16/3/2008 English Premier League - Fulham vs Everton

Can Everton overcome their midweek disappointment of exiting the UEFA Cup competition to come up trumps in this live online commentary English Premier League fixture between Fulham and Everton, or will they finally buckle under the pressure and concede the race for fourth spot to Liverpool? These and many more questions will be on the minds of many soccer fans except for fans of Everton themselves who have full confidence and faith in their team to continue their good play and go to London and beat Fulham for another three points which would pull them level with their Merseyside rivals again by the end of the day. David Moyes is also confident that his players will pick themselves up from their disappointment and perhaps use Fulham as a punching bag, and with midfielder Lee Carsley back from suspension there is little doubt that Everton's midfield will be strengthened, although they will still miss Tim Cahill through injury. Yakubu will also be determined to make up for one of two Everton penalty misses in the UEFA Cup loss by getting his scoring boots back on in the league for this live online commentary EPL match between Fulham and Everton, especially to repay Moyes' faith in him despite an earlier infraction.

Fulham expects to build on their draw against Blackburn last week and score maximum points from this home live online commentary and TV broadcast soccer match against Everton at Craven Cottage. Roy Hodgson seems to be slowly reaping the rewards of his tactics and management plans but whether they come in time to save Fulham from relegation is another matter. He will continue to miss Jari Litmanen and Philippe Christanval through injuries and will stick to his policy of going American by playing Kasey Keller in goal instead of Antti Niemi, who appears to be jinxed with relegation for every English club that he plays, so perhaps that could be playing on Hodgson's mind going into this live online commentary and TV broadcast soccer match between Fulham and Everton. Fulham will not have an easy time dealing with Everton's tough tackling approach which when mixed with some of their pace upfront and little Spanish flair from Arteta, have actually been a joy to watch compared to their dogs of war days. This one might be a little close to call but the truth is that it is only so because Everton will be playing away. The Blue half of Merseyside should be comfortable winners in the end as they face off against a largely impotent Fulham side.

12/3/2008 - Everton vs Fiorentina 2nd Leg UEFA Cup

Can Everton pull off a great reverse and replicate Merseyside neighbours Liverpool's European achievement from yesterday and show another Italian side the door in this live online commentary UEFA Cup second leg tie at Goodison Park? Or will it be a repeat of their tame showing against Chelsea in their other big match this season during the Carling Cup semi final? David Moyes has fashioned a side with a perfect mix of grit and determination, and no little flair at times, but despite having developed consistency against teams of poor and average quality, Everton has unfortunately not shown better form against higher quality teams so far this season. This might be about to change against Fiorentina tonight in the UEFA Cup, if they can manage to remove the bitter memory of their Carling Cup loss to Chelsea in which they failed to turn up miserably and most importantly, let themselves down. It was the same feeling Moyes and the players felt after the first leg loss to Fiorentina, when they hardly had a look in, with Moyes himself admitting that the team once again played poorly when the occasion required the opposite.

Everton will face a Fiorentina side that might be smarting from a weekend league defeat which threw the race for Champions League places in the Italian Serie A wide open but must now concentrate on finishing the task at hand in this live online commentary UEFA Cup match between Everton and Fiorentina. If the Italian side maintain their same approach from the first leg and apply it to this game, they have more than a good chance of pulling through, given the need for Everton to go all out to make up the aggregate deficit. The game will be pretty much game over if Fiorentina scores a goal at Goodison and that will be a huge factor in Moyes' approach to the game, although there have been times when the wily Scot has been known to throw all caution to the wind in order to rescue lost causes. In fact, this might be the case once again, unless Everton decides to play a patient game and hope to get the tie into extra time. If the Blue half of Merseyside does pull this off, it would add even more weight to Alex Ferguson's insistence that the English Premier League is currently the most powerful in Europe, if not the world.

UEFA Cup 13/2/2008 - Brann vs Everton Highlights

So it turned out that Everton more than rose up to the challenge and easily dispatched Brann away in their UEFA Cup soccer match last night and these match highlights would show how comfortable the English Premier League team were despite playing away and without much of a strikeforce despite having Yakubu back and they still needed a young substitute Achinebe to score a second to confirm their (sure) passage into the next round which is the last 16 of the UEFA Cup. The good times are rolling for the men in blue of Liverpool and it would surely rub the salt in if Liverpool proceeds to be booted out of the Champions League after their encounter with Inter Milan, with many saying that Benitez would himself be booted out of Anfield if that happens. Why wait till then? Benitez should have been gone long ago. That said, enjoy these match highlights of Brann vs Everton in the UEFA Cup.

