Former Everton Centre Forward Duncan Ferguson steps into management.....


The Penalty Box Dancer said:
Manchester City vs Everton
17th March 2027

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The title race was looking like it was over, Man City were in third 20 points behind Arsenal who were on course for a back to back title. Man City had the Champions League Quarter Final to look forward to in a week’s time. City won the Quadruple in 2024 however had not won a trophy since Pep Gaurdiola left the club. Jose Mourinho was searching for his swan song. Everton were up against it tonight and Ferguson went with the traditional 4-4-2. Branthwaite was on the bench and Onana and Matsima were at the back. Ferguson didn’t risk Konate or Mead and went with Gonzalez and Cunha as the Centre Forward pair. Digne took the ball on the left and played a good ball inside to Partey who had some space, he played it to Roony and he went back to Patterson as Everton searched for the opening, back to Partey in the middle and he found Gonzalez who tried a shot from the edge of the box but it went wide. Roony signalled to come off on 27 minutes, hopefully not a major injury for the youngster but injuries are beginning to affect his game. Martin Tejon came on. Man City were being frustrated by a tight-knit Everton side who were refusing to allow Haaland to get on the ball. City piled on the pressure close to the end of the first half but Pickford was on top of his game and Onana was giving Tammy Abraham a tough evening. It wasn’t much longer before the breakthrough came and it was Theo Hernandez getting the ball into the six yard box and De Bruyne got there to nudge it over the line on 53 minutes. A mistake by Martin Tejon 7 minutes later allowed Hernandez to get the ball into the feet of Haaland and with sight of goal, he rarely misses, 2-0. Ferguson made two changes and it was the substitute Martin Tejon going off for Danny Mead. Tejon just doesn’t seem cut out for Premier League football and has not had any impact on the game. Maffeo replaced Digne and Patterson went to Left Back. On 83 minutes Samardzic beat his man on the left and crossed into the box, Mead went up for it but it hit the hand of Doyle, Mead went over to the ref and it was checked by VAR. It was a frustrating wait inside the Etihad but the referee gave the penalty! Gonzalez placed the ball down and smashed it low and hard into the bottom left corner! It was too late for Everton though and they couldn’t muster another chance to get back into the game. They defended well at times but Man City were far too superior.

PLAYER RATINGS

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Manchester United vs Everton
20th March 2027

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Everton were in Manchester again but this time to take on Manchester United at Old Trafford. Three straight defeats saw Everton lose ground on the teams above but in no danger of being sucked into a relegation battle. Ferguson made changes and had some players back to full fitness. Branthwaite was back in defence and Onana and Garner were called into midfield. Cunha was given a rare chance on the left in an interesting selection and a front two of Mead and Komate put a smile on the faces of the travelling supporters. Ten Haag was doing a good job at Man Utd but had only won the League Cup so far in his tenure. 11 points behind Arsenal with 8 games to go would require Arsenal to slip at this point. Man Utd played some fine football to get out of their half, Ederson was exceptional in the build-up, he played a one-two with Schjelderup and then side-footed it from outside the box into the right side of the net on 19 minutes. Man Utd were cooking and when Schjelderup walted into the area unscathed, he put it across the box for Rashford to run in and smash in from close range, 2-0 on 29 minutes. Everton’s best chance came before half-time, Mead with a nice forward ball for Konate to latch onto but Onana rushed off his line to save his shot. Cunha had a chance just after the restart but Martinez threw himself in the way and deflected it over the bar. Man Utd were looking good and Fernandes-Neto found Hojlund with a long ball forward, enough time for him to take it down and make it 3-0 from inside the area. James Garner put in a good tackle on Hannibal and played it forward to Konate, he flicked it on and Mead knocked the ball past Martinez and beat him for pace and then dinked it into the left corner! Great goal by Danny Mead! Man Utd came back straight away and Rashford played a nice ball into the box for Tel to slot into the bottom right corner, 4-1 on 70 minutes. Lucas Digne put in a great cross to the far post for Gonzalez and his header was tipped over by Onana. Tel finished the rout on 92 minutes when he took the ball with his back to goal and left Branthwaite and Matsima standing still, he beat Pickford with ease and finished the game on a high. Ferguson put his head down at the whistle, he looked so dejected and beaten. The job now looking to take its toll. What seemed to be going so well has now became stagnant at Everton. Could Moshiri be looking to make a change when Duncan Ferguson’s contract expires this summer?

DF: I’m the first to hold up my hands and accept that there’s a problem. We are getting it wrong out there week after week and we need to pull our weight. Too many defeats and it is a despicable run we are on. I can’t excuse it or paper over the cracks. It’s a good time for the International break because I need some serious time on the training pitch to get these lads firing again.

