We just need to keep picking up points without the pressure. Believe me, Liverpool over the next few months will not keep up there current level of performance and have been very lucky with no injuries to the likes of Suarez and Gerrard. The question is, can we be in a position to pounce on any slip ups?

Naismith been quite poor really today, would like to see Traore given a run in the second half and Deulofue for Pienaar who has also been a little wasteful at times.

I just hope this wont be another game where our lack of cutting edge will come back to haunt us in the second half, we have seen that happen many a time with Everton over the years.

Barkley for Pienaar?? That has to be a fitness thing doesnt it?

This Spurs team is average to say the least and we have gifted them a goal when it never looked likely, just as at West Brom.

If you cannot score goals then you DON'T WIN GAMES!!!

Our urgency after they scored was pathetic - unforgivable!

Well, it looks like all our hopes now lie with the FA Cup. Fuck the Europa Cup next season, its a waste of time and resources.

Blatant penalty... Clattenburg strikes again.

Odd game really - perfect away performance from Spurs.... at home. Purely came down to strikers end of the day. Teams around us have them, we (currently) don't. I'm sure there will be angst and outrage on here but the performance was actually really good – we just couldn't force it today.

Hate to say it but the race for 4th is over full stop now. Spurs are nowhere near good enough to challenge the shite.

This game could be the watershed of our season. I see it as an an opportunity thrown away. When will we rid ourselves of the Moyes mistakes and concentrate on the wonderful talent Roberto has brought us? Wednesday night is the opportunity to show it.

Meanwhile, 3 points lost due to giving misplaced loyalty to mediocrity. Roberto has to get more ruthless from now on.

Hate losing to teams we are better than.

Barca may play without strikers sometime and it may work in the Spanish league but not here. He had his opportunity to get a fit striker in and he failed. He has failed us on that point.

Gutted at the result, but still saw some positive signs in defeat. Baines is slowly getting back to some type of form. Seamus looked solid and with match fitness will get better. McGeady showed one or two sharp glimpses of skill and pace. First half performance was good. We need to put two good halves in one game and need to play with a proper Centre Forward on the pitch at all times and I can see getting back on a winning run.

COYB.

Overall, it wasn't a bad performance. Put in context, Spurs spent £100 million this season, Everton matched them all bar a stupid free kick.

I wait all week, really looking forward to the game... and that!

Spurs are rubbish, absolutely shocking! We need a STRIKER - arghh.

Sod it, I'm off to Uni.

Race for 4th over? Again too hasty. 13 games left, top 5 already all played away from home, two rubbish teams at Goodison in the next 3 games and both the RS and Spurs capable of slipping up to the likes of Villa and WBA...

All factors in our favour. It's a tough ask but FFS show a little faith.

So let's play Naismith, Osman and Pienaar and leave Deloufeu and Traore on the bench? Great decision that, Roberto, and to finish it all off, the one time when a pacey player isn't a threat, is when you're losing 1-0 when the opposition just sits back in numbers and it's then he brings Delofeou on.

Add this to the Villa game which Roberto nearly lost us by leaving our only fit striker (Naismith) on the bench till the 70th minute and you can see a trend starting. Seriously, this friggin game we watch isn't rocket science, yet we have to sit here watching incredibly well paid guys continuously make the same mistakes over and over again.

If all this isn't bad enough, I've sat here listening to the commentary, claiming that Ozzie had played outstanding! What game were they watching? He's missed 4 chances within the first 10 minute's and then spent the rest of the game giving the ball away, yeah great game! And don't get me started on McGeady...

After Osman missing chances, it was always going to end in our mistake... never turn your back! Is it me but did we lack structure?

I am sick and tired of having 70% of possession. Goals win games and Spurs proved that.

Let's finish 8th or 9th in the league please god, no Europa League. It will kill us next season, we don't have the squad.

Spurs have spent nearly £100 million, average at best!

We have the FA Cup to focus on!

Best Wishes All!

Also imo Martinez's substitutions were poor. He won us the game against Villa but today I think the subs contributed to the loss.

There was no real reason to make the Barkley change, I thought Pienaar was doing well enough and working hard. But then to bring two wingers on and not bring Traore on was pretty baffling.

Mirallas can't hack it upfront, he was shite against Villa (apart from his free kick!) and he was shite today. Traore would have given us someone to aim at from free kicks etc and hold the ball up but we never looked like scoring.

4th place was gone after the derby result imo but we MUST beat Palace on Wednesday to have any hope of 5th now.

Couldn’t disagree more. There’s 39 points to play for yet! Thank God the Alamo wasn’t defended by TW!

