The Mail Bag
A good night's work
Comments (84)
Well there we have it...
...A good run out and a goal for the Yak
...An away goal and confidence boost for Jo
...Confidence boosting goals for the Goose and Ossie
...Some more match practise and assist for Bily
...Heitinga tried out in central defence and tried as an option alongside Hibbo
...Lucas Neill brought on for a relaxed debut
...Young Agard given a debut run out with no pressure
...Yobo, Saha and Cahill fully rested,
...Trial of a different formation and a chance to show strength of new squad
...Maintenance of our cracking form
...Progress to the next round of the Carling Cup
All-in-all not a bad night’s work!
Chris James, Posted 23/09/2009 at 18:45:27
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As for the game itself...Job Well done!
Thank you for pointing that out. It’s a part of the site that I’ve never felt the need to visit.
The comment is an absolute disgrace and the editors should be ashamed.
More importantly, for those of you that have it, they’re showing the goals on Sky Sports News. I guess your next chance to see them will be around 23:10, give or take a few minutes.
After an undeniably disappointing start to the season, we appear to be finding some form and the new squad looks to be extremely versatile.
When will the habitual critics on here (and they know who they are), see the broader, fairer picture and stop over-reacting after two or three games.
And that Osman comment is disgraceful. What sort of Evertonian thought that in any way acceptable?
Give the man a break. It’s OK to acknowledge he often fails to live up to expectations in reports and comments - but having that testament against his name on an Everton website is very poor sporstmanship.
That really will do his confidence a lot of good. Modify it please whoever is responsible.
He plays for Everton for goodness sake. Show some sportsmanship and loyalty.
Now I know he’s the captain but there’s no way he should be a regular in our side when he’s back fit, he should be challenging Heitinga, Neill and Hibbert for a spot at right back and he can be cover for Baines at left back but not a first team regular, and not in midfield either but let him be club captain but keep Yobo team captain or give Arteta or Jagielka it when there back, fit and in the side!
Roll on Pompey Saturday, although I see that one being a tougher test than tonight's game, I’d take a one-nil win on Saturday and get our season really going with some good fixtures coming up for the Blues!
It appears he had a stormer of a game this evening.
None of us could ever question his commitment to the club, and on that basis alone, I like him and trust, that constructive crticism aside, we all like him.
If only he was anywhere near as good against the top teams!
I have also in the past waited for him to move up that notch. Can he still yet attain this level of consistent top class performance?
I, for one, hope so.
Happy we’re through and feeling much more upbeat about the season
ahead.
Goodnight, sleep tight.
To think the editor of this website felt the need to pen an article challenging the labelling of this site as negative!
The comment is indeed a disgrace and should be removed. I was made up to see Leon skipper the side tonight and also to play in his favoured central position.
He may not be first XI material when everyone is fit but there is no need to rubbish him in such a way on a squad profile page.
More to the point, neither had anybody else. Until he finally has one good game (as captain!) and — lo and behold — all the knee-jerkers are out. What happened to the balanced perspective you are all so proud of?
Sadly I didn’t get to see the game and so can only go by reports of his supposed brilliance tonight. Maybe I’ll wait a few games until I see for myself if it was yet another Osman flash in the pan or if he can maintain this improved form with any degree of consistency. Thanks to you all for pointing it out and providing your feedback.
I’ve not seen the game tonight, but from the commentary, sounds as if we continued where we left off against AEK and Blackburn. If that is the case, I can’t recall a time recently, when we’ve played better for the full ninety minutes and over a series of consecutive games.
We have always had players in the squad these last few years who can play football but I do wonder if neville had not have been injured, whether we would have borne witness to the the last 3 performances.
I rate neville as a captain, he always gives 100% and in the main his performances in midfield have been good.....as a defensive holding midfielder, but he doesn’t inspire the confidence on the ball that felli, rodwell or cahill would and I dont think our play would have been as quick and incisive with him in it.
