Everton Review of the Year - Part Two

As we stand on the brink of a new year, here is our second and final look back at 2017.

In part one of our yearly review, the RBM team looked back at their favourite goal, moment of the year and player of the year.

Now we look back some of the highlights - and lowlights - in the transfer market as well as matches to remember, and others to forget.

Best signing

Adam - Morgan Schneiderlin. If he was my player of the year, he's certainly my signing of the year as well. He's frustrated at times during this season, but he just brings something to the side that no other player can -- and he's sorely missed when absent.

Callum - Wayne Rooney - They said he was finished, they said it was a sympathy move, yet Wayne Rooney sits on double figures in the Premier League before Christmas for the first time since 2012. He looks hungrier than ever and although he may have lost his pace he still has the immense quality that made him one of the best players of the last 15 years.

Calvin - Legendary teams are built from the back, and the Blues picked up an incredible goalkeeper this summer. He didn't come cheap, but he kept the Blues afloat to start the season and looks better and better with each passing day. We're talking about Jordan Pickford of course.

Matt - Idrissa Gueye. He was one of Everton’s best players last season and has been one of the most important this season.

Zach - Jordan Pickford. Gylfi and Wayne have been wonderful, I've actually been very happy with Keane, but Pickford has dealt with a lot of garbage from his back line and still is playing well. He's going to be a world class keeper for a decade.

Tom - Has to be Jordan Pickford. Out of all the new signings, he is the only one to be consistently impressive so far this season. That’s all the more admirable given the terrible defence he had in front of him pre-Allardyce. The way he is progressing a World Cup place is a distinct possibility, while the No.1 shirt at Goodison is his to keep for as long as he wants.

Worst signing

Adam - Davy Klaassen. I don't know if the Dutchman actually has any real quality or not, and frankly it doesn't matter. Koeman spent a fair bit of money to bring in a player he admired and he wanted, despite the fact it appeared his scouting department had nothing to do with the move and he didn't really have a place to play him. I wish Klaassen the best wherever he winds up, but it's just hard to see him getting into Everton's crowded central midfield picture at this point.

Callum - Davy Klaassen - It was a toss up between Klaassen and Sandro however the price tag has swayed it for me. Things didn't start well for Klaassen and he hasn't really shown anything on the brief appearances he's made since the early stages of the season. He captained Ajax to a European final and scored 20 goals in all competitions last season but we have seen none of that talent as of yet. At 24 he has time on his side but will he be given it by the club?

Calvin - This one hurts me personally because I really, really wanted him to succeed and become our very own Dennis Bergkamp. Davy Klaassen has simply not looked like the player he was at Ajax Amsterdam, and is likely headed out during the January transfer window.

Matt - Morgan Schneiderlin. He’s not the worst player, but for the drama surrounding his transfer and the price paid, I don’t know if he’s worth it.

Zach - Cuco Martina is actually looking like a half-way useful Prem player under Big Sam, so this has to be Davy. What was Koeman thinking? I think Davy is a quality player, he just has no place in this team. He doesn't fit with the other pieces.

Tom - Sandro and Davy Klaassen have been the two biggest disappointments, with Klaassen’s price tag tipping it in his favour. It’s a real shame because both players clearly have talent and demonstrated that last season. Unfortunately, the Premier League is a ruthless division and sometimes players just can’t adapt. In Klaassen’s defence he has hardly been given much of an opportunity and was playing in a team that was struggling as it is. Whether he will be afforded any more chances though remains to be seen, which would be a real shame given the initial excitement at his signing in the summer.

Best game

Adam - Everton 4 - 0 Manchester City on January 15, 2017. I nearly forgot about this game because it occurred almost a full year ago, but boy, what a spectacle it was. Bright moments from youngsters Tom Davies and Ademola Lookman, domination from Romelu Lukaku, and even a goal from Kevin Mirallas -- all to go along with stellar defense against a dangerous attacking opponent. In that moment, it felt anything was possible for this team going forward.

Callum - Everton 4-0 Manchester City - Again this was an easy choice. We were absolutely phenomenal on that day and Goodison was rocking. To cap it off with two of our young guns scoring was all the sweeter. A rare brilliant day in an average year.

Calvin - So many candidates for this gong, especially last season: 4-0 win over Manchester City, 6-3 win over AFC Bournemouth, 4-2 win over Leicester City, 3-0 win over Southampton. This season.. not so much, maybe the 4-0 over West Ham United? For sheer entertainment value, I'll pick the big win over the Cherries, with Rom plundering four goals and Ross Barkley scoring that audacious goal where he celebrated before scoring!

Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images

Matt - 1-1 draw against Manchester City this season. Not the flashiest game, but it was one of the few exciting matches this season in which Everton nearly ended Man City’s currently undefeated season before it began.

Zach - Um, we took points off Man City, that looks like it's going to be a historic draw for us.

Tom - Has to be the 4-0 win over Manchester City. The best performance of the Ronald Koeman era by a distance and provided one of the most iconic moments of the year in Tom Davies’ goal and celebration.

Worst game

Adam - Worst game - Liverpool 3 - 1 Everton on April 1, 2017. Just days after Seamus Coleman's broken leg, the Toffees went to Anfield and got utterly thrashed by the Reds. When Matthew Pennington scored in the 28th minute, you thought perhaps the team would dig in with the match tied, but Coutinho scored just three minutes later to restore Liverpool's lead, and Everton never really looked in the match after that.

Callum - Atalanta 3-0 Everton - It would be easy for me to just throw up the Derby loss and even though the Italians beat us by even more at home, this one hurt the most. Optimism was sky high as we embarked on another European adventure. We were all looking ahead to topping the group and having a great run yet in the first match we were comfortably dispatched. The lack of fight, togetherness and quality was apparent and it was a sign of the horror to come.

Calvin - Unfortunately, so many candidates for this one too: 3-1 loss in the Anfield Derby, swatted aside twice by Chelsea 3-0 and 2-0, getting thrashed twice by Atalanta 3-0 and 5-1, the 5-2 debacle at home against Arsenal and then 4-1 away at the Saints. I'll choose the one that became a turning point for the season - the loss at Goodison against the Gunners that led to Koeman getting the boot.

Matt - 5-2 loss to Arsenal. The disastrous end to the Ronald Koeman era in the Premier League.

Zach - Losing to Man United and that obnoxious cow Lukaku scoring a meaningless goal.

Tom - the 4-1 defeat at Southampton. The team continually outdid themselves during the autumn with each defeat and performance worst than the last. There were so many contenders - Atalanta (x2), Lyon, Arsenal... But for me the thrashing at St Mary’s was the true nadir. After that game I genuinely feared the club was going down, which makes the recent revival under Sam Allardyce even more impressive.

Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images