Also Peter Warren TYVM for pointing out the lack of inswingers. It’s driving me crazy!

Yes, we switched off for the free kick they scored from. But we did not deserve to lose the match and in my opinion had a big big shout for a penalty.

I thought our heads dropped a little when they scored, probably because Spurs never looked like scoring and that hurts most.

Very disappointed being beaten today, but once a blue...

Crucial we win our next match against Palace.
COYB.

Calm down and look at things in perspective. Pathetic losers? What the fuck are you on?!!! 4 losses so far, not the end of the world. I think you need to pull your head out of your rectum and get a grip.

The summer transfer window is going to be crucial. Let's continue the rebuilding and ship out Hibbert, Osman, Naismith and Pienaar. Too many of our side were playing the game at walking pace – you cannot do that.

You don't score points on the board for the number of perfect executions of triangular play on the left – get the fucking ball in. Lukaku will probably die of old age before he sees his next through-ball or whipped-in cross.

Most of the above comments on the button especially about the importance of getting 4th this season. This was our best chance when we all know that the RS, Man Utd and Spurs will spend serious money, come back stronger next season while we operate in the loan market.

Why do we persist with Ossie who missed enough sitters today to lose two games? I like him, but his mess up against Sunderland started the rot and we've never recovered from dropping those points.

Agree about Martinez's mistakes today – too late with his changes – and why have the beanpole on the bench and never try him??? What's he there for... changing the light bulbs?
Sorry, seriously disappointed with season fading away after so much hope....

Wenger turned Arsenal from a title winning strong quick direct machine into an impotent aesthetic product. Man Utd and Chelsea have never played this way. Bayern Munich don’t . The modern game has evolved since Guardiola’s Barca to pace power and creativity. Three things completely lacking in our squad.

We need Traore fit for midweek or else it will be tippy tappy and no shots on goal again!

A draw would have been disappointing but a defeat is hard to take. You cannot keep missing chances when you are on top and dominating the game – you always tend to pay a high price when you fail to take those chances.

It's the same old story every season, regardless of personnel, manager, line-up tactics etc – we just can't turn the chances we make into goals. Mind you, it would help if the board got their finger out and helped the manager. Time for Roberto to try out a few youngsters and see if we have anything in the reserves.

Given that Champions League seems to be out of reach this season, Roberto should start to shape the team that will start next season. Forget the older players such as Ossie and the likes and blood a few kids, we might lose a few points in the process but 7th or 10th doesn't make a great deal of difference.

A bit of shooting practice wouldn't go amiss either, but that old saying that you watch Everton for the football and the other lot for goals is as true today as it has ever been – unfortunately.

I thought we faded a little in the 2nd, while they found some form. But we were beaten by a sucker punch, as simple as that, schoolboy error by the defenders, not good. We played well overall but lacked the killer punch from a midfielder or a striker.

This was always going to be a tough game, we out-played them for most of the match, which surprised me.

Champions League has probably gone now, but you never know... the thing is, if we did qualify, are we in a position to do the competition justice? I don't think we are yet.

There's always next year!

Today, we were robbed by officials who allowed an offside goal and denied us a penalty. There are 13 games to go and the FA Cup, and we are playing good football. The first Spurs shot on target was a mishit that went in while we had enough chances, we just need Traore or Lukaku on the pitch.

To play both North London sides off the park on their own patch bodes well for the future. What I couldn't understand was why Naismith played so much out wide, and when Barkley came on, he was in the left back slot so often.

In my opinion, our failure to capitalise when totally on top in a game is due to the fact that our attacking play of late grinds down to a snail's pace as soon as we get in sight of the opposition box. The amount of times players, particularly Osman and Pienaar, needlessly turn back on themselves and then lose the ball after trying to thread it through to someone on the edge of a packed penalty area is becoming a particular pet hate of mine.

I actually think Naismith made a real nuisance of himself in the first half and made some decent runs into space. The problem was he was never found or simply ignored. The most glaring example being when Mirallas made the baffling decision to try and go himself when a simple pass to the side would have seen the real shit shady through one-on-one with the keeper.

Howard did nothing wrong? Apart from getting beaten at the near post again? What about his ridiculous display in the derby?

The same things that were unacceptable under Moyes are now suddenly untouchable and you get censored for saying then. How many times do we need to do the same thing over and over again? Our defense does not keep many clean sheets, we do not score enough set-piece goals. Our goal conceded to shot ratio is probably the highest in the league yet again. But hey let’s not drop Howard or Baines or Jagielka, can’t be their fault!