I think Moyes hand has been mostly forced by the injury to play a more adventurous starting 11 and it looks to be paying big dividends. Will be very interesting to see if our performances continue past christmas(and against sterner opposition) and if so what happens when neville returns to the squad. He’d make an excellent right back imho, but we have too many good all-round midfielders for him to slot back in there on the evidence of the recent games.
Damn the guy with faint praise by all means if you have to, but that’s indefensible.
I’m a realist and have as little tolerance of sub-standard players and team performances as everyone else. But singling Osman out for such open criticism is abusing your editorial privilege, as well as being spiteful and vindictive.
That said, you can only beat who they put in front of you.
Big deal, Osman scores a goal and you want me to put aside the shit past 2 seasons from this lad. We all know he puts in a decent shift against crap teams — that's his trademark. So what's the big deal about tonight? When he pops up with a goal or two against the RS or the Mancs, come back and let me know will ye? I won't hold my breath by the way.
/>4-0 away looks great on paper but think about the team who we beat and the competition it was in before you break out the baby oil and drop your undies.
Giving me stick because we won is just about what I expect from these new breed of Evertonians. Fucking clueless about the club and where it's headed and actually overjoyed to see the first team flogged to death in meaningless fixtures.
/>I don't care one way or the other what happens in the Carling Cup but some of you better realise that we are in no position whatsoever to compete on 4 fronts including Europe with a squad so small. We will have to make sacarifices somewhere along the line if we stay in all 3 cups and try to mantain a decent league position.
Ah but what the hell — we just beat AEK and Hull City 4-0 so we are defo going to win something this season arent we???
Once again, Hull made 9 changes tonight so let's not get too carried away just yet.
I know that we’re ALL biased - I’m not pretending I’m not - and I know that not all of the squad are as good as we’d like them to be but, surely, singling one guy out for that degree of vilification is a little unreasonable
Osman needs to replicate this form on a consistent basis and even then, until he produces it against the Sky four, he will never convince me. In saying that, fair play to the lad for what by all accounts was a storming performance against Hull. Regardless of how poor you wish to call the Hull team, you can only beat what confronts you as someone else said in an earlier post on this thread.
Delighted with the result, the positive repercussions and the all round feel-good factor. Roll on Pompey and long live ’joined-up’, carpet football :)
I’m not saying that we shouldn’t criticise our players, just that criticism should be measured.
We all know AEK, Blackburn and Hull are not over-reliable indicators - but players are coming back, results are as good as could be expected and let’s face it, Fulham and Burnley would probably have raised the same comments form you had results gone the other way- and they beat us!
Some green shoots of recovery then: so don’t cut the lawn just yet. Let’s see if things continue in the same vein at Portsmouth?
In the meantime, try to see something positive, instead of delighting in such constant and barely disguised holier-than-thou negativity.
And your assessment of those who disagree with your highly opinionated views as "fucking clueless" does you no favours. We merely see things differently, but there’s absolutely no need to debase the discussion with such unnecessary, unjustified and wholly unpleasant remarks, surely?
As I said recently to another eternal pessimist, a certain Mr McGlone: this is a forum for fellow Evertonians isn’t it... not Fight Club?
Stop being so precious... he was not ’singled out’; each player gets a one line status summary. As an example (for Aiden) it says under Hibbert: "Great Defender" because I think he generally does a great job of defending as in stopping opposition attacking play, especially down the wing... until he was apparently played unfit in the FA Cup Final and got a first-half roasting after a very unfair yellow card.
It is not "spiteful and vindictive" to provide an accurate description of the player’s season-long failings. Passenger, waste of space and useless. Let me know which part of that was not accurate.
The point I was trying to make was that when things go wrong, he always gets more than his fair share of the blame.
Perhaps when things go right therefore, he ought to be spared the usual assassination - evidence of which has been happily marked in the last fortnight.
We have another long trip south against another struggling side and hopefully the mood will continue. The injuries are clearing up somewhat and the squad is looking stronger... certainly a turnaround from a couple of weeks ago.
Yes ,Ossie had a good game but once again against lesser opposition. When I see him play in dominant fashion against the likes of the "top four" on a more consistent basis then I will feel he deserves to be a constant first choice but if it hasn’t happened up to now, I don’t think it ever will.
