From My Seat: Newcastle (H)

Great recap to a great match! Bring on Man City!

Thanks as always Ken. Nice to see you give a nod to McCarthy. I think him and Barry are the perfect blend of youth and experience in the middle.

We have great link-ups all over the park now, and the prospect of watching the Barkley Lukaku Mirallas combination blossom over the coming months is truely mouth-watering.

With Lukaku the beast up and running for us now, we should fear nobody. Exciting times ahead!

Great report Ken, great game and although the final few minutes were alot stressful than they should have been we have to give Newcastle credit for not giving up. Lukaku, Barkley, Mirallas are looking good up front. Surprised with the fitness levels as only Coleman seemed to have anything left in the tank at the final whistle... Good to see Osman back and I think RM would have preferred to have brought Deulofeu in for him but Mirallas looked like he was struggling with a small knock. Some have mentioned on another thread and I agree that Jags's form is worrying. Hopefully it's a minor dip and he's back to 100% soon.

Hopefully all fit for next week and Gibson can come in for Barry.

A game of contrasts. And one contrast for me (again) last night was with Del Boy. Exciting going forward. But laughable in tracking back. There was one incident when he did the right thing and tracked back with their LB, providing cover for Coleman's flank (Coleman covering his own man). The action moves more infield and what does Delboy do? Just stopped, let his man advance further and turned to watch what was happening infield! Absolutely staggering.

For those who say start him, I'd say the lad has a lot, a lot, to learn still. It's when you see that deplorable covering that you really do appreciate the amount of work the guys put in to track back.

I agree Brent I think Delboy's best position is behind the striker like Barkley or even upfront as I'd like to see him making these runs at the heart of defense. RM realizes his priority now is to bring in a few wingers who can fill this role. It will be interesting to see who he uses in a 3-5-2 with Coleman and Baines as wing backs.

What a breath of fresh air this Everton team is to watch.
Ok the second half was far more nervous than it should have been, agree Newcastle do deserve some of the credit, looked like they had a true bollocking at half time.
I was just pleased to get the three points, going into the game I knew that they couldnt defend as was seen during the first half but we cannot deny that they have got some serious talented attacking players and the introduction of Cabaye helped them considerably as Ben Arfa was finally let out of Seamus Colemans pocket at half time.

Our overall play was fantastic, pass, move, pace, power all the things I have wanted to see from an Everton side for many years.
We must remember that we are a work in progress not only a new manager and new playing style but we also are bringing through many young players such as Barkley, Deulofue, Lukaku(is still only 20 believe it or not)
This Everton team has so much promise in it and I am very excited by the combination of quality experience and upcoming youth.

The start has probably been better than I had hoped for, I thought it may have taken a little longer to look as good as we have done in some games but its certainly full of promise.

So even if as expected we do get beaten at City on Saturday we can hopefully take at least four points from the next two at home to Hull and away to Villa, maybe even six points which would be fantastic.

It is eye opening that Everton F.C hasnt ceased to exist with the departure of David Moyes as many fans would have had us believe.

While the first half must rank as one of the most outstanding team performances for many a year both individually and collectively and while Lukaku and Barkley rightly deserved many of the plaudits I do have to say that Coleman's display at full back was spectacular. In the early minutes of the first half he won three or four encounters with Ben Arfa that were momentous. Whether the latter was 100% or not iI cannot say but Coleman's speed of recovery and clean tackling were a joy to watch and helped neutralise the threat of a very gifted footballer. His attacking prowess, always a feature, seems to be blossoming even further and if he continues to progress to this degree he may well be another who Everton will have to tie to very secure contractual arrangements with very hefty buy-out clauses. A truly exceptional performance in my humble opinion.

Yes, KB, a good summary. What happened in the second half was sloppy and careless. Couldn't believe this was our famous defence at work. One or two players had stopped their customary anticipation and good movement, where was the early closing down? It only takes a slight relaxation to do the damage at this level.

When you looked at the bench for our subs, who was there to really keep up the first half standard? Deulofeu looked like he needs more team attitude, a bit selfish; keen to go forward but not come back.

Two good performances were from our Ossie and McCarthy; who Monday night did a lot to change his "Wigan waste of time" reputation with many Toffees. He looked promising.

So City next. We need to do some reflection first.

All the top teams can rotate players without too much loss of ability or impetus. When our squad are fully fit we have a very good bench available but we missed Pienaar and Gibson to be available to swap out Barry and Osman who both flagged near the end. Kone should be brought on as Lukaku flags as he is a handful too. I'm afraid that Jelli badly needs a partner up front if played as he is not physically strong enough to be a lone frontman.