Some people are doing exactly what they accused others if, accepting mediocrity and 7th . Is a positive 7th different from a dour one then? 7th is 7th, and if anything Martinez is shielding the board more than Moyes did.

Oh and Jim I’ll write for as long as I want whenever I want. The joys of the internet .

I dismissed this because what he did with Wigan was a completely different ball game to Everton.

But sadly Roberto seems to be true to his form and has had a good first half of the season and sadly looks to be having a disappointing second half.

Don't speak to me about Naismith... and am I missing something about McCarthy other people seem to see (or do they)? For a player we paid a great deal of money for, it's rather interesting that his name doesn't appear in the above article, other than on the team sheet, or in the fan's comments.

Everyone needs to get a grip. Today was frustrating, and removing Pienaar fucked the team up. The subs were wrong, and did not help the team. But we went to Spurs, who are in the race for top four, not struggling at the bottom, and were the better team for large periods.

It was a very frustrating outcome, and top four is going to be extremely tough now, but it's hardly the end of things is it? We are still there, and still in the FA Cup, and whilst today's result was hard to take, I'm not going to start writing bullshit about the team and the manager after an undeserved defeat away to Spurs.

Just remember, when criticising Moyes or Martinez, how little money we've had over the last 15 years. The only justifiable criticism, imo, is that levied at the board. (That said, I believe we will have a good £15-20mil to spend in the summer, probably on the top striker we need.)

He was asleep for the free kick having been batted off like a fly in the run up to it, he is too weak for a central midfielder.

His passing was shite in the final third when it mattered, he tires massively, and I'm just sick of the praise he gets, when for me he is ready for the bin, has been for years, and it will be for the best when it happens. It wasn't his fault we lost today, but I can't see what people see in him.

Always one pass too many and typically left to right across the back four, we are so predictable, the only manager to not suus us out in the whole of the premierships is Martinez!!!!

Great having all these wingers playing but who are they crossing too? And next it’s Palace, another team desperate for points!!!!!!

As a previous poster said, our squad is just too small. This means that with all the injuries we have, and we have been very unlucky in that department, players are returning to the game not fully fit. This was obvious at the recent derby.

I never thought we would get the top 4 spot even with a win today. It would have left us 2 points behind Liverpool and I can not see them dropping points much in the rest of the season. Liverpool have played very well, have two excellent strikers who have not been injured and we have not.

I note on the BBC Sport today that the Express is saying that Rodwell did not come because Barry did not want to sign a contract as he wanted to keep his options open for the summer. Who knows the truth?

We have to keep faith and hope for a better display against Crystal Palace. That will not be a walkover as Pulis has them playing well...

Naismith puts a shift in but just lacks the required quality to worry Premier League defenders. And let's not forget that was one poor Spurs side that, apart from the goal, I can't recall them creating a chance... but they took the one out of nothing they did get.

I'm predicting more bad news on Wednesday because Palace have vastly improved under Pulis so that'll be a really tough game.

I understand the disappointment but the "4th is over" and "we played shit" comments are just off the mark.

We outplayed a good side today. We were punished by switching off for a second and the ref didn’t help matters IMO.

4th is not out of the realm of possibility yet. I can’t understand for the life of me how a 1 goal, unlucky defeat away against a good side where we were by far the better team for the majority of the game equates to the sky is falling, exit stage right reaction.

I think it's gone for us now...1 point from 9 in last 3 away games, with Chelsea next away.

Like I said, Oviedo played two balls in on the ground; two goals... a goal off his right foot as well.

Baines is always overhit, hits the first man or just checks backwards. But let’s not say anything because the media like him and he’s a big name. Three seasons ago, he was the best left back in the league by a mile. He hasn’t been at that level for the past year. Looks slow, weak and unfit most games with bad hesitant distribution; he used to have a better engine than Coleman.

Clattenburg was his usual annoying self. Letting Spurs take a quick free kick which led to the goal yet pulling us back later on when we took one and got in a good position.

I though we were unlucky today. Tottenham were nothing special considering their huge outlay on players last summer.

Yes, it's disappointing the way the wheels seem to be coming off but that's football and that's only our 4th league defeat of the season. We were better than Spurs today but the difference was they had a striker on the pitch who converted his only chance. We made a few chances but had no-one to convert them.

On that point, one question I do have is: If Traore wasn't fit enough to come on for 20 minutes, why was he on the bench? Or if he is not good enough to come on for 20 minutes, why have we bothered signing him for the rest of the season???

Anyway, onwards and upwards... and we will be back to winning ways this week against Palace.

