ToffeeWeb - Season 2007-08

The Mail Bag

American midfielder Michael Bradley

How interesting to see ToffeeWeb make mention of the TribalFootball report of American midfielder Michael Bradley drawing attention. Just two days ago, I actually saw him on a football program that covered the Dutch league. He's scoring goals and looking good. He would indeed be a great asset to the Blues, especially as DM is looking to build such a great young squad.

Actually, I've been thinking of another yank that would be just what Everton need: Clint Dempsey, currently at Fulham FC. I think he has bags of creativity, runs around like crazy, and has the height we need. I would love to see him play next to Mikel Arteta and Tim Cahill. Fulham look to be going down so perhaps we can pick him up in the summer.
Alberto Camacho, Manchester Posted 26/01/2008 at 02:06:13

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Kieran Fitzgerald
1 Posted 26/01/2008 at 08:03:10

I think what you said about relegation threatened teams could be a way for us to go in the transfer market Alberto. While decent players can look outstanding in a poor team there are sometimes very decent players looking to put themselves in the shop window with a season in the premiership. A relegated club will also look to milk every last penny out of the season and will sometimes be open tom offers for their better players. A cynical exercise by all concerned I know but, with our limited budget I think it?s definitely an avenue to approach.

Michael Hunt
2 Posted 26/01/2008 at 08:29:16

I agree Alberto and Kieron. Also, players from overseas leagues (especially inferior leagues like the MLS) of often take a year in the prem to get up to speed. TOP Class players like Drogba and Ballack are good examples if this. I don’t know enough about these american guys but if they can be good straight off and improved further under Moyes then it sounds good business to me if the prices are reasonable. Even if they turn out to be not quite up to the very highest expectations we would have, we do need more depth in midfield so that when injuries bit we don’t have to play defenders like Jags and Nev in the middle!

Steve Pendleton
3 Posted 26/01/2008 at 09:00:10

Excellent point Alberto. Maybe we can pinch some class players for a steal. Could help unearth the next great Moyes buy in the ilk of Cahill or Arteta.

In response to Robert Jones’s sook about Tony Marsh, grow some balls mate and toughen up as the Tony Marsh’s of this world only want the best for our great club. A bit of constructive criticism never goes astray.

Michael Hunt
4 Posted 26/01/2008 at 10:32:22

Excuse to ressurrect a class quote just for laughs..about the poster that wanted to petition against Tony Marsh’s bile: Does that fella have ’SAND IN HIS MANGINA’ or what?? Luv it!

Barry Scott
5 Posted 26/01/2008 at 12:25:27

We have been in for Bradley in the past, if the toffeetalk website was still up I’d paste the link.

mark-chester
6 Posted 26/01/2008 at 12:59:48

Blackburn are putting in a bid for him!

4 working days left till the window closes, will we get anybody???

Personally, if i was to bet, i would bet that we won’t get anybody, just a feeling!

David Nicholls
7 Posted 26/01/2008 at 13:06:12

Maybe we should sign Tony Marsh on a free, we need a midfield hardman with a great football brain as cover for Carsley and they dont come any harder than Tony Marsh. Be careful Robert Jones, you might meet him down a dark alley one day!

Erik Dols
8 Posted 26/01/2008 at 13:13:03

As you might know, I live in the Netherlands. Now I don’t follow Heerenveen (his current club) that much so all I can say is on base of the ten-or-so times I saw him on summaries on the Dutch telly.

Bradley’s a decent footballer, mentally strong, can score goals by arriving late. I’ve never seen him make a tackle, but then again he’s an attacking midfielder and in a summery they don’t show you much attacking tackles of course. To me, he looks like a younger, less impressing version of Cahill. But he’s certainly the unfinished product, if Moyes has faith in the lad he could become a very useful player.

If we were to bid for a Heerenveen-midfielder I’d rather have left-footed Croatian Danijel Pranjic. He’s a class act, only lacks the physic to play in the Prem.

Chris Brown
9 Posted 26/01/2008 at 13:53:30

I’m an American (and a die hard Everton fan) and I would love to see us pick up Bradley. He has an excellent work ethic and great football intelligence (his dad is the coach of the US team, so he’s been immersed in tactics his whole life). He also represents a need for us in the midfield.

Dempsey is a class player, and has proven that he can be effective in the EPL already. Unfortunately he plays in a very similar role to Cahill (offensive midfield). I think he could be a great natural striker, but we don’t need help in either of those positions. Unless we were to sell some other players, I don’t see a hole in our squard Dempsey would fit, though if injuries were to hit us, he would be a perfect fit...

Greg Murphy
10 Posted 26/01/2008 at 14:23:18

David Nicholls - nah, my money is on Tony Marsh as a pacy winger (I’m imagining a combination of Goodlass, Thomas and Kanchelskis) skipping past fellas into acres of space.

He’s not interested in scoring the goals himself (so perhaps he’s more of a Dave Thomas than the surly Rusky - with his socks pulled down...so long as they’re white, though, coz we always have looked classier in those!); but rather he takes more pleasure in providing cross after cross to our strikers so as he can stand back and watch the Blues score an avalanche of goals.

Nah, Tony ain’t no midfield enforcer, no chance.

Free-flowing, trigger-pulling and spontaneous (bit like his posts) surely that’s the Marshter innit (betcha he’s a classic Adidas man, too!)?

His presence (and many others) as part of the TW make-up is what sets the site apart from the rest of the Blue forums.

Andrew Paolacci
11 Posted 26/01/2008 at 22:44:05

He scored another 2 goals yesterday for Heerenveen.. he looks the goods at least, but I've read a lot of things on tribalfootball (rumours), so I'm just gonna sit back & see if DM brings in any1 new before the end of Jan...

Michael Hunt
12 Posted 27/01/2008 at 03:46:41

If we sign this lad, I’ve got a feeling it will prove VERY good business. I’m just read up on him through the web, at just 20 years old now he could be the business in the near future. His style and technique seems similar to Gerrard, so that aint bad. Looks like other prem clubs are circling now, so Dither not Davey! At his age, quality andx potential, it makes great sense.

Neil Higginbotham
13 Posted 28/01/2008 at 23:02:53

I’m another American Toffee, and I would be VERY excited to see the club get a player like Bradley; I believe he is very technical and just as importantly, he is able to change his style of play as dictated by the game situation. He has a high soccer IQ and the required Moyes work-rate. As far as Dempsey, when he first came to England I heard much of his family followed, and he specifically wanted to live in London.