Royal Blue Mersey - Everton at Millwall: FA Cup Fourth Round MatchdayIt's a grand old team to supporthttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/52544/royal_fav.png2019-01-27T18:31:00+00:00http://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/rss/stream/179648722019-01-27T18:31:00+00:002019-01-27T18:31:00+00:00Millwall supporters make mockery of ‘family club’ award
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<img alt="Millwall v Everton - FA Cup Fourth Round" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/O9_U6ierucd2A5vu6cGr2RQsZg4=/0x0:5294x3529/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/62939149/1089881894.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Violence and racial abuse have no place in today’s game</p> <p id="cozXP2">To the victor go the spoils, and apparently all the crass behaviour that is widely associated with Millwall supporters too. </p>
<p id="m8I9TQ">The Lions fans have always been known for retreating to the neanderthal era and showed yesterday that as a club on and off the pitch they still belong in the ‘80s when this was commonplace. </p>
<p id="k17Z6I">To Millwall’s credit, manager Neil Harris came with a plan and his players executed to perfection while Marco Silva’s <a href="https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/">Everton</a> side showed they were a bunch of spoiled and overpaid brats who had forgotten how to play football when the rain was pouring down and faced with a physical challenge. </p>
<p id="OkA9fA">The Millwall fans had already threatened violence to Everton’s traveling supporters on Twitter ahead of the <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/fa-cup">FA Cup</a> game, and ugly scenes ensued all over East London for the late afternoon fixture. </p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Everton with a huge turnout at Millwall pub <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/pave?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#pave</a> <a href="https://t.co/7hGZcELksU">pic.twitter.com/7hGZcELksU</a></p>— The Casuals Warehouse (@thecasualshouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/thecasualshouse/status/1089268494649171968?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2019</a>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/news_pave?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@news_pave</a> Millwall on the right,Everton on the left. <a href="https://t.co/qB5kyXmRRI">pic.twitter.com/qB5kyXmRRI</a></p>— Jason Cartmell (@CartmellJason) <a href="https://twitter.com/CartmellJason/status/1089216756281950208?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2019</a>
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<p id="v6IXLp">Unfortunately, it wasn’t as harmless as the spats between the Jets and Sharks in Westside Story, as one unfortunate Blue was to find out. </p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Look at this scummy Millwall fan stab an Everton fan in the face. Disgusting.<br><br>RT this to raise awareness and shame this horrible bastard! <a href="https://t.co/dIVwDpE3eU">pic.twitter.com/dIVwDpE3eU</a></p>— EvertonBlues (@EvertonBlues_) <a href="https://twitter.com/EvertonBlues_/status/1089224544315994112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2019</a>
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<p id="nl0F59">The Blue who got stabbed was in pretty bad shape immediately after the incident, but received immediate medical attention. </p>
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<p lang="und" dir="ltr"> <a href="https://t.co/WCyI0TMLSd">pic.twitter.com/WCyI0TMLSd</a></p>— EvertonBlues (@EvertonBlues_) <a href="https://twitter.com/EvertonBlues_/status/1089580505937383424?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 27, 2019</a>
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<p id="sPbqHb">Unfortunately it didn’t end there though, with the hatred flowing right throughout the game as well, devolving into racist and bigoted chanting that really has no place in the game today. </p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Millwall fans singing ‘I would rather be a p*** than a scouse’ to Everton fans is just fully vile. Trampy club. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Mileve?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Mileve</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/facup?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#facup</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/millwalleverton?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#millwalleverton</a> <a href="https://t.co/Hkz8UZX1la">pic.twitter.com/Hkz8UZX1la</a></p>— ANWAR (@AnwarEllis) <a href="https://twitter.com/AnwarEllis/status/1089257202014216192?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2019</a>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Millwall fans ‘taunting’ (I’m not even sure if that’s the right word) an Everton coach with the chant ‘you’re fucking owned by a Muslim.’ <br><br>Let’s see if <a href="https://twitter.com/FA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FA</a> take some action <a href="https://t.co/Pw94YjJ9CA">pic.twitter.com/Pw94YjJ9CA</a></p>— James Corbett (@james_corbett) <a href="https://twitter.com/james_corbett/status/1089268045292412934?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2019</a>
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<p id="lezT63">As soon as these videos went viral on the internet, the Championship club had to take immediate action, even if it was purely for show, and Millwall released <a href="https://www.millwallfc.co.uk/news/2019/january/club-statement/">the following statement</a>: </p>
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<p id="2XkBml"><strong>Millwall Football Club is aware of, and extremely disappointed by, a video circulating online displaying alleged racist chanting during Saturday’s victory over Everton.</strong></p>
<p id="fMYu5f">The club will, as is commonplace following such incidents, work with all relevant authorities during investigations into the matter and look to identify individuals involved. Anyone identified and guilty of such abuse will be banned from The Den for life.</p>
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<p id="6YDfpR">Ironically enough, when Millwall were named the family club of the year for 2017, there was some light at the end of the tunnel that they had finally shed their negative image but yesterday unfortunately showed that the club still has a long way to go to join this century, let alone this decade. </p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Don’t think it would be too harsh to throw Millwall out of the FA Cup off the back of those racist chants. If your theory is it’s just “one or two/ a small group of idiots” to blame then you’re wrong. Why punish everyone because of them? Because it needs stamping out, that’s why.</p>— David Preece (@davidpreece12) <a href="https://twitter.com/davidpreece12/status/1089537029371817984?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 27, 2019</a>