In case you missed it, Spurs spent a good £100M in the transfer window. They've got a very good first team with loads of quality options on the bench and today's game was hugely close. We had more shots, more possession, and the only reason they won was because Jags switched off for a few seconds allowing Adebayor one-on-one with Coleman. I actually thought Osman did okay for most of the match, especially the first half.

If Barkley, McGeady and Deulofeu caused us to up our game when Osman, Naismith and Pienaar were withdrawn, then I could accept that Roberto made a mistake with his team selection, but actually all three subs did nothing of note. Deulofeu in particular gave the ball away in bad areas a lot and we looked unable to break down their massed ranks.

We worked hard for most of the match to win the ball back and played some decent stuff going forward. Disappointing to lose, but it's not the end of the world.

I've got a feeling the pepperami stick will start against Palace on Wednesday.

Ha — Fulham have just scored, I'm glad we're not Man Utd!

It's so hard to take after results at the weekend, but we didn't deserve to lose that game, that's for sure. (Man Utd 1 down as I type...)

Naismith's first touch was very good in that first half, but a striker up against two big centre-halves he ain't. We won't get 4th now, the FA Cup becomes all-important.

Doesn't just happen to Everton then.

'Free kick' taken quickly about 10 yards away from the correct spot
Stonewall Penalty (even the RS and Manc reds in the studio say so)
But why do we have 2 wingers on the pitch at the end and a 7 foot striker on the bench?
Barkley was a poor sub too.
Good news is that Fulham have just scored at OT but I have a horrible feeling that the RS will get past the Arseholes in the FA Cup and will be lying in wait for us - again!

In case you failed to notice, Oviedo is injured. Howard was beaten as a result of a very unfortunate passage of play. Should Coleman be shipped out for being brushed aside with his back to the ball?

You are standing on your soap box dressing opinions up as facts. Get a grip. Bad day at the office. Team expected by most to finish 7th fall into 6th closely behind 5th placed team due to a narrow one-nil away defeat. But yeah, sell one of the best left backs in the country and sack off one of the most consistent keepers in the league. After that, buy better players to replace them with the fuck all cash the club has...

And please don't try and swing this back to Moyes. I was one of his biggest fans. Now I support the current manager due to his achievements so far. In a transitional season, he has improved the overall quality of our game. Again I state, 4 losses in 26 games. hardly a fucking disaster.

John, don't know why, but I've got this funny feeling we won't see anything of Traore either against Palace.

What makes you think Martinez has anything to spend? Are you basing this on our previous dealings. Don’t make me fucking laugh... It wasn’t you was it who said Martinez has a war chest for the summer the other week?

When we do have a chance to be through on goal, too often the final ball is poor or we check back and work the ball round a bit more allowing the opposition to recover their position. With 92 minutes on the clock today, there was zero attempt to get the ball forwards and instead we were passing it square. That summed it up for me.

We had a new striker on the bench today and, as he was on the bench, I assume that he was fit enough to play some part... but we didn't use him. A strange decision in my view when we were a goal down.

Our 37 goals in 25 games simply isn't good enough for a top 4 finish when the team currently in that position have scored 26 more goals and seem able to score for fun. It pains me to say that their forward line will see them take 4th.

Naismith, who had looked okay centrally, was then pushed to the wing, where he's crap, Mirallas lost the space that Naismith was creating for him with his runs and was then neutralised and Barkley had little impact as he's not fit. This single substitution ruined our set up.

As for trying to blame Osman who was without question one of our best performers...... words fail me.

This is the second major tactical fuck up by our manager in three games. Is he rolling the dice too often? I think he could be.

But we clearly lost our shape and composure with the substitutions. Hate to say it but Ross hasn’t done much for a while. And Gerard and Aiden made little impact.

I guess there is something about not using a Plan B (other than using some subs). Roberto just seems averse to trying some high balls into the box – I would have liked to have seen Traore. Or is he not good enough for 20 minutes? At least we had lots of possession!

I like Roberto as a manager but maybe he has to hold his hand up after today (and after the derby game) – OFM would have been panned for that loss, so in fairness...?

Did we have a weak squad today? As above, I don’t think so.

Was the starting XI the wrong pick? I’m not sure (though some on the Forum were calling for Osman to get off almost from the start, so on that basis maybe Roberto’s choice from the start was skewiff).

Was it poor subs and / or too late? Well they didn’t seem to add anything.

Was it a lack of a Plan B? Part of me thinks so.

I’m not disappointed with where we are this season. It was said from the start that it would be a transition season and nobody expected 4th at the start of the season. Having said that, I thought Roberto had been praised for (even said?) how quickly the players he inherited adapted to his playing philosophy.

