Gravesen

So farewell Tommy Gravesen. Opted to retire at 32 having failed to find a new home following his release from Celtic in the Summer of 2008.

I'm pretty ambivalent when it comes to Gravesen. To be honest, the fist-pumping, mad-eyed stuff was always a bit over the top for me; at times that appeared to disguise inadequacies on the pitch. That said, Gravesen was a fixture in the Everton midfield during one of the most unmoving periods in the history of the club, a time cluttered with 'bitty' players that suited Walter Smith's squad in the late 90s, early 2000s. Alongside the likes of Scott Gemmill, Tobias Linderoth, Alexandersson, Gazza and the disasterous Nyarko, he was the best of an average bunch. Compared to what we have now, it seems a lifetime ago. But there is no doubt Gravesen had his moments and on occasion his passing could be outstanding. My final memory of Gravesen is a good one. Having played no part in the previous 120 minutes of the UEFA Cup match at home to Fiorentina, Gravesen marched on for the penalty shoot-out, was brave enough to take the opening shot and smashed it past the excellent Frey. I wish he could have taken all 4.

Gravesen does join the list of players who had a couple of spells at the club and I can't think off the top of my head of another Everton player who also called Real Madrid home. Whatever anyone says about his short time in the Spanish capital, it's not a bad club to have on a footballers CV.