Koeman’s comments do not inspire confidence in Everton

Everton looked as flat and listless as if the international break never happened, and Ronald Koeman’s project is not looking good early on in a season that was supposed to have so much potential. It was apt that the team was blown away by Tottenham Hotspur, whose progress Koeman himself had said Everton should aspire to this season and the next.

Spurs dominated the game and a brace from Harry Kane with another from Christian Eriksen inflicted only the Toffees’ second defeat at Goodison Park in 2017.

After the game, Koeman spoke to the media -

That’s a little like closing the stable door when the horse has already bolted, isn’t it? It was 2-0 at the break already.

Yes, yes, no kidding. If he’s making excuses for the listlessness then that’s pretty lame Ronko.

Well what happened then, ran out of gas after the first half hour? Not much of a halftime speech then either?

Playing Sandro Ramirez and Cuco Martina down the right, what else did you expect? Huge gaps between the two.

For the first 30 minutes we looked like a 7th placed team, like last season. The remainder of the game we were no better than a lower midtable team.

Koeman still has a lot of work to do before this team looks as good as it does on paper.

Full comments below -

“I think we started the game well, had a good control on the game and some chances, but the first goal - and maybe it’s a lucky first goal - makes it more difficult for us.

“We lost control, we had real problems with Tottenham’s diamond formation and they found easily the free player in the midfield. Then you are running behind the situation.

“The 2-0 before half-time was difficult, and if you see how we started the second half, that was really poor.

“Three-nil down, one team was full of confidence and Everton were without any confidence, and that makes it even more difficult.

“We’re disappointed, but they were by far - after 1-0 - the better team this afternoon.”

He also went on to bemoan the effort from a languid team that lacked a sense of urgency all game long.

“When I spoke about Tottenham [before the game], I mentioned that maybe with Man City they have the best football side in the Premier League.

“You have to learn from defeats and we can learn from the way we lost today.

“We lost aggression in the second half and that can be [to do with] confidence.

“But I think in several aspects in the game in the second half the players were too nice. I don’t ask for yellow and red cards but we gave the ball too easily to Tottenham.”