Guys, I've just got to say I'm proud to be a Blue tonight. Total commitment in the face of adversity. I only watched from about 70 minutes in (didn't realise the match was tonight 'til a mate texted me!), so missed the sending off. However, from when i watched onwards we were top notch. I attribute our recent return to form with me drinking Adnams Broadside during the match ;-) I normally watch a game whilst drinking a beer with an appropriate football theme. Badger's Poachers Choice is another good one. Call me superstitious but i reckon it's like the twelfth man (or eleventh in this case)! I haven't been drinking Broadside for the last couple of months and look what happened! However, i managed to get a few bottles in time for the City match, and that game was a well-earned point.
Mirallas is class, we have needed a player who can run at the defence like that for so long (Drenthe looked promising until he stabbed us in the back). As for Robles, he went up a long way in my estimation tonight, some excellent saves, and I was gutted for him when he missed that penalty, which was SO close. Clearly we should have had a penalty in extra time, and in fact we have surely had more than our fair share of bad refereeing decisions going against us in recent games, which is so unfair for a team that plays with such integrity. Never mind guys, it wasn't to be tonight - but we're still in Europe, and now we can also concentrate on getting back to where we belong in the Premiership - top six. Not that this will be easy this season with the great form of West Ham and Southampton, but we're still in with a realistic shout. When all is said and done i think we have the best squad we've had for many years, maybe since the mid Eighties, so it only needs a bit of tweaking to turn us into a consistent top team. I'm glad Martinez has seen the error of his ways and adopted a slightly more direct style recently, because it was becoming frustrating with the lack of shots on goal. In summary, no, it wasn't to be tonight, that's part of the magic of the FA Cup, but i will extend my respect and gratitude to every single one of our lads on the pitch, they epitomised what Everton are all about tonight and should be truly proud of their efforts. To them, a big thank you for understanding what wearing the shirt is all about.
