The crazy reason why Farhad Moshiri made shock Rafa Benitez appointment at Everton
The Spaniard was, undeniably, a manager whose best days were behind him, having spent the last few years struggling to make his mark in China before being handed a European lifeline by the Toffees.
Supporters had already come to blows with the manager in the past, so his time at Goodison Park was never projected to succeed.
That was even before many witnessed first-hand his inability to forge a side capable of doing anything positively, as they leaked goals for fun whilst operating in a system that offered no attacking threat.
Whether that be hubris or just plain unintelligence, it marks one of the great failures across the Iranian’s already chequered reign.
Well, talkSPORT pundit Jim White has sought to explain what was going through the 68-year-old’s head at the time of appointing Benitez, speaking in his new book: ‘Farhad said he had weighed up everything and he was convinced that he was getting the best man [Benitez] available for the job.
To quantify just how bad Everton were under Benitez is a near-impossible job, but perhaps by comparing his with Sean Dyche’s current side the gulf in quality can be properly emphasised.
Meanwhile, before their untimely EFL Cup exit to Fulham last month, a revitalised Merseyside outfit were actually enjoying a run in which they had lost just three times across 14 matches in all competitions.
To further emphasise his failures, during that 2021/22 campaign, in which Frank Lampard oversaw the second-half of, they finished having scored 43 whilst conceding 66 in the league.
Meanwhile, having amassed an expected goals tally of 33.95 already after 20 games, it is clear how Dyche has them enjoying some free-flowing football whilst sharpening them up at the back.
To think that Benitez was ever going to work at Everton was naïve and foolish, and it is arguably his few months in charge that kickstarted the rapid decline that led to back-to-back relegation battles.
