ToffeeWeb - Season 2008-09

The Mail Bag

Travelling Party

Now many people have talked about our shortage of midfielders but, for the few that might still believe that we will cope the following travelling party was announced for Switzerland:

Turner, Ruddy, Baines, Lescott, Van der Meyde, Johnson, Vaughan, Jagielka, Neville, Valente, Osman, Irving, Rodwell, Kissock, O'Kane, Agard, Jutkiewicz, Baxter, Sinnott, Molyneux.

Notice the number of FIRST TEAM midfielders... one! Even taking Neville as a midfielder not a rigth back and VDM as a realistic option, it's not a full midfield.

Before people mention it's a pre-season and players are off due to longer holidays ? this could happen with a few injuries...
Robert Heaton, Crewe Posted 07/07/2008 at 17:33:32

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Comments

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Martin Cutler
1 Posted 07/07/2008 at 19:06:29

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When you look at it like that it?s kind of scary but what gets me is the frustration Moyes must go through in getting his team ready. He appears to do a good job in pre-season training/conditioning etc but it would be nice if he had a full team... even nicer with his full team PLUS new players!

Bilbo Baggins
2 Posted 07/07/2008 at 19:05:38

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Absolute disgrace, this must be killing Moyes. How can we compete with this lot. What's happened to Gosling, the young lad from Plymouth????

Marc Williamson
3 Posted 07/07/2008 at 19:17:52

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Gosling is off playing for England Under-19s

Calum Templeton
4 Posted 07/07/2008 at 19:12:30

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I agree it looks scary but it's also a good chance for the younger lads to get a chance a prove what they're worth, gives Andy van der Meyde a chance to prove why DM is keeping him for another year, and in few games time the African lads will be back, some of the injuries will behind us... it will look a bit better then but I still agree we need a few quality players and some team players. Bilbo: Dan Gosling is with the England Under-19 set-up.

Chris Cook
5 Posted 07/07/2008 at 19:32:22

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Just as long as i get to see the Yak at Deepdale...

Stuart Mitchell
6 Posted 07/07/2008 at 21:00:34

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Midfield is looking Scary!

Need to get a replacement for Carsley in ASAP, followed by resigning Fernandes on a year long loan and get some pace out wide!

3 Midfield signings and the season ahead looks alot more rosy!

Follow that with maybe another striker and a RB.

Terry Smith
7 Posted 07/07/2008 at 21:34:43

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I wonder what BK would say about this. That squad is bare and we cant afford to get anymore injuries! I just hope to god that the wheels are in motion for the midfielders that we are craving to take this team forward. I do believe we need to get them in now to get to know the squad etc etc. Let's not forget Moyes put his targets to BK at the end of the season so I would of thought something should be done or close to being done!

John Andrews
8 Posted 07/07/2008 at 23:38:46

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I should imagine that Moyes must be devastated with the lack of transfers. And now it seems that AJ could well be on his way !
What the hell is going on ?

Neil Adderley
9 Posted 07/07/2008 at 23:47:24

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John Andrews - ’What the hell is going on?’

Kenwright’s backers have disappeared and EFC haven’t got a pot to piss in..........if you believe the rumours........like the one raging now that AJ will sign for Wigan tommorrow for £9.5m.

Ah well, at least it’s never dull, eh!

Tommy Reed
10 Posted 08/07/2008 at 01:33:37

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That last rumour about Johnson going for £9.5 mill tommorow doesn?t make sense. For a start, why would Moyes take him to Switzerland only for him to return again the next day! If it happens then fair enough, but it's just not beliveable.

Jay Harris
11 Posted 08/07/2008 at 04:05:17

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I dont mind AJ going but, if you listen to what Moyes has been stating, he won't be going anywhere.

If he does go, that will confirm to me that Moyes will not be renewing his contract.

My main concern is that we?ve lost/sold Simon Davies, Fernandes, Graveson, McFadden, Stubbs, Wessels and worst of all Carsley (an almost ever present every season) and not even looked like replacing one of them.

How we can get 5 MF players and a goalie signed in less than 4 weeks is beyond me and that is only to bring the squad up tp last year?s numbers let alone increase them.

John Charles
12 Posted 08/07/2008 at 05:43:08

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That's a sentence you wont hear very often!!

??My main concern is that we?ve lost/sold Simon Davies..."

Vishal Poorundersingh
13 Posted 08/07/2008 at 06:29:46

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Kissock has proved his ability at Gretna, this is a great chance for him to show Moyes what he is capable of. We should not be worry of the Midfielders now during preseason, instead we should give chance to the youngsters. I will be positive as I know Moyes will bring on at least two quality players this season from his transfer kitty and to that we have many youngsters coming to the first team. Then Moyes will loan some players too, may be two or three. This is the way he has done at Everton and it has been proved successful.