UEFA Cup 13/2/2008 - Brann vs Everton

Everton comes into this live commentary and radio broadcast UEFA Cup soccer match between Brann and Everton on the back of a run of good results in their own domestic league the English Premier League, and riding high in fourth spot with the Champions League slot in sight. Everton has even stayed ahead of tough competition from the other chasing English clubs including arch rival Liverpool, Aston Villa and Manchester City. Not only are they doing well domestically, their performances in Europe this season have been exemplary, dominating previous group and knockout stages. Coming into this game against Norwegian side Brann, their main concern would be whether star striker Yakubu would be fielded, after having angered manager David Moyes by not returning back from the African Nations Cup on time, thereby disrespecting his teammates, according to Moyes. Yakubu was then fined and banned from the team for one game, but the question is whether Moyes would continue to leave him out of the game with his other strikers misfiring.

Brann will attempt to cause an upset in this live commentary and TV telecast UEFA Cup game at home against Everton. It is primarily because they would be playing in front of their small but passionate home crowd that will give Brann confidence that they can knock Everton off their lofty perch. Not many soccer fans around the world, except for their own Norwegian fans, would know much about Brann but they are typical of all Norwegian sides - tough and resolute in the face of difficulty. Everton might experience problems trying to score against such opponents, as shown in their other live commentary and radio broadcast soccer games against Brann and other similar teams in the English Premier League. Therefore, it might be hard to call this game, but while Everton should be favourites to sneak a win away on a counter attack strategy which they are actually quite good at, Brann are equally capable of stealing a win themselves against their illustrious opponent but we shall see what will unfold in this game.

EPL 9/2/2008 - Everton vs Reading

You can now rule Everton out of the running for the fourth Champions League slot as they are facing a crisis ahead of this live commentary and play by play English Premier League soccer match between themselves Everton and Reading. Everton star striker Ayegbeni Yakubu and the only one who knows how to put the ball in the net at the moment for the team, reported back to the club late after his African Nations Cup exploits and manager David Moyes has decided to fine him, drop him and punish him. In fact, David Moyes is prepared to sell him as he demands total respect and dedication to the team and feels that Yakubu is a threat to the unity and team spirit that he has built so carefully in the club. The problem for Everton and Moyes is that no one else at the club knows how to score. Andrew Johnson is fast and speedy and that's about it. He does not know how to score and you can see now his time at Crystal Palace was a flash in the pan. Your team can be as solid and hard to break down as much as you want, but if you cannot score, you won't get many points and one goal against you can do enough damage every game.

Reading are facing similar problems but at the other end of the goal. They simply do not know how to stop conceding goals and that could be a disaster in this live commentary and TV telecast soccer game against Everton because it would mean they might concede a few goals to an impotent team like Everton. That is utter humiliation and Reading is desperate to avoid it. However, as witnessed in earlier live commentary and radio broadcast EPL soccer matches, Reading do not seem to learn from their mistakes and continue to leak goals at the wrong times, dropping many points due to this. Manager Steve Coppell is not helped by a few players going to the African Nations Cup for Cameroon and also a lengthening injury list. It all seems just a jinxed season for Reading and it might need a miracle now for them to avoid relegation.

Despite their scoring woes, Everton are a defensively sound team and they should take all three points in this live commentary and radio broadcast English Premier League soccer match against Premiership rivals Reading. However, do not totally discount Reading for going down without a fight. They can likely create an upset in this live commentary and TV telecast EPL match, but it is just as unlikely and unless Steve Coppell can pull something out of his hat, be prepared for an easy two or three goal win for Everton, all coming from their defenders of course. Andrew Johnson might be humiliated after this soccer match.

EPL 2/2/2008 - Blackburn Rovers vs Everton

This live commentary and play by play soccer match in the English Premier League pits two of the most bruising sides in the league between Blackburn Rovers and Everton. Everton has always had the image of a rough and tumble team ever since they branded themselves the Dogs of War many seasons ago, a far cry from their previous incarnation as a decent footballing side that more than gave Liverpool a run for their money during the '80s when Liverpool still ruled the English game which in itself is now a far cry from being a laughing stock of the English Premier League. Everton has since then deployed battling and hard midfielders as a core of their side, forgoing flowing football but Moyes has altered that a little by introducing players like Mikael Arteta who has a great flair but still not quite there yet as being a player who can change many games. They will still be missing Yakubu who remains their only player who can put away chances unlike that flash in the pan Andrew Johnson who can run for sure but cannot score for the life of his mama.