That was not their 3rd team and it wasn’t our strongest.
Tony and his Martians - always quick to criticise and slow to praise.
As for the rest of us ’new breed of fucking clueless Evertonians’ (I started watching the Blues in 1959), we’ll take pleasure in victory and try and learn from defeat. .
Or what about: ’struggling to match his earlier form’?
Oh, I see that’s what it now says. Much better.
I think most of us accept he’s part of the larger team picture, in the mold of Alan Harper perhaps. So give the guy a break? Don’t imply he’s a useless wanker just because it’s your ball.
Let’s not forget how adept Everton have been for years and years at losing these sort of fixtures.
We’re comfortably through to the next round, off to a great start in the Europe League and off the bottom of the table.
Another good win this weekend and we could be in the top half.
Apart from winning 4-0, 3-0 and 4-0, what do all you people who are still not happy want?
I used to be an Osman fan and remember praying that Moyes would take him out of the reserves and stick him in the first team. But I can only judge on what I see on the pitch.
The lad gets 100 percent for effort and for that I applaud but I am sick to my back teeth of watching him run up blind alleys and getting knocked off the ball. I am sorry if this offends anyone but he just isn't good enough for Everton FC. A great lad doesn't make a great player.
Tony and Co are just riled because the current run of form and some of the football we’re playing is starting to make their predictions and gloomy world view look a little bit misplaced... once again.
It’s not just Everton’s board and dithering Dave that never learns you know... look back about 12 months and you’ll see a similar pattern from certain posters.
My predictions are that we’ll hear a lot less from them (again) after a few more positive league results.
When we start putting 3s and 4s against teams who finshed in the top half of the Prem last season then I will be happy. As it is we have had some easy fixtures and apathetic displays from our opponents which has helped us win games.
The Blackburn game on Sunday I thought we whimped out in the last half an hour. Instead of making a mess of Rovers and putting 5 or 6 past them we settled for the 3 and ended up with 3 right backs on the field at the same time. Not the stuff of champions that mate.
OK, 11 goals in three matches sounds impressive but against who?
A very poor AEK Athens, an out of form Blackburn side, (even Big Sam said they gifted us our goals) & a second string Hull.
While I agree that since the change of personnel we have kept the ball on the ground more & that hoofball has at least been limited, I feel that we have also had the "rub of the green" as the opposition has often looked liked scoring, only to hit the post or to be thwarted by the excellent Howard.
I’m going to reserve judgement until we have played a few games against decent opposition.
’A disgrace - they were shite, we should be beating teams like this 4-0’
We beat ’teams like this’ 4-0,
’Hollow victories’.
More like hollow head.
Sadly we have no pretensions to becoming champions right now, as we all know, but what more could you have asked for?
If we again fail to raise our game when we encounter the better teams, then we’ll all have something to say.
But for now, after three handsome wins, why the need to still find something to complain about?
Man City practically at full strength today struggled to beat a reserve Fulham side. Teams just don’t go out and trounce teams at the top half of the competition these days. I think people on both sides of the argument are getting a bit carried away.
Great win by EFC tonight and some good positives to come out of the game as well.... It's as simple as that!!
But that shouldn’t stop us enjoying the last three games on face value! And it wont stop me .................
We’re building a nice momentum up now. It’s crucial we maximise our returns in the next five league games against inferior opposition. There are fifteen points on offer and we should realistically be aiming to secure twelve points minimum.
Only annoying thing is BBC Wales putting the highlights on at 00:20... especially when you don’t bloody live in Wales but for some reason that’s what we get lumbered with.
Tony, I do have to take issue, only a couple of weeks ago, you declared that we were in a relegation battle. Correct? Now when I think about which teams may struggle this season, I’d list Blackburn, Bolton, Birmingham, Hull, Portsmouth, Wigan & Wolves as my prime candidates. If we were one of the candidates, would it make this statement half logical if we are beating these teams by the margins we have done? I don’t think so.