Gavin Ramejkis
14 Posted 08/07/2008 at 07:39:42

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Vishal with all respect Kissock was Gretna’s best player in a lot of games but the SPL is a poor league with most sides looking like pub teams and Kissock is still to prove himself at the top level. I’d give him a shot thanks to potless Bill blowing the cash on DK but don’t expect the world from Kissock he’s still just a kid.

Sandra Beeken
15 Posted 08/07/2008 at 07:59:57

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Has anyone had the thought that we are after Darren Bent and Lennon from Spurs because that's where Blue Bill's backers Phillip Green and Robert Earl are supposedly wanting to put their money? So there's a bit of fishy business there. Also, if the Fletcher rumours are true, is he the last instalment of the Rooney deal?

Dave Whitwell
16 Posted 08/07/2008 at 08:11:13

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Just an aside to these comments, has anyone ever looked at the Latest injuries page on the official site?

Just to summarise it states return dates as:

Vaughan - Unknown
Turner - Unknown
Van Der Meyde - Unknown
Cahill - Summer 2008
Arteta - Summer 2008
Hibbert - Summer 2008
Baines - Unknown

Is that the best info our Physios can come up with. 4 out of 7 they apparently have no idea when they will return and the other 3 have been narrowed down to a quarter of the year, albeit our summer is probably for 2 weeks in August.

Also Turner, Baines, Van Der Meyde & Vaughan are all in the squad above, are they still injuried or is this just a page on the official site that nobody bothers to update?

Marc Williams
17 Posted 08/07/2008 at 08:24:11

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Careful fella?s all this worrying about squad numbers & you?ll get the ?calm down calm down, I?m not panicking? brigade on your backs.
So let me warn you what they?ll say :

The transfer windows only been open for a week (they?ll still be saying this in August only then it?ll be month)

Moyes has always ?pulled the rabbit out the hat? & Kenwright has backed him before (Moyes won?t sign his contract & I don?t think Bill?s backers are taking his phone calls)

David Whitwell : I posted about this the other week & think the dates are even worse than this as Cahill is September/October & Hibbert is having anyther op this week.

Martin McGeever
18 Posted 08/07/2008 at 08:59:13

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I have heard from a reliable source that Rodwell is being groomed for the holding(Carsley) role in the Premier League this year. Also due to our well known problems with finance AJ will be definately out of GP by end of week... however, Wigan is not his preferred destination.
[This info is from the father of a current 1st team Squad player]

Tony Part
19 Posted 08/07/2008 at 09:08:28

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I personally cannot believe how the Board are treating Moyes. I assume that it's not Moyes who is happy to take such a decimated and basically a schoolboy squad into pre-season knowing the scenario could crop up again at any given time...

There is no way on earth that we can allow Andy Johnson to leave as we cannot afford for anymore players to leave the club, for Christs sake its not early days anymore, we are approaching the middle of July and let's not forget anyway how long it takes Everton to complete a transfer. Most transfers of last summer I remember they all individually dragged on for weeks on end...

I have to ask also if AJ does get sold tomorrow or whenever who will we bring to replace him? Darren Bent wont come here. He is on a very big wage at Spurs and he is in London and Spurs are in the Uefa Cup like us anyway so it wouldnt be a move up for him...

Other players we have been linked with: We couldnt afford Lennon at £10 million and I wouldn't pay £17 million for Bentley and more to the point we couldnt pay it anyway...

Honestly for weeks on end we have been on here saying don't worry nobody else is doing business blah blah blah... But they actually are doing business now and they haven't lost as many players to the bulk of their first team squads as Everton have. We have been stating for weeks it's early days but next week the pre-season friendlies are getting going and we are going to be at the end of July before we know it...

Ajay Gopal
20 Posted 08/07/2008 at 09:27:52

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According to a "very reliable source" in the gossip sites, we will lose Johnson & Arteta, and we will sign: Aurelio, Michael Johnson, Fernandes, Reyes and a defender and a goal-keeper. Oh, Happy, Happy Days !!

Andy Willox
21 Posted 08/07/2008 at 09:40:44

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Johnson's sale is to appease Pip Green, who is looking for his Yakubu money back from last year because he believes DK is a spent idea.
That?s today's spin....

Gavin Ramejkis
22 Posted 08/07/2008 at 09:50:02

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It’s one thing to sell to buy if you get a good price (profit) and buy a better replacement but to sell to pay off your creditors shows how much shit the club is in if true. For christ’s sake Bill fuck off and get someone in who can talk the talk AND walk the walk you bullshitter.

