ToffeeWeb - Season 2007-08

The Mail Bag

Transfer Window

Well the transfer window is now open and the media are starting to link us with every name under the sun. Today reading The Mirror, there were two seperate articles, one linking us with Lassana Diarra of Arsenal, and the other Dan Gosling from Plymouth. I feel that if we could get Diarra, he would be an excellent coup and an ideal replacement for super lee, as this looks like it could be his last season at the top level. However, Diarra is not the sort of midfielder we are craving. Someone with a bit of flair and can create goals for the front two. I personally would take Manuel Fernandes back in a heartbeat. Whilst I was on holiday, I was talking about Evertons game against Wigan and a Plymouth fan over heard me and we got talking. Although he was a Plymouth fan, he said his second team was Everton and he always looks out for their results. He then started telling me about a young lad they had called Dan Gosling. He said he was destined for the top and there is no way he would be at Plymouth come the end of the season and definatly one for me to look out for. Happy New Year Everyone
John Murphy, Liverpool Posted 01/01/2008 at 17:18:12

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Mike Lyons
1 Posted 01/01/2008 at 11:59:25

Moyes needs to get the midfield sorted. Having two similiar midfielders like Neville and Carsley is open house for other teams to dominate the midfield and hence dictate the game. We need to keep the ball on the floor to feed Pienaar and Yaks. Also, the back four looks dodgy under pressure.... Howard., Yobo, Jags... bring back Stubbs ? a true leader; how we missed him. We need more players like him. Sort it, Moyes, or the progress stalls. End of lesson.

Charlie Percival
2 Posted 01/01/2008 at 19:36:56

I hope after the last few performances (and today's) of Downing will persuade Moyes to leave Downing to go Down with Boro. He can whip a good ball in now and again but he can't do anything else. £8M ? LOL! He's not worth a penny in my view. I'd rather play AJ wide left as a pacy direct winger. I'd prefer we spent the money on Bentley or Fernandes.

nick southern
3 Posted 01/01/2008 at 20:00:00

As an Evertonian living in Plymouth i have seen Dan Gosling play a few times for Argyle, and although he does represent England under something or others, he always looks very average to me.

James Elworthy
4 Posted 01/01/2008 at 20:07:37

Last wonder winger kid we signed was John Oster.
I hope Arshavin signs with Diarra.
Van Buyten is rumoured to be coming in.
Vogel rumours have never been confirmed by the club.
The Fernandes rumour still persists.
Downing was at fault with our 2nd goal today I hope we dont waste money on him.

El-ray Jackson
5 Posted 01/01/2008 at 20:19:37

Boro are going DOWNing! (Shit!)

Brendan McLaughlin
6 Posted 01/01/2008 at 20:14:03

I must admit that I’m getting pretty pissed off with this "Moyes needs to" shite Wake up & smell the coffee FFS! He doesn’t need your, hers or my advice!

Barry Stevens
7 Posted 01/01/2008 at 21:10:24

Half of the players mentioned here,wouldnt even inprove our team.Some people just seem to want to buy for the sake of it.Unless its a proven international,or an outstanding youngster who can play now,i would stick with what weve got.I know were thin in midfield at the momment,but we can always recall Da Silva

Joe Jennings
8 Posted 01/01/2008 at 21:17:50

Link for today’s goals

http://youtube.com/watch?v=U85O84ILrtA

Enjoy

Seth DeMerit
9 Posted 01/01/2008 at 21:45:02

Cheers Joe - damn YouTube is good!

Colin Malone
10 Posted 01/01/2008 at 21:53:07

Why is it Carsley's last season? FFS.

Jim Hourigan
11 Posted 01/01/2008 at 22:07:28

Mike if you seriously think Stubbs will improve our defence then you have never played football. He is too slow, can no longer jump, unless its in a straight line, looks to hit passes like he thinks he’s Beckanbaer (sp) and blames all around him when things go wrong. He might have been a good servant for the club and I will acknowledge that, but I’d rather go forward with Lescott, Jags and even Rodwell before stepping back with Stubbs.

Lee Heath
12 Posted 01/01/2008 at 23:17:28

Checked out Dan Gosling’s wiki page earlier today. Didnt say anything about joining Everton but at the bottom he is included in the Everton squad list and not Plymouths. According to wiki e has been issued the No35 shirt !!!!

Colin Malone
13 Posted 01/01/2008 at 23:53:17

You might think I'm barmy with this player I have in mind. We need a creative midfielder and if we can get a top-class playmaker in by January, great. But I've been watching this player for a while when possible, ie on the telly or when we play them. I watched him today on telly and every time he got the ball, he was always looking for the runner but unfortunatley the team he plays for are crap.

Yet this lad has vision as we have all seen before and we could get him on a free transfer and I reckon he could do a job for us. After all we cannot put Phil Nev there because he ain't comfotable there. The player I'm talking about is Danny Murphy of Fulham.

