Everton 2013-14: One Door Closes, But Does Another Open?
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I really hate to see Moyes go, but who could blame him. A few years ago I started the Everton thread with this:
would like to think that Moyes would like to win a Premier League title before it is all said and done. Initially, I thought that maybe, just maybe, if SAF were to retire after winning it all (again) this year that Moyes would be the ideal candidate.
My Prediction: Moyes stays this year.
My sleeper Prediction: Moyes bolts for Chelsea
That was for the 2011-2012 season. Now, I was right in my prediction, but I think then I knew that I would be watching the last few years of Moyes as Everton Manager. He has done a great job for the club and I will never forget that. However, I do think Moyes will contribute big to Everton this year? How? With the sale of one or a few players to Manchester United. I think that Fellaini, Baines, Jagielka, and potentially Mirallas could be some potential players to follow Moyes to Manchester United. The money that would bring into Everton if Moyes was to get Baines and Fellaini would be a huge boon for the new incoming manager.
As for how next season will go, I am unsure. Until we get a manager it will be hard to even try to gage how this will all play out.
3. Moyes seems keen to stay for the long haul, but the big opportunity is coming for him and the questions and whispers still continue. Despite how many times Moyes has said he is not leaving, it seems as if others see what Moyes refuses to or will not acknowledge publicly. He is a wanted man for a coach by teams with bigger wallets. Also, it has to be hard for Moyes to see all the unknown and young talent he has brought inon a thrifty nickel that Everton could not and may not be able afford to keep: Pienaar, Lescott, Rodwell, Jagielka, Fellaini, Baines, and mostof all Wayne Rooney. At some point it has be frustrating knowing thatin the end one ends up becoming a farm system for the bigger clubs. I
would like to think that Moyes would like to win a Premier League title before it is all said and done. Initially, I thought that maybe, just maybe, if SAF were to retire after winning it all (again) this year that Moyes would be the ideal candidate.
My Prediction: Moyes stays this year.
My sleeper Prediction: Moyes bolts for Chelsea
That was for the 2011-2012 season. Now, I was right in my prediction, but I think then I knew that I would be watching the last few years of Moyes as Everton Manager. He has done a great job for the club and I will never forget that. However, I do think Moyes will contribute big to Everton this year? How? With the sale of one or a few players to Manchester United. I think that Fellaini, Baines, Jagielka, and potentially Mirallas could be some potential players to follow Moyes to Manchester United. The money that would bring into Everton if Moyes was to get Baines and Fellaini would be a huge boon for the new incoming manager.
As for how next season will go, I am unsure. Until we get a manager it will be hard to even try to gage how this will all play out.
Looks like they are scrapping the new badge and redesigning it again, AFTER the coming season. It's too late to go away from it for 2013-14.
I can see what they are trying to do by simplifying it. The current one is too busy with the tower, wreaths, year of founding, motto on the scroll, and the team name below. It means you need to make all the details too small to see, or cut pieces off, making it non-standard. That said, they could have done it better. Take the redesigned badge, add the fence line back in front of the tower, put the wreaths in place of the 1878, and add the scroll with the motto below and it would have looked fine.
I can see what they are trying to do by simplifying it. The current one is too busy with the tower, wreaths, year of founding, motto on the scroll, and the team name below. It means you need to make all the details too small to see, or cut pieces off, making it non-standard. That said, they could have done it better. Take the redesigned badge, add the fence line back in front of the tower, put the wreaths in place of the 1878, and add the scroll with the motto below and it would have looked fine.
Martinez's words from his introductory press conference today.
I like the hiring. I would have preferred Vitor Pereira from Porto myself but RM is a smart hire who can hopefully advance the team from a tactical standpoint. He seems to also have the same eye for bargains as Moyes had so it fits the bill for me.
I like the hiring. I would have preferred Vitor Pereira from Porto myself but RM is a smart hire who can hopefully advance the team from a tactical standpoint. He seems to also have the same eye for bargains as Moyes had so it fits the bill for me.
soxfan121 said:
Couldn't disagree any more (with all due respect). When I think that the Porto manager (Vito Peirera) was available for the hire, it only stings that we hired Martinez. Martinez has a career win percentage of 37% and a results percentage (wins+draws/total games) of around 65%. His results percentage isn't bad, but to qualify for the Champions League one will need more wins than just results.
