Everton finished the campaign in seventh place and once again it is the same tale as the last few seasons for the Toffees. They missed out on a European spot despite losing just two of their last 13 games. Once again, despite the best efforts of David Moyes, Everton stumbled badly in the early weeks and went without a win in the league into October. Soon after the drought was over, a sweet 2:0 win over beleaguered Liverpool made the fans much more optimistic. Consistency remained elusive for the team led by Moyes though as the likes of Tim Cahill and Mikel Arteta were going missing more often than not and the team remained stuck in mid-table. Lows like a 4:1 home defeat to West Brom were followed by superb results like a draw at Chelsea and a win away at Manchester City. The pattern remained the same in the early weeks of 2011 as the team was playing some decent football for most of the time but had off-days that were setting them back. The high point of their season was dumping Chelsea out of the FA Cup after winning a replay at Stamford Bridge on penalties but then, typically, they lost to Reading at home in the next round and the rest of the season was rendered meaningless. Everton then decided to become a bit more consistent with a number of assured displays leading them to a good unbeaten run. Yet, at the end, frustration at the lack of progress is the overwhelming feeling among the fans and it may well by a key summer for Moyes who is desperate to lead Everton to bigger thinks but does not have the resources to do it.
