Agree that we need a top quality CM and CF (even 2!)
I'm torn with what I think would be for the best with Fellaini.
There is no doubt he is a great player and I like the fact he plays for us.
However, for the same reasons I think the sale of Rooney was the right thing to do, I reckon we might be best getting over £20m for him and re-investing it on (2-3 players) the squad which is short on (quality) numbers
I am sure we would recover from his departure, but then where does it stop?
Do we sell Baines too?
At some point we need to stop selling and actually keep a team together in order to challenge for trophies.

I think he's gone. The massive increase in wages for one. Rodwell's wages went up to 100K a week just by being injured for ManCity instead of us. My first thought was that signalled Fella going.

Now, say he and Baines go for around 45 million. They're both in their primes for the position they play and will be in demand. Plus this TV contract windfall supposed to be coming next season. Even with the owners taking their cut off the top, would seem a substantial amount of dough for whoever is the next manager.

He has slipped in form with the rest of the team so you're being biased with your evidence. Also, his body language at Villa ,and other matches I might add, shows he hasn't given up on anything.

We all know he wants CL football and would be out the door before Moyes, but this is just kicking yourself when you're down blather.

No one tried harder for Southampton than Matt Le Tissier... he just had a different way of going about it.

Paul there is no alternative to selling our better players, under the present regime. How else are we gonna service the massive wage bill? I also think we will see a lot more swap deals due to the Fair play initiatives, which could be detrimental to clubs like Everton. The higher income clubs have the players to release from their squads. Newcastle were very clever buying the five new guys in the window, they can sell one or two of them for a fat profit and still retain a reasonable sized squad.

Regardless of how the season pans out, Everton FC are going to have to think long and hard about how it goes about things in the next few years. Is our boardroom the smallest in the PL? the 'fantastic four' (Woods, Kenwright, Earl and Carter)

He's been here 5 years now and he's always been inconsistent when he's at it he looks great when he's not you think what a waste of space, probably why he's still here.

Getting 25million looks great business lately.

To me Fellaini's form has dipped because of constantly being shifted about within games. In the first part of the season we played him up top with Jelly whether or not we were winning. This paid dividends several times (Sunderland, Fulham as examples).

Just lately we seem to be desperate for a plan B as soon the clock starts to tick. He has been shifted deeper and deeper in games and he just isn't as effective further back.

I agree with Sam--I have to think that a huge part of the variability in Fellaini's play this year has been...well...the variability in Fellaini's season. Consider:

1. Injury (missed 2 (3?) games)
2. 5 Yellow Cards (missed 1 game)
3. Suspension (missed 3 games)
4. Jelavic's woes-->constantly being shifted around the pitch from match to match and moment to moment.
5. Other injuries in the midfield & wings (Mirallas, Gibson, Neville)

Bottom line, the structure he's been in has been anything but consistent. As such, it's not difficult to imagine that even the best and brightest might struggle to find a groove and stick in it, much less develop chemistry with the constantly-changing folks playing around you.

He's had a few good games this season and that's it. I've posted on here before many times that, when he was out over Xmas, we looked a better side without him. To me, he's an enigma. I doubt there's not a fan of our club who could tell you what his best position is because quite frankly he hasn't got one.

But I definitely take your point that his body language is poor at the moment. But then again he's not alone there, is he? The whole team looks flat at the minute.

And I'm really not looking forward to the end of the season. Forget finishing 4th or winning the Cup — it's not going to happen To paraphrase a certain ex-knobhead manager: "I'd love it, really love it..."

Barry #484; spot on. He's good ( if patchy ) but not as good as He, his agent Dad and some sections of the media think. Anything over 25M is good. Though just how much of that the new or old coach will see after the banks and Standard,

What if we end up with nett profit, cash in coaches hand, less than his real worth. We then have to replace a 15M player with 10M

He isn't in a dip of form, this is his normal level that he has displayed for the best part of 4/5 seasons. At times at the end of last season and the beginning of this he peaked in form but that was the exception rather than the norm. He does not take enough blame for our performances yet laps up almost all the praise.

If Pienaar, Osman and Baines are playing well then Fellaini looks good, if not he looks worse than useless. They make our team tick. Replacing those three would be a lot more difficult than replacing Fellaini.

For those saying he's been shifted around he has spent the vast majority of the season behind Jelavic, he's been here years playing all three central midfield roles, there should be no excuses but everyone is always looking for one for him. The amount of time he has been here he has not delivered over a long consistent basis and that is not good enough for £15 million (or whatever it was we paid for him).

Simply can't agree with the OP. Don't think he has dipped too much, and still contributes his fair percentage. At the moment he is having to compensate for Osman and Neville's decline, Mirallas and Gibson's lack of match sharpness, and Jelavic's failure to provide goals.

To my eye he looks to be instrumental and continues to pose one of our few threats. Comfortable in possession but looks to get others involved with clever little lay-offs. Generally I think he is very consistent, with the problem maybe being that his best and worst performances get exaggerated.

His detractors harp on about his languid style and his disciplinary issues, but he is a major asset in our team and has been for a few seasons now.

Si - Good stuff. Agree. Hate that he's going to leave. But I'm one thinks Baines is going too.

Hopefully, Moyes (I hope he stays, but doubt it) or the next guy in will get a substantial chunk of the windfall money from their sales and the TV dough.

Been a fan since he came and argued many a times for him in those early days but I would bite the hand off anyone wanting to pay £25M for him.

He should be running games for how he is lauded by his agent and some in the press yet I have witnessed him doing sod all against lower league midfielders of late, in his favoured position too, he is just not good enough consistently, having a good five game spell each season is not good enough at the level he thinks he is at or warrants.