Mirallas may prosper with Martinez, but Jelavic lacks the confidence to do well. If Anichebe can progress over the summer and stay healthy during the first part of the season. Jelavic may see a lot bench/sub duty. I am not sure this was the right hire, but hopefully I will be wrong.
I don't see how you can expect Martinez's record at Wigan - where he had to gut and rebuild his team every season on a budget which makes Everton look like Chelsea - to compare with what you're likely to get out of him at Everton, where things should be much more stable (at least once the exodus of Moyes Men to Man Utd is complete).
I think I'm on the wait and see camp. Unfair to judge Martinez by the results at Wigan, as others have said. I listened to the press conference and he was saying all the right things mostly.
Wonder what Wayne Rooney thinks about the reunion with Moyes.
Wonder what Wayne Rooney thinks about the reunion with Moyes.
allaboutthesox said:
For all the praise he's received, Martinez never came close in three years to the -11 goal differential Steve Bruce had in his last year at Wigan.
By all accounts Martinez is a great guy and his teams try to play attractive football. I suspect that's inclined people to excuse a mediocre record. It's fair to say that Wigan have no real business playing in the EPL, but there are only about 10 teams that should feel like they should never go down.
There hasn't really been too much going on in the way of transfers. Sooner of later they'll get a deal done for Arouna Kone. I for one am not a fan of the move. He's a bit old for that type of production to make me all warm inside, and despite providing depth you wonder how often Martinez would play him over Anichebe (probably too often).
Next, today's Liverpool papers are reporting that CSKA Moscow are allowing Keisuke Honda to leave. His contract is up in January and he'd be a nice signing at a price that allows you to go after some bigger targets if need be.
There hasn't been much talk on Fellaini so I'm assuming he stays. It'd be interesting to see how much RM could do with 24 million pounds but its a non issue now. As for a lineup (Baines isn't leaving IMO):
Timmy
Coleman Jagielka Distin Baines
Mirallas Gibson Osman Pienaar
Fellaini
Jelavic
Looking at that lineup doesn't scream Europe to me. Honda could play on the left wing or in the center, so if he pushed out one of the two I wouldn't complain. Another CB is probably necessary because Heitinga could be sold at some point, and Distin is 35 (I think). The young players hopefully get a crack at some point, Ross Barkley really impressed later on in the year at Spurs/Arsenal, and the young striker Conor McAleny lit up the U21 league last year. Barkley could be a piece to watch although Martinez hasn't said much about him.
Next, today's Liverpool papers are reporting that CSKA Moscow are allowing Keisuke Honda to leave. His contract is up in January and he'd be a nice signing at a price that allows you to go after some bigger targets if need be.
There hasn't been much talk on Fellaini so I'm assuming he stays. It'd be interesting to see how much RM could do with 24 million pounds but its a non issue now. As for a lineup (Baines isn't leaving IMO):
Timmy
Coleman Jagielka Distin Baines
Mirallas Gibson Osman Pienaar
Fellaini
Jelavic
Looking at that lineup doesn't scream Europe to me. Honda could play on the left wing or in the center, so if he pushed out one of the two I wouldn't complain. Another CB is probably necessary because Heitinga could be sold at some point, and Distin is 35 (I think). The young players hopefully get a crack at some point, Ross Barkley really impressed later on in the year at Spurs/Arsenal, and the young striker Conor McAleny lit up the U21 league last year. Barkley could be a piece to watch although Martinez hasn't said much about him.
Is Martinez going to get to reinvest any funds from sales, or is Kenwright going to take money for debt service?
A couple of side notes:
A couple of side notes:
- I was watching an old Granada Sherlock Holmes episode that had this absolute smokeshow of an actress in it. When I looked her up, it turned out that she's now married to Bill Kenwright. So he has that going for him.
- A story came across last week that Distin had been dating a woman for a while and telling her he was a milkman. When she saw a picture of him in his kit, he told her it was his twin brother.