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<p id="Y62Zcv">While it is very unlikely that the club will face any punishment from the Football Association, a stern ruling from the game’s governing body in the nation would go a long way towards eliminating this kind of nonsense in the future. </p>
https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/27/18199540/millwall-everton-fa-cup-upset-fans-supporters-fighting-stabbing-violence-racist-chants-moshiriCalvin2019-01-27T18:00:42+00:002019-01-27T18:00:42+00:00Nothing good will come out of sacking Marco Silva now
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<img alt="Millwall v Everton - FA Cup Fourth Round" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/0eLyjFok_Aw_vqzM6Ea4GBp9r6M=/0x0:5568x3712/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/62939087/1089602446.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Silva is enduring his toughest period yet as Everton manager | Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>But if the boss doesn’t rectify his mistakes, his position will eventually become untenable</p> <p id="sgtV2I">Another weekend, another defeat. Another sigh of disbelief that the inevitable again became reality. Another season essentially over by January.</p>
<p id="mdgMe8">And for Marco Silva, another set of grievances sent the <a href="https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/">Everton</a> manager’s way. </p>
<p id="AFxT80">Rev up your keyboards and hashtag your slogans, ladies and gentlemen, the Blues have just been knocked out of the <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/fa-cup">FA Cup</a> by Millwall, 19th in the Championship, and for that, the Internet would have you believe, the boss must pay the price.</p>
<p id="GkHyLd">Herein lies one of modern football’s greatest flaws. Ever since it subscribed to the cancerous ‘Twitter culture’, whereby gratification must be instant and delusions of grandeur are rife, no manager is more than one lean spell away from feeling the wrath of his own club’s keyboard warriors.</p>
<p id="j27cLc">To have reservations or complaints about Silva is perfectly reasonable. Any manager who presides over a run of three wins in 12 games in all competitions will always be left susceptible to criticism, and justifiably so.</p>
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<img alt="Liverpool FC v Everton FC - Premier League" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/kLmfU2DqUxwNluU_b91Jcz68B_E=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13717633/1067619370.jpg.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>Silva has looked under pressure in recent weeks</figcaption>
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<p id="IJNtXy">Indeed, the spectacular fashion in which Everton’s season has unravelled since the last-minute heartbreak at Anfield in December, as well as the basic defensive errors the Blues have repeatedly made lately, lends credence to the notion that Silva is simply not doing his job properly.</p>
<p id="03XA8W">It is also fair to point to how he was unable to salvage the seasons of <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/epl/teams/hull-city">Hull City</a> or <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/epl/teams/watford-fc">Watford FC</a> once both began to derail under him. The Tigers were relegated, and the Hornets parted company. It is, admittedly, hardly awe-inspiring stuff.</p>
<aside id="FLvGO7"><div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"Marco Silva’s simple mistakes end Everton’s season in January","url":"https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/27/18199375/everton-tactical-analysis-marco-silva-set-piece-defending-zonal-marking-ademola-lookman-this-is-bad"},{"title":"Silva desperately needs to fix one thing at Everton immediately","url":"https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/26/18198778/everton-marco-silva-tactics-zonal-marking-setpieces-defence-must-fix-immediately-man-marking"}]}'></div></aside><p id="mXv2BS">But if Everton were to give a manager half a season to eradicate a malaise that has beset the club for the best part of the last five years, then what hope is there for anyone, let alone Silva’s successor?</p>
<p id="YE3P2d">Time is a sparse commodity in football these days, but for Silva, and Everton, it must now be a prerequisite for owner Farhad Moshiri’s aspirations to come to fruition. Ultimately, there is no quick fix to years of over-spending on an under-motivated, bloated squad. </p>
<p id="zxNjOJ">The squad at Silva’s disposal is, predominantly, a concoction of failings from past regimes which will take more than a couple of transfer windows to apply the right sort of surgery to. Director of football Marcel Brands has already made a big impact in that department last summer, but will need more time to remedy this dysfunctional hotchpotch. </p>
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<img alt="Everton v Huddersfield Town - Premier League" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/KiCt3vwUmF9m6ILyz3sIX4NC6OM=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13717635/1025791944.jpg.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>Moshiri’s time at Everton has, undeniably, been a failure so far</figcaption>
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<p id="1dHgkK">It is difficult to question Moshiri’s decision to pull the handbrake on the club’s spending sprees, either. Almost three years into his tenure, he has received scant return from an investment of more than a quarter of a billion pounds.</p>
<p id="ZFcznl">But for the Iranian to be prudent in the extreme will only be to Silva’s detriment. The manager’s frustration is palpable, and certainly understandable, but he should at least be afforded the opportunity to build a squad in his image, just as Roberto Martínez and <span>Ronald Koeman</span> were. As soon as the expensive cast-offs, namely <span>Morgan Schneiderlin</span> and Yannick Bolasie, are off the wage bill, the picture will become clearer.</p>
<p id="P7oIpq">It is even hard to see a long-term future for some of his regular starters. <span>Seamus Coleman</span>, 30, and <span>Theo Walcott</span>, 29, have both endured torrid campaigns, yet have been picked more often than not, seemingly due to a lack of a viable alternative, rather than on merit. </p>
<p id="BTOw9z">The same applies to Gylfi Sigurðsson, also 29, who, despite notching ten goals so far this term, seems ill-suited to the more dynamic style of play craved by Silva, and whose own recent performances, or lack thereof, do not warrant an almost-guaranteed place on the team sheet. But there is no natural replacement for the Icelander, so he will probably survive, for the time being, at least.</p>
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<img alt="Everton FC v Leicester City - Premier League" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/V_qpvgjiP5Q5J5MCJua1EKI1cck=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13664832/1076373614.jpg.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>It’s difficult to see where Sigurðsson fits into Silva’s system</figcaption>
