So the Everton enigma rumbles on. The fans at Goodison are hardened to a few ups and downs by now, but this season has proved more unpredictable than an Ian Holloway news conference.
Tormented Toffees fans returned to work this week still contemplating how their team managed the gigantic leap from the inept performance at Bolton in their last Premier League game to dumping Chelsea out of the cup competition that they have owned for the past two years. The Toffees continue to mystify their fans and critics alike.
So what was it that caused Everton to wilt so uncharacteristically at Bolton?
Some blame the lack of a cutting edge up front. David Moyes, having seen his side dominate games and fail to capitalise too often this season, has rightfully bemoaned the absence of some real quality in the final third. Some say the difference between Bolton and Everton was the financial manoeuvrability Bolton showed which enabled them to bring in the fresh legs of Daniel Sturridge. God only knows where Bolton have suddenly conjured up the funds from. But that is another story for another day.
There was something different about Everton’s performance at Bolton, however. One Evertonian told me this week that he felt the Everton players had ‘lost their appetite for a fight for the first time in a long time’. It was a hypothesis that prompted me into an investigation of what could be sapping a team’s hunger for the game when they visit the Reebok. Only Liverpool and Chelsea have managed to walk away from the Reebok with all the spoils this season.
My studies led me to a remote a cafe in the centre of Bolton which has been proudly sapping the appetites of the general public and footballers alike. Mario’s in Bolton offers a free, full English breakfast, and rumour has it, footballers, like the stingy lot they are, have been spotted trying to save a few quid on their breakfasts before their weekend game at the Reebok.
There’s a catch however, the breakfast is only free if finished in less than 20 minutes. Easy you might think since you probably finish your full English in 20 minutes regularly! But cafe’s aren’t in the habit of giving free breakfasts away, and over 200 people have tried, and failed, to polish off Mario’s free breakfast in under 20 minutes.
It’s easy to understand why – the breakfast consists of 10 eggs, 10 sausages, 10 rashers of bacon, 10 slices of toast, five black pudding slices, tomatoes, mushrooms and baked beans! So if footballers really have been sneaking off for a cheap full English, it’s no surprise that they’re losing their appetite for a game with Bolton in the afternoon!
Michael Smith
Twitter; http://twitter.com/Mr_MichaelSmith