Complex sentence: Keown had a fine start to his Everton career, and they topped the table for a while in late autumn and there was hope that they could win the league title, but their form ebbed away after Christmas and they managed only a sixth-place finish.
Split into simpler sentences: Keown had a fine start to his Everton career, and they topped the table for a while in late autumn and there was hope that they could win the league title. However, their form ebbed away after Christmas and they could only manage a sixth-place finish.