Blackburn Rovers on the other hand has also evolved from their early days with Kenny Dalglish when they mixed hard tackles with flowing football and the scoring exploits of Alan Shearer in early live commentary and radio broadcast soccer games involving Blackburn Rovers in the English Premier League. They are still hard and can break a few legs if you are not careful, even without Robbie Savage in the team any more, but they still struggle to put any display of football on for the soccer purists, despite manager Mark Hughes insistence that they play just like Manchester United and speedy wingers on either flank. They rely more on attrition and making sure teams cannot get further than the midfield or due to broken legs. This can be expected from a team that does not have any real pace and rely largely on David Bentley for creating a few chances. But Mark Hughes has always bought well and hardly any of his transfer buys can be said to not have done well or fitted into his tactics or strategy they always seem to do so.


This is a hard game to call in this live commentary and TV telecast game in the English Premier League involving Blackburn Rovers at home and their guests Everton. It will come down to a war of attrition and when you have two teams that play as hard and running around like headless chickens half the time, you cannot expect too many goals either or too many chances. You can easily expect a nil all draw or a low scoring draw but what you can be sure of is that eight out of ten times this live commentary and radio broadcast soccer game between Blackburn Rovers and Everton in the English Premier League will end in a draw and a point for both sides.

EPL 30/1/2008 - Everton vs Tottenham Hotspur

Everton will suffer greatly in this live commentary and play by play soccer match in the English Premier League against fast rising team Tottenham Hotspur as they will be without many of their regulars and now even key player Australian Tim Cahill will be missing and David Moyes struggles to field a full team. Gravesen is also out and Leon Osman might be too, so that means most of Everton's tigerish midfield dynamo engine will be gone and that is about as good as the beginning of the end for Everton. In fact, this could signal the end of Everton's season as they are known to crumble after getting to a peak each season, and that peak could surely have been the first leg Carling Cup semi final against Chelsea in which they played well but lost 2-1 and then went on to surrender meekly to Chelsea again at home 1-0 in the second leg. While they are now left to chase for the fourth Champions League slot in the EPL, and sit in prime position, it might be safe to say they won't be there much longer and tonight will see the first of a long beaten run from the Evertonians.

Why that would be is also because of their opponent tonight Tottenham Hotspur who are hot and are only losing to Manchester United nowadays and are they benefitting from Juande Ramos' magic touch in this live commentary and radio broadcast soccer match? Ramos brought Sevilla to the forefront of Spanish soccer and look how they are faltering now without him. He has brought fitness and discipline to a troubled Spurs side and if they can get rid of the money grubber Pascal Chimbounda, they should have a great side raring to do even more in the English Premier League. This season might have come too soon for Ramos, with the Carling Cup their best bet for some honours, but they might challenge for Champions League qualification next season. But with Woodgate in their side, that might be a problem because if you depend too much on that moneygrubber you will get into trouble as he will get injured at crucial times and miss out for long periods.

This live commentary and TV telecast English Premier League soccer match between Everton and Tottenham Hotspur should see many goals, as Everton will miss their strong regulars and so defensively might be open to attack by Spurs and Spurs will continue to pour forward in a manner only Ramos knows. In fact, if Newcastle wanted a real attacking football messiah they should have signed Ramos as manager not that false prophet Kevin Keegan. Therefore expect many goals in this live commentary and radio broadcast soccer match and nothing else, and perhaps an overwhelming Spurs victory.

Carling Cup 23/1/2008 - Everton vs Chelsea Match Highlights

Here are some picture highlights of the soccer match between Everton and Chelsea in the Carling Cup semi final at Goodison Park, where Everton were comprehensively outplayed by Chelsea and while they had their chances, could not penetrate the Chelsea defence well enough to force a result. In the end, Chelsea scored a quick goal from Joe Cole off a lightning counter attack and the result was never in doubt after that.

