Akpan jumps up to the Premier League

John Ruddy, Jose Baxter doing so well for Oldham, Lucas Jukewitz, Kieran Agard, Adam Forshaw being such a hit in Brentford and many more.

With so much talk about us having no funds, we've been letting go our future stars far too easily.

I bet Hope Akpan cannot wait for the day when he can rub dirt on DM's face forletting him go and making a major screw-up

What about Jermaine Beckford when he scored one of the most promising goals against Chelsea and yet we still had him punished.

What's wrong with us?????

All those other players you mentioned are just doing ok in the lower leagues, that's why we let them go. Have we released anyone that has ogne on to sign for a club higher up in the league than us? No.

Also. Big Vic wasn't that impressive as well but we hung on and look what we have now. A true gem, the real thing.

If we had hung on to these guys a little longer, who knows how these guys might turn out?

Imagine the amount of money we could've saved or even generate.

We could've had 5 or 6 more Rodwell and built ourselves a real team with the funds we generate selling them.

Our youth training has some serious hole to plug.

That's all I have to say

All the others, you may as well lump in with James Wallace... erm, and all the others who we can't remember.

Those guys are doing OK in teams which are crappy and shitty. That means, should they have had enough exposure with Everton, they could've become the real Mccoys.

So, just admit it.

We screwed up and in the process missed out of making tons of cash.

DAMN US TO HELL!!!!!!!

Read all about it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soccer_Dreams

I say what's the point? We're just gonna dump them in the trash can when we're done with them, anyways

Big Vic started well @ 17 yrs old, playing for the team in Europe. It was after his injury at Newcastle that he seemed to have gone backwards, attitude et al.

Jukewitz, Forshaw, Agard and Beckford? The coaching staff knew that they didn't have what it takes to be part of a team pushing for Champions League football. And it seems other clubs feel the same, hence the level they're all playing at.

As for Baxter, I believe he was offered a contract and turned it down. He decided to go elsewhere looking for first team football and all credit to him for doing so.

But maybe if we keep him just that little bit longer huh?

The rest, well they had to show something else. Baxter had to show a lot more to be a top level player given his physical limitations. He never really did.

We let kids go every year. The odds are that some will do alright and one or two might actually become top flight players that we regret releasing. That's the chance we take - all part of the game and the pyramid.

So in that sense all young lads on our books have potential. But some more than others. Can't hang on to them all, as others have said, so need to keep those with most potential. But that's a difficult judgement as nobody can predict the future. So you end up wining some, losing some.

Haven't read all this thread but I'm sure we could point to eventual big names let go by good managers.

Imagine the posts on here if we sold a player for £250k and bought him back for several million 18 months later as out nearest and dearest appear to be in the process of doing with Thomas Ince

On a seperate note, the assertion that we have cocked up by letting go of Baxter, Jutkiewitz, Joao Silva et al is plainly ridiculous. We do not have the luxury of retaining 40 pro players on our roster per the likes of Spurs and the very clear strategy Moyes has adopted has been to invest as much as possible in the first team squad. Freeing up an extra 5-10k a week from letting go of 10 decent youth players and giving Baines or Jagielka an equivalent wage hike is a better use of scare resources. Meanwhile, long as our academy continues to successfully churn out prospects, every now and then we should be able to strengthen the ranks with a Rodwell or Big Vic.

Name me ONE youth player from the Moyes era who has left us and gone onto better things, apart from Rooney.

Of all those mentioned, not one would get anywhere near our bench, let alone our first team right now.

Even Rodwell couldn't get regular starts when fit. None of them are or were good enough.

As pointed out, we bought Ruddy so he doesn't count anyway and I still maintain we were right to let the lad join a lesser club to further his career.

I'd even go as far to say that apart from Rooney, I can't think of one player who has gone on to be better off elsewhere in terms of performance.

Sometimes the change of scene, exposure to different coaches is what they need. Liverpool look like they're about to re-sign a player for £6m they let go for around £500k two years ago. Man Utd had Peter Beardsley on their books when he was a youngster. Mind you they also had Robbie Savage.

I know he made mistakes later in life, but Mark Ward was let go at Everton as he didn't have the physicality to make it. Ended up re-signing him from West Ham for £2m (when that was a chunk of change and not a signing on fee) after he'd rediscovered himself at Oldham.

Every club does it. Very few live to regret it.

