Sell him,I say.His injury and availability record due to internationals has been poor.With so many midfield and striking options now available,Moyes can afford to get £3M back in the bank in January.There’s no room for sentiment in this game!

If,by the time Tim is fit,AJ has not re-discovered where the goal is,Moyes should consider reverting to 4-5-1 with Cahill playing just behind Yakubu.This system worked brilliantly when Graveson was here before and saw Everton at their most effective-particularly away from home.

Up front with Yakubu.Johnson has become an embarrassment in front of goal and should revert to the wide role he favoured in his early career.That way we solve two pressing problems with the same personnel!

Cahill is only really effective playing just behind a lone striker.I agree that if Johnson continues to fire blanks (how on earth he can be regarded as an England quality striker confounds me!)Tim should be in to support Yakubu.With Gravs back,I’d be happy to see 4-5-1 again.After all we got to fourth position with that set up.

Couldn’t agree more.AJ is bitterly disappointing in front of goal but worth trying on the wing before going into the January sales.Tim and Graveson are brilliant together and with Yakubu to stick ’em in,4-5-1 is again a great option.Europe will be a real tester and if we fail to make progress,I can see both AJ and Tim on their way.

I believe we got our defence more or less sorted out, which is always the first thing to look for in team prowess and ability. It’s in midfield where all the conundrum lies and I think if Moyes gets this right, more or less we WILL have a team capable of Top Six (and a Cup run, please for the love of everything blue, a DECENT Cup run!).

4-5-1 looks especially preferable right now. It is the only formation Moyes has ever been comfortable with. My main priority is to eradicate COMPLETELY the useless tactic of LONG-BALL, or if not, trim it down considerably. The only way to do that, is to have midfield personnel who will demand the ball and dictate play.

So who is that person? Cahill? Arteta? Gravesen? Even Jagielka?

Many positives and negatives for me, but at the moment, Gravesen is ideal for that sort of role. He has no pace, but his eye to thread a pass is very serviceable, and he can do a respectable job. Just don’t ask him to bomb forward, that’s not ideal.

Jagielka can mop up. This guy can be our crucial buy for the season, more than Yak. If he can develop into that sort of midfield enforcer so prevalent in other successful teams, he can be half-a-midfield by himself, letting other more creative midfielders that freedom to move forward. Let him do his job quietly and properly, and I think he will shine. But he has to play, and from the START.

I am really in a bind with Arteta. He has been quiet recently and that’s because other teams have sussed him out. On the wing, he can cost most damage but I think his technical ability warrants a more flair role in the middle, slightly pushed up. If Cahill recovers, he will slot in that role and Arteta will go wide.

None of this will do us any good if we don’t have a proper 1 to go with the 4-5-1, and at the moment, I’m sorry AJ has to sit out on this one. His shooting has been woeful, he lacks confidence so much you can see it in his face. In the first few months, you can see the swagger on his look, that says he KNOWS he is essential to the team. Now, he looks bedraggled to say the least. Maybe a few games on as a sub may help rehabilitate him.

My only grouse with 4-5-1 is that it shuts out probably our most potent attacking personnel for some time: you got Yakubu, AJ, Anichebe, McFadden plus Vaughn when he comes back. Where do you harness their talents?

I really struggle with some of the opinions expressed on this site. I am incredulous about some of the opinions above around Andrew Johnson. Do you people go to football matches? Do you watch football or Opta statistics tables?

He hasn’t scored for a few games and his finishing confidence is low at the moment. So what? Good strikers have lean patches and then they start scoring again. Getting into goal scoring opportunities means that eventually one of them will get put away and then he will be off again. Statisitics like "he hasn’t scored since March" or whatever do not take into account that he was carrying a long term injury towards the end of the season, had ankle surgery and sat out some games, AND we have had a close season in between.

A goal scoring striker has just been bought to play as a PARTNERSHIP with AJ, get it? Football is a TEAM game and Johnson happens to be a critical member of that team play with his tremendous work rate and all round harrying play. Look at the way the team plays and then the points total before you start chopping and changing your Championship Manager lineups.

Thank Christ David Moyes is our manager and makes the decisions about who to play and not Sega or whoever.

Why the fuck would we sell Cahill? fickle as fuck, the lad will come back and fit in. He’s great coming off the bench or playing off the striker. The simple fact is that he only strengthens our attacking options which is great
To say AJ is an embarrassment in front of goal is ridiculous. How long until Yakubu is shite? get a grip.

Im glad some familiar names have come onto this thread and shown some common sense!!