If we finish 5th / 6th it won’t have been a lost season. There’s still a long way to go this year. And we have good chances of progressing in the Cup.

We have to recognise that we do not have (and are unlikely to in the future) an owner/board with tons of money. We support the team, however frustrating it is at times.

I think all the rants on here are because we were so near and now it is all dropping off again.
Baines is a prime example. The number of posters who were so happy he had committed his long term future to the club and now he's crap like half the team. Get real.

Lesson hopefully learned today is to sub BEFORE the likes of Osman, Pienaar and Naismith run themselves into the ground. I don't disagree with any or all of those three starting today, under the circumstances (i.e. McGeady having played several games already while not fit, Deulofeu coming back, Traore untried, Barkley coming back from inure too), and we played well first half but I think at least Pienaar, then Osman then Naismith should have each come off after 50, 55 and 60 minutes unless we pulled ahead. But hindsight is a wonderful thing, well at least depending on the hind that is ....

At this point, I would take the FA Cup and sixth, but would prefer 4th and the cup; I'm not convinced the Europa is worth it without winning the cup. :-)

Their one shot on target in the 90 mins was scored by a striker; we huffed and puffed but never really looked like scoring; plenty of stuff around the box but not where it matters.

I hope to god one of the central strikers injured at the moment make a difference... but probably too late for 4th now.

Absolute shite about Baines. People need to get a fucking grip. We were the better side, we lacked a centre-forward. The decision to let Jelavic leave without cover is baffling and cost us today.

Surely 'He who hesitates, loses' is the correct grammar.

Pedant alert!!

Sean Roberts (932): 'If someone had told you at the start of the season we would be where we are now we would have all took it.'

I can assure you Sean, if somebody had offered me 6th place at the start of the season I would never have took it, neither would anybody with any sense of ambition. The only saving grace of the last two fruitless seasons was that we finished above the shite. This season, that also looks less and less likely so I am not sure what it is that we are suppose to be excited about?

He was doing okay up front; when he got moved out wide, he fell to bits.

After their goal, they played like a 1980s Italy, stifling any attempt to actually play football. Yep, they defended well. But, not in the style I would imagine Spurs supporters expect their team to play.

Yes, we lacked cutting edge up front, again. Naismith started well enough, but faded. Osman the same. Changes were the right ones, but they failed to give us the edge anyway. Largely due to a successful time-wasting strategy from the home team.

No need to go all crazy after this one, we’re not out of this race yet. This Spurs team will lose several games before the end of the season. As for Liverpool.... Well, let’s hope their form comes to an end rather sooner than later.

"Yes he could have had 4 within the first 20 minutes but he didn't, and this is why he is not good enough for Everton. Barkley would have taken one of them.

He was asleep for the free kick having been batted off like a fly in the run up to it, he is too weak for a central midfielder."

If Osman was as bad as you say he wouldn't have been in a position to have 4 attempts on goal and also hit a good shot from which Lloris made a very good save. When Barkley came on, he stunk the gaff out, contributing virtually nothing. I think Barkley will become a truly great player, but not until he stops believing his own publicity.

It was Barry who was asleep for the free kick, choosing to turn his back on the kicker instead of preventing a quick free-kick being taken.

But some of the tactics after that were pretty odd... Barkley stayed well back (and invisible) for the first ten minutes he was on, and later Jags was actually forward of Barry and McCarthy. We definitely never looked organized again, and we never produced another scoring chance.

The tactics were wrong as were the subs. As soon as Sherwood drew first and brought Townsend on the game was lost. Up to that point, the game was there for the taking and RM knows it by the body language in his post-match interview.

What makes it so hard to swallow is the fact that it's the RS who are looking a real outfit and will get Champions League football.

Does anyone actually believe we deserved to lose today?

I suggest him or Ossie start on the bench, and one make way for the other on 60 mins or when they tire. They're both integral to us, but become a liability after the hour mark!

Once Pienaar went off, presumably due to lack of fitness or a knock, we lost all our penetration down the left and Baines is clearly not playing quite as well as he has in the past. Three subs at once is a risky business and we lost all shape and allowed Spurs to keep control of the ball and the game.

Naismith was gash when he was moved to the left. He is NOT a winger and Martinez should know that by now. There was no-one to put their foot on the ball and hit a through pass...

The criticism on here is over the top. The bottom line isn't just the result, that's bollocks. The tactics were right, we dicked them with our starting eleven. It was the finishing which needed attention. If we play for the rest of the season like we did for much of the game, we are still in with a chance of a cup and a Champions League place.

