On Monday, Everton dispensed with the services of head coach Frank Lampard. The decision was hardly a shock, as there has been speculation over the future of the former Chelsea boss since the end of 2022. However, a 2-0 defeat at fellow strugglers West Ham on Saturday was the final nail in Lampard’s career as Toffees boss.
Although the former England international was a popular figure amongst the Goodison faithful, his record during his time with Everton compared with the worst Everton bosses in the recent history of the club. In fact, only Mike Walker in recent history has a worst points-per-game ratio than Lampard as Everton boss.
| Name | Games | Points per game |
|---|---|---|
| Mike Walker | 31 | 0.87 |
| Frank Lampard | 38 | 0.92 |
| Rafael Benitez | 19 | 1.00 |
| Walter Smith | 143 | 1.15 |
Although there are obviously bigger issues at Everton than just who occupies the managerial chair, when looking at the facts, it was hard to argue with the dismissal of the team’s head coach.
A nosedive into the relegation zone
Many would say the decision has been long overdue, as the Toffees have lost eight of their last nine games, some of them against fellow strugglers, which could prove decisive at the end of the Premier League campaign.
Despite ending his spell as Everton boss in woeful form, Lampard has left the club with the best wishes of the majority of Evertonians. He comes across as a good, genuine and honest guy who, in the end, was out of his depth in such a big job.
Lampard will argue that he wasn’t given much backing, which may have been slightly true. However, his tactics, team set-up, and in-game changes were all highly questionable during his stint as Toffees’ head coach.
The club are awful at managerial decisions
Unfortunately for Everton, during the ownership of Farhad Moshiri, the club has become accustomed to firing head coaches. Since Moshiri became the club’s majority shareholder in 2016, the Toffees have had seven permanent bosses. Arguably, only Carlo Ancelotti could be called a successful appointment. However, the Italian couldn’t resist the lure of a return to his former club Real Madrid.
Reportedly the problem in selecting head coaches lies in the fact that none of the choices are unanimous amongst the club’s hierarchy, which leads to divides. There are even already suggestions that the chairman Bill Kenwright, Moshiri and director of football Kevin Thelwell all favour different candidates.
This is fine if Thelwell, whose job it is to run the football side of the club, gets his favoured option. However, reports suggest that other people at the top of the club have not let the director of football do their job in the past. Maybe certain individuals need to allow Thelwell to earn his money instead of being involved in facets of the club they clearly know next to nothing about.
The next managerial appointment will be massive
The next appointment could prove to be one of the biggest in the history of the Merseyside club. No club has spent more time in the English top flight. In fact, the Toffees have only spent four seasons outside the English top flight and were one of the 12 founder members of the Football League in 1888.
In terms of the history of the English game, Everton is a big club. The problem is that they are currently in a precarious position in the Premier League table and the whole club is a mess. The new head coach will have to come in and hit the ground running in terms of turning things around.
Unfortunately for Everton, there is no guarantee that the next head coach will be the right one to move the team forward and away from danger short term.
Who are the candidates for the job?
Here are some of the current favourites for the vacant position at Goodison Park, along with the odds they were at the time of writing:
Marcelo Bielsa (6/4)
The veteran head coach is one of the favourites for the role. The former Leeds boss is regarded as a football innovator because of his success with Athletic Bilbao, the Chilean national team and also Leeds. Bielsa helped instill his style of football into the Yorkshire club, which helped them to promotion to the top flight after a 16-year absence.
However, Leeds decided to dispense with the services of Bielsa in February 2022, with the team on a run of four straight league defeats.
Sean Dyche (2/1)
Although reports suggest that Dyche is not of interest to the club, the former Burnley boss is one of the bosses out there with the experience of working with a club near the bottom. Despite a small budget, Dyche did a superb job of keeping the Clarets in the Premier League.
Dyche was sacked in April 2022 with his team in the relegation zone. He had spent nine and a half years with the club from Lancashire, most of which were positive.
Marcelino (6/1)
Reportedly Everton has been in touch with the former Valencia head coach. Marcelino is a highly experienced head coach who has spent his whole career in his homeland. The 57-year-old helped to guide Valencia to the Champions League while also winning the Copa del Rey in 2019. He also won La Liga’s Manager of the Year in 2007 when he took minnows Recreativo de Huelva to an eighth-place finish.
Duncan Ferguson (7/1)
The Everton club legend has been linked with the job numerous times and has filled in as interim head coach. The club’s former striker was a long-time coach with the Toffees but left in the summer of 2022 to fulfil his coaching ambitions elsewhere. However, he made no secret that he would like the head coach’s job at the Merseyside club. With a lack of experience, appointing Ferguson would be a gamble.
Wayne Rooney (10/1)
Another former Everton player is a promising up-and-coming coach. Rooney is ambitious and confident. He showed his coaching abilities in near-impossible circumstances at Derby County in the Championship before moving to the USA to coach his former club DC United.
Rooney has stated that he wants to manage two clubs, which people assume to be Everton and Manchester United. Maybe he will one day, but this may not be the best time for Rooney to return to his boyhood club.
Can the Everton hierarchy get it right with the next managerial appointment?
It is hard to predict if Everton’s hierarchy can get the next appointment right, as in truth, the head coaches have tended to start well but then fade after a while with the club. There seems to be a lack of winning culture in the club, which stems from the very top. With so much going on with those at the top of the club, it must be difficult for them to come together as a collective to make this crucial decision.
Experience tells us that any appointment will only be a short-term one, as no bosses seem to be able to bring long-term success to the Merseyside outfit. If Everton’s hierarchy gets the decision wrong, then it could mean absolute disaster for the club, who have sat so proudly in the English top-flight for the last 69 years.