Carling Cup 23/1/2008 - Everton vs Chelsea

This is the second Carling Cup live commentary and play by play telecast and soccer match of the semi final between the two English Premier League clubs Everton and Chelsea. The first leg between these two clubs saw an exciting match that see sawed from end to end and in a dramatic finale and end to the match, saw Lescott the Everton defender put through his own net with a comical own goal which he did not even seem to know he had scored. The ball basically fell onto his head while he was challenged in the air by pint sized Chelsea winger Shaun Wright Phillips and then bounced into goal past the despairing dive of the Everton keeper. Chelsea on the other hand fought hard for the result and while they were not at their best, which they haven't been for months, they still scraped a result against a battling Everton side. Wright Phillips in particular played a great game but he will be missing for Chelsea in tonight's game, along with their usual missing players through injury or international duty such as Frank Lampard, John Terry and Didier Drogba.

That said, Chelsea should still have enough quality to pose a challenge to Everton, and maintain their stature as one of the top three English Premier League clubs, in this live telecast and radio broadcast Carling Cup semi final second leg. Their recent striking acquisition Nicolas Anelka will be available, not being cup-tied, and Anelka has gelled quite well into the team. Up front he will continue to partner Pizarro, who hopes to continue his fine form from the last match and to score more than the 2 goals he has totalled so far this season. However, it is not a guarantee that Chelsea manager Avram Grant will play Pizarro in this Carling Cup semi final live commentary and telecast match, as Chelsea are playing away and might have to put on a defensive front to weather Everton's hard tackling and pressing style before trying to strike on the counter attack. If that is the case, Pizarro would most probably find himself on the bench as Anelka would provide the better option in such a strategy.

That said, Everton will be playing at home and they will come out with all guns blazing as they try to impose themselves on Chelsea and make their first cup final in donkey years with this live commentary and radio broadcast soccer match. They have their key playmaker Arteta back from suspension, and with Australian midfielder Tim Cahill's continued good form, plus the other formidable terriers in midfield Leon Osman and Lee Carsley, Everton are a powerful side and they can break down just about any opponent or shut them out. Their defence is also hard to break down and might not be tested too much against a Chelsea side shorn of their regular attacking threat and with German Ballack still not in top form although he has started to show glimpses of his leadership qualities and vision and has scored a few fine goals in previous live commentary soccer matches involving Chelsea. This Carling Cup semi final tonight looks to be a tight game overall and it might feature few goals and even less goalmouth action although you can rest assured Everton will press hard and try to knock Chelsea out and create an upset like what Spurs did the previous night in the other live commentary and radio broadcast semi final soccer match.

EPL 20/1/2008 - Wigan vs Everton

Get ready for this action packed live commentary and play by play match between the two English Premier League soccer teams Wigan and Everton. Wigan continues to try to get points on the board to stave off relegation worries while Everton seeks to build another new run to knock Liverpool off the fourth Champions League spot and in the process gain that place for next season's competition for themselves. Wigan has evolved from their Paul Jewell days when they played some decent football, but now under new manager Steve Bruce they will slowly morph into another image of Bruce's Birmingham - all defensive and smothering and boring. But you cannot blame the man nor the club as their main priority each season has always been to survive the rigours of the English Premier League and not to be relegated. While there is some meaning to the phrase you are what you aim for, they cannot possibly aim for much more due to their finances. But surely there must be some progress in terms of financial stability from their time in the English Premier League, they should invest some of that in better players, and hopefully Steve Bruce does not waste it on duds.

Everton on the other hand has proven to be a stable and at times progressive club under the stewardship of Scottish boss David Moyes. Moyes could in fact replace Alex Ferguson at Manchester United but for the fact that he has never played for Manchester United and so will never know what it means to lead the club to honours (even though Ferguson himself was in the same position). But Moyes takes no prisoners and suffers no rubbish from players, and he has proven astute in most parts with transfers and the club has continued to improve from last season. However, tonight in this live commentary and radio broadcast and live tv telecast EPL game, Everton is missing their recent striking acquisition Yakubu who has quickly endeared himself to the Evertonians by scoring a few crucial goals. Yobo is also missing in defence. While Andy Johnson could be back for them upfront, he is no Yakubu and in fact has been a striking dud, although he has worked hard upfront and that is a quality that Moyes treasures in his players.

That said, this looks like heading for a draw for both teams in this live commentary and radio broadcast and telecast game between Everton and Wigan. You know Wigan will fight hard under Steve Bruce and in their own stadium, but Everton has proven to be more than capable in holding their own and I expect Tim Cahill to make another fine contribution to their cause and tonight's result. Perhaps Cahill to score another goal and for a 2-2 draw at the final whistle.