It's getting to be a pattern now: teams are letting us play with the ball and have possession only to hit us on the break. The only thing I wish I could do is find that early bird and shove it up Kenwright's arse.

There were times in the second half when we lacked courage up front, and chose to dick about safely instead. I think I saw a tectonic plate overtake one of our attacks at one point.

Pienaar is, in my opinion, completely gone at the game.

I think that he took Pienaar off for the midweek game he is still not 100%. Everyone is still learning including the manager.

There was a good interview with Baines in The Guardian. He explained that every few weeks they are learning a new way of playing from the manager. He is teaching them to "think football" as opposed to just playing.

I think Barkley needs to either start or be left out; same with the other injury returns. It takes a while to warm up and it was too late today to make a real impact.

It's not RM's fault that both our centre-forwards are injured. I think the run-in should be good for us with our injured players coming back and the new ones bedding in. RM made a habit with Wigan of finishing strongly to escape relegation. I agree we have little chance of 4th unless Suarez gets injured (which he never does) but I think a good Cup run is on the cards. As for next season, that's down to Kenwright.

● What if Mirallas passed to Naismith?
● What if we signed a striker other than Traore?
● What if Clattenburg gave penalty?
● What if a flying saucer landed on the field and flattened Lloris just before one of Osman's shots...

I think the team did as well as they could given the players that were available and match fit. It was just very very unlucky.

The negative talk of "typical Everton" etc is crap. Last year a lot of RS fans were saying the same kind of things about Liverpool under Rodgers. A year on, with more time to implement his ideas, and they are much much better. Bad day at the office but overall we're on the right track.

Come on, Roberto... get real — this is how we should be approaching games.

Without trying to sound too blunt......you sir, are talking out of your arse

We don't get enough clean sheets?

● We are FOURTH, yes, 4th on clean sheets this season in the Premier League.

● We are SECOND, yes, 2nd on goals against (IE 2nd lowest).

What we lack, is through balls. We effectively play 2 defensive mids. Barkley, for all his promise, doesn't actually create much, he'd rather shoot than pass through. Same with Mirallas.

Pig sick because, even with a weakened team, we were better than them.

Personally I'd have tried Traore towards the end rather than bring on Deolefeu and McGeady. Put Mirallas out wide one side Dellboy on the other with Traore in the middle as a target man....

And Adebayor fuckin' miss hit that shot as well.

Last season, the RS had an iffy time under a new manager imposing a new style of play. Build-up was slow and they were getting caught in possession. Hate to say it but look at them in their second season – the style of play has evolved with fast movement.

Helped by them having natural strikers, but the point I am making (I hate them with a passion!!!) is that this is our first season playing a totally different style of play and there will be blips before we get it right. Roberto will know that there are players who will have to be replaced before we get to our full potential and hopefully there is money which he has saved for the summer transfer window where more players will be available and he can get who he really wants.

To criticise anyone for selling Jelly is absurd – the guy had lost it and needed a change of scene and to get the price we did for him was too good to turn down. Our great club has to build a team piece by piece as we haven't got the cash to turn it around in less than a season. It's no good blaming this on anyone – that's the way it is and we are doing a decent job.

All that has gone wrong lately is that injuries have taken their toll as they would on anyone with the number of bad ones we have had – look at Man City since Aguerro and a couple of others have been out. Roberto knows from training every day whether they are ready for a full game – we can theorise all we like but he sees them every day and we don't.

It's not over yet – plenty of games left for others to come unstuck.

All this plucky little Everton/Osman rubbish is just hiding behind the false belief that Osman is "shite" . Both our recent managers have played Osman regularly. They must see something that many on here do not.

Don't misjudge my comments, I'm not Osman's Dad. I just don't think he warrants the endless criticism he receives on here. He IS lightweight against the thugs of Stoke, and he no longer have the engine to compete for 90 minutes of high tempo football... but shite? No, Robbie, not shite.

Maybe if we had a proper striker for the likes of Osman or Barkley to slip a pass through to, we would see the best of these players.

I'm off now to hear the Mancs asking for Moyes head......

Disappointed because Spurs absolutely did not deserve to win this match; heartened by the constancy of the Martinez way (it will not win you every match, but is probabilistically very effective). WIP & already looking forward to Crystal Palace on Wednesday. COYB! NSNO!!!!

We can't win every game and we lost to a poor Spurs team away from home, that's all. Beat Palace on Wednesday and take it from there. Both Spurs and Liverpool still have some tough games left (as do we) so there's still everything to play for. The season doesn't end in February.