On the positive side, the first half was absolutely top class and would cause lots of problems for any other teams defence. Creativity was in evidence all over the pitch but we did need good midfielders on the bench to be able to rotate with Osman and Barry towards the end. It showed the reasons why the top clubs have bigger squads than we do, but we have unearthed some real diamonds in Barkley, Coleman and Stones. I agree that Del boy lacks defensive nous and should be coached in that particular department. If he added this asset to his game the lad will become world class.

To end I must mention Distin who must be as good a defender as anyone in the division.... France must have fantastic centre backs. He has great pace, heading ability and never gets booked!!

Jim, nobody was saying the Everton ship was going to sink over night. Moyes has set up a very good solid team at Everton. Last season we played very well at times creating lots of chances but just didn’t have the quality up front to convert them. This season we have a striker who is turning those draws of the past into wins. Fair play to Martinez for bringing him in but I think it has as much to do with Mirallas the Moyes signing as it does Martinez for convincing him to sign on International duty.

IMO we are in a false position as the likes of Lukaku and Barry are likely to only be short term fixes and next season, if they are not replaced adequately, I believe we will see Martinez fall from grace and we will see a slow Everton decline. It's very unlikely we will find a striker as good as Lukaku next season and those chances will be missed once again by the likes of Jelavic and Kone or whoever else we bring in on the cheap.

The last few wins have all been very close and could easily have gone another way. It's still early days... I’m not so sure it can last – especially if we suffer a couple of injuries to a couple of key players.

Surprised the Skunks only filled the bottom tier even if a Monday night and on Sky! Hopefully now we're up there the home seats will fill up, including restricted sight lines! Coybs!

My God Ian what a depressing attitude you have.

If the loaned players stay all season and do well then we have done well too. As most managers say, the next match is all that should be looked at and we have a far better squad than the last one to get 4th spot by playing awful football and actually qualifying with a negative goal difference. This squad includes a decent bench with all the players fit and no longer looks like a crèche ! We no longer have has beens taking up bench room and stopping the youngsters having a chance.

Barkley would probably be out on loan instead of being an integral part of our first team squad.

I see lots of positives in this squad and they are playing football well worth the entrance fee to watch.

Oh my word Ian, not another one struggling to let go of the dour one.

"Nobody was saying the Everton ship was going to sink over night". Our ship has just installed some turbo boosters and is sailing off into the distance mate.

"We are in a false position". So I assume you would be more comfortable with us sitting in a more realistic position of say 10th? Happy to continue to take knives to gun fights? Jesus wept what a stupid comment!

It's not just the loan signings which are the reason we've become a much better looking side. Ross Barkley has been integral to everything that has been good about us so far this season.

And you only have to look at a certain lad named Zaha getting nowhere near the pitch while the OAP Giggs is still getting game time to realise that your hero will always favour the safety first old heads to those that are young dynamic and hugely talented.

"I’m not so sure it can last – especially if we suffer a couple of injuries to a couple of key players". We seem to have coped thus far with the loss of Pienaar and Gibson. There's a couple of key players for you.

I hate to have to bring up the dour one again, I wish we could all move on. But all the time that people like you keep bringing him up as if he is still the messiah, completely ignoring the fact that he shit on us and then insulted us, then I'm sorry, I simply can't bite my tongue.

It was close last night Ian only in the scoreline,
we had as many, prob. more good chances in the 2nd half than they had.

There is some truth in a few of your points, but I don't think your an optimist are you?

Early days yet I agree, but were going to get even better as the season progresses,
there's going to be disappointments, wouldn't be football otherwise, lets just enjoy it and who knows what may happen!

Ken, I thought Coleman was outstanding from start to finsh, regrettably your report fails to acknowledge the extent of his contribution and but for Lukaku's brace he would have undoubtedly earned the MotM award however that said, football is all about opinions.

Ian Tunstead (891)
There is a lot of truth in what you say. The odds are ultimately stacked against us because we do not have the finanical clout. But we all know that. All we can hope for is an on the pitch miracle where we have a team that wins a lot - and then money will start to flow.

Right now we have a team that looks like it can win games and does so in a way that suggests it will keep on doing so - i.e. creating a lot of chances. Honetly what more can we reasonably ask for!

Lukaku may well be gone next season - but I see no reason to think Barry will leave. And if Lukaku goes we will need to find a replacement - but we can worry about it then. If the miracle occurs and we are in the Champions League then things will start to look radically different for us.

I think the facts speak for themselves really.
Under Moyes Barkley would not have started this season the way he has, the lad has been left to do what he was meant to do and has flourished as an attacking offensive midfielder.
Moyes would either have loaned him out again or had him playing on the left or in a defensive midfield role which is not suited to Barkley certainly not at this early stage in his career anyway.