Manny Durphy
14 Posted 02/01/2008 at 00:20:40

Colin Malone, to be perfectly honest I jumped striaght to the end of your article without reading the bulk of it to reveal the player. I can safely say I don’t need to go back and read what you said in full.

Going back to what Barry Stevens wrote (above), buying for the sake of it is something we should avoid at all costs, particularly with players being linked such as Milner, Dunn, Downing etc. But Danny Murphy?

Simon Davies has had a better season thus far - which says all that needs to be said.

Ian Tunny
15 Posted 02/01/2008 at 00:26:12

You deffo are barmy Colin! He is awful but has a swagger as if he thinks he's Ronaldo. At Liverpool, Gerrard would do everything and cover for Murphy when he messed up, and the proof of how good he is is that he has done nothing since and has gone from club to club, failing were ever he has gone.

He may look good in a poor Fulham side but so does Simon Davis. i got so insensed with Liverpool fans saying he was good i did stats on him in 1 game. From what I rememeber, he didn't make one tackle or one pass forward in 45 mins of football and didn't do much else; waste of space. He is too slow, too old... he is just not good enough!

Peter Stewart
16 Posted 02/01/2008 at 02:39:47

Our first signing this January should be to aquire the services of Pienaar full time, surely? I would be happy if we signed him for anything as much as £6m but word is that its more nearer £2.5m!

Snap the lad up!

Colin Malone
17 Posted 02/01/2008 at 02:36:57

It was only if we cannot get anyone in till summer, rather him than Phil Neville in midfield and he'd cost nothing. Just a thought.

Brian Waring
18 Posted 02/01/2008 at 09:24:11

Barry, if Moyes thought Da Silva was any good, wouldn?t he have used him by now? Moyes continued to play Jagielka (a defender) in midfield, even though he was woeful there, when he could have played Da Silva who is a midfielder. There has been plenty of times where we have been struggling in the midfield area, but for some reason Da Silva was always over-looked. The reports coming out of Barnsley, say that Da Silva has been excellent for them. If that's the case, why don?t we bring him back and give him a crack? If you look at the subs bench yesterday, we never had one midfielder there. I doubt that we will see Da Silva coming back to us.

Dave Trudgeon
19 Posted 02/01/2008 at 10:48:28

Colin why would Danny Murphy be on a free?
Fulham would want 1-2mil for him wouldn?t they?
I?d love Giles Barnes and Diarra to be honest
and Hutton in a straight swap for McFadden ? that would be the best Jan ever in my opinion.

Erik Dols
20 Posted 02/01/2008 at 11:04:09

Danny Murphy is someone we would have bought five years ago. We’re past this level of players now. If we really need squad depth and have to accept that we won’t be able to buy real class, we should buy some young kid who is eager to play and will work his socks off. We’ll be able to sell him in a year and a half for a decent price.

Don’t ask me who I am thinking off specifically, I’m just giving my thoughts without having a real option. But Moyes probably knows a few decent Championship-midfielders.

Of course I hope we don’t have to buy players just to fill up the numbers and we snatch a few quality signings this month. COYB!

Bobby Brown
21 Posted 02/01/2008 at 12:23:09

Manny on his way to Everton 8 mil.

Steve Ashton
22 Posted 02/01/2008 at 12:54:48

Yorkshire friends tell me Da Silva will go to Barnsley permanently (they think he?s wonderful) with someone called Brian Howard coming in the opposite direction.

Martin Cutler
23 Posted 02/01/2008 at 05:34:39

Of the potentially new players being mentioned wouldn't Diarra and Arshavin be cup-tied and therefore be unavailable to us in the Uefa Cup this season? What about Daniel van Buyten? And Abelda? Vogel and I think Fernandes would not be cup-tied. If somebody could clarify this I'd appreciate it.

Erik Dols
24 Posted 02/01/2008 at 13:26:21

As far as I know, if you played in the CL, you’re allowed to play in the Uefa for another club the same season. So Albelda, Diarra and Fernandes would be available for the Uefa.

And as far as I know, if you played in the Uefa, you’re not allowed to play in the Uefa for another team in the same season. So Van Buyten (who played against Bolton in the Uefa) and Arshavin (who obviously played against us and others in the Uefa cup) would be cup-tied.

Johan Vogel did not play a single match this season so he should be allowed to play anyway.

But I might be wrong, they seem to change these rules every season.

Adrian Dews
25 Posted 02/01/2008 at 13:15:11

I?d like to see Moyes bring in a midfielder with a big physical pressence to take Carsley?s place eventually and i think Appiah would be brilliant for us, big and strong, tough in tackle and can get a few goals as well and as played in champions league with Juventus and Fenerbache so he fits the bill for the type of player Moyes is trying to bring in (player of champions league quality) n was 1 of Ghana?s best performers along side Essien and Muntari in 2006 World Cup, and Arshavin looks a good player, a bit of a playmaker along the midfield, he cut us open a few times in the UEFA Cup match at goodison, something that wouldnt go a miss at Everton, a player with ability to open up defences.

