andy4efc
Player Valuation: £60m
This is just Anfield derbies mate. I didnt include Goodison ones (although depressingly there wouldnt be much more W's though). 50% is a decent return record for a manager, particulary in some of the eras of the teams they've had over the years as well. Just to a bit of context, 50% wins is a 57 point hall. It's a good record for any team in what is a derby fixture. Their record against us at Anfield in 37 games is (which is effectively a season worth of games) 72 points with a game still play). 72 points from 37 games, thats Champions league return. It's a pretty good return really. You say we may cause more problems against them than other teams do, yet that record is pretty solid, especially in a derby fixture where form should in theory go out the window a bit more, it's probably a little more demoralising we haven't done so well.
As I said, for me half of it is the manner of the defeats and draws. Moyes' "knife to a gun fight approach", things like Pickfords clanger in the dying seconds. Lack of effort, in a later post I put last seasons statistics of the game on. While they dont mean everything, I'd love to see the stats for teh last 30 anfield derbies, I cant imagine it being a pleasant read. Statstics aren't everything ofcourse, you can have an opinion or form a feeling based on history of how the games go. Which is why that record I posted shows how most of us feel about the Anfield derby.
Like any club, personally I just want to see my team have a go and play without fear. That doesn't mean go gung-ho and leave yourself open to getting torn apart, but having a plan, having the confidence to play to that plan. If it works, fab, if it doesn't, then at least you've put an effort in. in 26 years of going I think we've had one real good season of away wins which was during COVID and under the best manager we've had in my lifetime.
We have seen so many cowardly performances at Anfield, particulary in recent years COVID/Carlo aside. Naturally it becomes an expectation. They have, and have had a better team for as long as I've gone the game, so expecting wins isn't logical.
Expecting effort and desire is though, and too many times we've come out and gone, "what was that?"
I admire anyones optimism, and as I started my posts, I'm not particularly arsed about tonight, if we get a point, fantastic, a win? amazing, but ultimately Arsenal and Liverpool were free passes to Dyche with the expectation of 0 points, we have 3 in the bag and makes tonight a little less important in the big picture. I just cant fault anyone for feeling similar to I do about it because we've the worst team we've had in a long long time, we dont score goals. The one real hope is that Dyche has them running and organised.
lol lol lol
