Best Of The Rest ????
If yesterday's game against West Ham proved anything it was that we are nowhere near good enough for the Champions League just yet. In fact we are not good enough for the Uefa Cup on this showing.I know the referee fucked us over once again but that's nothing new these days is it? It's becoming an absolute joke and none of the muppets running the game in this country seem to give a fuck about incompetent officals ? unless they are spoiling the weekends of Sir Alex or Arsene Wenger that is. It's enough to put you off watching the corrupt fucking thing any more and we are getting shafted more times then Elton John's husband and no one gives a shit. What the fucks going on?. Having said that we deserved everything we got in the West Ham game and blaming the ref is the easy way out. We were shite and that's the truth.
Am I the only Evertonian who thinks Arteta is getting worse as time goes by? He looks lost, disinterested and way out of his depth these days. I can't remember the last time he took a free kick and actually got it past the wall or found a team mate. He scored a great goal against Fiorentina but in all honesty he has been crap for the the best part of a year now.
The result and performance at Fulham last week was terrible but this latest one is even worse. I mean West Ham are the league's favourite whipping boys on the road these days and have lost thier last 3 games away 4-0. They out-played us most of the second half and could have scored 4 them selves.
Where was our central midfield or did we even have one? It would not have mattered anyway as we reverted back to hoofball for most of the match and midfied was by passed in favour of the rocket launcher.
Can someone please explain to me what Phil Neville is doing plying his trade in the Premier League? I know he is an honest lad who loves the club but so am I and I am not getting £40k for doing it. Neville is the most limited player I have seen at this level since Stephen Hughes pulled on a Blue shirt and that's saying something. I reckon Neville is the luckiest player in the country at the moment. Captain of a team who are in 5th place in the league and not being able to pass aball 5 yards... it's unbelievable really.
After the last two performances we have inflicted upon our fans I find myself scratching my head and asking myself.. "How the fuck are we in 5th spot playing the way we do?" This Premier League might have the most money swilling around in it but it's a fucking joke in terms of quality if you ask me. If West Ham and crappy Fulham can piss all over the team in 5th spot on consecutive weekends then it doesn't say much does it.
I am not having a go at Moyes or the players here by the way. The simple truth is we are just not up to scratch and all the dreaming and kidding yourselves won't change a thing. Having watched some of our recent performances over and over again I am now really fearing the worst for next week. I hope I am wrong but I can see us getting trounced at Anfield if we turn up with the same game plan as we did yesterday. You know the one: the old lump it and leg it tactic we always return to after a defeat. Liverpool will lap it up if we give them as much cheap possesion as we gave the Hammers.
One bright note in all of this though is Yakubu. Another fantastic goal and a great finish chalked off. The man is pure class but my worry is can we keep him next season if the vultures start circling? I hope so because, without the man many of you labelled a fat waster earlier in the season, we would be fighting relegation just now. His goals have kept us going and no-one else in this squad can come close to the class he has.
Oh sorry, I forgot: ADVM is back next week... COYBs
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The most positive thing to come out of this season is that we’re bringing in players like Yakubu and Pienaar, who have a bit of skill and class. Interesting that many regarded Yakubu as ’not an Everton player’. Too much time watching athletes rather than footballers, methinks.
I look forward to the summer where we will hopefully buy more footballers rather than athletes. We need them if we want to progress further.
Although Baines did ok, we had totally lost our shape with Yobo out of the back four and Lescott not playing at left back. Cahill going off early was a blow, but what concerns me is how we couldn't kill off the game when in the ascendancy. I know we scored a good goal that was chalked off but we had other chances and I always thought we were going to rue the missed chances.
And then of course when they equalised we totally fell apart. Neville was useless, his distribution rubbish, and on your point about Arteta I think he has been carrying that injury for a while to be fair so that may be affecting him. However, what I do notice about him is that when we go behind or lose a goal he looks totally uninterested in the game. He's a nightmare for drifting out of the game when this happens, head down and losing the ball when trying to beat the pitch etc.
I can only hope we havent run out of steam and with the RS getting hammered by Man Utd I suppose we are still in with a shout of fourth, but if we play like that from here on in for the rest of the season I can't see us winning another game.....
If you can't pass the ball with no idea or clue as to what you are going to do with it, then resorting to the hoof, we are fucked. Heads dropping all over the place reminded me of the 4 - 2 vs manure, it's a major wake up call I hope.
ps - I think we really missed Peanut.
Arteta has been playing with injuries for the last 3 months, even so he is still one of the best players we have and would walk into any club in the Priemer League outside Man Utd. Ozzy, Peanuts and Tiny have made our midfield one of the best in the Premier league - don't believe me then check Opta out.
We have had a long season and the effects physical and mental are taking their toll. First half yesterday we played well, should of scored 2 or 3, we didn't and the legs went.