Oh and of course there's the small matter of the FA cup as well. Stop moaning and move on. We didn't deserve to lose that game but we didn't exactly dominate either. Overall, it was a pretty shit game and neither team deserved to win in my opinion.

Martinez has done brilliantly and masked our lack of squad depth, and in reality finances, well but we are only 3 points better off than this stage last season now with 1 more defeat & a couple more wins & a few less draws.

We still have the same problem of lack of cutting edge just with more possession. We need a couple of £15-£20m strikers if we are ever to truly compete.

In the summer Barry, Lukaku, Defelou & Traore will go as we won't be able to afford to buy them (I include Barry who is on £120k a week in that) and let's be honest, there will have to a big sale just to keep us ticking over. The last two windows prove that as we sold around £40m worth of players & got an extra £20m from Sky but only signed about £20m worth & spent about £2-3m on loan fees. It just doesn't add up.

I don't believe for 1 minute that Martinez decided to wait until the summer to sign a decent striker when it could have got us 4th; money is disappearing on debt.

But the truth of the matter is that BK is only interested in Everton staying in the top-half of the PL, he has no ambition for the club beyond that and every year that passes is a wasted one where we stay around the top 6 but cannot hope to improve upon it without proper investment and IMHO a negative spend on transfers into the club is not proper investment.

I thought we did brilliant in the 1st half, the passing was a delight, and when Spurs got the ball we immediately took it off them.
The idea is to score of course and we failed to do that, although Ossie had 3 or more decent chances.

In the 2nd half our intensity dropped and they came into the game, it was a very poor goal to give away.

We need find some form in front of goal quick though.

Let's be honest: we didn't deserve to lose that game, a pathetic lapse in concentration by Barry in letting the free-kick be taken quickly, Distin falling asleep and playing Adebayor onside, Jagielka getting caught out by the diagonal ball, and Coleman maybe not getting round on the cover cost us a point.

We dominated a team that has spent a lot more money than us in the past couple of seasons. Yes, I understand the frustration about Martinez not buying a striker, but who would be available in January that would take us to the next level? Strikers like that don't come cheap either.

As for Naismith, I felt he led the line good in the first half, he set Osman up for our best effort that needed a world class save. Osman ran out of legs just like Pienaar did and they were both replaced by Barkley and Deulofeu who both were rubbish when they came on. I'm sure in future games these roles will be reversed and Osman will come off the bench like he did against Villa and set Lukaku up and won us a penalty against Stoke and turned the match around like last week against Villa. People seem to forget these contributions.

Driving me crazy too. We have too excellent set-piece takers and we're in more danger of conceding on the break than scoring from our own corners. Anyone know where to find stats of goals from corners in the Premier League?

Meanwhile, we need a striker and McCarthy needs to play like Roy Keane.

Is it because they were wrong about their assessment that they have to keep up the stick? Well if they'd suffered the 1970s like a lot us did, I'm sure they would appreciate all the new boss is trying to do, and get behind him. I truly believe we're seeing a similar shift in the club to the early 80s and if a few cynics had got their way, HK would never have taken us to the great heights we scaled in our best period in this great club's history.

It's the little things – Naismith barging over the defender but not picking out Mirallas first time as I've seen so many players do; Mirallas trying to show boat and not playing in Naismith; Osman not able to convert yet again.

He had a decent volley but undercut it, the slice allowing the ball down. They had fewer chances but more quality chances. That's what matters.

It's not even the striker dilemma – it's the lack of directness that is killing us.

Everton have always had a hard-core support of between 9 and 15 thousand who would watch the team anywhere and regardless of performances and results. But Everton have also had their fair share of shall we say fair-weather supporters who wilt at the first sign of things going pear-shaped and compare everything the club does to how another particular club is doing.

If we fucking hate them so much, maybe we should have showed up. We had our chance but we took a shit...

Let's go for a cup run and Europa League because that's going to have to be our own personal Champions League until we start spending.

No matter what position you finish, if you qualify for the Champions League or the Europa League, we will need a larger squad and that will require Mr Unreliable to provide financial aid. Believing that we will finish 4th next year is just speculating that other teams that have Chairmen who can provide money for their managers will not be better next season.

This season, there is only one team that has lost one game less than Everton so we still have a chance of a higher league place than we are presently at. To qualify for Europe will show a real sign of progress, no matter which European competition it is in. To finish 8th will show no improvement from previous years.

Another source says early uses of the proverb related specifically to women. "When love once pleads admission to our hearts, the woman that deliberates is lost," wrote Addison.