Marca, the Spanish paper, is reporting that Joel Robles, the young keeper from Atletico de Madrid who played at Wigan on loan last year, is headed to Everton.
Edit: And Joel is yours for 4 million euros. He's a good young keeper -- only 23 years old -- and he has potential to get better with more regular playing time. He's a big guy, 6'5, with good instincts. I wish he had stayed at Atletico, as Courtois will return to Chelsea at some point.
Edit: And Joel is yours for 4 million euros. He's a good young keeper -- only 23 years old -- and he has potential to get better with more regular playing time. He's a big guy, 6'5, with good instincts. I wish he had stayed at Atletico, as Courtois will return to Chelsea at some point.
Martinez is supposedly getting 100% of sale money. Best of luck with that Roberto. Another day, another signing. This time it's Deulofeu from Barca for a season long loan. Goodbye Moyes already, this change in thinking is already proving benefits. Moyes would've never tried this. I don't know exactly where he'll play, Mirallas is entrenched on the right so maybe he'll push Pienaar for PT.
Leroy Fer is off to Norwich I think. SJH, you're building quite the team over there. At this point, a CB maybe, another striker? That'd give them four options for a strikeforce, maybe Roberto will move Fellaini into midfield and play some sort of 4-4-2, Sunday's friendly in Vienna may provide clues.
Ed- added word
Leroy Fer is off to Norwich I think. SJH, you're building quite the team over there. At this point, a CB maybe, another striker? That'd give them four options for a strikeforce, maybe Roberto will move Fellaini into midfield and play some sort of 4-4-2, Sunday's friendly in Vienna may provide clues.
Ed- added word
. This time it's Deulofeu from Barca for a season long loan. Goodbye Moyes already, this change in thinking is already proving benefits. Moyes would've never tried this.
Why do you say that?
Why do you say that?
Martinez's transfer policy already seems a bit more forward thinking. Maybe it's the money, which DM never had much of, or the fact that Moyes never loaned in bright youngsters quite as good as this kid. Cause I've only seen highlights but he seems like he can play. There'll be an adjustment period but once he gets past the physicality and all that his quality should shine through.
Back to your question Snake, towards the end of his reign a lot of people just seemed tired of Moyes's thinking, the board may be to blame. The reason they missed out on Europe was because they signed an 18 year old right back in January and that was it. If you're a serious team that wants European football I assume the thinking is to strengthen a team that was (and still is, slightly) thin on depth. Whether it was bringing on defenders for strikers at weird times or a rigid adherence to the system I'm not sure what pissed people more. Martinez on the other hand has signed players well before deadline day, albeit mainly from Wigan, but at this point it doesn't seem like he's done signing players. You really couldn't say the exact same about DM. I'm guessing his desire to go after the Thiago's of the world at United is money plain and simple. While it didn't provide results at Wigan, Martinez seems more forward thinking and it's a breath of fresh air at least at this point.
Back to your question Snake, towards the end of his reign a lot of people just seemed tired of Moyes's thinking, the board may be to blame. The reason they missed out on Europe was because they signed an 18 year old right back in January and that was it. If you're a serious team that wants European football I assume the thinking is to strengthen a team that was (and still is, slightly) thin on depth. Whether it was bringing on defenders for strikers at weird times or a rigid adherence to the system I'm not sure what pissed people more. Martinez on the other hand has signed players well before deadline day, albeit mainly from Wigan, but at this point it doesn't seem like he's done signing players. You really couldn't say the exact same about DM. I'm guessing his desire to go after the Thiago's of the world at United is money plain and simple. While it didn't provide results at Wigan, Martinez seems more forward thinking and it's a breath of fresh air at least at this point.
Oh and Kone's deal is done. That was a couple days ago. Who plays between Jelavic and Anichebe? Jelavic will not be that out of form by August and Anichebe is coming off his best year at the club. Maybe Martinez will favor Kone at first or use two strikers or who knows.
mgoblue2 said:
Sorry, consider me skeptical that he will get all the sale money. Kenwright is notoriously cheap and has shown the fact that he will keep most of the money while raising rates on the fans. On the sale of Rodwell and Arteta, Kenwright did keep some of that money to pay down the debt. I do believe Moyes had at +profit margin in the transfer market at Everton and yet Kenwright never gave full money to Moyes.