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<p id="Rt5Gfx">Silva’s persistence with the patently overworked André Gomes in central midfield also suggests an element of distrust in the alternatives, in particular the one-paced Schneiderlin, the injury-prone <span>James McCarthy</span>, or the raw Tom Davies. Fans bemoan a lack of identity about Silva’s Everton, though there can be little wonder this is the case when too many of them evidently have no future on his watch.</p>
<p id="fV1p2G">It is too simplistic, facetious even, to draw serious comparisons between Martínez and Silva. The former inherited a settled, talented and unified squad which had just secured their seventh top-seven finish in the previous nine years. The latter was lumped with an ungodly mess high on earnings but low on quality.</p>
<p id="2QjbgM">Yet there are also undeniable similarities between the two reigns. Both churn out the same dreary post-match platitudes, both have their admirable footballing philosophies hamstrung by an inability to organise a defence, both seem oblivious to their managerial faux pas.</p>
<aside id="pmBVwq"><div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"Silva’s rage over VAR is badly misplaced","url":"https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/27/18199153/everton-millwall-2-3-fa-cup-upset-reaction-comments-marco-silva-var-handball"},{"title":"The 4 Reasons Why Everton’s Form Has Dropped off the Face of the Earth","url":"https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/27/18198864/fa-cup-upset-millwall-everton-form-derby-silva-high-press-counter-attacks-possession-zonal-marking"}]}'></div></aside><p id="bnEZA7">Silva cannot legislate for his left-back, Lucas Digne, giving away a needless free-kick which led to Millwall’s second goal, nor can he be deemed culpable for the Lions profiting from a handball which ended up in <span>Jordan Pickford</span>’s net. An equable, composed individual by nature, the ferocity in his wild gesticulations on the touchline bore all the hallmarks of a man reeling from a burning sense of injustice.</p>
<p id="kyXJqg">But it hardly requires a tactical masterclass to prepare accordingly for a physical, rough-and-ready Championship side such as Millwall. Lions boss Neil Harris did his homework, sent his side out to play to their strengths, and made Silva’s gameplan for a staggeringly unprepared Everton look asinine in comparison.</p>
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<img alt="Millwall v Everton - FA Cup Fourth Round" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/9YO1dN6kGLihfN4aGl4tuljj0VA=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13717638/1089815142.jpg.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>Murray Wallace won it for Millwall in injury time on Saturday</figcaption>
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<p id="9jkagc">Martínez’s utter blindness to his own shortcomings led him to the point of no return as Everton boss. Silva has not plunged to such depths in the Goodison Park hot seat quite yet, but a similar refusal to accept and address his team’s inadequacies will only accelerate the delivery of his P45.</p>
<p id="0NW9OG">That time, though, is not now. Not yet, anyway. Few would question Everton’s decision to dispense with Martínez’s services in May 2016, but ever since, the club has become intoxicated on transition.</p>
<p id="S7oqNK">Moshiri has already haemorrhaged his money on three spins of the managerial wheel, and his numbers have yet to come up. </p>
<p id="Ewk4Je">Logic dictates that they wouldn’t again this time, either.</p>
https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/27/18198785/everton-millwall-fa-cup-upset-nothing-good-will-come-out-of-sacking-marco-silva-now-farhad-moshirimatthew.chandler2019-01-27T15:57:49+00:002019-01-27T15:57:49+00:00Marco Silva’s simple mistakes end Everton’s season in January
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<img alt="Southampton FC v Everton FC - Premier League" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ngWfE91rk8g2dprsFOpV-mHWP1c=/0x0:1619x1079/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/62938789/1085036318.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Jordan Mansfield/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Pressure on the manager hits an all-time high</p> <p id="oxpiJP">In the deepest depths of my soul, I want to call for Marco Silva’s head. Saturday’s utter capitulation was that bad, just as last week’s failure at <a href="https://stmarysmusings.sbnation.com/">Southampton</a>.</p>
<p id="Ddo7y5">That’s what my heart wants, but my brain knows better. </p>
<p id="pnKyFp">It isn’t fair to expect any manager to have completely turned things around at <a href="https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/">Everton</a> in just half a season — and even if Farhad Moshiri sacked Marco Silva tomorrow, he’d not be able to attract a better manager to take over this crumbling shitshow given how little the Toffees have left to play for this season.</p>
<p id="Halz7K">So Silva needs to stay, and be given the full season to get things back on track. But, after the most recent embarrassment the club suffered due to his failings, I just don’t have any real faith that he can make the changes and improvements needed to move the club forward.</p>
<p id="aiNjUd">I usually use this space to talk tactics after Everton matches, but there’s only so much tactical analysis you can do on a match played on a pitch hardly fit for a U9 match, in the middle of a monsoon, against a quasi rugby team.</p>
<p id="aPaWL0">So, I just want to quickly highlight two things from the Millwall match that for me were the last straw in my hope that Marco Silva can be the right man for Everton.</p>
<p id="pS45Z8">The first, both <a href="https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/27/18198864/fa-cup-upset-millwall-everton-form-derby-silva-high-press-counter-attacks-possession-zonal-marking">Pete</a> and <a href="https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/26/18198778/everton-marco-silva-tactics-zonal-marking-setpieces-defence-must-fix-immediately-man-marking">Calvin</a> have already covered elsewhere on the site — Everton’s set piece defending is absolutely, inexcusably atrocious. If you’ve watched Everton basically at all this season, you know this isn’t new.</p>
<p id="UbEdkD">Pete and Calvin have already hashed out the details pretty clearly, so at risk of belaboring the point, I just want to add two things to what they’ve already said about the issue.</p>
<p id="6Sekc0">First, Everton has conceded 10 set piece goals in Premier League play this season — 30% of their overall goals against. That’s joint-most in the Premier League, though if you add in the three goals conceded that way against Millwall this week, I suspect they’d lead the league in set piece goals conceded across all competitions.</p>
<p id="3WXcSM">Second, I want to make clear that Everton has the personnel to handle set piece defense. At all times in the Millwall match, Everton had four players on the pitch at six feet or taller — Andre Gomes, Michael Keane, Yerry Mina / Kurt Zouma, and Dominic Calvert-Lewin / Cenk Tosun.</p>
<p id="ggSBHe">I don’t suspect there are too many folks out there trying to make excuses for Silva and the team’s set piece defense, but the height in the lineup should pretty clearly squash any excuses that might exist.</p>