You have every right to be cautious, as we are yet to have a good game against a team not on that list. But it’s getting as near as possible to max points against these teams that go half way to a good league placing - we dropped 16 points against the 5 of those who were in the league last season, and 6 against the 2 teams the promoted teams replaced. Compared to no dropped points so far this time (with admittedly a long way to go).
You, and every one of us, had every right to be pissed off by the activities of the summer, the poor start, etc, etc, but it’s not really an excuse for labelling 3 very good wins "hollow". At this stage last season (5 league games), we had 7 points and were out of both Europe and the CC. So we’re a point worse off... I’d bet everything I own* we’ve got more than 8 from 8, and I’d stake a rather large amount* we’ll have 15 from 8, with progression in Europe and the CC to boot. (*If I was a betting man that is!)
Oh, and just on another topic, we’ve used 16 players as starters in these last 3 games, and a further 2 as subs. Only 4 have started all 3. With Jags, Neville, Arteta & Anichebe still out, I would beg to differ that we do not have the squad to compete on 4 fronts. We are never gonna win the Prem this season, but I don’t see any reason why we cannot maintain a good league position and have a run in one or more of the cups. We did last season with a much weaker squad. Anyone who disagrees with this assessment of our squad must consider Jacobsen, Valente, Lescott, Van der Meyde & Castillo as better collectively than Heitinga, Neill, Distin & Bilyaletdinov.
The way I see it, some people are getting a little too excited, some could do with a little extra excitement in their lives, Tony Marsh needs a reality check if he thinks our strongest side at present doesn’t include Yobo, Fellaini, Pienaar, Cahill or Saha, Osman still has a lot to do to win over even his most ardent supporters (myself being one of those who has always supported him but thought him poor so far this season), and I need to drink a little bit less. Sleep tight, blues!
That aside... I’m actually getting rather excited about this season... the squad is larger (or at least the numbers we have are more capable players) and we are actually playing really well.
Distin is a very good signing. I’m pleased we have Neill. Heitinga looks promising and Bily is just full of .... ASSISTS!!
We dominated Blackburn on Sunday and the scoreline flattered the opposition if anything.
If we ever get a fully-fit, fully-available squad .... who knows what might happen??
COYB!!
Wayne Smythm — I really hope that Moyes realizes that we need a Nevilleless midfield to succeed. I have a dread that, when fit, Moyes will doom our team with large doses of Neville. This will come at the expense of our more gifted players. I know we have a large group of fans that are infatuated with Neville's captaining abilities. I think it is massively overrated. Slap an armband on any of our steady regulars and he will be soon forgotten.
Before I am crucified:- Neville tries hard, gives 100percent, says the right things, is a players player..?, a true professional, a coach on the field, blah blah blah zzzzzzzz..
p.s. He’s an average right back.
I say let's have more of that 45mins against Fulham because it's those games that seem to kick us into life. More please.
Editor's hang your heads.
I think you will find that both City and Villa are taking this competition very seriously. Didn’t City make just one change from the team that lost to Manure on Sunday? Whilst we rested the likes of Yobo, Peanuts, Saha and Cahill. So it was hardly the first team.
If it is wrong for people to get excited over 3 wins on the bounce surely it is equally wrong for people to start spouting doom and gloom after 3 defeats in four games.
After defending you recently because of the positive way you had responded to the AEK game, and the Blackburn game it seems that your dislike for the CC has coloured your views this time. We played really good football again. We passed the ball on the floor. We were attacking all the time, everyone wanted the ball and we looked like a quality team. The quality of opposition in the last three games was not as poor as you are making out, Hull being the weakest, but then we were not full strength either.
Enjoy the fact that we are getting better, you’ll have enough to get depressed about at the start of next season I’m sure.
I’ve made the odd sarcastic comment about the doom & gloom merchants on this site before but it’s just getting both pathetic and depressing now. It seems like some just enjoy the misery, only on this site could you have people moaning after 3 games with 11 goals scored and none conceeded.
I don’t care if we beat The Big House XI, 3 wins breeds confidence and confidence brings more good results. We should be looking to support the lads not slag them off at the slightest opportunity, and you can’t even use the excuse of "I pay my money so I’m entitled to critise" because I bet most of the whingers are MOTD wanner-be Hansens.