PLAYER RATINGS

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Tottenham Hotspur vs Everton
3rd April 2027

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The International break passed and was successful with no new injuries reported. Danny Mead made his England U21 debut coming on for the last 15 minutes against Spain and Adam McConville earned his first Scotland cap in a 4-1 win over Egypt. Lucas Digne was serving a one match suspension so Nathan Patterson came in at Left Back. Partey, Onana and Samardzic made up the midfield and Karim Konate was selected up top. Moleiro moved the ball down the left after taking the pass from Onana, he played it back to Patterson and he passed inside to Partey, he took the shot from 20 yards out and Perri got across well to tip it wide, goof effort from Partey on 13 minutes. Everton grew into the game and Moleiro was allowed space to run into down the left, he was jockeyed by Porro so made the cut back to Patterson, he gave it to Onana to take the shot on and he hit it just wide of the right post. Pickford made a good save from Porro at the other end at his near post putting it behind for a corner. Porro sent the corner in and as it came in Matsima impeded Phillips and the referee pointed to the spot. This could change the dynamic of the game. Bissouma stepped up and rolled it into the left corner sending Pickford the wrong way. Samardzic lost the ball in the middle and Phillips pumped it forward, Son headed it on and Leonardo smashed it into the back of the net, 2-0. Everton came out for the second half with fight but Perri was unstoppable today, Moleiro came close from range but he got out to tip the shot away. 20 minutes to go and two goals needed, Godfrey was on at Left Back, Cunha came on for Partey and the fan’s favourite Danny Mead was on for Konate. Branthwaite was unsure whether to pass back to Pickford but tried to put it out of play but it was kept in by Van De Ven, his cross was cleared but Lo Celso won the header, Bentacur played it wide to Maddison and he passed past Godfrey to Toklomati to leave Branthwaite and slot to make it 3-0 on 75 minutes. Tottenham were running riot and two minutes later Son found Toklomati for his second from close range. Everton had a couple more chances, Mokleiro testing the hands of Perri and Mead came close too but no goals for Everton despite having 8 shots on target, the same as Spurs.

DF: I want to apologise to all the supporters, they deserve better than this and this lies with me. I want Everton to be successful and we are giving it our best shot but the results aren’t good enough and the fans deserve so much more. I’m talking from the heart and being brutally honest and the supporters deserve that at least. I want what is best for the football club and that comes before my personal feelings. This is not me being defeatist but I’m hoping by being open with everyone, they can understand I am hurting just like them. I have a contract and I owe that to the people to continue to work hard. My job starts when things aren’t going well and I don’t want to sound cliché but we do have to pull together and have a good sit down about our season so far. A club with this much talent should not be struggling and I have to go to the route and find out just what is going on.

PLAYER RATINGS

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LEAGUE TABLE

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Everton vs Manchester United
10th April 2027

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Was redemption on the cards for Everton after they were on the end of a 5-1 thrashing three weeks ago. Matheus Cunha could miss the rest of the season with a calf injury so Carlos Alcaraz was given his chance behind Karim Konate. Beto was back fron injury and was named on the bench. The atmosphere inside Bramley Moore was flat, and unusual for an Everton side that had been on the cusp of competing higher up the table. An atmosphere that resembled times under Benitez, Lampard and Dyche. A Man Utd corner on 19 minutes and Luke Shaw’s cross was headed away by Branthwaite. Konate lost the battle with Kayode and he got it down for Rashford to drill into the bottom left cotner, 1-0. Samardzic played it wide to Moleiro who cut inside beating Kayode with ease, he fed it through to Alcaraz who made a good run into the box and his shot deflected off Pavard to level the score on 22 minutes! It was a good first half for Everton, some nice passing moves into the final third, just the finishing was lacking and Konate needed to get more into the match. Digne conceded a free-kick about 20 yards out and Fernandes knew where it was going, top right corner with power, what a strike. 2-1 to Man Utd. Unuted found their rhythm and Rashford in space curled one in from the left side on his right foot nestling it into the right corner, 3-1 on 56 minutes. Everton made some attacking changes with Konate going off for Mead and Beto coming on for Alcaraz. Man Utd brought on Schjelderup for Antony. Beto looked to get involved and got on the ball to bring it forward , he tried to cross low for Mead but Varane got in the way to turn it behind. Everton were having a go but Man Utd defended very well clearing low crosses from the six yard box. With Everton up the other end, United got the ball forward to Tel who passed to Fernandes and he had Ederson overlapping, he got played in to seal it on 85 minutes, another thrashing for Everton. An empty Bramley Moore inside stoppage time as the United supporters cheered theit sides every pass. 22 goals conceded in their last 6 games and only four goals scored. It really is a worrying time and Ferguson could be heading for the door.

