It’s been a funny old Summer.

Teams up and down the West Coast Mainline are in the main quite content, some ecstatic, and would you believe Liverpool were one of only two of our teams to end the season with relative disappointment. Naturally, I didn’t enjoy that moment at all, or try to order a 2007 winners Athens t-shirt (actually I wanted Kaka’s ‘I belong to Jesus’ version).

Therefore, the summer came quickly and money has been spent, new stadiums discussed, and it’s gone quite quickly too. There’s been the Copa America and some absurdly early friendlies to fill the gap, and now, only a couple of weeks to go. Fantasy Football listings in the paper, new shirts being worn all over town, and before you know it we’ll be watching Jeff Stelling and the boys and eagerly awaiting Post-match interviews discussing the latest controversy or wonder goal.

The lower league team I’ll be looking out for most next year will be Morecambe. Having won a glorious play-off final that for some reason was live on Sky Sports News, they approach their first League season with intrepid optimism, and a rejuvenated town spirit presumably not felt since the Stones played the Winter Gardens (as my uncle always reminds me). I’m originally from Lancaster you see, and the club I played for as a boy, despite its being a City, are so far in the Shrimps’ shadows not even Steve Zissou could locate them. They are the team, remember, that ended the season on nil points having been deducted ten, lost all their players, and struggled to even get out of minus figures. Thankfully, features on Focus and Granada Soccer Night seemed to do the trick and relegation brought with it a new hope. Meanwhile, Morecambe are looking at a new stadium, certainly their crowds this year will be enhanced dramatically, though whether or not the players will be celebrating in the sea front’s most famous nightclub The Carlton we’ll have to see.

Blackpool are also celebrating, having had a fantastic end to the season and winning n the play-offs, the trips to Bramall Lane and The Valley will evoke memories of their heyday and Mortensen and Matthews lighting up Wembley Way. Simon Grayson has worked wonders at the club and we can only hope that this will be the year the Seasiders finally fill in that last end of the ground. That sea wind’s terrible you know…

Elsewhere in Lancashire, Blackburn and Bolton – whatever. In the words of Morrissey, I find it almost impossible to care (although I don’t think he was commenting on these two teams at the time) as I can’t stand either, new signings, European ventures etc, a new manager for one, but no doubt they’ll remain horrible to watch, hard to beat and generally irrelevant. Good luck to them and their fans, at least Allardyce isn’t involved any more I suppose.

I quite like Burnley actually, though all I’ve heard about them this close season has been that Alistair Campbell bid £15000 to be a squad member for the day so that’ll improve their chances no end.

Wigan meanwhile is a different story. I’ve always had a soft spot for them, I don’t particularly like the team or ex manager but they try hard and have a few old Evertonians amongst them. They’ve been spending big too, and the scribe who wrote above my local’s gents’ urinal ‘Titus Bramble – misunderstood genius’ may well have had a few too many Magners but may just also have got it right. If however they sell Leighton Baines that would be a shame as he’s a Kirkby lad too and has a great left foot. I’m just jealous I suppose cos I kind of wanted us to sign him.

Liverpool then… what more can you say other than they’ll be there or there abouts yet again next season, Rafa’s probably got the final pieces (of eight? He does look like a pirate with that awful goatee). Voronin looks class, Torres will probably be a success, no doubt even Kewell might make the team. Blah blah blah. They’ve spent and sold heavily and generally look to have improved even more, but I question the fans’ embracement of the American investment (random soundbite – fan outside Anfield to George Gilette, “We gona bring the European Cup home George?” “You bet your ass we will!”) when they so ridicule Manchester Utd’s Glazers arrival.

What I do have to say will happen is that Liverpool will become even more of a parody of themselves and win games with luck or divine/devilish intervention and even if they beat each other up for fake tickets, ‘The Kop’ will be applauded as the greatest fans in the world yet again.

That comment probably explains who I’ll be mentioning most in my correspondence this season. Yes, I am a sometimes bitter, occasionally optimistic Evertonian. I started supporting them in 1986 because I liked Lineker (I was a child) and I felt sorry for them at the Cup Final. That’s a feeling I’ve continued to have towards the self-styled People’s Club over the years, though often I think people have felt sorry for me too.

After the relative success of last season and the giddy heights of being disappointed with a draw at Chelsea on the last day, it’s been down to earth with a bump on Planet Everton, not enough signings, missing out on possible important players and generally doing not so great in their friendlies. With Vaughan now facing a long lay off, AJ and McFadden still coming back to fitness and only Victor looking threatening, I’d like to think there may be a big signing on the way. Fernandes looked class at times last year, but if Beattie is to have any fond memories of his time with us, now is the time to do it, especially if nobody else comes in.

Nugent, Koumas, Barton and maybe Baines were all touted as in the pipeline, but, as with Kieron Richardson, something wasn’t right with any of them for Moyes’ liking and so we face the prospect of a UEFA run with too small a squad. Maybe the rumours are true though and Riquelme will be joining before the big kick-off, ironically against Wigan. I haven’t excitedly salivated as much (football wise incase she’s reading) since Ruben Sosa was allegedly on his way.

At the same time, there’s all this talk of the new stadium, Kirkby or not Kirkby, that is one of the questions, shared grounds etc, should we stay or should we go? One thing’s for sure, it’s bound to be a typical Everton season with more questions than answers.

Or maybe not and this is the year of the underdog when twenty one years of mediocrity are ended and Phil Neville is parading the trophy around the pitch come May, whilst Little Leon and Nuno Valente frolic in the sunshine with Carling-branded champagne and we all film it on our phones in the Gwladys Street end of the School of Science. One can but dream…

And that’s what it’s all about ultimately isn’t it. Every one can be an optimist, hopeful that this could be our season, this is the one… at least until the end of the first match, when reality kicks in.

And that feeling is what we should all enjoy and cherish. Cos that’s what it’s all about, or at least should be.

Bloody hell, football.