RIGHT THEN, back to the grindstone.
It shouldn’t really feel that way, we should be champing at the bit at the prospect of a resumption of the Premier League, but going to Old Trafford simply has nothing to recommend it whatsoever.
Even when the Blues are playing out of their skin the best they ever really hope for is to frustrate Manchester United and hold out for a draw. Otherwise known as a moral victory.
In fairness, it’s the same for all but a handful of teams in Europe, but still that doesn’t do anything to lighten the grim inevitability of these encounters.
David Moyes’s Everton have probably been as good as almost anyone at ‘parking the bus’ at Old Trafford over the last six or seven years – a testament to their organisation and discipline – but those attributes have been in alarmingly short supply this season.
And although United don’t appear to be the omnipotent attacking force of old, they will still punish us if there isn’t a marked improvement on the defending that allowed Benfica to dominate at Goodison and very nearly undid us at West Ham.
To that end, there couldn’t be a better game for Phil Neville to return if, as reported, he is close to fitness along with Steven Pienaar and Leon Osman.
