Uncomfortably Numb

When the likes of Chelsea, Man Utd, Spurs, Man City turn up, the Everton players see it as a chance to prove they are better than they think they are, it's their "Cup Final" ? the classic small club mentality that motivates lesser players. think Mr Moyes sees these games as a chance to prove he can compete against Ferguson, Ancelloti, Redknapp etc.

When we play the lower sides his sides become scared and one dimensional, as if he is afraid to lose his hard earned reputation. The Chairman and Board are happy to stay where we are, are not prepared to even improve the ground and facilities, to just give the impression that this is a top club moving forward, Mr Moyes is also happy to see out his contract with the status quo, keep his heroic reputation then move on to bigger and better things.

Mr Moyes is in a no-lose situation, 3 years left on his contract and even if the club are relegated (I don't think we will be) he will come out of it squeaky clean, lack of funds cited as the reason for the clubs demise.

I don't include the supporters in this small mentality syndrome, in fact the complete opposite: we quite rightly see Everton as one of the most innovative and famous clubs, stuck now in a 15-year time warp, hoping for some passing billionaire to drag us into the 21st century.

I sat watching the game last night on telly and felt like you, Chris, numb frustrated thinking why bother, we had an opportunity to win that competition, an even better one I feel than last time around.

For me, I woke and thought "Moyes, just go now, please, take Pip with you, and drop him off at White Hart Lane. I think, short term, Alan Stubbs could take control of first team affairs. I know he hasn't exactly pulled up trumps in the reserve league but we basically play our youth players in those games, and I feel he could inspire as he did as skipper to see us through to a mid-table finish come May.

Then the big question is can we be sold in the summer? I used to be a Kenwright believer but now, after all his lies and bullshit, I want him out ASAP. There is no way the Blackburns and Citehs of this world could be taken over with Everton not being seriously looked at.

My dream would be, come August, we will have a new owner and board with fresh ideas and forward thinking plans. An attacking manager like Owen Coyle in charge and a starting 11 after a summer of recruiting of:

Howard, Coleman, Jags, Gary Cahill, Bainsey, Donovan, Fellaini, Defour, Arteta, Cahill, Gyan. Bench of, Distin, Garbutt, Barkley, Eagles, Saha, Obinna, Wickham.

Sell the rest and try to aim for a top 6 finish and with money available and an attacking manager of Coyle's ability we could really push and kick on back to were we belong.

Thanks for all you have done, Moyes, but time's up my friend.

COYB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

These truly are desperate times for the club in general, what worries me most is that many long suffering blues (self included) are in just as big a rut as the board, manager and players. We know something needs to give and surely it will, but will it be too late?

We trot off to the USA or Oz and start every season as if we are still jet-lagged. No-one is at home taking care of business because DM and his coaching assistants trot off with the rest of them. It;s a damn waste of money that we cannot afford.

The useless management then proceeded to waste assets by allowing Gosling to go free and instead of paying Pienaar the same as Arteta and Co, we allow him to go for peanuts (pardon the pun). We have absolutely no cover for Baines, Arteta and Fellaini... Saha is coming to the end of his days, which leaves us with Anichebe and Beckford up front.

I am not the slightest surprised that Reading beat us because we fail umpteen times against supposed lesser sides. Whether we drift into a relegation battle or not does not disguise the total ineptitude of our Board of Directors. DM is now more or less the voice of the boardroom and, since his new contract was signed, he has become the club apologist.

I really fear that we may lose some of our better players at the season end and I hate the thought of relegation as I suffered through it as a teenager in the very early 50s... I only hope that EFC do not go down again during my life time!!!

I am still on the fence re Moyes and Kenwright. Not all bad, some major screw ups, but better than others. I still think we are hopeless at attacking and need some extra coaching in that area. Clearly we are broke and this is my point. Until football fixes the wage issue, then we are screwed.

Not too long ago, I understand we had a cap of £40k then Arteta got £75k and it's all gone tits up, others want the same or more, they leave and we can not replace them, or even get loan players in because we cannot afford it.

IArteta is not even an international, has no pace, struggles at set pieces and doesn't score a raft of goals. If I was paying the money, I would want more than the odd nice touch for my money.

In my view, we have the only sensible strategy we follow until football sorts itself out, or we find our own sugar daddy, is we go back to paying £40k max, we develop young talent and sell. We attempt to stay in the PL and try for a good cup run. Others less than us have won cups e.g. Portsmouth and Birmingham.

We need realistic targets and winning the Champions League or Premier League is not achievable at the moment. I know some wil say Nil Satis et al but, unless someone knows a billionaire, then we haven't the finance to compete in this increasingly broken game.

I want to see blues playing for the shirt, young talent and lots of energy ? not overpaid prima donnas or injured has-beens. We have awesome fans and we deserve better.

We were poor against Chelsea and went through on pens; we were annihilated by Man U at Goodison bar the last 10 mins... and Man City away we had more jam than Hartleys.

I suspect we have the potential to do better but we'll never know under Moyes. As it stands, we're crap and getting worse.

In my view, David Moyes did a good job for a few years, no more than that. There is a feeling among many Evertonians that we owe David Moyes a debt of gratitude for keeping us in the Premier League. He earns a huge salary;, he,somehow, has the respect of his peers and the media. He has won nothing and has produced some truly woeful football. I say he owes us.

Osman and Bily would have to be the slowest weakest midfielders in the Prem. Hibbert's crosses are as bad as they ever were. Anichebe is bereft of a single attribute. Even his moaning whinging attititude is all wrong. In Beckford's case, I can't say he has gone backward simply because he never was good enough.

Heitinga is a shadow of the aggressive 'get stuck in' merchant he used to be. I put that down to him being told to drop off his man where he used to get right into him.

Number 1 disappointment is Rodwell who appears to be shackled by an overcautious system and not playing with the freedom of movement that made us think we had another Beckenbaur in the making.

Then there is Coleman whose off-the-ball movement has become predictable. His head down runs desperately call for a bit more imagination.

I could have added Arteta to the list if only because he would have to be the worst free kick taker possibly in the whole of English football.

Finally, I pose the question, is there still hope for all of them or has their progress hit a brick wall???

Hibbert may not be everybody's cup of tea but you cannot question his effort and endeavour, he never hides, shits-out or ducks a tackle, I saw quite a bit of that lark last night against Reading.

I haven't seen or heard this before, but it is certainly an accurate summary. Most managers are the antithesis of this.

Chris Kelly, I understand that you may not rate anyone off those lists for Everton (Mourinho though? Really? I'd have him), but this is the problem. People think that a replacement for Moyes (or the owners for that) has to come from someone we know and is in the Premier League. Bollocks. As I've said a hundred times this year, who the hell knew of David Moyes when they were crying for Walter Smith to do one?

Heitinga, Jags, Distin.
Neville
Coleman, Arteta, Bilyaletdinov, Baines
Cahill
Saha/Beckford (whoever is fit/in form)

I honestly think, with our available squad, this is our best formation.