<p id="AdpPpf">Finally, I do want to briefly talk tactics — at least as it pertains to one ludicrously poor decision Marco made toward the end of this match.</p>
<p id="BWy8yX">Take a look at the Everton heatmap from this match, courtesy of <a href="http://EvertonFC.com">EvertonFC.com</a>.</p>
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<p id="x09rQi">I’m most interested in the big red splotches in the central third down the right channel — this is the area through which Everton looked to progress the ball from defense into attack.</p>
<p id="90LPws">Basically, Andre Gomes or Idrissa Gueye would look to find Ademola Lookman near the right sideline or Gylfi Sigurdsson in the right-central channel, with the two combining to move the ball forward, sometimes with <span>Seamus Coleman</span> factoring in as well.</p>
<p id="9aOAem">Sometimes it was as simple as Lookman carrying the ball forward, but quick interplay between the young winger, Sigurdsson, and Coleman often factored in.</p>
<p id="D5z6hL">With the field conditions being what they were, long, complex dribbling runs just weren’t really feasible, and given that Richarlison’s only real tool in the ball progression toolbox is fancy dribbling, working the ball down the left wing just wasn’t an option.</p>
<p id="ylI0Sw">Ultimately, this is why I almost broke my TV when Marco Silva brought on <span>Theo Walcott</span> for Ademola Lookman.</p>
<p id="qD73yb">It’s bad enough that Silva is so tactically naive that his only method for ball progression against a Championship side involved handing the keys to a 21-year-old who, given his way over the summer, would have been laughing his ass off watching this match from Germany. </p>
<p id="Mvwugo">But it takes a special variety of naivety to take the key to your ball progression out of the match with 15 minutes to play and just <em>expect something good to happen</em>.</p>
<p id="Ehp1BM">Theo Walcott is still a good player, who has plenty of useful skills on the pitch. A ball progression option, however, is not one of those skills. Predictably, Everton quickly found itself completely unable to get out of its defensive third against <em>a bottom-half second-tier team</em>.</p>
<p id="wSB3fH">The pressure mounted, the Toffees gave away a late free kick, and the rest of the story couldn’t have been more predictable.</p>
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<p id="sTKf9a">This entire season has been characterized primarily by Silva’s inability to get his team to defend set pieces even remotely well, with criminal misuse of his wide players coming in as a close second.</p>
<p id="oIqv36">These aren’t complex issues, and yet we see week after week the same problems arising. Silva will be given at least the full season to right the ship, as well he should given the state of the Everton roster after the <span>Ronald Koeman</span> / <span>Sam Allardyce</span> debacles. </p>
<p id="QZFH9S">But at this point, I’ve got absolutely no faith that he can solve even the most simple of problems.</p>
https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/27/18199375/everton-tactical-analysis-marco-silva-set-piece-defending-zonal-marking-ademola-lookman-this-is-badAdam.Braun2019-01-27T10:00:00+00:002019-01-27T10:00:00+00:00The 4 Reasons Why Everton’s Form Has Dropped off the Face of the Earth
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<img alt="Millwall v Everton - FA Cup Fourth Round" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/LHWwb1a7zLDg4zg7Gt_on9SMJoI=/0x0:3000x2000/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/62937942/1089664462.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>What’s happened to the Blues?</p> <p id="Ks4xrl">After every <a href="https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/">Everton</a> game, I do a statistical round-up. </p>
<p id="f7UwiV">But, following the embarrassing defeat to Millwall that saw us exit the <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/fa-cup">FA Cup</a> and effectively end our season in January again, I believe there are four reasons behind Everton’s woeful form – but ones that are hard to identify in the numbers.</p>
<p id="BLoyxt">This post, therefore, will be an observational analysis rather than a quantitative one.</p>
<p id="6ULXqq">But first, I’ll set out my stall on the manager and the players: I still believe Marco Silva is the right man for the job and deserves at least another year to get things going in the right direction. I also think this is the best set of players (and the most balanced squad) I’ve seen at Everton since my first match at Goodison in 1996. </p>
<p id="axmuPl">Sure, we could do with a top striker (who couldn’t), but that wouldn’t solve the four major problems we’re having at the moment. </p>
<h2 id="40Wwyq">1) The High Press Has Stopped</h2>
<p id="GxB7Th">With the exception of the performances against <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/football-league-championship/teams/huddersfield-town">Huddersfield Town</a> and <a href="https://bracethehammer.sbnation.com/">West Ham United</a>, Everton’s opening 14 games saw the Blues adopt an intensive, high-press system that was simply exhilarating to watch after seven months of <span>Sam Allardyce</span> “football”. The results weren’t always there, but the performances were generally on point. </p>
<p id="qDfQoE">This is why I still believe Marco Silva can deliver.</p>
<p id="0xbiz2">The front four, anchored by Gylfi Sigurdsson, tried and often succeeding in putting opposition defences under pressure and winning the ball high up the pitch. Players worked in unison and it felt like the start of a new dawn. It was the type of football <span>Ronald Koeman</span> promised, but never came close to delivering.</p>
<p id="GPmFfQ">However, since <em>that</em> goal at Anfield, the high press has disappeared. You’ll occasionally see one or two forward players looking to press, but no longer do the attacking players look synchronised when doing so – and being on the same page is key for this tactic to work.</p>
<h2 id="VrTwSU">2) Counter-Attacking Has Stopped </h2>
<p id="1yAzNq">Likewise, Everton started the season playing fast, counter-attacking football. From the first day of the season, the Blues looked a real threat, moving the ball through opposition lines and baring down on goal with real pace and purpose. </p>
<p id="giYVWL">Now we see the same lumbering buildup with the fullbacks and the midfielders fanned out across the pitch, while the forwards are lost among the opposition defense for the most part. Every so often someone makes a run, but for the most part we pass the ball into oblivion. </p>
<p id="RrQqFQ">The quick counter-attacks? Almost entirely stopped.</p>
<h2 id="jwrIOq">3) Pondersome in Possession</h2>
<p id="hvbsLJ">Instead, we are treated to slow, pondersome football. The same style that marred <span>Roberto Martinez</span>’s last two seasons at the club.</p>
<p id="TEQak6">The Blues play out from the back. Slowly passing among the defensive players up to the halfway line, where the team are then greeted by 10 or 11 opposing players sitting behind the ball. Then, a loose pass will typically see possession turn over. It’s hard to think of a single instance that we’ve created a chance by starting our possession sequence when <span>Jordan Pickford</span> has played the ball short to one of our defenders from a goal kick. </p>
