, we needed someone for the here and now, and Sebastián fits that bill absolutely perfectly," said Mellor, "And of course, we have Ledley - a player whom I believe has the ability to become one of the truly great central defenders in world football. Both players I'm sure will serve this club with distinction, and I look forward to working with them."

[TopToffee]

Wednesday 20th July

Despite only having been back in the country for two days, our first friendly on English soil was already upon us. Norwich, having been relegated the previous season, were eager for preseason matches against Premiership opposition to get them ready for a promotion push, and we were only too happy to oblige.

This would be a step up in quality of opposition for us (compared to the Turkish tour), and I looked forward to seeing how we stood up to it. I had a full squad to choose from, including our two recent signings - both would start as I quickly looked to get them integrated with the rest of the squad.

Friendly

Norwich 0 - 2 Everton

Starting XI

Saja, Hibbert, King ©, Bonera, Ball

Deisler, Arteta, Parker, Cahill, McFadden

Beattie

Things did not start well for Everton today at Carrow Road, with star striker James Beattie picking up a strained shoulder just ten minutes into the match, and having to be replaced by Marcus Bent. The lack of their usual target man upfront could explain Everton's somewhat lacklustre performance today, although it could also be something to do with their hectic travel schedule over the last 72hrs. Despite starting with a full strength side, it was not until the 73rd minute, that the Premiership side finally took the lead.

From a Norwich throw in, Seb Deisler got up above Luke Daley, and nodded the ball to James McFadden wide on the left. The young Scot cut inside, and lofted a delightfully weighted ball over the top of the defence to the onrushing Marcus Bent. Bent took a single touch, before letting fly from the edge of the area - his powerful shot beating Rob Green at his near post, and flying into the back of the net.

The score did not stay at 0-1 for long though, as Everton seemed to have discovered their cutting edge. Scott Parker, playing a more advanced role since the half time withdrawal of Mikel Arteta, fed the ball thru to Marcus Bent upfront, but he was quickly dispossessed. The loose ball fell to Peter Luccin, who squared to Parker, about 30 yards out. As he did so many times last season, Parker looked up, and unleashed a crashing drive with his right foot, which flew into the top corner, before the Canaries' goalkeeper even moved. A rash of Everton subsitutions followed, and the rest of the game played out without notable incident.

"The lads have done really well today," stated Jamie Mellor in his post match interview, "Obviously losing James so early on was a great blow, but Marcus has stepped in and done really well, bagging a goal for us. The two new boys, Ledley King and Sebastián Saja have both had good games. Ledley was a rock at the back, and a good chunk of the reason why Sebastián didn't have much to do. But what he did have to deal with, he did comfortably."

Friday 22nd July

In the friendly on Wednesday, James Beattie's injury made it clear to me that we are lacking of any real high quality backup upfront, so with that in mind, and with around £6m remaining in my summer warchest, I tabled a £5m bid for Spartak Moscow's highly rated young Argentine striker Fernando Cavenaghi. I was fairly optimistic of succeeding until later in the day, when I was told that Real Madrid had matched our offer for the player. With this in mind, I started to at least think about alternative targets.

Monday 25th July

The bid that I made on Friday for Cavenaghi was yesterday accepted by Spartak Moscow, and the player flew in for talks today. I put forward the terms that we were offering, and told the player of the plans I had for the future - plans I hoped he would be a part of. I was determined that I would not be held to ransom over the contract - despite Real Madrid's interest. With the meeting over, the player left to fly to Madrid for talks with them. I wasn't holding my breath.

[Guest]

I'm liking the story mate, keep it up!

Don't you think you've got too many defenders now? They all look good, but how are you going to please them all?

Also, you only seem to have Beattie and Bent as strikers. Wouldn't a third striker be an good option in case of emergencies? Looking through Italy for youngsters is a good route.

[TopToffee]

bad news i'm afraid.... save game seems to have corrupted - or at least it won't load at any rate....

was working yesterday, and haven't loaded it since either

will try again tomorrow, see if it works... but not holding out too much hope.