As far as the move for Delofeu move, I will see how this move turns out. Moyes tried many times to get many young players from other teams and not with much success (Sergio Canales anyone). Moyes tried to get some fullbacks on loan that fell through. He went after Leroy Fer, but he failed the medical. I think it is not fair to Moyes to think that he didn't try to get some of these younger players on loan. I don't think Martinez is much more forward thinking as some seem to think.
The moves at the deadline last season were limited by Kenwright and players not coming through. Keep in mind Everton was in on Leroy Fer (mid season transfer window), Micheal Essien (on a loan that Chelsea wanted Everton to pay the full wage bill), Jack Butland (moved to another team), and I believe they were in on Negredo or someone close to the mid-season deadline as well. But they did land Stones, who will turn out to be a very good player. Ross Barkley may prove to be Moyes best find at some point. I still am very high on Mirallas as well. Moyes was very forward thinking, but luck didn't break his way all the time.
Snakebauer007 said:
mgoblue2 said:
I do not think Martinez will favor Anichebe and that would be a big mistake. Anichebe (by his own admission) has had the light switch come on. He understands now what it means to be a professional and is very big and powerful up top. It is going to be very interesting to see how the preaseaon plays out.
As far as the transfer market plays:
--I think Baines will end up at Manchester United and that should free up some money (if Kenwright allows it all to be spent) to go after Honda. He would be a big get for Everton and it would allow Fellaini to drop back to CDM.
--Can't say I am that excited about the Kone deal.
--I wouldn't mind seeing Everton make a run at Victor Moses or Demba Ba. (If that happens, one has to believe Jelavic or Anichebe may be leaving)
--The GK pick up seems to be a very interesting and telling one. I know Jan Mucha is gone, but it seems as if Martinez is looking to the future and wants Howard to mentor the new GK. My understanding is that Robles is one to keep an eye on.
I am still not sold on Martinez and consider me as a support with high amounts of doubt. I hope he proves me wrong, but I don't think he will.
Remember my complaints about that right back signed last January? Sorry John Stones. Eat your heart out Andrea! He also missed in the same shootout.
A few positives from the Madrid game, there were a lot of solid chances created, Fellaini hit the post in the first half and I didn't see much wrong with the disallowed goal from Distin. I can live with three at the back because I think people were complaining about how Everton could pull it off if Wigan couldn't. The difference in class is easy to see, the back line now is moving the ball around nicely for being around the system only a couple months.
Osman's looking slower and slower each game, I wonder how much PT he'll get if Gibson and Fellaini are going to play the holding midfield role. Kone was held largely in check. Jelavic was easily more effective.
Osman's looking slower and slower each game, I wonder how much PT he'll get if Gibson and Fellaini are going to play the holding midfield role. Kone was held largely in check. Jelavic was easily more effective.
Howard
Heitinga Jagielka Distin
Coleman Baines
Osman Fellaini
Mirallas Naismith
Kone
That was to start according to Fox Soccer and then according to their twitter feed it turned into a 4-5-1 with Fellaini off of Kone and Heitinga in midfield. It looked like a little bit of both to me. I didn't think Fellaini was that far forward though.Unrelated: Despite being in the "semifinals" last night and being shown in a last 4 graphic Everton are set to play for 5th. The format of that cup could've been explained a bit better.
mgoblue2 said:
A couple of quick hits:
--This formation may play to Everton's strengths
--I am still not sold on Naismith but we shall see how that turns out. I think Pienaar would be better next to Baines than Naismith.
--Mirallas will have a great chance to flourish this season if he can stay healthy.
--Osman may end up where he is at, if Fellaini does end up leaving before Aug 14 (his release clause expires on that date and the amount to pry him from Everton would be expected to go up).
--Is McCarthy on his way from Wigan?
I think Gibson is the better fit in that holding midfield role compared to Osman, Gibson looked on the pace during the friendlies whereas Osman did not especially against Juve.