Total bollocks, Fellaini single handily led the fight back against Villa and just missed out on getting a hatrick. He may have been a bit below par against Man Utd and Oldham, however you could also level the same accusation against Baines who has consistently been one of our top players this season. The team appears to have run out of ideas, confidence is a bit low and the fans sense that the squad is running on empty and needed bolstering in January.

While on the whole I disagree in the main with this article I can see that sometimes it does look as if he is playing with less than 100% commitment. Personally I don't think that he is trying less because he wants a move and is playing towrads that etc, I think that's just part of his nature and don't think he would be any different whoever he played for. Personally I would like him to remain at Everton whether we qualify for the CL or not but I can see the advantage of selling him if we could get 20 to 30 million for him but only on the basis that all the money went towards team building and not to placate the banks etc.

Peter #574. Even against Oldham Fellaini's class was still plain to see. There were so many small touches and accurate passes etc etc that others in the team were incapable of making. I completely agree with the rest of what you've said.

Surely, the guy can have an off game from time to time. An off game for him is noticeable because he's been so good in others.

I sort of see the main point of this post. But he's the sort of player who goes about his business in a very nonchalant way. His reaction when he scored the second of his two goals against Aston Villa was of clear passion for this club.

I think most of us understand that he won't love it like Jags, Baines and Osman does as they are all English and he's foreign but the way he controls the ball when given time is world class, he is inconsistent at times but he's not the worst culprit at all.

To me he's just reverted back to the same player we had for the last 4 years after an excellent starting half season.

Expect bids of around £12 mill and a sale of £15 mill which will go to the bank like the Rodwell money last season.

Totally agree Eric. I have never been convinced by Fellaini.

Despite a couple of brief spells throughout his time at Goodison, I have never really understood the adulation he has received, particulalry by the media. They watch him once in a while which is how often he has been oustatnding.

I don't deny he has had some fantastic games this season, but not since around October. Anyone who has regualarly observed his performances since his arrival will tell you, he is not the player he thinks he is so, if we can get decent money for him, let him sit on the bench of a Billionaires club and let us get a couple of players who actually feel the need to prove themselves.

So Felli is our top scorer but he is shit and doesn't want to play for Everton. Felli has been shit for four years but we will get £25 - 30 mill for him. Every top side wants him but no bids during transfer window.

It is a game of 11-a-side plus subs but it's Felli's fault we are only 6th. I think we would be 16th not 6th if we hadn't had him in the side, who else is going to show some balls in our midfield?

Osman? Useless twat, cant shoot, gets blown off the ball.
Pienaar? Can't shoot but links up better and looks to attack at least.
Mirallas? Needs to find some form after injury but he is good.
Gibson? Plays his part in side.

We need a hard-arse like Felli in Midfield and could do with a bit more from the rest of them.

Or has he watched the January transfer window bullshit and thought to himself, "Why stick around and not move to a club with genuine ambition?"

Rob, that hardarse Fellaini has been playing in midfield his preferred position of late and he has been average.

I sat in that ground the other week at Bolton and watched some Bolton lad in midfield boss the game. I thought if Fellaini is on his way to being classed as a top Champions League type player, he should be dictating games like that — and the same happened last week at Oldham.

As I have said, I have been a massive fan of his from day one but I am starting to wonder about him as a central midfielder as he just does not dictate games as the likes of Gerrard have in the past.

............hmmm the usual slagging off of a player, belittling of his ability and how we can cope without him argument so we can distance him for a while so the pain won't be so sad when he goes.....

Rob Smith (589)

Osman? Useless twat, cant shoot, gets blown off the ball, well said mate and so perfectly put.
I think that whilst the likes of Osman and Hibbert are considered to be good enough for a side chasing CL football, we will never achieve anything, have these two clowns not shown us in 10 or more years now that they are not up to standard?

Fellaini is a good player but I think the best option for us is to get rid of him and use the money to buy a CB, CM, and a striker. He clearly wants to leave so let him, don't want another Lescott saga to unsettle the club at such a crucial stage in the season.

Why are faans determined to destroy what we have.

If its not Hibbo or Ossie Its Moyes or Neville.

Now its Fellaini.

You guys should get to more games.

Fellaini covers more ground than anyone else in the team and his link up play is second to none.

He is our leading goalscorer this season.

Why oh why try to drive the guy away.

I agree he's been poor in the last few games, but I find it hard to agree with this "get £20m+ and bring in 2-3 players" response – just look at what happened at Villa when they sold their best players for big fees (Young, Barry, Downing) – money wasn't reinvested in real quality (Benteke aside this season) and they're struggling. Surely you should always want to keep your best players – other teams are after them for a reason....

Jay, I'm a season ticket holder, I go games. I like Fellaini, infact I have loved him but he should be doing far more for a player supposedly hell bent on champions league football especially against shite like Bolton and Oldham.
Then I see that big hardarse again yesterday doing his usual shithouse at a corner( semi against Liverpool remember) and we wake up to read the net about him blabbing about Chelsea again.
The annual shit ourselves at Anfield comes soon lets hope he turns up there for once as our big game man has only turned up once there and that was for Liege.
He's a good player but is he as good as the hype?

Paul
I know he's not everyone's cup of tea and does go missing on defensive set pieces but to me he is the engine room of the team.

He gets up and down the pitch and his passing is as good as anyones let alone his eye for a goal.

I know people think 20 million plus is good money but IMO him and Baines are top 4 quality and to replace them would be really difficult if not impossible for what we would get for them.

Jay 668 we have no option.

The price of thinking top 8 is marvellous and no more is we get an equivalent owner, whether Moyes stays or goes players must be sold - it's ongoing.