THE problem with chasing the global dollar so openly is that it flies in the face of the “People’s Club” ethos that Everton have cultivated so well over the past few years.

While many have done everything to milk fans for as much as possible, the Goodison side have always put a kinder face on the pursuit of profits.

Season ticket prices remain among the cheapest in the division, community projects such as the Everton Tigers basketball team have thrived and although the shirt is changed every season, you can’t have everything can you?

The problem is that Premier League think they can.

Got a great product, enjoyed from Boston to Beijing? We’ll take it there and get their cash as well.

So the “farcical” 39th game was born in the board room, a match that critically undermines the FA dream to cut the number of teams in the top flight to aid the national side.

With this the Premier League have shown that football now is all about money, a fact underlined when chief executive Richard Scudamore chilling added: “There were more ridiculous plans we could have looked at.”

The trouble for a club like Everton is balancing the wishes of the people who support the club through the turnstiles week in, week out with the need to be as commercially competitive as possible.

And so it is that, speaking before the game with Reading, Goodison chief executive Keith Wyness told of his shock that there had been such an outcry when fans “didn’t know the full story.”

In calling the move an “exciting development,” he may already have taken a step too far for many fans who don’t want to see their club dragged round the world like a travelling circus.

There is no doubt that Wyness has Everton at heart but – and he would not be alone among the people at the top of the game in England – he may well have misjudged the mood of the rank-and-file supporter.

The reason why they don’t want to hear any more about the idea is because it’s so flawed in the first place.

It seems difficult to imagine a situation in which anyone can say anything to sway the mood of opinion – including a new protest campaign by the Football Supporters Federation – to the point where fans are embracing the idea like a long-lost relative.

The simple fact is the “Greed is Good” Premier League have already squeezed all they can from the British public.

The only avenue of income left open to them is abroad and if they want to go and get it there is nothing you or I can do about it.

They are only the fans, the people who are supposed to own the club.

Sad times indeed, but on a lighter note, if Everton were forced to go half way across the world to a game, one of the biggest questions must be would Yakubu make it?

His late return from the African Cup of Nations ensured he was left out against Steve Coppell’s strugglers, and his cutting edge was missed for much of the match.

In truth, no foreigner who coverts the Premier League would cross the road to watch the opening hour.

With players returning from all over the world – Yakubu excepted – the side looked leggy, with moves often breaking down in the final third.

But credit to Moyes, who saw what was needed to spark the hosts and the second-half introduction of James Vaughan proved be inspirational.

In replacing Manu Fernandes, Everton gained hustle and bustle over flicks and tricks, and that’s what you need to beat Reading.

The England under-21 striker so nearly set up a subdued Tim Cahill for a opener before Phil Jagielka expertly sprung the offside trap to head home.

After that the two teams continued to cancel each other out, but Vaughan stood head and shoulders above the rest, encapsulated in the move where he ran 60 yards at incredible speed to charge down a long ball.

Vaughan’s power and strength reminds of a young Alan Shearer, who also had his injury problems when he was maturing.

But what sets the Birmingham-born striker apart is his sheer pace, which frightened Reading to death on Saturday and created the openings for others to squander.

So, apart from Vaughan, not too inspiring, but when you’ve got a small squad and are still battling on more than one front, the players are entitled to look jaded every now and again.

But imagine this match in intense heat and uneven pitch, in a different time zone and in front of a crowd who – despite waving their Arteta flags feverishly – were largely indifferent.

Moving to Kirkby is one thing… but Kuala Lumpur is a whole new ball game.