With a couple of quality buys next year we can improve again, like have done for the last 5 years. I?ll take steady improvement over Spurs and Leeds ? spend spend spend / it all ends in tears approach.
Furthermore the likes of Jags and Carsley are completely jaded now. This is the reason for the dip in form and unfortunately that is why 5th is the best we can hope for now. The squad just isnt big enough.
Another point I must make and that I have thought for a while now... Anichebe just isn't good enough for the Premier League let alone Everton. Not enough ability I'm afraid... we need another striker this summer as well as those two central midfielders me thinks.
"I told you so, I told you so! Ha ha! I was right all along! We will never win anything whch is great because I can gloat about how clever I am/"
Well done Tony, congratulations.
I have to agree though that Arteta is looking very poor at the moment. Perhaps it's the injury he is carrying, perhaps it's a mental issue with the fact that when he was playing well he was not getting in the Spain squad. Either way, he needs to sort it out or we should perhaps cash in. I prefer that we keep him, but he has to perform, and not allow us fans to suffer his autonomous selections.
What we need is a player like Yakubu in every position. I?m not talking about build, pace, strength, workrate. I am talking about what they produce in the role they are selected for.
For example, Tony Hibbert. If he is playing as a fullback, support winger, he really needs to be providing overlaps and good crossing ability, as well as positional play and a good sense of tackling. I don?t think there are many boxes we can tick with this guy.
Same with Lee Carsley, he can tackle, or put a boot in, but half the time he flukes a clearance, and luck is no substitute for quality.
Anichebe, well I have been saying this since the start of the season, and I have been saying it on GoT before I got turfed out. This lad has no ability. He can?t pass, he has no football brain, he has little pace and desire, can?t control the ball, and has no composure. These are elements needed to be a successful striker. But he has become a favourite because of his late goals and ability to walk through defenders. I?m sorry, that isn?t enough to push Yak for a place up front, and to be honest if he is to have any kind of future at Everton, he needs to be doing that.
Now I will agree with Tony Marsh here, and this is where I believe he makes sense, criticising the side when they bloody well deserve it. I would like to see a positive spin though. Yakubu for me is that positivity, cut out the mistakes at the back and sort out a decent defensive midfielder, and we can make another small step to success.
and why will we be well off the pace next season then?
This season it was said Spurs, Villa, Geordies, Portsmouth etc were all gonna challenge the Sky4. Guess who is the only team to challenge...
Everything comes to those that wait, and we?ve waited long enough... Let's get the move fron GP progressed to start reaping the investment to give to Moyes to move us in again.
The RS are shittin themselves...
I believe the performances in the last 7 games will be worthy of a Top 4 finish. Bring them all on. God willing our key players will be fit and on form to get what they are capable of.
I also have no doubt that, with summer strengthening assumed, we can justifiably expect to not embarrass ourselves in the CL. Bring it all on. COYB!
The reason we are 5th is because we haven’t been playing like this all season. If we had we would be down the other end of the table.
The Yak isn't the only bright note though, we are a very good right back away from havng a top class back five, we have a midfield that can compete with the rest, but lacks both quality and belief against the top teams, if Vaughany is to be regularly on the treatment table - and the signs arent good - we also need another top striker, but have you seen some of the players getting a game across the park? Yes we are still some way from the finished article, but with belief and decent decisions we can snatch 4th spot, only then can we maybe raise the cash to fill in the missing pieces, we are still 4 top players short, that may sound a lot but in recent years we have been about 14 short of a good squad.
It’s also obvious to me that there is something very corrupt going on with Sky, the FA and it’s referees and Everton should be getting together with the other ’non big four’ teams to sort this out. ’Grand Slam’ weekend just a fixture coincidence or planned. It wouldn’t have been good to have Everton 4th would it?
And Moyes is starting to crack again. Playing the unfit Cahill on Saturday was plain stupid and there was only going to be one outcome. Proving yet again that he never learns even the most basic of things. And now we have Graveson doing an impression of Shandy Andy on the bench. If you are not going to play him because he’s not fit don’t have him there and give a youngster a chance.
No Tony you are not alone. I agree 100% with this. Some say he?s playing through the injury thing, but I?m not having that. He still enjoys hero status at Goodison and sometimes it grinds me when the chants of ?Nobody better than....? start up because at present, he?s doing sod all to deserve them! West Ham was a particularly bad day for Mikel, ok it was for everyone, but we have come to expect a little more than we are getting from Mikel just now and I for one hope its just a very long blip that is coming to an end sooner rather than later.
Spot on post mate in every way!
Simple - we’re 5th because of the other 29 games we’ve played. I can’t believe that never occurred to you, even in your tiny little brain.
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1 Posted 23/03/2008 at 16:53:07
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