<p id="6Sgwwv">Sure, this is the same tactic <a href="https://bitterandblue.sbnation.com/">Manchester City</a> use. But they’re also the very best at it. Just like Barcelona were over the past decade. Most other teams that “like to play” attempt to follow this template, but execute it woefully – and instead simply invite pressure and problems upon themselves.</p>
<p id="1JLNRv">These three problems aren’t exclusive to Everton. Just look at <a href="https://thebusbybabe.sbnation.com/">Manchester United</a> since <span>Sir Alex Ferguson</span> left. They’ve been slow on the ball, throw in hopeful crosses and then seem perplexed as to why they can’t break teams down.</p>
<p id="t2WwHW">Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has come in and instantly - with exactly the same group of players - returned an attractive threat to the club simply by unshackling the players and encouraging fast counter-attacking football reminiscent of Ferguson’s glorious period in charge. It’s not rocket science.</p>
<h2 id="P8kvbl">4) Zonal Marking</h2>
<p id="aGamrm">Lastly, and a departure from the other three points, is how Everton set up at defensive set pieces.</p>
<p id="xvhzU9">Zonal marking is a popular feature of team’s managed by non-British managers.</p>
<p id="zrFxnt">Ironically, one of the biggest strengths of British footballers is defending set pieces.</p>
<p id="Y3GhLn">There is one fundamental reason why zonal marking doesn’t work: A player with a run up on a static player will nearly always win the header. That’s it. </p>
<p id="ZzbzOo">This has to change. Zonal marking does not work alone. You need a fusion of both zonal and man-to-man.</p>
<p id="daTLCL"></p>
https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/27/18198864/fa-cup-upset-millwall-everton-form-derby-silva-high-press-counter-attacks-possession-zonal-markingPete Reynolds2019-01-27T08:00:00+00:002019-01-27T08:00:00+00:00Silva’s rage over VAR is badly misplaced
<figure>
<img alt="Everton v Huddersfield Town - Premier League" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/PcztDx_cYnfH03lFoRp1e5T6PiI=/0x0:1413x942/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/62938010/1025796710.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Manager appears to be pointing fingers everywhere but one direction</p> <p id="0G13aS">Try as he might to deflect attention from the failings of his mentally weak side, Marco Silva cannot just explain away <a href="https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/">Everton</a>’s weak exit from the <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/fa-cup">FA Cup</a> this season. </p>
<p id="D9XRgJ">The Toffees lost 3-2 to a last gasp winner at Millwall yesterday, conceding thrice from setpieces in a poor spectacle played under pouring rain. </p>
<p id="J9ggh1">The Blues twice took the lead and gave up an equalizer within a couple of minutes both times, and Silva was unhappy with the effort from his players. </p>
<blockquote>
<p id="4rlMY1">“[It is a] big frustration, a disappointing afternoon for us as a club. We were favourites before the match and I told you we needed to prove it on the pitch.</p>
<p id="zWJjYb">“We knew it would be difficult, it is always difficult here, a good crowd. We started the game like we prepared, every time we took on the pitch what we prepared, we created a chance. We scored twice.</p>
<p id="bG0Wef">“But in the general game, we had to be more mature on the pitch, more clever in some moments. You cannot concede free-kicks in the middle of the pitch.</p>
<p id="0lcgyE">“You have to be mature and take responsibility and be focused and do your job. You can spend 20 hours working on the same thing [to prepare] but if you are not mature everything is really difficult.”</p>
</blockquote>
<aside id="0msQeS"><div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"Everton 2-3 Millwall: Disgrace","url":"https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/26/18198696/everton-millwall-2-3-fa-cup-upset-recap-reaction-goals-highlights-richarlison-tosun-silva"},{"title":"Everton 2-3 Millwall: Player Ratings | Utterly shambolic once again","url":"https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/26/18198746/millwall-3-2-everton-recap-reaction-fa-cup-upset-player-ratings-marco-silva"}]}'></div></aside><p id="vz9dGl">The Lions’ second equalizer came off an arm, and Silva was livid about that too. </p>
<blockquote>
<p id="vZx1UY">“It is something that has to be our goal [achieving control in matches], something we are working on. We have been working together the past six months and we have to achieve things faster.</p>
<p id="TAoSO9">“When you are winning games and scoring goals, there is no reason to give away free kicks in the middle zone. The opponents’ second goal, handball is handball. </p>
<p id="M5PQgV">“But with the players we have, you cannot permit these types of situations. You are playing for a big club and at a high level.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p id="kgBByK">The Video Assistant Referee (VAR) is not in place at non-Premier League stadiums for this tournament. </p>
<blockquote>
<p id="XlQBBA">“It doesn’t make sense. If we are to be fair with all the clubs you have to be fair with the competition and also you have to do it for all the games. </p>
<p id="nX5kcI">”Now we go home with big frustration. I am not here just to be angry with the referee but it is true. It is a tough game for us. We are winning 2-1 and it made a big impact on the pitch.</p>
<p id="RhiatV">“You have to be fair with the competition and not just Everton Football Club because we play here with the competition. It was a clear handball in the moment. The players they saw and went to speak with the assistant and afterwards thousands of people saw on the big screen.</p>
<p id="joTSL9">”I think they look also [at the screen] and the referee looks also. We have to be fair with all the clubs and put VAR in all the stadiums.”</p>
</blockquote>
<div id="hfprAp">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Everton are in a no-win situation here. <br>Sack Silva and we're back to square one, yet again. All the chopping and changing gets us nowhere. <br>Don't sack Silva and basically reinforce this mess, and irreversibly lose the supporters' goodwill. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EFC?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EFC</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NSNO?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NSNO</a></p>— Royal Blue Mersey (@RBMersey) <a href="https://twitter.com/RBMersey/status/1089255403995705344?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2019</a>
</blockquote>
<script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
</div>
<p id="YdDvFy">When asked if he spoke to referee Michael Oliver about the missed call, Silva sounded irritated. </p>
<blockquote><p id="SfYF9x">“No, why? That would change nothing if I were to speak to him. I respect him, of course, but why? I know what he will say because they say always the same thing.”</p></blockquote>
<p id="rG82Ul"></p>
<p id="AE9NsV"></p>