Also I really feel Moyes has been more than fair with many of these youngsters; if they are not going to make Everton's 1st team, and perhaps Hope will never quite be up to that footballing standard, he has let them go on to other clubs where they will get game time.

Sending Leon to Derby, Ruddy and Jutkiewicz to Motherwell, Fox and Gerrard to Walsall, Yosser Hughes to Northampton and Bidwell and Forshaw to Brentford has given these players a chance to make a career in Football rather than forever warming the bench at Everton and in Leon's case it was the making of him.

Many promising kids at Everton left and didn't have a football career like Jamie Milligan or John O'Connor under other managers. More clear evidence Everton are producing top professionals at the club in a way that many of their rivals are not. Hope Akpan making it at another club should be reason to see the club in a positive light, not a reason to damn us.

He's joined Reading for Christ's sake!He will be playing Championship football in a few months.

Don't expect an England call up anytime soon.

Beckford was the worst player I have ever seen in blue. I think everyone on here had a better touch than him. He no ability back to goal, but had one trick whereby he could get away from the defender with his pace and a ball over the top. He could only do this late in games which is why he rarely started. I'm glad to see the back of that lad and he's hardly looked like one we should have regretted letting go.

Jags and Baines were let go when Walter Smith decided to get rid of the entire youth side which also included Michael Johnson and Joey Barton, to save us a few hundred thousand. Nice one Waldo.

Off the top of my head, I can think of half a dozen from our reserves a couple of years ago who are now plying their trade in the lower leagues: Nsiala, Baxter, Forshaw, Wallace, Jutkiewitz, Agard. Now Akpan is deemed good enough for a struggling Premiership team. Surely, if they had been in contract we could have got at least £5m in total for them?

I'm not aware that we made any money at all from them. Isn't that the purpose of an academy, to bring players through and either play them in the first team or sell them on, thereby benefiting the club and and the youngsters themselves?

Also letting them go clears the way for the next batch coming through, Barkley, Lundstram, Green, Hope et al..... Letting them go probably released wages to keep valuable first teamers also.

Chill out — these guys are not world beaters!

They won't be playing for us so there will be no way for other teams to view their "talents" and all the time they are not being viewed they would still be getting paid by Everton... all the wages saved for the years of nothing may add up to the same figure that we "may" have gotten for them.

Moyes cannot afford to blood youngsters (as they need to be bled) into the EPL, we have to have experienced players playing above their ability from day one, any fall off by any player results in a bad day at the office. In short we haven't got the luxury of time nor of the ability to carry players until they come good. Its a result of a threadbare squad and the pressure to stay in the top six, something has to give and its the kids..
Sad but true.

So you want to keep players who are not good enough for us? If that's the case, let's not buy anyone who is good and just keep the deadwood we have. Behave yourself!

And Rahman...we sold Beckford for 2.5million... he has since scored 12 goals in the Championship in 18months, and is 29. I don't want to call the use of him as an example dumb...but 1) he wasnt young 2) he hasn't performed well since leaving us 3) we made a great profit.

I think there is a strange desire on toffeeweb to jump on the club after players have any kind of half successful career which we have let go. If these players come good in the Premier League then we have a problem...when they come good in league 1/2, we were correct in letting them go.

And Kev, the reason many of those ended up where they did, was because they were not costing money. Lower division teams are not going give us 5million for 6/7 players... and with respect to Jutkiewtiz, we sold him. Just like we sold Vaughan.
Now the club is limited...we can't keep a squad of 40 players in the club, with their wages, just in case we are able to get a little bit of cash for them in the long run. It would be damaging for them, for us, and it might cost us money in the long run.

Sometimes youth players come good. Arsenal let a few Premier League guys go...as have United, whereas at the moment, Ruddy looks the best guy we've let go, and he, as a goalie is a different scenario, and is vastly overrated by people on here. We made 12million in the summer on Rodwell, who has played a forward pass in 3 years, and spent around 15% of that money on Oviedo, who is one year older. We have the likes of Anichebe, Barkley, Velios or Oviedo who are either in the team picture, or hopefully in it within in the next year or so. Players like Jose Baxter had their chance...and didn't take it, that is why they are playing where they are. Akpan has signed for a struggling Premier League team, and I doubt he will get a start all season.

Is it just the case that it's impossible to judge a 17-year-old and if he looks halfway decent we pay him a smallish salary for a couple of years in the hope that he will prove good enough?