Get a life or get another team.
Absolute genius - keep them coming Tony, that really brightened up my morning.
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Moyes made some shitty mistakes at the start of the season and Kenwright should still fuck away off...
Our improved doesn’t form doesn’t change the past, you clown.
Until then we’ve another ’I told you so’ article to look forward to from Tony when this run inevitably does comes to a close...
BTW Whatever we got off Manchester City for Lescott it was way too much... have you watched him playing for them? He’s been all over the place!!!
A good run is a good run. 11 - 0 can’t be sniffed at. But it would be dangerous to get complacent. None of those 3 teams are even above average, but the job still has to be done and we seem to be doing it with plenty of room to spare.
It’s something else that I’m not comfortable with.
Seems to me that, by selecting a player for the bench, David Moyes is implicitly saying he trusts him to do a job in whatever role he is best suited. And we can draw that conclusion by the selection of young Kieran Agard last night. This kid has received great reviews for sometime and has been knocking on the door.
Last night was EXACTLY the game where he could & should have played. To use him would have helped him and Moyes and us. We were playing a very poor team, in very poor form AND they’d made 9 changes from Saturday.
Now, perhaps we can live with young Agard not playing from the start. OK, maybe we want the job done first. So, it’s half time, we’re 3-0 up and (let’s be frank) no serious prospect of a fight back. It’s decided that Yakubu should not be risked in the 2nd half. So, we have 2 attackers on the bench. One is Saha (he can stay there) and the other is Agard. Who do you choose to replace Yakubu? Easy, Fellaini!!!!!
So, one extraordinary decision made. Next port of call. It’s now 4-0, half-an-hour left. Is there ever a better time to give a promising young player some overdue first team experience than when you are 4-0 up with half-an-hour left against a crap team?
Well, yes there is apparently, it’s when you’re 4-0 up against a crap team with only 5 mins to play.
Now, don't get me wrong, I’ve broadly backed Moyes on almost everything he’s done. But there remain one or two chinks in the steely armoury of his that I’m uncomfortable with. And his ability to use opportunities like last night is one of them.
To me it was total fucking madness to bring Agard on with 5 mins left. It was safety first gone mental. Agard would probably have injected some life into the last half-hour when, frankly, we tend to go through the motions (unlike Spurs & others) unless we’re winning.
So, delighted with our run, not really surprised because we have our best squad now for 25 years and things will get even better I think. But we have a handful of great youngsters who we can actually afford to give chances to and we don’t. That, to me, is a complete waste of time and money.
I just hope that these kids don’t get their chance in the middle of an injury crisis and are asked to play out of position. Last night was the best chance in years to blood new players and IMHO Moyes failed the test.
Doesn’t mean he’s crap or I hate him, before the Hitler brigade come on and misread what I’m saying. Just means he isn’t yet the cosmic genius some think he is.
Why don’t you send young Agard some flowers and get it over with...
I think the main problem is Moyes using him as a wide midfielder when it’s very clear that he’s completely unsuited the the role. If your going to play him outwide than atleast play him on the left and let him cut inside, like Pienaar does.
As a centre midfielder he’s useful, I’ve always said that. Whilst he’s not a world beater by any means he plays to a decent standard against the majority of the teams he comes up against.
I think he’d be appreciated a lot more if he was playing there or at least covering there, rather than being our wide player/backup wide player. Sadly, with our lack of wingers that will be the case.
We played some of our best football under Moyes during the 07-08 season with Osman in the middle, in between Carsley and Cahill, knitting things together. I think a lot of people forget that but I can’t blame them, he’s been below par for a good while now.
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Yeah, one decent game hardly makes up for nearly two seasons of shite..
Fair play to him for what appears to be a decent display last night... but let's not get carried away, he still belongs squarely arse down on the bench...
But — on the bright side. Three emphatic wins in three seperate competitions playing some decent football. Not sure if I’m worried or bouyed by the golden touch our set pieces have acquired but who’s comlaining. Would rather have seen 11 goals from open play but long may it continue if it means results like we’ve had over the past week.