https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/27/18199153/everton-millwall-2-3-fa-cup-upset-reaction-comments-marco-silva-var-handballCalvin2019-01-26T22:00:00+00:002019-01-26T22:00:00+00:00Silva desperately needs to fix one thing at Everton immediately
<figure>
<img alt="Everton FC v Newcastle United - Premier League" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/fb3bd4BytqpZImIXySYJGKiPUog=/0x0:3000x2000/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/62936949/1068822582.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Matthew Lewis/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This has nothing to do with playing expansively or attacking football</p> <p id="Gxwrrt"><a href="https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/">Everton</a> are joint top of the Premier League in a very unwanted category - goals conceded from setpieces. </p>
<p id="CQnTEf">The number currently stands at 10, and after the Blues conceded three more of that variety at Championship bottom-feeders Millwall to crash out of the <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/fa-cup">FA Cup</a> and effectively end the 2018-19 season, Marco Silva must make at least one change. </p>
<p id="jPHcUw">The Blues haven’t covered themselves with glory in defending setpieces over the last couple of years, but this season has been a new low especially because of Silva’s zonal marking system. </p>
<p id="HLKvSk">Director of Football Marcel Brands has done an excellent job in recruiting some behemoths to add to the presence of Michael Keane in the backline, it’s time for Silva to trust the bigger players and switch to a man-marking system on setpieces. </p>
<p id="A2xlw2">The book is out on how to destroy Everton’s zonal marking system - rely on either shorter setpieces and the ball headed on into the path of onrushing players, or else go long, and drive the ball back across the face of the goal. </p>
<p id="qOZjhK">In both situations the Everton defence is invariably caught flatfooted resulting in situations like earlier today with two or three Millwall players unmarked in front of <span>Jordan Pickford</span>, or else mismatches like Lucas Digne trying to mark the other team’s centerforward. </p>
<p id="WGpZxy">And for having all those giants on the pitch, the Blues still don’t reap any of those advantages on the other end of the pitch when attacking either. </p>
<p id="QEBYC5">The zonal marking system might work for other (better?) teams, but it's quite clear that either Silva is not coaching it well, or the players he has simply don't get it. Either way, it needs to be changed. Six months into the season and the Blues are as shambolic at defending set pieces as at the beginning of the year. </p>
<p id="tPnJpq">This season might be a lost cause and Silva may save his job for now with the Board by asking for more time to get his own players and build a system, but unless he completely gets rid of the zonal marking at setpieces, Farhad Moshiri might find his hand forced in removing Silva sooner than later. </p>
<p id="y3zUl4"></p>
https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/26/18198778/everton-marco-silva-tactics-zonal-marking-setpieces-defence-must-fix-immediately-man-markingCalvin2019-01-26T20:32:39+00:002019-01-26T20:32:39+00:00Everton 2-3 Millwall: Player Ratings | Utterly shambolic once again
<figure>
<img alt="Millwall v Everton - FA Cup Fourth Round" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/j4GOPy8YgwQR4Yod6IVV33orv-k=/0x0:2651x1767/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/62936912/1089814980.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Murray Wallace’s late winner knocked Everton out of the FA Cup | Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Nobody comes off well in the latest farce from the Blues</p> <p id="WGRykQ"><a href="https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/">Everton</a>’s miserable run reached a new low as Championship side Millwall come from behind to knock the Blues out of the <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/fa-cup">FA Cup</a>.</p>
<p id="rUDcDn">Having led twice through Richarlison and Cenk Tosun, Lions defender Murray Wallace scored an injury-time winner to essentially render the Toffees’ campaign over for another year.</p>
<p id="mGLkMx">Here’s how the players rated on a rain-soaked night at The Den:</p>
<p id="PgI2P8"><span><strong>Jordan Pickford</strong></span><strong> - 5:</strong> should have shown more conviction in dealing with the move leading to Millwall’s first goal. Coming halfway out to meet the cross left him in no-man’s land and allowed Lee Gregory to capitalize. </p>
<p id="Pwuu0K">Like many players, has looked shot of confidence since the derby nightmare, but Pickford has struggled more than most since.</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="Millwall v Everton - FA Cup Fourth Round" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/z88xSLnvi1nGJ3VibJwbHideMs0=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13716360/1089689902.jpg.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>Pickford had another difficult night</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="qxxNJ5"><span><strong>Seamus Coleman</strong></span><strong> - 5: </strong>started brightly in the first half, delivering more crosses than usual rather than retreating, but faded as the game wore on. His worst season as an Everton player by far.</p>
<p id="wogfwJ"><strong>Yerry Mina - 4: </strong>never looked at ease in the first half before being substituted at half-time, supposedly due to a foot injury. He and Michael Keane should have led by example more often, particularly in dealing with the free kick which led to Gregory’s goal.</p>
<p id="Tc05R0"><strong>Michael Keane - 5:</strong> only marginally better than Mina. Few glaring mistakes, if any, but Everton’s defence as a whole never looked assured throughout the entirety of this nightmare.</p>
<p id="HCOadz"><strong>Lucas Digne - 4:</strong> the foul he gave away leading to Millwall’s second equaliser was cheap and unforgivable, as was the one for the late winner. Lost the aerial battle with Gregory for his goal, albeit it was a mismatch between the two. Has been excellent for much of this campaign, but a more composed head in <span>Leighton Baines</span> might have suited this environment better.</p>
<p id="gvJwbH"><strong>André Gomes - 4: </strong>anonymous. Has played too much football of late and badly needs a rest, though that probably tells you more about what Marco Silva thinks of his midfield alternatives.</p>
<p id="BYUMxb"><strong>Idrissa Gueye - 5: </strong>a couple of typically robust Gueye challenges, but consistently stray passing let him down again. If this was his Everton swansong before leaving for Paris Saint-Germain, he bowed out with a whimper, in truth.</p>