Carling Cup 8/1/2008 - Chelsea vs Everton - Moyes Stuffs It To Chelsea

Chelsea were expected to struggle after the loss of Jose Mourinho, but under Avram Grant, the Londoners have surprised many and are still in the running for 4 trophies. Although the Carling Cup ranks the lowest among the 4 soccer competitions, but since Chelsea are already in the semis, I’m sure that Grant will not miss the chance to win his first trophy as the club’s manager.

However, the loss of players to injury and the African Nations Cup will severely test the club to the limits. Already with Terry and Lampard out with injury, Chelsea will be missing Essien, Kalou and Drogba to the African Nations Cup. One piece of good news is that Carvalho will be back from suspension, and that Cech and Shevchenko may return against Everton.


Form wise, Chelsea is doing well. Since the defeat to Arsenal (16 Dec) against Emirates, they have 5w 1d from their last 6 games. Also, Chelsea has been unbeaten at home for almost close to 2 years, with Barcelona being the last team to win at Stamford Bridge. However, this season the Blues have drawn more games then they would have liked at home, with a 6w 4d 0l record in their 10 home games in the league.

Everton is, as expected, doing well as one of the clubs outside the Big 4 in the EPL. They are in 6th place in the league, and are still in the UEFA Cup competition, finishing as group winners. However, they suffered a setback last weekend, when they were shockingly knocked out of the FA Cup by Oldham. But on closer examination, Everton were missing Howard, Lescott, Yakubu, Cahill and Yobo. Even though David Moyes still fielded a relatively strong team, but the above mentioned players are important 1st team regulars. One wonders if the result would have been different if they have played.

Barring the 0-1 reverse to Oldham, Everton have been strong in the cups this season. League from wise, Everton have 5w 2d 4l on their travels, but in cup competitions, the Merseysiders are unbeaten in 6 games on the road, with 5w 1d 0l.

David Moyes knows that the Carling Cup represents the best chance Everton have of a trophy this season, and I’m sure he will field his stronget team today. 1 big part missing for the team though is the absence of playmaker Arterta. Almost all of Everton’s attacking play goes through him, and he misses the match through suspension today.

Chelsea are currently unbeaten against Everton in their last 14 meetings (home and away), winning 9 of the 14 games. At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea are unbeaten in their last 14 games against Everton. Last 2 meetings at Stamford Bridge has ended in 1-1 draws though.

This has all the makings of a tight game. Chelsea, although doing relatively well this season, just never looks the same without Terry, Lampard and Drogba, who form the spine of the team. David Moyes Everton are always well organised and disciplined, and this season has only been stuffed by Arsenal. This being a 2 legged semi final, I’m certain that Moyes will try to contain Chelsea and leave with a draw or a slim 1 goal defeat. A tight game means few goals and Everton having a good chance leaving the game with something, in case you guys find it hard to read.

EPL 29/12/2007 - Everton vs Arsenal - Arsenal Storms Back To Top of English Premier League

With Arsenal beating Everton 4-1 with a storming second half revival, is this the turning point in the race for the English Premier League title? Can Arsenal now build on this gutsy fightback and find renewed self belief to push Manchester United off the throne?

Before that, here are some highlights of the Everton vs Arsenal EPL game:

Honestly, the scoreline flattered Arsenal. Everton really got stuck in and into the Gunners' faces but so did the young Arsene Wenger team. However, Everton is a poor man's team and will always have to depend on defensive solidity against the bigger teams (yes Everton fans - your club no longer deserves to be called a big team). Clinical finishing in front of goal separates the Arsenals and Manchester Uniteds from even the false pretenders Chelsea and Liverpool. And opportunism - witness Adebayour's goal.

That said, with Manchester United and Ronaldo in particular suffering from my famed Soccer Rag jinx, the tide could finally be turning back towards Arsenal and hopefully, staying there. Manchester United winning the English Premier League is bad for English soccer, because it would mean prima donnas who indulge in sexual scandals continue to rule in football.

There might have been a temporary loss of belief over the holiday period from Fabregas and his street gang, but they have since returned with greater vigour and crunching tackles. Bendtner in particular plays almost like a ruffian but you certainly have to do that to survive getting knocked down by war dogs like the Evertonians.

The next round of EPL games will come thick and fast. The slugfest continues - will Arsenal reclaim the English Premier League throne and become the richest football club in the world by overtaking Manchester United on both counts?