Joe-Max Moore played in the German Second Division before spending four seasons with the New England Revolution. Now in his second season with Everton, he plays alongside the likes of Paul Gascoigne, Richard Gough and Duncan Ferguson.

GOODISON PARK: ôThatÆs maybe the best part about playing in England ù the atmosphere at the stadiums,ö Joe-Max Moore says. ôThe fans are literally five to six yards away from the field, and we play in front of full houses pretty much everywhere we go. There are between 30,000 and 50,000 fans at most games, and theyÆre all singing songs for 90 minutes. They are very educated fans. If a player makes a tackle and then plays a good 30-yard ball, he gets a nice applause.ö

Goodison is ôan older stadium that seats about 40,000. There have been talks about building a new one, but this one is right in the middle of the city.ö

THE FANS: Moore earned the fansÆ acceptance very quickly upon signing with Everton by scoring six goals in his first 10 matches. The Goodison Park faithful modified a pop song to root for him:

ôJoe-Max Mo-ore! How do you like it? How do you like it? Moore, Moore, Moore!ö

Although he has seen just two games with crosstown club Liverpool, there are daily reminders of the storied rivalry, Moore says:

ôThe city is pretty much split right down the middle, 50-50, Reds and Blues. ItÆs that way from birth. The rivalry is bitter. ItÆs so intense; IÆve talked to people who have been divorced because they canÆt agree on which team to support.ö

HOME LIFE: Moore and his wife, Martha, live in a suburb called Wirral, about 25 minutes outside the city of Liverpool. They searched extensively for the right location because ôonce the fans know where you live, if youÆre too close to the city, you get problems with people throwing things at the windows and stuff.

ôWe live near a river in a nice little village where we do our grocery shopping. The people are friendly, we get along really well with everyone.ö

The Moores are expecting their first child, a boy, in February.

WEATHER: ôThe weatherÆs a nightmare. We just got finished having snow for two weeks. It doesnÆt snow very often here, but it is windy being near the water and it is always raining. IÆd like to see a stat about how many days a year it rains because itÆs probably a staggering number. ItÆs pretty dark and gray.ö

COACHING STAFF: ôWalter Smith, the manager, was at Rangers for five or six years and won a bunch of championships there. He is a great playersÆ manager, willing to respond to the playersÆ concerns.ö Archie Knox, the assistant coach, runs practices while Smith watches quietly.

ôThe training sessions are very short and sharp; the training facilities are amazing.ö

Smith is very approachable, Moore says.

ôI, myself, have a pretty good relationship with [Smith]. Since IÆve been here, heÆs been more than fair, and anything I need to talk to him about, I can.ö

How the team plays, however, is ôa difficult question for me to answer right now. Recently, weÆve been playing with Duncan Ferguson up top and a small forward running off of him. ItÆs hard to be creative when the backs, more often than not, are banging the ball upfield hoping for the flick-on. IÆd like to say we build from the back, get the ball out to the wings and look for crosses, but recently it hasnÆt been like that. This year weÆve had a lot of injuries, and with all the different people going in and out of the lineup, we havenÆt settled into a style.ö

TEAMMATES: ôThe personalities throughout this club are just incredible. There isnÆt a day that goes by without me laughing hysterically at something.

ôRichard Gough and Paul Gascoigne are two that stand out. GazzaÆs been injured for about 10 games now, but heÆs a character. I guess everybodyÆs got their stories about him, but thereÆs always something up with this guy. HeÆs great for the team. He keeps things fun. Everyday heÆs doing something ù like putting a playerÆs face on somebody elseÆs body and taping it up in the locker room. … I donÆt think anyone can tell him what to do, not even the coaches ù although they do keep a very close eye on him.ö At 33, Gascoigne is showing no signs of growing out of his sophomoric ways. ôI donÆt think he ever will,ö Moore says. ôHe just enjoys life and enjoys making people laugh. I just hope he gets healthy and back on the field soon because heÆs one of our most creative players.ö

Gough, meanwhile, ôwith all the experience heÆs had, is just a tremendous leader. Ferguson seems to be a natural team leader as well.ö

RESULTS: ôEvertonians expect this team to be in among the top five or six in the Premiership, and right now weÆre sitting in 16th,ö Moore says. ôWeÆve had quite a few bad results in a row lately, and we better get it straightened out soon or weÆll end up in the relegation zone. WeÆve had quite a few injuries, so maybe thatÆs one reason, but the coaches have talked about a lack of intensity recently. We just donÆt seem to have the same fighting spirit that we brought onto the field last year, and thatÆs a surprise. Usually, thatÆs the first thing you can count on.ö

SCHEDULE: ôIf we win on Saturday, then we usually have Sunday off,ö Moore says. ôWeÆll train Monday and Tuesday and maybe get Wednesday off. But, as I said, we havenÆt been lighting it up lately, so weÆre usually in six or seven days a week.ö

ON THE FIELD: Moore has appeared in 16 games this season for Everton but has not yet scored.

ôI havenÆt had the same amount of minutes I had last year. For one reason or another, it just hasnÆt happened. IÆm playing 10 to 45 minutes for most games. I just try to stay as positive as possible, and hopefully, I can get the goals to start coming again.ö

Moore was sent off late in a Jan. 6 FA Cup match against Watford. The score was tied at the time of MooreÆs ejection, his first in England.

ôAt one point, I was fouled and I got up quickly. I ran into the guy [who committed the foul] a little, and I got a yellow. Later, I made an offside run, and I was so frustrated with myself for not timing it better that when the ball came to my foot, I just booted it away. I donÆt know why I did it ù temporary insanity, I guess. … Coach asked me what happened, and I was honest with him. I told him I was just frustrated. HeÆs OK with it. He knows it happens; players sometimes make mistakes. Thankfully, my team was able to pull out the win.ö

FOOD: ôI donÆt think the quality of food is quite what it is in the States. I donÆt mean to insult anybody, but there are quite a few jokes about the English and their cooking styles. ItÆs just more bland, for the most part. … There are a few Italian restaurants near us, and sometimes weÆll go into Manchester, which is about 45 minutes away and has some nice restaurants.ö

MEDIA: ôAt least 30 or 40 percent of the papers are devoted to football. There is a weekly publication, The Evertonian, just about our team. The Echo is the daily paper here in Liverpool, and it covers us and Liverpool equally.

ôThe tabloids are constantly killing somebody. YouÆve got to have a thick skin, thatÆs one thing IÆve noticed. Fortunately, IÆve been treated pretty fairly in my time here.ö

THE FUTURE: ôI could see myself playing in England for a few more years. … My wife has been incredibly supportive of my career, and she knows that now is the time I have to do this. I wouldnÆt have any problems raising my son here; the schools are good.ö

by Soccer America associate editor Will Kuhns