<p id="a6unxT"><strong>Richarlison - 5: </strong>got on the scoresheet, but that owed more to a deflection and subsequent goalkeeping error from Millwall’s Jordan Archer. Too often found himself on the periphery of proceedings.</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="Millwall v Everton - FA Cup Fourth Round" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/XT1uXiZ8OGw1xl2xW449sjC1lPo=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13716361/1089671440.jpg.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>Richarlison scored but was otherwise fairly ineffective</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="3lMs6F"><strong>Gylfi Sigurðsson - 3:</strong> pathetic. Laid the ball on to Tosun for his goal, but otherwise offered nothing again. It’s baffling that a player who coasts through as many games as Sigurðsson has done this season is in double figures for goals; too often this campaign he has offered Everton nothing in attack.</p>
<p id="xBsqM8">If Silva had any viable alternative for his position, Sigurðsson’s place in the side would surely be under threat. As it is, he will probably feature for much of the remainder of another lamentable season, but is not the answer long-term. </p>
<p id="SE29YD"><strong>Ademola Lookman - 4:</strong> admittedly playing on his weaker right side, but should that be an excuse for a player desperately needing to prove himself?</p>
<p id="RR5NEw">Difficult to remember Lookman doing anything of note tonight, and though he was superb in the win against Bournemouth a fortnight ago, you wonder if he is earning his place in the side primarily through not being Theo Walcott. Was rightly substituted, and must quickly find more consistency.</p>
<p id="au8kH4"><strong>Dominic Calvert-Lewin - 4: </strong>was bullied by Millwall’s centre-backs all game before being hooked for Tosun on 65 minutes.</p>
<p id="FrR8rk">What Calvert-Lewin possesses in physical attributes, he lacks in the technical side. A tall, strong and quick centre-forward should be able to hold the ball up far better than he did today.</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="Millwall v Everton - FA Cup Fourth Round" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Xsv9_JqNfHNB_dlZjIaWQp1bKMg=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13716362/1089622378.jpg.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>Calvert-Lewin also made little impact</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="nsVR3c"><strong>Substitutes</strong></p>
<p id="yGsdot"><strong>Kurt Zouma (replaced Mina on 46 minutes) - 5: </strong>made one excellent sliding challenge on Ryan Leonard, but did little, if anything, to settle a defence that had already looked all at sea prior to his arrival.</p>
<p id="etq7o2"><strong>Cenk Tosun (replaced Calvert-Lewin on 65 minutes) - 6: </strong>had one chance at goal and took it. Probably the only player who can emerge from Everton’s latest embarrassment with any credit.</p>
<p id="PUl5nk"><span><strong>Theo Walcott</strong></span><strong> (replaced Lookman on 79 minutes) - 5: </strong>Only on for just more than ten minutes but offered nothing. Another who can surely not be part of Silva’s plans going forward.</p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="JE2Lc0">
<p id="30k4AY">A hugely disappointing night for Everton and, whether fair or not, questions will be asked of Marco Silva now, if they weren’t already.</p>
<p id="OKDnWY">Where the Blues go from here is anyone’s guess but, ultimately, for the third consecutive year, the second half of the season has become a write-off.</p>
https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/26/18198746/millwall-3-2-everton-recap-reaction-fa-cup-upset-player-ratings-marco-silvamatthew.chandler2019-01-26T19:30:38+00:002019-01-26T19:30:38+00:00Everton at Millwall: Live Blog | Blues throw it away late in the game
<figure>
<img alt="Millwall v Everton - FA Cup Fourth Round" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/TN-5t6TovOgwNC2FMNBwAmo6r5s=/0x0:3814x2543/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/62935453/1089602352.jpg.1548480439.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Blues knocked out in London in the FA Cup Fourth Round</p> <h1 id="VutDAl">Live Blog</h1>
<p id="5vJy7J"><strong>Fulltime -</strong> So another season ends in January after a tame effort away from home. Little else to say about this game except that questions that have been simmering about Marco Silva should now be hitting boiling point. </p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/5UlhnYvFQwAIPOU857oURQHPmbA=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13716318/MILEVE.png">
<cite><a class="ql-link" href="https://www.whoscored.com/Matches/1351190/Live/England-FA-Cup-2018-2019-Millwall-Everton" target="_blank">WhoScored.com</a></cite>
<figcaption>Millwall - Everton full time stats</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="sSTT50">90+4’ - Another poor freekick given away, just outside the box., and guess where that ends up. Second poor decision by DIgne giving away a dangerous foul in a position where the Blues have already suffered at many many times this season. <br>Dreadful late defending all around. Everton. Are. A. Joke. </p>
<div id="owORrJ"><div style="width:100%;height:0px;position:relative;padding-bottom:56.327%;"><iframe src="https://streamja.com/embed/PKeE" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="100%" allowfullscreen="" style="width:100%;height:100%;position:absolute;"></iframe></div></div>
<p id="f8iP9Z"></p>
<p id="fKh5eO">90+2’ - Blues put some pressure on the hosts but no clear chances apart from a shot from distance by Sigurdsson, straight at Archer. </p>
<p id="Tbp6R6">90’ - Zouma makes a spectacular last-ditch tackle in the box successfully to take away a late chance. </p>
<p id="h1cf5w">85’ - Millwall appear to be bunkering down now for the draw. Gueye clatters into Leonard, Oliver adamant that did not deserve a second booking. </p>
<p id="AGgIwb">79’ - Last change for Silva is Lookman going off, Theo Walcott coming on. </p>
<p id="daQiFw">74’ - Digne now with a poor giveaway right by the corner flag. Freekick pings around the box as they can’t clear it again, and guess what, it’s 2-2. <br>Shameful lack of character from the Blues. </p>
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<p id="Ircvm9"></p>
<p id="KZBmBi">The Everton players are livid as that clearly went in off Cooper’s arm, and now Idrissa Gueye and Tosun are booked by Oliver for their protestations. </p>
<p id="o0aWWP">72’ - CENK TOSUN! Sigurdsson finds the Turkish striker in space, and his semi-scuffed shot is slotted in at the far post past Archer! 2-1 to the Blues. </p>
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<p id="siwLsR"></p>
<p id="beIt67">70’ - The commentator sagely warns both sides to watch out with the strength of their passes, as there are visible puddles on the ground now. </p>
<p id="yWJguo">65’ - Cenk Tosun is Everton’s second substitution, DCL goes off. <br>Ref Oliver has kept the cards in his pocket so far, but now books Murray Wallace for dragging down Lookman as he broke. </p>
<p id="4RzLg9">64’ - So far this has played into Millwall and Neil Harris’ hands, tied deep in the game, his side imposing themselves physically in horrible wet conditions and the Blues very unsettled. </p>
<p id="1qtNvU">60’ - Everton asking better questions now, but still failing to get any clear looks at goal. <br>Half an hour to go and the volume has certainly gone up a couple of notches. </p>
