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Saturday 10 November 2012

Do Everton really have a lack of resources?

There's no doubt Everton are having a fantastic season so far, playing some exciting football and winning plenty of games.

However, something that seems to be a weekly thing is their "lack of money" or "lack of resources". The question I ask is... really?

I'm a big fan of Everton... when I say fan, I mean that they're one of the more likeable clubs in the top flight. They have a very good chairman in Bill Kenwright, a fan who who used to watch the Toffees as a youngster had done something that every other football supporter in the world would have wanted to do - taking over the club he loved.

They're a good business model, seemingly not trying to attract the star names to Goodison, instead, looking for the right players to compliment a side that David Moyes has been looking to build since he started his reign just over 10 years ago.


Moyes has been in charge for over a decade (CaughtOffside)
A regular feature that can be heard on Match of the Day on a Saturday night is "What a job Moyes has done" from the likes of former Everton striker Gary Lineker and pundits Alan Shearer, Mark Lawrenson and Alan Hansen, purring over the latest win for the Merseysiders.

Admittedly, Moyes has done fantastically well, but at the same time, the myth that he hasn't had money is false.

Marouane Fellaini signed for a club record £15m back in 2008 and, despite a tough start to his Toffees career, the big Belgian is finally starting to show some promise.


FELLAINI: Record signing (Eurosport)
Moyes spent a combined £10m on Leighton Baines (£6m) and Phil Jagielka (£4m) from Wigan Athletic and Sheffield United, just years after the duo were let go from the Blues' youth academy, something that not many know. Baines said: "I played Sunday league for a team called Key Ways. We had good players like Ryan Taylor (now at Newcastle) and David Nugent (now at Leicester). When I was 15, I knew I had to try to get a club, as I was coming towards the end of school


"I went back to Everton for a trial but they let me go again. I then went to Liverpool but they had a left back and stuck with him. It felt like the end of the world". (Toffeeweb.com)


TWO THAT GOT AWAY: Baines (L) and Jagielka (R) (Zimbio)
In more recent times, the likes of Steven Pienaar (£5m), Kevin Mirrallas (£6m), Johnny Heitinga (£6m) and Nikica Jelavic (£7m) have all arrived for hefty sums of money.

Looking back further, players such as Andy Johnson, Joleon Lescott (despite leaving Everton for a profit of the fees paid) and James Beattie all arrived for a decent amount of money too.


Lescott joined Manchester City for over £20m (Daily Mail)
So, is the famed "limited resources" actually true? You look at just some of the players listed above and I think that what is said about the Blues finances is complete codswallop. 

Admittedly the club haven't spent as much as the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United etc but, with all due respect, Everton aren't going to be a club expected to be challenging at the top with the big hitters in the Premier League.

In truth, although he gets a bit of stick from the fans, Kenwright is handing money over for players, Moyes is spending it and spending it very wisely indeed.

He's done a very good job though!