Just for a bit of entertainment though, Tony — could you write us an article saying what you would have said had we lost the last three games 0-4, 0-3, 0-4? That’d be hilarious (though probably not too different from the comment you’ve just put on).
I’m also a bit lost as to why AEK Athens had no interest in the Europa League fixture but bow to your greater judgement.
Again — think your stuff's brilliant. We need you to keep this site turning.
Well done.
Why don’t you send young Agard some flowers and get it over with...
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Ciaran, I usually disagree with almost everything you post! BUT, that comment was extremely sensible, and the last bit was pure comedy!
That’s more than a coincidence. Not having Neville in the side has forced Moyes to play a more attacking style and formation.
Tony, although we’ve beaten poor sides, we’ve beaten them by a large margin. I’m never going to get carried away until we actually win something but it is pleasing to be putting these shit teams to the sword.
PLEASE study Tony’s contributions in detail and take note. Don't waste the free masterclass that's being given up. That’s the only advice I can give — the rest is up to you.
Thanks Mike - but I’d like to think I’m a little more balanced and generous in applauding success..
He think’s he’s BETTER than Marsh...this boys confidence knows no bounds....
Tony - sounds like the gauntlet’s been thrown down...
In all seriousness - going back to Chris James’s original and much deserved comment.
I didn’t get to the game last night and have just seen the goals so am not in the position to really comment but.
I do agree that Nev being out is a blessing in disguise and personally think its saved Davey a bit of a headache. The new boys seem to be slotting in like a dream and we’ve got Mikel and Jags to come back.
We might go tits up against Pompey on Saturday but I for one am going to enjoy what has been a pretty damn good week for the Blues.
COYB.
You can only beat the teams put in front of you, and it’s a sad trait of football fans to take every ’easy’ game (i.e. anyone but the top four clubs) for granted as a guaranteed win.
Nice to see us dispatch some very mediocre teams with style — anyone remember the days when away ties against third division clubs in the cups would hold great fear of embarassment? We should hopefully steamroll a very poor Pompey this weekend, COYB!
Firstly, Chelsea, Manure & Villa all seem to be very happy with their 1-0 wins over Championship teams. Another interesting stat from our last 3 wins is that we actually used 18 players over those 3 games. So, apart from beating the teams put in front of us, we have cleverly used most of the squad.
I did point out that it was not our 1st 11 either but point taken, saying that it was nice for a change to listen to a match (I hate listening to the radio but I hate not knowing) & not be the least worried about the opposition, can’t say I feel that way very often.
So in essence we did a job, as we would have expected to have done (not always the case with us) & move on with more optimism than we had just over a week ago. We have players still to come back & others still to bed in properly & back up players that were 1st choice last season.
COYB
I’m just going to enjoy watching us play some good football ... call me crazy.
You know, none of you are being judged by anyone for being "right about Everton." Well, okay, you’ll be judged by Tony Marsh.
Granted, saying "we’re going to win the league" would be premature (however nobody is doing that so it’s not an issue). However it IS fair to say that "relegation trouble" and the like was probably nonsense on the strength of recent performances.
Yeah they weren’t world class sides but I am pretty sure I could go back five years or so and see people begging for an EFC team that could rotate a few players and still win easily in early rounds of Cup competitions.
Yeah, yeah ... NSNO. Well 11-0 is relatively NSNO isn’t it? Our immediate schedule doesn’t feature many big clubs so I’m afraid some of you will have to "reserve judgment" until mid-November. We’ll all be waiting anxiously.
BTW, we could (in theory) lose to Man U, Chelsea, RS and Arsenal in every single game and still win the league by beating all the teams who "don’t matter."
It’s either ...
Moyes has never won anything.
OR
Why is Moyes playing a full strength squad in this Cup (and Europe) when we don’t have the squad to compete on all fronts?
Damned if you do ...
BK OUT! (Once he reads that he’s sure to sell to the billionaire tycoon who calls him up every day trying to buy.)
Love your site and have done for many years. Very grateful for it. However, with the Osman comment, you have made a bit of a fool of yourself.
