Deadline day in the Premier League is one of the most stressful days of the year for football fans. Big names are thrown around on television and rumours spread quicker than wildfire. Many fans see their clubs sell at the last minute much more often than they buy last minute, and for Evertonians, this is the constant. Going on to 30 minutes before the window closed Evertonians, glued to social media, were going into meltdown as Marouane Fellaini was leaving, Victor Anichebe was leaving, and nobody was coming in. Panic spread and murderous glances were being thrown Bill Kenwrights way. However, with 10 minutes left in the window, glorious retribution came Everton’s way. In a manner befitting Everton, 3 players were quickly signed and 2 departed. Gareth Barry, James McCarthy, and Romelu Lukaku were the new faces coming in and Marouane Fellaini and Victor Anichebe were the ones to depart.
Starting with Gareth Barry, the Manchester City midfielder and England international is going to provide something we’ve needed since January: midfield depth. Barry comes in on a season-long loan and, when the news was released that we were in for him, many Manchester City fans bemoaned their loss. Rightfully so as Gareth Barry is exactly the type of midfielder any team would be loath to give up. While the 32-year olds best years are behind him, Barry still does his job better than many would imagine a fading star to do. A no-nonsense non-flair player, Barry is a Premier League winner and will be exactly the type of player needed for depth, experience, and teaching young and upcoming players such as Ross Barkley and Evertons next signing, James McCarthy.
McCarthy is a 22-year old Republic of Ireland international from Wigan Athletic. Roberto Martinez has wanted him since he got the Everton job. The saga between Everton and Wigan chairman Dave Whelan has been a long and frustrating one. Whelan has been a bit of a short fuse when it comes to news about Wigan and Everton. He was the first to blab about Martinez joining Everton even though the club wasn’t ready to announce. He happily announced Arouna Kone was joining Everton prematurely and told the world about Evertons interest in McCarthy the second we enquired. He hardly budged from his 15-million pound valuation of McCarthy, only giving him up at a final £13 million bid put in at the dying bell. McCarthy is a very interesting player. Martinez obviously rates him very highly and Evertonians are quite literally split down the middle about him. There are many fans that rate him just as highly as Martinez and are very excited to have him in. On the other side, there are many fans that don’t rate him highly at all and felt we could’ve done much better with the time we had. I haven’t seen enough of McCarthy to put in any educated and informed analysis of the player, but I can say that I trust Martinez’s judgment of McCarthy and expect him to jump right into the squad as a replacement for Fellaini.
As for Evertons last signing, Romelu Lukaku is exactly what we were looking to get out of this transfer window. A proven goalscoring striker, Lukaku was on loan at West Bromwich Albion last season and promptly scored 17 goals in 20 starts. Chelsea looked to figure him into their plans this season, until they purchased Samuel Eto’o. Once that happened, a loan deal for Lukaku seemed imminent. No clubs really seemed to put themselves in front to sign the young talent. Rumours from West Ham were first, but they never came to fruition. Lukaku seemed set for a frustrating season on the bench until deadline day rolled around. With only a couple of hours left in the window, Sky Sports learned of interest from Everton in Lukaku and the transfer roulette started. During Evertons darkest hour on deadline day, Lukaku seemed to have shunned Evertons interest and pushed for a move back to West Brom. However, Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho persuaded Lukaku to move to Everton and, with a tweet from the player himself, the move was sealed. A man labeled “the next Didier Drogba,” Lukaku has more hype surrounding him than just about any other youngster in the league. He’s strong, quick, intelligent, and only 20 years old. He can score, tackle, run, and pass at an extremely high level. He’s the type of player that will latch on to a ball across the face of goal. The type of player who can change a tied game in the 90th minute. The exact type of striker Everton needed. We’re creating the chances, but nobody was finishing them. Now, with a strike force of Lukaku, Mirallas, Deulofeu/Pienaar, and Barkley, goals should start flowing freely.
One other man not arriving but staying at the club is the beauty that is Leighton Baines. Many fans claim this is greater than any business we’ve done this transfer window and I find myself loathe to disagree with them. Baines is quickly becoming an Everton legend. He loves his football here and, despite interest from clubs many would call “bigger” than Everton, he refuses to stir up any sort of trouble for the club. Manchester United consistently undervalued the England left back in their pursuit of him. Bids ranged from 12 million to 15 million pounds and these bids came late in the window as well. At the end of the day, Baines stays and Evertonians rejoice.
As far as Fellaini and Anichebe are concerned, I can’t wave good-bye to them without feeling a bit sad. Fellaini was our record-breaking signing 5 years ago. He came in as a tall, lanky, awkward kid from Belgium and turned into the towering midfield presence we all came to know and love. Even his temper and work ethic didn’t do much to dissuade us from singing his name out. Seeing him in the red of Manchester United just doesn’t seem right. It doesn’t suit him like the blue of Everton. Unfortunately, that’s the way football goes nowadays, and business is business. For Anichebe, the departure hits a bit closer to home. An Academy graduate, Anichebe was a player well loved by almost all Evertonians. He worked his way through injuries, terrible work ethic, and in-form strikers to have an extremely promising season off the bench last year. However, with the arrival of Martinez, Anichebe and Roberto’s playing styles didn’t quite fit into the framework and West Brom swooped in to claim Anichebe as their own. When I got a chance to look at Anichebe holding up their jersey, I saw a broken player, despite the smile on his face. Everton was the club he grew up with, as a player and as a fan. My fondest memory of Victor was at the only match I’ve been able to attend so far, a 2-1 win for the Blues in Newcastle, with Anichebe scoring the winner and shushing the Geordie crowd. But, again, football is a business and Victor knew that if he stayed at Everton, he wouldn’t be getting any games, especially with the arrival of Lukaku. The move to the Baggies may well have saved his career, but it shattered his heart in the process.
If it were up to me, all Everton players would stay and become club legends. It hurts to see players we get so used to seeing play in the royal blue of Everton make a move, but greater players have come and gone from this outstanding club. Whatever happens the rest of this season, we, as fans, must never forget that, even though the players portray the club on the field, we are the lifeblood of Everton. Our rich heritage is owed to the generations of people who’ve stuck by this club through thick and thin. We must maintain the responsibility of carrying the mantra for Evertonians of years past.
Nil Satis Nisi Optimum.
Nothing But The Best Is Good Enough.
We must get behind the players, the manager, and the club.
The Board can stuff it.
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