<p id="DlctOd">55’ - Sigurdsson takes a shot from outside the box but it’s deflected wide for a corner. That comes to nothing, of course. Second corner we’ve seen an Everton player’s shirt getting yanked almost off the player, of course neither Michael Oliver nor any of the assistant referees ‘see’ anything. </p>
<p id="GDR57X">50’ - The rain has not slowed it appears, though the pitch is still very slick. Both teams seem hungrier to begin the second half. </p>
<p id="qvcyDI">46’ - Kurt Zouma is a halftime change, Mina off presumably with whatever his injury was. </p>
<p id="bR7mQy"><strong>Halftime -</strong> Very underwhelming from the Blues in rainy conditions, despite dominating possession. The Evertonians are restless and disgruntled, with good reason. </p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/QsAwCjT-9wnKAjDam2YAYXRnD0I=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13716180/MILEVE.png">
<cite><a class="ql-link" href="https://www.whoscored.com/Matches/1351190/Live/England-FA-Cup-2018-2019-Millwall-Everton" target="_blank">WhoScored.com</a></cite>
<figcaption>Millwall - Everton halftime stats</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="QJWm07">45+2’ - 1-1! Lee Gregory ties it up, from a setpiece of course. Short freekick nodded across the box and the Blues are all at sea again. No chance for Pickford to save that, but he certainly could have come out to claim that. </p>
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<p id="OpAMFV">42’ - Goal! Out of nothing! A good sequence of passes finds Richarlison outside the box, and the Brazilian’s shot takes a slight deflection and it squirms under the goalie Archer. Blues lead 1-0. </p>
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<p id="B0IVQL">35’ - A number of Everton supporters have expressed their concern that Silva appears to be a one-strategy pony. His tactics today will not have convinced that segment of the population otherwise. </p>
<p id="XObsAq">31’ - Still 0-0, have to say, the Blues are not clearly the better side here. Everton have failed to string together a coherent sequence of passes to cause the hosts any issues. </p>
<p id="s7hOaY">25’ - Halfway through the first half, and Mina seems to be in some distress. Sitting on the ground, his right boot off. </p>
<p id="mutgvc">20’ - Richarlison is taking his time settling in on the left but is finally seeing more of the ball. <br>Blues have had 70% of the possession so far. Coleman breaks again down the left, but can’t put a decent ball into the middle. </p>
<p id="TenVeb">15’ - Coleman gets away again and puts in another poor cross, falls to Dominic Calvert-Lewin but he can’t untangle himself to get off a shot. </p>
<p id="yYQFc2">12’ - Gylfi Sigurdsson now gives up a poor freekick by the left touchline. Another good ball in, wafted deep, and a Lion heads it back across the box but Digne clears! Close shave again. </p>
<p id="VFmduq">10’ - Seamus Coleman finally gets free down the right and his low cross into the box is completely whiffed by Richarlison running in late. Good chance that. </p>
<p id="cJFing">8’ - Andre Gomes gives away a poor freekick in a dangerous area, and Millwall float in a tempting freekick right into the box... Cooper gets to it first but heads very wide. That was a good chance. </p>
<p id="CdORCH">5’ - Everton sustain some pressure down the left, with a couple of corners and long throws from Lucas Digne. Nothing comes out of it. </p>
<p id="qtyz4q">3’ - Blues look a bit shaky on the ball, but are trying to play their game in the rain here. </p>
<p id="S88GFx">1’ - Millwall get us started and hoof the ball forward right away. </p>
<p id="RtJrcY"><strong>Lineups -</strong> Marco Silva taking no chances today, naming what might be close to Everton’s strongest XI, Yerry Mina in for Kurt Zouma and Dominic Calvert-Lewin goes up top and Richarlison returns to the left. </p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="7Ma049">
<p id="gfaaGh"><a href="https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/">Everton</a> travel to London today to take on Millwall in the Fourth Round of the <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/fa-cup">FA Cup</a>. The Blues have continued to mystify with their performances this season varying wildly from one end of the spectrum to the other. </p>
<p id="CRl1Mh">Marco Silva will be desperately hoping for some semblance of professional consistency from his side, and will likely not leave too much up to chance with his lineup choices. He was bit hard the last time he tried to ring in the changes in the League Cup this season, and will be wary of repeating that error this afternoon. </p>
<p id="igzEX5">The Lions are a combative outfit and can be quite a terrifying proposition at The Den. The Cup tends to bring out the best in sides especially at home and despite their lowly 19th position in the Championship table, the Blues can expect a fierce battle. </p>
<h1 id="HSRhlq">Match Details</h1>
<p id="eTrN85"><strong>Date and start time:</strong> Saturday, January 26th at 9:30 a.m. PT / 12:30 p.m ET / 5:30 p.m. BST</p>
<p id="jLb1aE"><strong>Stadium:</strong> The Den, Bermondsey, London, <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/fifa/teams/england">England</a>, United Kingdom</p>
<p id="sd4UgU"><strong>Capacity:</strong> 20.146</p>
<p id="jWmOa0"><strong>Weather: </strong>50°F/10°C, rain, 85% chance of precipitation, 27 kmph winds</p>
<h1 id="NylbZy">How to Watch/Listen</h1>
<p id="ZqDVb5"><strong>TV:</strong> N/A - <em>United States</em><em>; </em>BBC One <em>- </em> <em>United Kingdom,</em> Sportsnet World - <em>Canada,</em> SuperSport 3, beIN Sports 2</p>
<p id="mGBAfE"><strong>Radio: </strong>Everton Match Centre, BBC Radio 5 Live, Sirius XM FC</p>
<p id="41ULCC"><strong>Live stream: </strong>evertontv,<strong> </strong>ESPN+, <a href="https://fave.co/2OrDihv" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">fuboTV</a>, Sportsnet Now, beIN Sports Connect, Flow Sports App, Optus Sport</p>
<p id="FsYgq9"><strong>Gamethread:</strong> Liveblog will be updated above from one hour before kickoff</p>
<p id="eB2O1I"><a href="http://www.livesoccertv.com/match/3018910/southampton-vs-everton/">Information from LiveSoccerTV.com</a></p>
<h1 id="k6zWnV">Lineups</h1>
<h3 id="Zz6RPN">Everton</h3>
<p id="fdZF0p"><strong>Starting XI: </strong>Pickford; Digne, Mina, Keane, Coleman; Gueye, Gomes; Richarlison, Sigurdsson, Lookman, Calvert-Lewin</p>
<p id="68MO8R"><strong>Subs:</strong> Stekelenburg, Baines, Zouma, Walcott, Tosun, Bernard, Davies</p>
<h3 id="hYm7g5">Millwall</h3>
<p id="curC6F"><strong>Starting XI: </strong>Archer, Hutchinson, Cooper, Williams, Gregory, Ferguson, Romeo, Tunnicliffe, O’Brien, M. Wallace, Leonard</p>
<p id="Tvt9dO"><strong>Subs:</strong> Martin, Pearce, Meredith, Hanson, Skalak, Morison, Alexander</p>
<h1 id="Zmcrvq">Last Meeting</h1>
<p id="wx8JXM">The last time Everton played Millwall was also in this same competition, the Third Round in the 2005-06 season. The Lions held the Blues to a 1-1 draw at The Den, before a solitary goal settled the replay for the hosts at Goodison Park, courtesy of a former player much-loved by both sides - Tim Cahill. </p>
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https://royalbluemersey.sbnation.com/2019/1/26/18194392/millwall-everton-3-2-fa-cup-upset-recap-shameful-goals-highlightsCalvin