Most of judging football players is subjective and I guess we are never going to agree on Osman (I think he is a decent squad player who plays to his full abilty and should not be insulted for any lack of natural abilty). But even if you are negative on the subjective judgement, how can you say he was "useless, passenger, waste of space" in 2008-09 season when only 2 players scored more? That stat alone is enough to dismiss your comment as hyperbole.
I thought you were better than that.
Look, it is irrelevent whether I agree with your judgement of the boy or not. He may not have as much natural talent as a lot of other players, and I would not be bothered by you pointing out his relative abilty (or lack of) in a nice way. But to be deliberately insulting against one of our own players is just lame.
Lost much respect for you.
Cahill 164 starts (8subs) - 47 goals
Arteta 150 (8) - 24
Osman 181 (28) - 29
McFadden 79 (57) - 18
Carsley 184 (14) - 12
Gravesen 143(12) - 12
Pienaar 78 (4) -6
Simon Davies 41 (10) -1
AVDM 14 (10) - 0
(Source: Toffeeweb)
I have never known such awful crap to be accepted as the norm by Everton fans and as soon as we string one or two half decent results together, the floodgates open with the most ridiculous bollocks.
Crap players like Osman have one good game against a mickey mouse team and all is forgiven, in fact he is fucking Captain now! Leon Osman, captain of once proud EFC, is enough to to send me over the edge... What next? Tony Hibbert off to Real Madrid to become a Galactico?
This 11-0 up in the last 3 games BULLSHIT is fucking hilarious. Only one of he new breed could think that way. How about total scoreline for all home league games this season? What would the score be then?
We would be losing 7-6 on that basis. And people have the nerve to say I talk nonsense on here. I dread to think what will happen if we beat Pompey on Saturday. In fact I know what will happen, the new breeds will say a 4th place finish is on he cards again. What with Arteta and Jagz to come back,blah blah fucking blah.
Yakubu's goal last night was a belter by the way.
Real did sign Tommy Grav so I wouldn’t totally rule out a cheeky Hibbo bid.
Personally I’m miserable when we get beat, happier when we win, happy when we win and play well. Maybe I’m a bit simple.
They would have shone in comparison to the likes of Clause Thomson, Earl Barrett, Brett Angel, Barlow, Tony Thompson, Ben Williamson or any of the other championship garbage we put up with for so long. So I love it that we’re questioning whether what are good quality, honest, hard working, technically sound Premier League journeymen are appropriate for our current squad. We truly have moved up in leaps and bounds....
I’m sure if we were to win 38 games 1-0, we can still find things to complain and be unhappy about!
It seems to me there are only two routes to getting to the top: 1) spend like crazy (hello Blackburn, Chelsea and now City); or 2) build slow and steady and hope you don’t get your best players ripped away before you reach your destination (eg Rooney and Lescott).
We’re still a work in progress, nothing about the team is perfect, but then nothing in life ever is! We’re getting better bit by bit and the number of games that we play sweet football and get good results is growing — so can we PLEASE stop this ’we’re shite us’ nonsense.
Ciaran McGlone: I don’t think I really need to respond to your, or Tony Marsh’s comments any more than the overwhelming majority of people on here have already done.
However, that is twice in a matter of days you have now aimed unnecessarily derogative comments at me, merely for stating my opinion in disagreement with yours.
On each occasion I have been polite and tried to be objective.
You meanwhile - despite your frequent need to use words that are not common parlance in an attempt to demonstrate some form of implied superiority - are a very insulting correspondent.
It’s easy to be a verbal hard man from behind your keyboard, but you significantly lessen the weight of your arguments by such childish behaviour.
How wrong I was, its seems three wins on the spin will make us even angrier. Yes, the wins were against weak opposition, but they were comfortable confidence boosting wins... and we couldn't moan about the selections because, well virtually everyone got a game.
So why all the anger? Is it because people actually predicted disaster and dont like being wrong? I mean, what other clubs fans would moan about the opposition after winning three on the bounce?
As claimed on this threads, I believe there is very definitely a new breed of Evertonian....
