ToffeeWeb - Season 2007-08

The Mail Bag

Joseph Yobo

I wonder if anybody else is seeing the same games as me (ie, Oz ? nearly every game). Joey Yobo is a liability. He plays well most of the time then cost us goals in games that cost us dearly. When on song, he's a world beater. Nothing gets past him on the ground or in the air but he goes off in cuckoo land with shit clearances, watching play, awful headers and so on.

I've waited year after year saying he will mature, but surely there comes a time when we realise he is just not good enough. This may be harsh but a veteran like Stubbs reads the game... lacks pace, yes, but talks good. If Yobo had these qualities, he'd be a great player but in the mean time we suffer with his inconcistencies. Is it time to move him on? Over the season how many crucial games is he costing us?

I'm not comparing him to Stubbs. But maybe Jags, who played at center-half all year for Sheff Utd should be tried at that position (yes, they went down) but give the lads a chance. Now for Victor the Newcastle game I thought was the best game he's played yet no coment in the press I wrote him off as not prem class hold my hands up brilliant now if he can do this on a regular basis great. Now with Vaughany coming back, watch out!
Tony Cornmell, Perth, Western Australia Posted 08/10/2007 at 14:46:59

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Joe Jennings
1 Posted 08/10/2007 at 21:19:17

Look mate, I appreciate your overall point. I’l accept he has been below par the last few games.

However he was one of our best players last season, played every game in the league, we kept 13-15 clean sheets so to brand him a ’liability’ is a bit premature if you ask me.
All players go through poor form, but who would you replace him with?Jody Craddock, O’Brien, maybe get Weir back.

For 4m or whatever he cost us, he was a snip and I’m glad he is an Everton player.

Mark Flehmer
2 Posted 08/10/2007 at 21:31:59

Must every player on our squad be called out for being "shite"?

John Holmes
3 Posted 08/10/2007 at 21:40:50

Agreed Joe. Yobo was our most consistent performer last season and a big reason why we qualified for Europe. He’s made errors of late but he’s been ill and he’s playing in a defence where the there seems to be at least 2 changes per match at the moment. It’s no wonder he’s struggling for consistent performances with so much change around him.

Kev Prytherch
4 Posted 08/10/2007 at 21:41:17

For me yobo will always be a very good defensive partner, however I believe he needs another defender to boss him about and tell him where he should be during the game. It?s no surprise that his best seasons have been partnering either Weir or Stubbs, both of which could command a defence before their respective declines in their latter years.
This current defence suffers, I believe, because the main command in the defence at the moment is our less than influential captain neville. Neville doesn?t compare to either stubbs or weir and for me will never be able to hold the same command in defence.
The best option should be to partner him with Lescott and pray to god that Lescott can emerge as a defensive leader. Until then, we can only hope that pure athleticism can get him out of trouble.
I don?t think stubbs can do it anymore as he has to concentrate on his own game too much to defy his ageing years.

Connor Rohrer
5 Posted 08/10/2007 at 23:46:22

Yobo for me is very vital to our team. He is the quickest and most aerially dominant performer in our backline. Has anyone noticed how high he leaps? And his pace gets us out of alot of problems. Yes Lescott has also got a good turn off pace but nothing compared to Yobo.

He has been brilliant bar the last few games this season. Wasn’t Moyes praising him a week or two ago? Yes he made a few howlers against Mettalist and Villa but no one has mentioned Lescott’s pathetic scoop clearence against Newcastle. Every defender makes mistakes and shouldn’t be judged on those mistakes.

Mark Pendleton
6 Posted 09/10/2007 at 00:16:55

I think Yobo is great overall and think he’s played alot even in sickness and injury. A credit to the much maligned foreign player.

Neil Pearse
7 Posted 09/10/2007 at 00:58:06

The old cliche bears repeating: "Form is temporary, class is permanent". Along with Howard, Lescott, Cahill, Arteta, Johnson and Vaughan, Joey is one of our genuine class players. Get off his back!

David Jones
8 Posted 09/10/2007 at 01:09:20

Yobo is one of the most overrated players I have ever known at Everton, I just can’t see what others do when the wax lyrical over him. Sure he’s fast, sure he leaps like a salmon...trouble is he is as thick as they come. Virtually every single game Joey has one of his ’moments’ , be it a horribly panicked kung fu kick clearance under no pressure or a complete switching off at a set play, he is always liable to a mistake. Over recent years Yobo has cost us more goals through direct individual errors than anybody yet still some believe he is one of the best, he just isn’t. If he was the top player some make him out to be, he would have already left. Fact. A decent player but very error prone, if we could replace him I would.

Matty Dawkins
9 Posted 09/10/2007 at 05:00:16

Yobo IS suffering at the moment but we lost against Newcastle because Carsley and Neville were just too negative. They backed away from every loose ball, watch Butt?s goal again, Carsley could have cleared it but he backed off and Neville gives the ball away more than Claus Thomsen did... We need Cahill and Gravesen fit NOW!!!!!!!!

Mark Wilson
10 Posted 09/10/2007 at 08:09:53

Quote"Now for Victor the Newcastle game I thought was the best game he’s played". This kid is absolutely useless, he doesn’t work, has no first touch, loses the ball passed to him, looks at the ref saying life’s unfair, utterly useless. A gift of a pass no one in front of him except Given, 4 touches too many and a shot at the keeper, No finesse whatsoever. To think we had 12 million on the bench. Sell Victor now while the perception out there is that he is good.

Mike Newton
11 Posted 09/10/2007 at 08:37:59

Yobo has been a great player for Everton, i like him he is a great guy. He is having a poor run of form, everyone does, by getting on his back you wont help, he played in every game last year, he has been playing in Nigeria he probably didnt get the rest his body needed.
He will return soon to the Joey Yobo we love.

Mark Perry
12 Posted 09/10/2007 at 08:33:46

Mark Wilson, you obviously didnt watch the other games this season where big vic has hurt our opponents, and I just dont mean Metalist! Vic is young, he can hold the ball, win headers and draw in defenders which he does well. He is getting better and in a couple of years will be a real class act.

At the moment I think he is an impact player and should be used as a sub - that is when he has been most effective.

Give him a break, praise him when he does well, and let him develop the skills he needs.

Viv
13 Posted 09/10/2007 at 08:42:09

Couldn’t agree more Tony. I have made that exact same point (see my comment under "the Barcodes defeat).
jags could finally find a place in the team, Yobo needs to get a kick up the backside to wake him up and Stubbs alas is just too slow on his feet now to be the answer, especially long term. jags in, Yobo as cover until he regains his former qualities!

harj
14 Posted 09/10/2007 at 10:27:48

LEAVE YOBO ALONE- HE WAS OUR BEST DEFENDER LAST SEASON- AHEAD OF LESCOTT - PEOPLE FORGET THINGS QUICKLY- YOBO IS CLASS. EVEN THE BEST HAVE THEIR BAD MOMENTS !

GET OFF HIS BACK
LETS BACK THEM AND NOT KNOCK THEM !

John Lloyd
15 Posted 09/10/2007 at 11:49:56

I fully back Yobo, think he’s an excellent centre half and as already stated ’form is temporary, class is permanent’

But if form is temporary the the same argument I applied to Hibbert also applies to Joe. Take him out firing line for a couple of games, work hard in training then bring him back even better!!

Just a thought

By the way, the draw for uefa looks favorable, looking forward to it!

Andy Townsend
16 Posted 09/10/2007 at 13:03:41

I prefer Gazza.