Also, I know that reserve team football is not what it was, but surely there are scouts looking at our games – er, if they can gain access to Fortress Finch Farm – who are considering buying one of our players? Admittedly, it wouldn't be for big money, but it all adds up.

I just don't get it. Am I missing something here?

Yeah, why on earth did we let him go?

I remember watching Beckford on the opening day of last season at home to QPR, couldn't trap a bag of cement. It was actually infuriating how any times he broke attacks down and actually put us in trouble with the quality (or lack of) of his touches. Some were coming back over the halfway line, physically rebounding for yards off his foot.

It was no surprise to me that Moyes shipped him out. As I said, mixed feelings because some of his finishing was unerring. The fact he didn't cack himself infront of goal at Anfield was good to see as was his top quality goal against Bolton. He definitely had some raw materials but not the overall package, and that's why he is where he is now.

Players can look pretty decent at 16/17 and you think that if they can keep their strengths and develop their weaknesses they could make it so you give them a contract. Unfortunately, this doesn't always happen and then you let them go.

Someone like Rodwell is a good example, although obviously better than most. When I saw him at 16, I thought "Wow, when he fills out and adds a more attacking side to his game as he gets used to playing in midfield, he'll be a cracking player." Unfortunately he never really did either and was probably only as good at 21 as he had been 4 years earlier. I think that's why Moyes is saying about Barkley that not everybody develops at the same pace.

I'll tell you now that I would have given my eye teeth to be a professional footballer in any league, my right bollock to be good enough for a Premier League side team and both my bollocks to play for Everton. Every manager has let players go and I bet every one of them hopes that the lad that has gone can prove them wrong.

(If I were being cynical I would also add that it would not have made a difference had they stayed anyway. The current 'kids' don't even get a look in against a league 2 side when leading by 3 goals! The players you mentioned above won't have seen any game time with us anyway - had they stayed.)

Good laugh thinking about some of the might have beens...

For me I doubt he will set the world on fire.

A prime example was Monday night. I'm all for taking the FA Cup seriously but what was going to be gained by risking Baines, etc etc, when Vellios, Barkley and Duffy were on the bench for 90 mins? If Moyes doesn't trust them to play against a League Two team then when will he, I felt for them three Monday night having to see Hitzlsperger and Naismith come on ahead of them.

I hope he does okay with Reading, but really - so what!

As for Baxter... absolutely shite; he was never going to make it and has found his level in League One. I just wish he'd let that cabbage Marvin Gueye go now... if we could get half a decent fee for him, even better!

Beckford seems to be that good that Leicester loaned him to Huddersfield; Vaughan is at Barnsley trying to recover from injury but was always a headless chicken.

Ruddy would have done well but Howard was going to be hard to oust at the time; I wonder if he would be tempted back.

The one I always thought we didn't give a chance to was Jutkiewicz which is where I agree with remarks about the likes of Joao Silva and Velios not being given a go. They must all e better than Barlow!

Vaughan also was add-ons to take it up to £3m, again don't build that into budgets.

You're right with Ruddy, and whilst he's been steady for us, there have been times in Howard's EFC career where he deserved to have a spell on the sidelines.

With Jutkiewiexz, I could be wrong, but I'm sure we had him out on loan a couple of times, and I think he had a spell north of the border, and someone on here reckoned he was so unfit it was almost comical. He's done alright since at a lower level, but I think the days of a "Mick Quinn" at the top flight are probably behind us. Thankfully.

Most of hose lads mentioned will have been category c or b at the most, but could go on and have a successful career in the lower leagues, not many will make the A grade. Can you imagine how difficult his is to every year whilst Manging the budget we have for their salaries and ensuring playing time in the correct positions to make sure they develop? Any academy has to prioritise and but their resources into those players at labels A or B , but keep a big enough reserve squad to field a team for them to play in.

Incidentally, club scouts can now attend academy games as long as 1 weeks notice is given and any approaches are made through the correct channels, ie the clubs directly. This is because players sign contracts at 9 years of age and there is a sliding scale of development fees if they are " bought " by another club, depending on length of time at the parent club and age.

We have a target to bring through at least one, ideally 2 players to have a first team debut every year, and we expect to have the 2 or 3 best players in the city at each age group ( ie those most likely to be grades A or B).

So it's a very complicated and long term process based on the professionalism and judgement of the Academy staff, and you have to admit we have done very well over the years bringing players through, even if they don't play longer term in many cases.