Editor's Note: Okay, let's just stop this right here and now. Dave, the rest of your post is deleted and this thread is closed. See below for my explanation.
If I’d seen Tony March’s "new breed of Evertonian" jibe earlier on, I would have deleted it. I stand resolutely against any such classification of Evertonians. Furthermore, it is a requirement of your use of this site that you accept we are all fellow Evertonians... Full Stop. No one is better than anyone else, so please... don’t go down that path.
We come on this site to share views, anlaysis, praise and critical comments for the players, the club, the manager, etc. not exchange internicene attacks and playground put-downs.
The sort of nonsense it generates is perfectly encapsulated by Dave Wilson’s final post, the first part of which I include only as an example of what will definitely not be tolerated in the future. It’s divisive, confrontational and seeks only to drive a wedge.
There are always going to be a divergence of views on anaything that is raised or discussed. It is your responsibility as contributors to recognise accept and acknowledge that and to keep the discussion civil. The best way to do this is to avoid personal attacks. That includes personal characterizations, labels, generalizations, or sweeping statements grouping contributors together in a usually derogatory fashion.
Try to concetrate on the points being raised not on the personalities who are raising them. Thank you. This thread is now closed.
While you were probably correct to cut off the recent thread 'A Good Night's Work' as it was getting nasty, Aiden Doyle's initial point, and the furore it provoked, surely still needs addressing. If your comment about Osman hadn't bothered people before, it can only be because it was tucked away in a corner of the site that regular viewers hardly ever visit or look at with any care.
It has to be said that this is your site, and that as such you're entitled to express whatever opinions you wish on it. Having said that, though, your dismissal of Leon Osman as 'Passenger, waste of space, useless' strikes me as offensive, tautological, and fundamentally unfair.
It's offensiveness is surely obvious; Lyndon has recognised that a line has perhaps been crossed there, and has indicated his wish to change it. Shall there be such a change? It seems bizarre that you would cut short threads where Evertonians insult each other and sneer at different types of Evertonians while elsewhere insulting as long-serving and dedicated servant to the club as Leon Osman.
It's tautological nature is pretty clear too. If Osman is indeed a passenger, surely it goes without saying that if he's useless, and if he's useless surely it equally goes without saying that he's a waste of space. Using all three phrases looks like a calculated sneer.
What of basic fairness and accuracy, then? Is this charge basically a fair one, however offensively put? I don't think it is. It's a commonplace of this site that everything Everton ever achieves it does despite Osman's contribution, but might the reality be that sometimes it achieves things because of his contribution?
After all, with reference to his playing through the end of the 2006-07 season and throughout the 2007-08 season, you recognise that he was 'an essential part of a dynamic midfield... an attacking-midfield revelation, scoring delightful goals ... and helping to usher in a long-awaited pass-and-move game under Moyes.' Does this really sound like a passenger? A waste of space? A useless player?
Granted, he was far less impressive last season, but in his full profile you ecognise why, attributing his startling loss of form to the fact that he was carrying an ankle injury all season, and that he had been putting off a planned operation so that he could continue to play and contribute as best he could to the team.
And contribute he did, playing in more matches than almost any other team member, and scoring more goals than anyone bar Cahill, Fellaini, and Saha, including the two all-important ones against Fulham on the last day of the League that guaranteed us fifth place ahead of Villa.
Despite this, though, he gets dismissed on the summary page as 'passenger, waste of space, useless'?
I really think this ought to be rectified. This is a great site — indeed it's a model for how sites like this ought to be designed, maintained, and generally run — and comments like that are a stain upon it.
You can try all you want to put the blame on me but, at the end of the day, if the player does not perform, for whatever reason (played out of position - Moyes’s fault; is he STILL carrying an injury? Then why isn’t he being rested and healing?) it’s down to him and/or his manager.
Your valiant defence relies far too much on the past and pays far too little attention to the fact that his CURRENT FORM in most games is abysmall he is being overplayed by Moyes to an extent that is now getting ridiculous. This is where the fault lies: with the player and with the manager.
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1 Posted 23/09/2009 at 21:50:25
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