Away kit:
That badge is the only thing preventing me from buying it. Also Fellaini and Baines 'are not for sale'. Sure.
Away kit:
That badge is the only thing preventing me from buying it. Also Fellaini and Baines 'are not for sale'. Sure.
I guess I should have been more clear about Osman. If Fellaini does in fact leave, the idea was that Gibson would take the departed Fellaini's place in the line up. Even if Fellaini doesn't leave, I still prefer Osman to Gibson. Everton needs an offensive minded CM. Fellaini is a more offensive minded than Osman and Gibson, but is not nearly the distributor Osman is. It will be interesting to see how Martinez works Gibson/Osman into the line up.
As far as Baines and Fellaini go, both if not one of them are leaving. If I had to put money on it, I would be it would be Fellaini as he has stated many times over his desire to play CL football. Also, I don't see Manchester United departing with too much money for Baines at this point. Manchester United have Buttner already, Evra is still fairly good, and Baines is 28 (turns 29 in December). I just can't see Manchester United getting Baines at a high cost and keeping Buttner and Evra.
If Fellaini is to depart, the funds generated from his sale would allow Martinez to bring in McCarthy and more than likely another player as well. If Everton sell both, it would allow Oviedo to play more and have additional funds to pay down debt or save for the Winter transfer window. We shall see how it all turns out as I think Bill Kenwright is still a bit butt hurt that Moyes left.
As far as Baines and Fellaini go, both if not one of them are leaving. If I had to put money on it, I would be it would be Fellaini as he has stated many times over his desire to play CL football. Also, I don't see Manchester United departing with too much money for Baines at this point. Manchester United have Buttner already, Evra is still fairly good, and Baines is 28 (turns 29 in December). I just can't see Manchester United getting Baines at a high cost and keeping Buttner and Evra.
If Fellaini is to depart, the funds generated from his sale would allow Martinez to bring in McCarthy and more than likely another player as well. If Everton sell both, it would allow Oviedo to play more and have additional funds to pay down debt or save for the Winter transfer window. We shall see how it all turns out as I think Bill Kenwright is still a bit butt hurt that Moyes left.
Everton starts the Martinez Era with a 2-2 draw at Norwich City. I was impressed with the amount of possession (68%), but the possession didn't seem to lend itself to as many chances as I would have liked to see. I do think players are still getting use to the new formation and in time they will figure out their niches in it. What I saw yesterday was really promising, but I am a bit concerned that Everton my be a little more exposed on the backline with just three players.
Barkley played well I thought, but did tend to dribble too much at times. However, that is to be expected and he will be a very good player for Everton. Coleman played very well I thought as well and it was good to see him get a goal. Osman, (as Mgoblue2 stated earlier) did look a step behind and I was quite surprised to see how slow he looked.
A solid result though and it should be interesting to see how the next couple of weeks are going to go. Will Fellaini and/or Baines leave Everton? If so, will Martinez have enough time to use the money to pull off a deal to bring in a replacement? The next couple of games looking very winnable for Everton and I think it would be great to get off to a fast start again. Getting off to a fast start will be key to trying to get into the top 6, let alone the top 4.
Barkley played well I thought, but did tend to dribble too much at times. However, that is to be expected and he will be a very good player for Everton. Coleman played very well I thought as well and it was good to see him get a goal. Osman, (as Mgoblue2 stated earlier) did look a step behind and I was quite surprised to see how slow he looked.
A solid result though and it should be interesting to see how the next couple of weeks are going to go. Will Fellaini and/or Baines leave Everton? If so, will Martinez have enough time to use the money to pull off a deal to bring in a replacement? The next couple of games looking very winnable for Everton and I think it would be great to get off to a fast start again. Getting off to a fast start will be key to trying to get into the top 6, let alone the top 4.
Barkley had a fantastic game yesterday. Easily his best performance for the club, his games against the North London clubs last year look to have carried over. If he can score every now and then as well as create chances it'll definitely take pressure off of Jelavic up front.
I think Spurs have made enough strides to where Everton are locked out of the top 4, but the Europa League looks very possible, they were slightly the better side against Norwich and could've stolen that one late on. The acclimation period will also have an effect, it'll take time but I saw a side that looked like they knew what they were doing, and that's good for such a change in playing style.
