ENGLISH FA CUP: Everton 2 Middlesbrough 1A DATE with Wayne Rooney at Wembley may not be every Evertonian's idea of a good day out, but the fireworks that exploded over the Winslow public house on Goodison Road last night suggested few are perturbed at the thought. Fourteen years since their last FA Cup semi-final, their last trophy and their last visit to Wembley, Everton have trophies on their agenda beyond Easter. It will take more than Manchester United to douse the spirit in David Moyes' men.
“It doesn’t mean anything to take Everton to Wembley in a semi-final,” said their manager, while outside the hordes sang that it certainly did. “I am delighted to take Everton to a semi-final but what matters is to take Everton to the final and to win a trophy. There is a long way to go.”
Given Everton’s propensity to succeed the hard way, with Liverpool, Aston Villa and now Middlesbrough vanquished with depleted resources and following a dreadful first-half performance yesterday, there was an inevitability about drawing United in the semi-final.
Given the odds Everton continue to defy, they will not head to London in fear. “We’ll get United,” said the former Old Trafford man and Everton’s outstanding captain, Phil Neville. “From the moment we beat Liverpool our fans have been saying it is our year. We’ll enjoy the semis but we want to win it.”
Middlesbrough’s inconsistency must madden Gareth Southgate and here, in the space of 90 minutes, their two contrasting faces were on full view. For 45 minutes Middlesbrough were adventurous and Everton were flailing in their response. Ahead when David Wheater powered a header from Matthew Bates’ delivery beyond an off-key Tim Howard, the visitors headed down the tunnel in complete control. A different team and a different mentality re-emerged for the second half.
“The way we gave the lead away shows why we are where we are this season,” admitted Southgate. “We have to learn to win matches and see games through. We knew exactly how Everton were going to play and dealt brilliantly with the balls into our box but for a six-minute period. Did we do enough as a team to win it? Probably not.”
In that first half it appeared Everton’s crippling injury list had finally caused their engine to seize up. Their only threat before the interval arrived from set-pieces or in the hope the referee, Mark Halsey, would punish Robert Huth for grappling Marouane Fellaini whenever he set foot inside the area. That was some hope. Not even a hand around the Belgian’s neck counted as an offence against the increasingly irate Fellaini.
The second half, however, was an entirely different contest. Moyes bolstered his attack with Louis Saha in place of Jack Rodwell, but it was the change in attitude that transformed Everton as much as the alteration in personnel. Five minutes after the restart Tim Cahill dropped back into central midfield, flighted a cross into the area and Fellaini exacted his revenge on Huth by winning their aerial tussle and sending a looping header over Brad Jones. It would barely have troubled the goalkeeper had he stayed on his line.
“Once we conceded one goal we were dealing with the momentum of the Everton crowd and their belief it is going to be Everton’s year,” said Southgate, who refused to single out his goalkeeper for blame, citing missed tackles in the build-up to the equaliser as equally important.
Eleven minutes after the restart the tie was transformed, and Moyes’ decision to introduce Saha looked inspired. Leon Osman atoned for the foul that produced Wheater’s opener by winning possession and surging into the area. Though his cross escaped the France international, Steven Pienaar retrieved the ball on the opposite flank and delivered an exquisite cross that Saha headed home at the near post.
Saha should have had a second in the 87th minute, only to miscue horribly with only Jones to beat, and Boro responded only belatedly when Howard fumbled O’Neil’s free-kick and Lescott produced a vital clearance. “That was not the real Everton in the first half and Steve Round got into them brilliantly at half-time,” said Moyes. “The principles we have instilled in them were not there, but they were in the end.”
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