Drop AJ??? The man runs a marathon every match and set up Yak at Bolton. SELL CAHILL???!!! Fucking Hell. 2 seasons ago this bloke was a God to all Everton fans!!!! When she s at his best he is on a par with Arteta!!!!

Sweet Jesus!!

Right. So no sooner has Moyes started to play 4-4-2 consistently than people start to demand he revert to 4-5-1 (seemingly because we now have Gravesen back and because Johnson hasn’t scored for a while). Presumably you guys are no relation to the people who lambasted Moyes for playing 4-5-1 over the last couple of seasons and demanded he revert to 4-4-2?

To briefly go back to the initial question (before I head off on more tangents), I suspect that Cahill will have to slot in where necessary / available when he’s fit. I don’t think he’s integral enough to our plans to warrant an automatic starting place, or a reshuffling of our tactics. He’s going to have to play where and when he can. I’d imagine he’ll be used to most effect in away European matches (assuming of course that we get to play more than 1 awway match this season), and perhaps coming off the bench in Premiership games. If the players currently ahead of him don’t perform, of course, then Cahill will get a chance in the starting line-up once more. And that’s the way it should be. Competition for places pushes everyone to improve; those that don’t improve leave the club. It’s the only way to grow stronger as a unit.

Now, back to 4-5-1 v’s 4-4-2. I’m afraid that formations have little effect on the number of times a long ball is played. And David Moyes has little effect on the number of times a long ball is played by our mob. If you really think that Moyes spends all week coaching the players to hoof the ball aimlessly, then you’re sadly deluded. Our defenders (mostly) play long balls with such abandon for a number of reasons:
(i) They lack a first touch, control of the ball and the vision to see a short simple pass (worst offenders here are Hibbert, Stubbs and to a lesser extent Neville). The next time you watch Everton, observe how far away from their bodies their first touch controls the ball. It’s horrible at times.
(ii) They panic when the opposition puts them under pressure and get rid of the ball as quickly as they can (prime suspects here are Hibbert and Stubbs again).
(iii) Our bloody midfield runs AWAY from the ball at every opportunity! This is the one that most people seem to miss. But the next time one of our defenders has the ball, count how many midfielders come short for him and offer him a simple short pass. It’s usually none. Arteta likes to play further up the park. Carsley doesn’t really want the ball (though to be fair to him he doesn’t hide), Neville doesn’t want it, Osman wants to run the other direction etc. It’s the only possibly bright spot in Gravesen returning. At least he will come short and demand the ball. It’s just a shame he’s deluded about his own abilities! But seriously, until we have players who are comfortable coming short and taking the ball with their backs to the opposition, until our defenders can play a short pass and then move into a position to receive the ball back, until we have 10 outfield players comfortable on the ball and willing to risk losing posession in an attempt to retain posession, then we’re going to keep seeing lots of long balls. There isn’t a lot else you can do.

And one final point; if we do play 4-5-1, expect to see Johnson in the lone striker role. When you play with 1 up front, that 1 has to be full of running and energy, constantly pressuring the defenders into making a mistake. Otherwise, the defence can bring the ball out too easily. And from what I’ve heard about the Yak, he isn’t going to run the channels for 90 minutes week in week out. I’m sure Moyes will try to change that, but only time will tell if he can succeed.

Am I missing something here? His injury record means we should sell him? OK, he is currently injured and has been since Carsley tackled him, but apart from that, I can’t think of another time when he has been injured. Until now, he has played about 5 seasons non stop, including off-seasons. He didn’t even get a rest this close season despite his injury. I think the current injury is the best thing that could happen to him in that his body is getting the complete rest that it needs.

What’s this about a wealth of midfielders?Neville isn’t one,Jagielka isn’t one,Mc Fadden isn’t one,Carsley is purely defensive,Osman flits in and out of form ,I suspect Pienaar is too lightweight and VdM is toast..That leaves Arteta,Graveson,Cahill and the playmaker Moyes again failed to sign.
Cahill will walk back into the side,believe me but we shall still be found wanting!

I can tell everyone now that although AJ didnt score against Bolton he was brilliant. He is the vital piece of our engine if he doesnt play we are nowhere near as effective. AJ a winger? He lacks the technical ability and skill to go past a fullback so I dont see how that is possible. He is a striker who runs the channels not a winger.

Brian Noble, why be so negative? Pienaar is better than Osman and if you wathched the match you would have seen he played well especially in the first half in what was a physical away game. Yes he is lightweight but he is also skillful, quick, works hard and can pick out a pass.

I really want Cahill in the team because he is agressive and also a winner but I think I am right in saying he will have to change his game. He has all the credentials to be a brilliant box to box midfielder. His tackling isnt actually that bad but he seems to like giving people little kicks.