PLAYER RATINGS

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Brentford vs Everton
13th April 2027

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A midweek trip to Brentford to take on a side that have been performing well above expectations this season. Eddie Howe came in the summer of 2026 and is on the verge of Champions League qualification in his first season. A win tonight will see them overtake Liverpool and move into 4th place. Everton looked to be up against it and Ferguson was trying to guide his side to the end of the season at which point his contract comes to an end. I doubt there is much he can do to save his job after some horrific defeats in recent weeks and supporters losing faith in his managerial ability. For this match he went with Zubeldia and Matsima at the back. Garner in the middle and Beto starting up top. Brentford made it 1-0 after 15 minutes, Ouedraogo played it through to Schade and he rolled it into the bottom left corner. Pedro Neto took advantage of poor Everton defending but got lucky with the shot deflecting off Zubeldia and going in to make it 2-0 before half-time. Everton were struggling out there and needed freshening up, Samardzic came on for Moleiro and Mead came on for Beto with 35 minutes to go. Alcaraz went down with an injury so Konate came on. Ferguson went to a front three of Mead, Gonzalez and Konate. All or nothing here. Everton caught on the counter and Neto only had Matsima to beat, he played it through for Mbuemo to chase and he smashed it past Pickford to send the fans into delirium. Champions League football on the horizon!

PLAYER RATINGS

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Everton vs Leicester City
24th April 2027

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In the title race, Arsenal were handed a massive boost as Man City beat Man Utd and they were three points away from securing a second consecutive title.
Everton currently the worst form team in the league and struggling with 74 goals conceded this season. The issue is Strikers are finding too much space and the Centre Back’s are not picking up their men. Jarrad Branthwaite has struggled since returning from injury and the full backs are often being caught out on the flanks. Lucas Digne is not the player he once was and is really struggling at Premier League level. It could be why Ferguson has dropped him and brought in Ben Godfrey. Branthwaite went Left Back and Godfrey went into Central Defence. Onana, Partey and Samardzic made up the midfield with 16 year old Danny Mead starting up top. Everton had a good chance on 10 minutes when Partey knocked it wide to Patterson and he crossed it in for Partey at the far post and his header clipped the outside of the post. Everton look a lot more positive but on 33 minutes Humphreys cut in from the left and found the bottom right corner through the defence to give Leicester the lead. Bennette took the ball with his back to goal inside the area and Patterson slid in from behind to take the ball but also took him down resulting in the referee giving Leicester the penalty. Patterson went into the referee’s book for this one. Wissa stepped up for Leicester and smashed it into the top right corner, no hesitation. Samardzic went over to take the Everton corner a minute later and sent it in to the six yard box where Matsima was to smash in the jumping header! Everton came close to the equaliser just on the stroke of half-time with Partey not taking the risk with the header and Al-Owais gathered the ball. Second half started with Everton pressing, Branthwaite took it down the left and passed inside to Onana who brought it into the opposition half, he played a good ball to Samardzic and he instinctively played it through for Mead who turned on it beautifully and he slotted into the net to make it 2-2! Hang on, the referee has ruled it out after VAR checked it and Mead was a fraction offside, they really need to get a handle on VAR and make it consistent. Chances came for Everton, Mead shooting over the bar on 75 minutes but they were doing ok. Ferguson made three changes on 80 minutes, Onana went off for Garner, Maffeo came on for Gonalez and Beto replaced Mead for some experience. Everton came forward on 85 minutes, Samardzic played it to Patterson, he knocked it to Partey who went for goal from 20 yards out and the keeper pushed it behind. Moleiro got it forward to Beto who took it wide but got the cross in and Samardzic skied it. Everton coming close but just need to finish better. Branthwaite pumped the ball into the box for one last chance but Al-Owais rose to claim it and that will be all. It was better from Everton but they just couldn’t find that second goal. There will be questions over Danny Mead’s disallowed goal as it was so, so close. Positives to take but not the result Everton wanted. In other news, Arsenal thrashed Brentford in style 5-0 to win their 15th league title.


Duncan, 8 defeats in a row, reports of a broken dressing room and players wanting to leave in the summer.

DF: There are no issues inside the dressing room, the players are affected by this and want to change the fortunes of this club.

After spending big money to get Everton back into Europe and the club in £100M of debt, is it a case of selling in the summer?

DF: We have to evaluate the squad and work out what we can do in terms of contracts and what offers are presented to us. It’s difficult when players are capable of playing in the Champions League and we haven’t managed to get there yet. We want to keep our best players but we know how difficult it will be considering we have to be careful with PSR.

PLAYER RATINGS

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LEAGUE TABLE

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