We accept Moyes did bring alot of stability here but over such a long period of time you could argue that would come natural, had it been endless relegation battles then I wouldnt have thought he would have lasted 11 years (although to be fair more trigger happy chairmen could well have fired him in the summer of 2004 and the winter of 2005 after an atrocious run of results I remember)

We are now in a new era, the Moyes era had become stale, even though we had performed admirably at times last season we all began to grow bored with the same type of team selection, the same football style and the knowing that every visit to the 'Top four' would be the same defensive attitude.

I am now looking forward to a positive new era at Everton with a team that so far looks comfortable with the changes.
We have young players who will hopefully only get better and for me the it was a change when it was most needed.

Lets hope for more good times ahead.

I really appreciated all that Moyes brought to us and I often called him Mother Hubbard as he was acting without financial resourses. His record at Goodison is fantastic when he was consistently stopped from competing in the transfer market for top players. I also commented that whenever it came to battling with other clubs for a new signing we dropped out of the running. We only signed lesser players and he always managed to get the best out of them. We played dour spoiling football which concentrated on stopping the so called top opponents from playing and relying on breakaways or set pieces.

For the first time in years we have a squad which keeps the ball far longer than any of our previous squads since the premiership was formed. I reckon Martinez plays without fear as he has never before been expected to do anything other than keep Wigan in the league. He was not sacked and would have been kept by Whelan for as long as he wanted the job. Davey Moyes was not sacked either and he could have stayed at Goodison as long as he wanted too but he wanted to see how he could handle a top club with lots of money to spend. So far he is still adjusting from being a Mother Hubbard to a Alan Sugar !!

I relish the new blood at Goodison which includes Martinez, I love his optimism and attitude to football. Im sure the players like him as a person and that go's a long way to gaining success. His loans have been very succinct and inspired, I cannot say the same of the loans during earlier days. I was genuinely excited at the loan of Lukaku who so far has lived up to expectation. I also reckon that Kone will be a great addition which should motivate Jelavic to regain his confidence.

All in all, I have not been this optimistic about the entertainment value of our Everton team. We have a squad of players who can compete with the best in the division and may I say Europe too should we gain entry. If Martinez is able to secure more meaningful signings during January I really will begin to think that our once great sleeping giant is waking up !!

Trevor, you have said, really, what I was about to post.
No, we arent there yet, but Martinez gets my vote and my support.
I believe that the way forward for the EPL is to play in a very similar way to the Latin teams.
We must keep the ball as much as possible, and pass it as accurately as possible.
For me, that style of football is far more exciting and gratifying, especially when the English add speed to their attacks.
I remember Keegans first spell at Newcastle, and I thought yes, thats the way football should be played in this country !
Fast, accurate, attractive, attacking football, and I'm sure Roberto wants exactly that. So what if you give a few goals away in the process, isn't that what football should be about?
I really don't care if we concede a few, as long as we score more than "they" do.
If you find yourself pushing a trolley around Sainsburys on a Saturday afternoon, then your team must be playing poorly, or Tony Pulis has arrived at a club near you.
I hoped (but nevertheless, didnt expect), that we would hit more than 3 in the second half on Monday, but, as others have said, Newcastle are not exactly duffers. Cabaye did very well for them, and his goal was a cracker.
I was disappointed we gave away the second, and we looked clumsy, but the scoreline flattered them!
Perhaps we need to be looking at our fitness training, as I was rather surprised that a number of our players were blowing through their arses when there was still a good half hour or so to go.
Deloufou looked terrific going forward, but I think Roberto is handling him properly at the moment. I wouldnt give him a starting berth just yet, but maybe in the FA Cup, assuming its against a non Premier League team.
We are going really well, and I am absolutely delighted. Man City will be playing their strongest team tonight, so it might mean Pellegrini will rest 1 or 2 on Saturday.
Can you see the newspapers a season or 2 from now? "Martinez undecided whether to play Barclay against Barca in Champions League opener". (Barclay picked up a knock after scoring winner in Merseyside derby).
COYB

Trevor

I agree with all your comments, and while I am very disappointed with Moyes since his move to Man Utd I don't think we should write off all the good things he did for this club .There is no doubt that we are playing a more expansive game under Martinez and his signings have given us fresh impetus.

anyone else note that Cabaye seemed to be on best terms with all our players, he actually shook hands with our lads as they came off and hardly celebrated his goal!!

is he angling for a jan transfer? we could do worse his passing was exemplary and his goal sublime, he also made them tick and got the ball forward quickly. he could replace an aging Osman no worries, perhaps they would like to swap him for one of our spare strikers??

Steve @087 I noticed that as well, Jelavic + 10 million (Total package worth 8 million...) would be worth a bid as he really changed their play in the second half

I’m sorry but its not a matter of fact that Barkley wouldn’t have played for Everton this season. It can not be proven. So let's not criticise what we can't prove, we don’t know all the facts about Zaha at Man Utd and so the two cannot be compared.

