Everton's disastrous start a result of mindless summer spending

By the time Sunday's match against Manchester United ended, Everton found itself stuck in the relegation places, without a goal in four matches, and under massive criticism from agitated supporters.

A Champions League spot was the goal at the start of the season - and rightfully so after expenditures totalling more than £140 million. Yet the Toffees look like they need more investments just to match last season's seventh-place finish, and manager Ronald Koeman hasn't helped with his negative-minded tactics.

It's true that the 4-0 defeat to United at Old Trafford flattered the host, which added gloss to victory with three goals in the final 10 minutes of play. It's also true Everton has faced formidable opposition away from home in the first two months of the campaign.

But none of these are good enough excuses. These are the teams Everton wants to be among anyway.

One-sided losses to Chelsea, Tottenham, Atalanta, and United showed Everton has a distinct lack of pace, width, and goal-scoring ability. At Old Trafford in particular, Koeman's side lined up in an ultra-defensive 5-3-2 formation that encouraged his players to sit behind the ball. The Dutchman has made a habit of going conservative in away matches, but after such lavish spending, such a statement of intent, there has to be more ambition on the pitch. The fact Everton has yet to win a Premier League match on the road since Jan. 21 is damning of the manager's credentials.

What's worse, Koeman tried to absolve himself of blame Sunday and instead put the onus on his players. He sounded like a man who, even as early as September, had run out of ideas.

Related: Former Everton star Lukaku ruins Rooney's Old Trafford return

"It's not ambition. It's confidence. It's the confidence of players and the confidence of the team. I tried to shout to them and told the full-backs to take a higher position. That's something which is in the head of the players after a tough period," Koeman said, according to the Liverpool Echo's Neil Jones.

"It's really difficult. As a manager you try to help them and support them but when the whistle blows it's all about yourself, all about your teammates, and we started too afraid. We did not press."

It's now painfully clear Everton spent large sums to address the wrong areas of the pitch. The Merseyside outfit signed essentially the same player in Wayne Rooney, Davy Klaassen, and Gylfi Sigurdsson - all creative playmakers who have zero pace - and neglected to identify a proper replacement for Romelu Lukaku. Sandro Ramirez cost a relative pittance, but unfortunately, he doesn't add much speed to Everton's lethargic attack. Nikola Vlasic isn't ready for this level, and for some reason, Oumar Niasse, who scored big goals for Hull City in the second half of last season, remains an afterthought.

Meanwhile, in the year-long injury absence of Yannick Bolasie, Everton made no real attempt to add a genuine wide threat. Besides the failure to bring in a proven striker like Olivier Giroud or Nikola Kalinic, Everton forgot to look for a stand-in for the Congolese international.

Without the right approach, however, it's all useless. Registering just seven shots on target over the past four matches, Everton ceded any hope of winning those contests. Even with a more defensive shape, it has, along with a disjointed West Ham side, conceded a joint-worst 10 goals in the Premier League. Playing with three centre-backs has yielded no benefits. There's a considerable problem here in the players' execution of Koeman's plans.

Of course, form is temporary, and Everton has a good opportunity to turn its fortunes around over the next two weeks. After serving some fastballs, the schedule has thrown Everton easy fixtures against Sunderland, Bournemouth, Apollon, and Burnley. There's the potential to take 12 out of 12 points during the coming stretch. The narrative could change.

But based on the evidence we have, it will take a 180-degree difference in mentality and production. At the moment, Everton looks worse off than it did before its transformative summer.

Apparently money doesn't buy a spot in the top four.