Dan Mckie
23 Posted 08/07/2008 at 10:56:18

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I personally wouldn't mind selling Johnson for £10 mil because I believe Moyes would find 2 decent players with that cash (if he got it)! As for Arteta? I hope we dont sell him, I just don't sit as comfortably on my seat at Goodison when he isn't on the pitch, on or off form!

Frank Bird
24 Posted 08/07/2008 at 10:51:13

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Last week I got slated for telling people that we only had £12mil to spend. Hope now people know it's the truth. For me, selling AJ is enough to back it up. I like AJ but more often than not he is all huff and puff and can't blow the house down. Fletcher has been linked with us today and for £4mil is a good deal as a squad player.

Dan McKie
25 Posted 08/07/2008 at 11:29:55

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Even if we sell AJ, it doesnt mean that you are or were right Frank! AJ may want guaranteed first team football next season and push for an England place for 2010! Agree that Fletcher would be good for £4 million though!

Sandra Beeken
26 Posted 08/07/2008 at 11:58:52

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Dominic King has just reported Moyes is to swoop for Fletcher and Milito. I don,t know much about him but if fletch is gud enough for sir alex then he shud be gud enough for the mighty blues!!!!!!!! And before any one says he,s only on the bench (so was Hargreaves) how many players in the prem can get into their side anyway.
Why not give the youngsters more of a chance next year? Arsene does and he does ok. IMWT.

Gavin Ramejkis
27 Posted 08/07/2008 at 16:20:10

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Darren Fletcher is an average player and by no means an outstanding player, he had bright spells for the jock national side but so did McFadden, barring injuries he’d be very lucky to get a game at Old Trafford.

Paul Olsen
28 Posted 08/07/2008 at 20:48:32

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Sandra.

Arsene has bought his youngster for cash that we won’t get close to spending. Just look at how many english youngsters they’ve got coming through the ranks...
Walcott? Wasn’t exactly cheap either.

And to be perfectly honest, our youth squad isn’t anywhere close to these bought youth teams nowadays.

Darren Cooke
29 Posted 08/07/2008 at 21:51:13

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Anyone starting to get a little worried at the current situation regarding the size of our already depleted squad and the alleged lack of funds to bolster it?.... I for one am, and I think it fucking stinks that Moyes is having to sell AJ to release funds so he can sign several players if the persistant rumours circulating are to hold any truth whatsoever.

Where has the money gone from the sale of McFadden that Moyes never used? Should that not be available along with the current funds to be used to bring our small squad upto a reasonable size for the season ahead to cope with the league and Europe? How much longer are we going to allow this club to be mismanaged to such a degree by that shower of bastards at GP, so they can line their own pockets and then fuck off with the money they make at a time that is so crucial to the future of this club that will finally see us back where we belong or fall away back to lower or mid table mediocrity?

If, in the next few weeks leading to the start of season, the club don't back Moyes with the funds he needs to strengthen the squad to a reasonable size, then it's our duty as fans to get vocal and start to instigate the winds of change and pressure the board to once and for all get their act together or do us all a favour and fuck off........ and please,do me a favour BK please dont insult our intelligence trying to make us believe you have had no firm offers for the club?... yeah right!!!

Gavin Harris
30 Posted 09/07/2008 at 07:49:03

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Will be interesting to see young Baxter play..if he does!

Michael Brien
31 Posted 09/07/2008 at 12:04:04

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Marc Williams - you didn?t quite cover all the bases - You forgot that we are not the only club where there is a lot of speculation and very little else. A few examples:

Arsenal - Hleb & Adebayor... are they staying?
Chelsea - Drogba & Lampard... are they staying? Are they going to Barcelona? Or is it Inter Milan?
Tottenham - the figures vary as to how many they are off-loading.
Aston Villa - Gareth Barry going to Anfield or not? I recall Martin O?Neil being asked that one on BBC TV at the start of Euro 2008 about a month ago!!

Signing 4 or 5 players in just 4 weeks!!!!! Why isn?t that allowed? Back in 1976 we signed Rioch and McKenzie on the same day!!

The new players need to be bedded in I hear you all moan- Have they? Yes it would be an advantage if there could be 2 or 3 or more new signings by the end of this week. But it?s not Football/Championship Manager!! In the real world it?s a bit more complicated than that. It?s not always possible to bring in the players at the time a manager wants to - even with so called free transfers/Bosman transfers there are players agents to negotiate with.

Marc would label me a member of the "Don?t Panic Yet" Brigade!! I?d rather be labelled a member of the " Don?t believe all the speculation" brigade!!!!!!!