Moyes has always talked about Barkley's potential and what a good player he was going to develop into so I think that would suggest Moyes would be keen to get him in the team sooner rather than later. Barkley wasn’t ready last season. He has clearly worked hard in pre-season and has gained in confidence with experience. He looks bigger stronger and faster. Is that because of Martinez or was it just his natural growth as he develops from a boy into a man? This is what tends to happen with young players with a lot of potential, just look at Bale’s progress over the last couple of years .

When I talk about a couple of injuries to a couple of key players, I mean match winning players like Lukaku or Barkley or Baines. With a couple of those players missing, I think our results would be much like our first 3 or 4 games of the season.

The real Martinez signings which I will judge him on are Robles, Alcaraz, Kone and McCarthy. Have any of them improved the first team? I would argue that only McCarthy has but I think for the amount spent on him and considering we sold a better Fellaini who played in the same position, it’s the least we should expect.

We got very lucky signing Lukaku, he has been the difference this season, make no mistake, not any of his other signings or style of play or tactics. Yes, Martinez should be given credit for going after him but so did a lot of other managers including Sam Allardyce. It was more down to Mirallas and the fact that the team David Moyes built was a more attractive proposition.

Steve "anyone else note that Cabaye seemed to be on best terms with all our players, he actually shook hands with our lads as they came off and hardly celebrated his goal!!".

Certainly did and wondered what that was all about. I thought, maybe he's trying to retrieve things after that spat with Cahill and the ball boy. But I think you might have spotted something about a possible wish to move to us! Thought he was an arse in the ball boy situation and for other thongs (thongs? things). But he'd be a great asset for us.

Basically if Mirallas didn't convince Lukaku to join Everton, he probably would have gone to West Brom or even West Ham. I doubt we would have got 6 points from the last 2 games without him.

what a team we wold have with Jelly out and Cabaye in... come on BK don't syphon the extra cash off yet !!!

I’m sorry Ian but its not a matter of fact that we would have got 6 points from the last two games without Lukaku, It can not be proven. So let's not criticise what we can't prove.

You don't know for a fact Mirallas convinced him to join Everton and who cares, what is your point? I don't see why you are trying to criticize Martinez.
We have got a very good deal and so have Chelsea as he gets a full season of first team experience and he is going to go back hungry.
I seriously doubt we will be able to keep him as the lad is going to be a world beater but lets enjoy him while we can and it's up to Martinez to spend the season on finding a suitable replacement next season in a similar mould hopefully.

I must be on my own but I thought the first 3 games we played really well, we were a whisker away from winning all 3, and of course things could have easily gone the other way. thing is this season is one of the most competitive for a long time, every team more or less improved, some dramatically, there are a lot of good sides and we do not have a devine right to beat anyone. Too many fans on here are forgetting, Man utd, City, Liverpool at home, Arsenal have all had dodgy results and have had games where we haven't played well. Spurs have had last minute goals and penalties to get there season on track, we more than anyone should be granted a little leeway with a new style of play and manager but we are unbeaten, playing some fantastic stuff and people are critiquing everything to the finest detail this early on. It's bizarre

People having a go at Del-Boy for not tracking back, no wonder English football is miles behind the rest of the world.

Can you imagine Barcelona telling Messi, "Sorry, Leo, can't play you today; your work rate is crap."

Let the boy do what he is good at...

Just for you, Lee:

http://www.espn.co.uk/football/sport/story/235149.html

I'm obviously talking shite as usual. I'm not trying to criticise Martinez, I'm an Everton fan and want him to do well but I am just giving my observations and opinions.

I agree, we played really well for the first 3 games and were a whisker away from winning; it was the same story last season under a Moyes, but we didn't have a top quality goal scorer like we do in Lukaku. So answer me this: Are we winning because of great tactics from Martinez or because of Lukaku?

Ian, I reckon tactics have been right and to see Del Boy brought on instead of a defender was a tactic many fans have been asking for.
The fact that we have two new strikers and Del boy in the last window shows intent and a semblance of ambition that has been lacking.

As I have said before, Moyes did a wonderful job during his time with us and he left a small squad with a strong defence. Its no coincidence that our defenders have won most of the awards given by the club over the past years. Now we have three international defenders and Distin who should have been. Our midfield has been strengthened by the acquisition of Barry and McCarthy. Im sure that Alcaraz will be a good addition when he is fully fit. Up front we have lost big Vic but gained Lukaku, Kone and Del Boy.

We now have a squad that can play football but also use the long ball too because we have a top striker who can score and hold the ball upfront. I reckon Kone will come good too when needed. I feel a bit sorry for Jelavic as his effort is 100% but he cannot play upfront alone.

Fair enough Trevor, but I don't think the introduction of Del-Boy affected the result much; if anything, I thought it was a negative effect.

I thought they scored after he came on. I still believe, had we had Lukaku last season to finish all the chances we created, we would have finished a couple of places higher up the table.