Its great to see we have a lot more options and it will be interesting to see where the likes of Cahill and Vaughan fit in.

My criticism of AJ stems not just from one game, but from the last couple of months. Yes, he is carrying the aftermaths of a niggling injury; yes, he works hard and puts himself about, chasing lost causes as such, but is that all we want from an eight million pound striker? Come on! For one, his awareness around the box is lacking. For two, his shooting is straight and narrow. For sure, he is quality but he has not shown it for a while. Just my two cents...

I’m longing to see Vaughan alongside the Yak.With Cahill in support and Arteta,Graveson and Pienaar making up the midfield,we’ll take some stopping.
Love AJ but you have to face facts, he’s crap as a finisher and easily gets pushed out to the wing.Can’t fault him for effort-but £8M? Palace saw Moyes coming!

You dont seem to understand Mikhail that Johnson is not a goalscorer. He will get you 10-12 goals a season but no more than that.

You also dont seem to understand the contribution he has to the team. He does alot more than chase lost causes. His link up play is good for a little man and his pace stretches teams. Do you remember the game against West ham last season? We where playing well for the first five minutes and then AJ gets injured and we are nowhere near the same team. As I have said he is a vital part of how we play.

We also dont play to his strengths. How many through balls have you seen? None. Not even Arteta plays defense splitting balls and he is our best passer. Hopefully the arrival of Tommy Gravesen will change our style of play and we can finally see how good Andy Johnson really is.

I just dont think he is a goalscorer but I appreciate what he does for the team and outside the box. Bergkamp wasnt a natural goalscorer and although his style is very different to AJ’s he still did his best work outside the box.

All I can say is thank fuck that bunch of idiots commenting at the start of this thread are’nt in charge at EFC!!!

Drop AJ sell Cahill.. Have a fucking word lads

Get a grip folks! Stop trying to pick out our only worth while 11.

If you actually stop to think about it, we now have MORE than just a few good players and will have quality on the bench! I know we are not used to it but isn’t it a good thing? Whether Cahill, Graveson or Vaughan start or not doesnt matter. They will all get plenty of games what with suspensions, injuries and pure number of games!

Strength in depth! LOVE IT

Com on you blues!

A great post by Declan OShaughnessy. Spot on mate!

I pretty much agree with all your points, the most interesting being about the midfield not supporting the defence often enough.

Coming short and demanding the ball from the defence is something that we saw Manny do and he was therefore the catalyst to the ’joined-up football’ that we all long to see. Gravesen also has this trait yet when he was here before he didn’t have the talent around him that the current team posseses.

If he can encourage the defence to pass him the ball and in turn feed Ossie, Mikkey, AJ etc we might finally see the passing and attacking football that we know they are all capable of (Werder Bremen first half, Spurs away).

COYB!

Mikhail

The last couple of months included the close season (sorry, cheap shot I know!) but...apart from the injury which hampered him I would say his confidence has been more damaged than anything by the completely shocking treatment at the hands of referees after being libelled as a diver by a pair of twats like Neil Warnock and Arsene Wenger. At least Mourinho came out and apologised for his own outburst. Some of the decisions that went against him last season and even this one were shocking.

The guy is quality and has been a prolific (around 20 goal) striker in the Prem before with Palace (penalties included in that total, yes, but penalties he had won himself before his character was assassinated). In that same season , don’t forget, he scored a headed winner for Palace against the RS which effectively sealed our Champions League spot.

I believe since last season Johnson has changed his natural game directly because of this and this has made him have to slightly think rather than be instinctive in the final third. He will get this right in time again, I’m sure.

As a slight digression here, let’s look at a previous darling of some people on this board - David Nugent. There was a moment against Arsenal at the weekend when Nugent got the ball in space in the box, turned and....decided he needed another slight touch before shooting instead of hitting first time. Less than a quarter of a second allowed the defender to come and block what should have been a certain goal. There’s the difference between a Championship striker and a Prem striker.

But anyway, you ask what we want in an £8M striker, so here’s what I want:

I want a striker to be part of a TEAM, and when the play of that individual component of the TEAM means that the TEAM scores goals and wins games, then I’m more than happy. Johnson terrifies defnders and makes them commit rash actions, like on Saturday (when I also thought he was terrific), directly laying a goal on for his TEAMmate. He pulls the opposition out of shape all over place and leaves gaps for others.

Personally, I think he will come good very soon and start scoring goals again, and our front two (four!)are the best we’ve had in years.