I think Spurs have made enough strides to where Everton are locked out of the top 4, but the Europa League looks very possible, they were slightly the better side against Norwich and could've stolen that one late on. The acclimation period will also have an effect, it'll take time but I saw a side that looked like they knew what they were doing, and that's good for such a change in playing style.
As we get to the last couple of days before the Transfer Window closes, it is interesting to see Everton has now joined in on bidding on Thomas Ince. He is rated as a £8 million player and it would be fantastic if Everton could swoop him up. I think he is a heck of a player and would be well worth the money due to his age and upside.
I am assuming if Everton were to sell Fellaini for £20-23 million that would fund the purchase of Ince and McCarthy. I really do not think Everton will sell Baines, but they do have Oviedo who can play that position and is an offensive minded player. I do think Fellaini is going to go and I am ok with that based on the price and what we could do to bolster the club with players like McCarthy (whom I haven't seen too much of) and Ince. I am looking forward to seeing how this all plays out.
I am assuming if Everton were to sell Fellaini for £20-23 million that would fund the purchase of Ince and McCarthy. I really do not think Everton will sell Baines, but they do have Oviedo who can play that position and is an offensive minded player. I do think Fellaini is going to go and I am ok with that based on the price and what we could do to bolster the club with players like McCarthy (whom I haven't seen too much of) and Ince. I am looking forward to seeing how this all plays out.
Ehh McCarthy for that much (upwards of 9M pounds) wouldn't make me too happy when you can get a Mohamed Diame for just 3-4 million. Ince would of course be a fantastic buy if it happens, you never know. I think Baines will stay but I think Fellaini is a 60/40 to staying/going at this point because RM doesn't want him to go and Moyes won't budge on that price, which is questionable to me, because Felli is not worth 16M to me. That 28M pound offer for both of them seems to have turned off the board, and that's a good sign to me. Best case scenario would be Ince coming in and nobody out, he'd struggle for playing time as well unless Martinez has him rated above Deulofeu, who I want to see play ASAP.
Since then it's been another 0-0 draw. Good to see the back line turning in these clean sheets but at some point the ball needs to go in the net if they're going to finish in a Europa League place. Baines seems to be staying but Fellaini is less of a sure thing. United seem pretty set on Herrera as I speak. I'm hoping either way that Fernando from Porto is a deal that works out because it allows for Fellaini to move a bit further forward and Osman to get out of the lineup. If that doesn't work then Gibson needs to come back fast, he should be back after the international break. Either way as long as Martinez finds a replacement for Fellaini I'll be fine with him moving.
Everton have reportedly rejected a £15m bid for Baines from United, and have Fernando from Porto lined up as a replacement should Fellaini go.
I think that Everton got a lot more than I thought they would for Fellaini. I am not that upset about Fellaini leaving as the previous years he had dropped hints that he wanted Champions League football. I am assuming that Gibson and McCarthy will be the new pairings in the lineup now. Osman may end up the odd man out from the Starting XI.PedroSpecialK said:
Really excited about Lukaku coming in on loan bringing some sort of attack on the final third. For all of the possession Everton has had in the past two games, we have been unable to finish games/teams off. Jelavic was/is not getting it done and Lukaku scored 17 goals last year. Really disappointed in paying all of Gareth Barry's wages.
I will say this, Martinez is definitely changing this squad and I am looking forward to the rest of this year. I think he has brought in the right people to work his play style with Lukaku, McCarthy, Deulofeu, and Kone. I also think that Martinez may have set up Everton to add mor during the January window with the proceeds from the Fellaini sale.
Should be a very interesting couple of months.
