Everton Football Club’s fortunes have been a roller coaster, to say the least. The 2008/09 season has been one of bad luck, injuries but magnificent team spirit. The season started badly, with the club penniless, players had to be sold to finance a record deal for Belgium international, Fellaini, but even he was bought on credit, £3m a year for the next 5 years. The beginning of the campaign started badly and the team failed to win at home for almost 3 months. Things looked bleak.
But the real story of the season has been the chronic injuries that have decimated the team and the magnificent spirit the players have created to combat them.
Everton has one of the smallest squads in the presidency. It is so small that at the beginning of the season it was not uncommon to see several youngsters playing in the first team. Great experience for them, but as a famous expert said, “you will never win anything with children.”
Slowly but surely Everton crept up the table, thanks mainly to their away form. But there was already a sting to the story, as several first-team players were injured for long periods of time. I think the easiest way to show the extent of Everton’s disabled list for the season would be to list player by player and the amount of time they have been injured.
Hibbert – Injured 1 month
First option left side. He suffered a medial ligament injury at the end of the previous season. I lost the first month of the new season.
Jacobsen – Injured 4 months
Brought in as cover for the injured Hibbert, unfortunately Jacobsen dislocated his shoulder before the start of the season and has only made two appearances to date.
Yobo – Injured 2 months
Two separate injuries ruled Yobo out for around 2 months.
Jagielka – Injured 1 month
Jags’ injury rules him out for the final month of the season. It is unknown when he will return to fitness. Some rumors say 12 months.
Valente – Injured 9 months
He’s basically been out all season with a knee injury. He played a couple of games at the beginning of the season.
Cahill – Injured 2 months
Cahill was injured with a broken foot in the early part of the season. He returned to action in September.
Anichebe – Injured 3 months
Anichebe’s season ended in February with a terrifying tackle that damaged his knee. The player who inflicted the injury was suspended for just 3 games. Anichebe would miss the remainder of the season.
Arteta – Injured 3 months
Arteta was injured in the same match as Anichebe with a torn cruciate ligament. He is expected to be fit for the new season.
Pienaar – Injured 2 months
Away with a broken toe, he missed the start of the new season.
Yakubu – Injured 5 months
Star striker, ruptured his Achilles tendon in December. Let’s hope he’s fit for the new season.
Saha – Injured 3 months
It has always been known that Saha had injury problems and has been in and out of the team all season, but his injuries have caused him to miss around 3 months.
Vaughan – Injured 4 months
The youngest goalscorer in the premiership’s history has had 4 career-threatening injuries before the age of 20. The last one was on a knee that required reconstruction.
These are just the main injuries suffered by Everton in the 2008/09 season. There have been other minor injuries that have sidelined players for a game or two, but the total number of months these major injuries have cost the club this season alone (some will remain injured long after the season is over), the total comes to a whopping 37 months. The season only lasts 9 months.
Despite this daunting list of injuries, the players have come together and built a team spirit that is second to none. Manager David Moyes and media sources have mentioned that if the title could be won through spirit alone, Everton would easily be champions.
Why does this say? Simply put, with one of the smallest teams and the heaviest injury lists, the club is in sixth position in the premiership (only the mega-rich clubs Man Utd, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal and Aston Villa are above them), and surprisingly have reached the FA Cup final. Not only have they reached the FA Cup Final, but they have already beaten three of the top 5 clubs in England to get there, namely Liverpool, Aston Villa and Manchester Utd.
If they pull off a miracle and beat the other finalists, Chelsea, it would surely be one of the best football success stories against adversity in history.