I couldn’t give a flying fuck whether every single goal this season comes from defenders (’84-’85 anyone?)or the goalkeeper as long as the team keeps winning, but I expect the Opta/Champ Manager/Fantasy Football chaps to disagree with me. Maybe you want to see an Everton striker’s name in the little ’Top Scorers’ box in the corner of Sky Sports News? I’d prefer to see Everton more effective and high up in the League table box of the same little corner.

Isn’t it great that we’re quarrelling who to leave out instead of how to make up the numbers.
We all have our favourites but Davey has done a magnificent job this summer in boosting the sqad with so much talent.
I don’t think he’ll be too keen to get rid of anyone in January, particularly if, as expected, we’re well on the way to winning the UEFA Cup!

Good to see Doddy back in the ranks.He told me on Saturday that he thought he’d been banned!
Still spouting the same old rubbish, though.If Everton get anywhere near winning the EUFA Cup, I’ll run bollock naked down the Formby By-Pass!

i still can’t believe people are saying sell Cahill and AJ shouldn’t be playing etc, etc...Hopefully him and Yakubu will be a great partnership.

Some very good points made by first, Joe C and Connor, although I am frankly shocked when Connor said AJ is not supposed to be a goalscorer. What?? Basically, if AJ cannot get near 20 goals a season then half our value paid for him is gone because that’s what we paid him for. Score goals. Joe C mentions about not caring who scores as long as the team wins, but you are selling yourself short in the long run because a proven goalscorer can up the odds even better. I for one, don’t care how he scores, but that he scores, and right now, he’s not doing it.

Btw, those that suggest selling Cahill needs a kangaroo box around the ears!

To Mikhail again:

Some clarification: I might not care who gets the goals so long as the team scores enough, but I do agree with you that on balance and realistically the forwards should weigh in with a large percentage of the team’s goals.

However, I happen to think that Johnson and Yakubu are BOTH proven goalscorers and will do just this.In particular I think that Johnson will get through his present drought. I think he is adding to his game, that he is transitioning slightly. Don’t forget, he is now playing in a 4-4-2 as opposed to the 4-5-1 of nearly all last season, and whatever people think about this not mattering, the fact is that this is a different role for a striker. I think he has a powerful work ethic and a desire to improve and will adapt successfully, just maybe not as instantly as some of the more impatient seem to demand. He reminds me a little of Adrian Heath in some respects (Christ did he have some goal droughts!), only quicker and better. Overall, I think he’s doing fine so far and will get better. I recall Inchy broke a particularly long barren spell in a 3-1 drubbing of ManU - hope AJ does the same!

I think Vaughan and Anichebe will also weigh in with important contributions this season, whilst I think McFadden will always be no more than an infuriating and inconsistent bit-part player.

Joe C, AJ may remind you of Adrian Heath but thankfully not because of the rediculous perm that Inchy had back in the 80’s.

AJ’s workrate is excellent. He might not have scored since 1964 but he still covers so much distance. Against Bolton and Spurs he was excellent.

As for selling Cahill... and selling him for only £3 million, I think Mr Masters was taking the piss

New to this and prompted by the subject matter. We are doing okay in the league. We are unlikely to get a hiding, and unlikely to dish one out, we are playing some good stuff, but the foundation still feels a bit shakey at the moment to me.

The excitement this year is that we are doing okay and still have Cahill and Vaughan to come in. If they don’t go straight in then those remaining in the team have to raise their game to keep them out. Moyes has warned then - no rotation but changes are expected.

This is a strong squad. As soon as we get one some contributors want to get rid of a few - so we only have a first team and suffer when injuries/suspensions occur. Last seasons top 4 approach it this way. Why can’t we. If Cahill goes watch Arteta follow.

As for AJ one newspaper has had him as MOTM in 2 games out of the 5 so far, and he hasn’t scored a goal.

I think we will grow in stature this season, and become more fashionable in the literati. We may even get more than the minimum live matches on sky/setanta.

Although Cahill may not make the first XI when he is fit, he is amazing as a substitution. I’ve seen it time and time again when he plays internationals. When everyones legs are tired he seems to be able to provide the extra spark needed to score the late goal.
We now have options off the bench which we’ve been sorely missing in the past. COYB!!!

How anyone can argue selling Cahill is the best option is beyond me! Ridiculous, the comments some people come out with. And sell him for £3m??!!! He is worth 3 times that. People seem to forget that if Arteta gets injured, the goal threat from midfield disappears, and the squad looks tiny again. Cahill will walk back into the side when fully fit and grab plenty of goals. I agree he needs to improve his all round game, but he still guarantees at least 7-8 goals a season.