Big spending and big coaches can’t halt Everton’s sharp fall

By JAMES ROBSON
AP Soccer Writer

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — The spending sprees on players and hiring of big name managers haven’t stopped Everton’s slide. At this rate, one of English soccer’s most storied clubs might be playing in the second division when its new waterfront stadium opens. Everton is searching for a new manager — again — after the firing of Frank Lampard with the club fighting for Premier League survival after 69 years in the top flight. It continues a pattern of decline so steep that Everton’s directors were advised to avoid Goodison Park earlier this month because of threats to their safety. Majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri has spent $780 million in a bid to transform Everton’s fortunes and return it to its glorious past when it regularly competed for major trophies.