I think on the whole you'll find you enjoy Barry. He has always been slow, and his pace is getting to be a real problem, but I'd be hard pressed to name a more supportive teammate on the pitch. And I don't mean Kumbaya stuff, but Barry has to be one of the best players I've ever seen in his willingness to show for the ball and provide an outlet for his teammates. He plays triangles beautifully and allows for a lot of possession football by making sure his teammates always have a way out. I'll be really interested to see how he gets on at Everton, but I'd urge you guys to try to look past the foot speed issues and see the player for what he is. I think he was proving to be a problem for us at City in the Champions league, but he's still a very good and useful player who should provide a lot of composure in midfield.
teddykgb said:
I hope you are right, but it is hard to swallow that kind of money on wages for Barry (estimated around £120,000 a week). Kind of makes me cringe when I saw that we were paying the whole wage bill, but I am assuming with Anichebe leaving and Fellaini off of the wage bill it made it easier to eat Barry's salary. None the less, I was very pleased on our transfer window and what we brought in. We get some players that want to be at Everton and are definitely positions of need for us. I am really excited about Lukaku being here, even if it is just for this year.
Everton gets another win and this time in exciting fashion. Baines with two free kick goals. Although the first one should have probably been deflected by the GK, but it was still a great free kick. Lukaku played well and Everton dominated possession of the ball. Barry continues to play strong for Everton and Gibson may have a hard time cracking back into the starting eleven. It seems as if the players are starting to understand more of what Martinez wants from them and are starting to buy in. I do wish our defense was a bit more smart with the ball at times. In the past two weeks we have been a bit sloppy in the back as far as handling the ball out of the back. All in all a great result, but it is still early in the year.
On a side note, Ross Barkley is such an impressive player. I do believe Moyes was right to let Barkley go out on loan and I do think that if Moyes had stayed at Everton Barkley would have seen more 1st team action. I am just glad to see Barkley gaining confidence and playing well.
On a side note, Ross Barkley is such an impressive player. I do believe Moyes was right to let Barkley go out on loan and I do think that if Moyes had stayed at Everton Barkley would have seen more 1st team action. I am just glad to see Barkley gaining confidence and playing well.
Barkley is an excellent prospect and since all the "big" clubs have that position well-staffed, he might just get the opportunity to play regularly and develop. If he gets tempted to move, he should be given Jack Rodwell's phone number and a list of questions that all boil down to "how often do you play?"
teddykgb said:
Really? Doesn't quite square with "I'm fit, I'm training hard and I'm being patient" after not appearing in the first three matches of the season.
Rodwell, and players like him, help big clubs meet homegrown player quotas for the CL and EPL. Assuming full health, is Rodwell in City's Best XI? I don't think so but I'm a neutral.
Regardless of why, I'm assuredly correct when I say playing helps develop a player more than sitting on the bench. A guy like Barkley - young, inexperienced, still learning - benefits more from playing first team games more than sitting on the bench earning high wages and waiting for a better, more experienced player like Yaya Toure or Fernandinho to take a knock.
So, yeah...ask Rodwell about not playing but earning lots of money OR playing and earning not quite as much money (but still a fuckload).
I'm still miffed as to why Chelsea would loan Lukaku this season. The guy is big, fast, strong, and works hard up front. I'm relatively new to soccer (been following the Premier League for 18 months) but he seems like a guy that you find a way to fit into your system. Everton reaping the rewards.
Lukaku could fire Everton into Europe if he's not careful. The comeback in the 2nd half is worrying but this style of play is starting to create a bunch of quality chances, I'm optimistic at this point that EFC could make the most of this chaos at the top of the table.
soxfan121 said:
You're right that Barkley shouldn't move to a big club, playing time is important and he may not get enough of it at a bigger club. I just think Rodwell isn't a great example. City had/chose to go buy Fernandinho partly because Rodwell just hasn't been able to train, let alone play, with any regularity. I think he had 11 muscle strains last season. He's currently injured (again) and it's forcing Toure and Fernandinho to play in all competitions because they sold Barry to Everton and opted for Rodwell. Jack should have seen plenty of time at City this season, but he's been unable to train and prove his worth. I don't think that's particular to City, that's been a constant problem for Rodwell. And I don't think he's soft, just unlucky with injury as some players are. But any suggestion that he's been victimized by his move to a big club has to gloss over the very substantial issue that City have wanted to give him much more time to prove himself but he hasn't been able to sustain a run in the team due to his own injuries, not coaching decisions to bench him.
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