El-ray Jackson
26 Posted 02/01/2008 at 13:39:04

Danny Murphy? We might as well sign Teddy Sherringham while were at it.

James Elworthy
27 Posted 02/01/2008 at 14:05:19

Appiah has a serious knee injury which has kept him out of action most of the season and he will miss the African Cup.
So him coming in January would be a non starter.
Arshavin fits the bill, 5-8 million and with him playing in Russia his current salary is far less than you would get in the Premier League.
I have heard Da Silva to Barnsley in part exchange for Brian Howard who is their best player and the top midfield goal scorer in the Championship.
Viddarsson looks likely to get his P45 as he cant even get on the bench during a midfield injury crisis.
If Vogel is a free agent then why hasnt he been signed up immediately, do we still want him or have we moved beyond him and looking for better players.

Scott Montgomery
28 Posted 02/01/2008 at 13:44:19

I think Moyes needs to be reasonably cautious during the window and spend wisely. The squad are performing well, look close-knit and too many changes can disrupt this togetherness as well as introduce a new potential issue of keeping bench players happy. Loan deals are a good option to see what players are like and I think a loan deal (with first purchase option) for Riquelme makes a good deal of sense....I saw him for Argentina recently and he has flair and good dead ball skill. At 28-ish he could take over from Carsley at the end of the season. Fernandes at 8m is not for me, but Diarra or Abelda cheap would be ok. Havent seen Gosling or Howard but good young players are always good options.

Erik Dols
29 Posted 02/01/2008 at 14:26:12

Riquelme as replacement of Carsley? Riquelme needs someone like Cars to back him up as he only thinks of attacking!

Graham Eaves
30 Posted 02/01/2008 at 15:05:59

Riquelme’s gone back to Boca Jrs permanently hasn’t he?

Patty Beesley
31 Posted 02/01/2008 at 15:37:43

Here we go again... you are all getting past yourselves with excitement over transfers.... calm down! calm down! ... you know the drill.... Davey won?t sign anyone, if at all, until the last minutes of the transfer deadline so stop getting your boxers in a twist!!

Simple Simon
32 Posted 02/01/2008 at 15:51:42

FACT - Moyes to sign Bentley from Blackburn in a deal involving cash + McFadden going the other way. McCarthey is almost certainly on his way out of Blackburn, hence their need for another striker.

Eddie Harrison
33 Posted 02/01/2008 at 16:37:26

Why would Blacburn sell their creative lynchpin to replace a striker?

Jay Harris
34 Posted 02/01/2008 at 17:00:38

El-Ray
Sheringhams not that bad!!
If you listen to Moyes yesterday he said he hadnt done anything yet about bringing new players in and was happy with his squad.
Whether thats tactics or not I don't know but Davey is usually matter of fact.
I think ( I hope) that we?re at the stage of sounding players out and they?ll make a decision to bring one or two at the most in.
Unfortunately I dont hold out much hope for Fernandes or Diarra. Arshavin would be a great buy and, dare I mention it, if Wigan go down I think we should get Koumas. We desperately need a quality midfielder before the Chelsea game!

Simon Gemine
35 Posted 02/01/2008 at 17:11:27

I went to see Reading v Pompey yesterday with my brother in law and I have to say I was very impressed with Stephen Hunt. Scruffy urchin he may be, but he does look like a David Moyes type of player. He has a good engine, has a trick or two which undid both Heridarsson and Johnson more than once, stuck his foot in and tracked back when needed. I’m not saying he’s perfect (I think refs will pick him out for special attention, like Big Duncan), but he is by far a better all round player than Taylor and Downing and would gladly pay £3m for him over the £8m Boro want for Downing or the £5m Pompey want for Taylor.

Thomas Surgenor
36 Posted 02/01/2008 at 17:48:14

Hutton would be a great signing and complete our defence. The lad is awesome.

Unfortuately, you’s do realise if we buy a right back that means Neville playing in midfield?? (as he wont be dropped)

So i’d rather we fix our midfield problem first.

Barry Stevens
37 Posted 02/01/2008 at 19:15:50

Brian,I understand what u say about Da Silva,but to me,in pre-season he looked promising.Creative,and can tackle.Hopefully,Davie is just bedding him in ready to be brought back.The reports from Barnsley are very good.This Howard boy isnt even that young i think,isnt he about 25.The call for Alan Hutton is a good one,he is one quality player.If we could get Scott Brown from Celtic that would be excellent but i cant see that hapening.

Joe McParland
38 Posted 02/01/2008 at 20:12:13

Barry Robson from Dundee Utd would be a great buy. He can play either on the wing or in the centre and has agreat engine. Both the Old Firm are trying to take him off Uniteds hands. Utd seemingly want around 2M for him.

Danny Hall
39 Posted 02/01/2008 at 21:34:50

Joey Barton?