A familiar saying in the twentieth century, "He who hesitates." was quoted by American novelist Edgar Rice Burroughs in 'Gods of Mars' (1912), Eugene O'Neill in 'Beyond the Horizon' (1920), and English novelist Wyndham Lewis in 'The Apes of the God' (1930). — From Wise Words and Wives' Tales: The Origins, Meanings and Time-Honored Wisdom of Proverbs and Folk Sayings Olde and New by Stuart Flexner and Doris Flexner (Avon Books, New York, 1993).

Key point being an increasing feeling that Roberto has been taking a little too long before acting to try and change the game. It was obvious within two minutes after the restart that Spurs had a new spring in their step... and, after five minutes, that whatever Sherwood had told them at the break was having far more influence on the game than what Roberto had put in our half-time cuppa. But it took until well past the hour mark for him to respond. With changes that proved ineffective.... but, if they'd been made earlier — crucially BEFORE Spurs' substitution — well, who knows.

Don't get me wrong: I love what he's trying to do overall, but it's this sort of indecision that loses games.

That's progress.

1. Martinez obviously thinking about the next games, and getting through them with more players to choose from. I think he is right. We will see Traore getting game time next week. Imagine playing Chelsea at Wembley without a fit Traore. Martinez has to get his introduction absolutely right.

2. Mirallas not playing Naismith as influential as falling asleep at their goal.

3. The next home games are vital. Winning them, and getting Barkley, Deulofeu, Traore and Lukaku fit, we could see the team peak again like they did in December.
4. It's a penalty.

It wouldn't even be up for discussion, it would have been given.

That's the reason we didn't get a point in the end!!!

Well... that and our lack of a striker.

Today could've gone either way and, up to their goal, I'd have said that we were the likeliest to go on and get the winner. Our players put in a real shift for the majority of the game too. Sherwood even had a little temper tantrum in the second half when we had them penned into their 18-yard area.

Fans need to have a bit of perspective and patience. I don't want Martinez to abandon his principles in search of 3 points today by chucking high balls into their box. I want him to have us being able to control matches, and get the maximum from our team in 2 or 3 years time, even at the expense of short-term results.

It will probably take a few years for the players to really understand what Martinez wants (and I'm certain he doesn't want laboured build-ups and sideways passing). It will probably take a few years for him to clear out those that can't and replace them with those that can.

Either way, I'm glad we've got a manager who has our long-term interest at heart, rather than being worried about his own reputation and damage limitation.

What do you find hard to understand about the 'rather not' Europa League logic?

The cons:

It's SIX extra games before Christmas which are likely to disrupt the first half of the league fixtures in a negative way. Proof of the pudding this season? All three managers of the English sides have been sacked because of poor LEAGUE results... Villa Boas, Laudrup, Coyle.

We play on a Thursday night for Channel 5 or ITV4 with no financial benefit.

The squad has to travel to the back arse of Europe to places in east Russia, Slovenia and other shit holes before flying back and then travelling to Sunderland or London for a Sunday match.

It is a crippling competiton and serves the elite clubs as it diminishes the ability for clubs with top 4 ambitions like us being able to break the monopoly.

The pros
You can blag an away day to an eastern european brothel destination to your bird on the premis of watching the blues.

So Bill, I see your game you dirty get.

All on this forum understand the chairman's finances are not great and his love for the club is not in doubt but, come the summer, the manager will need serious finances to replace loaned players and build the squad numbers. The legacy of the board may lie in the work it does in the community and all credit to them but they must not lose focus on the pitch.

This summer will tell where the club is going under our manager. Sadly, I feel no more change and living in the shadow of the big spenders will continue. I do hope, in my lifetime supporting this great club, a billionaire will fly or ride in and let us compete for the title.

Sadly 5th, 7th, 8th in the league is the best we can hope for in the near future, as those with CL football will continue to widen the gap (rich v poor). The current top three will carry on spending and, if that team across the park get in, they will spend big to maintain their place.

Finally, we must get behind our manager; he needs time with his own players. At the moment, we lack pace in the midfield, the passing style implemented needs pace and we lack that at times going forward.

Best wishes all!

I think the problem for the manager was that his bench was packed with outfield attacking players who are all somewhere short of match fitness, and that does make players more susceptible to picking up other injuries. So he waited as long as he could to see if Osman, Pienaar and Naismith could get something out of their reserves of energy but neither they nor their replacements could find a way past the massed ranks of the Spurs defence.

I thought Deulofeu and Barkley were both rusty and guilty of trying too hard, rather than simply poor, and McGeady again showed some nice touches and an appetite for teamwork.

James McCarthy was generally very good but I would still like to see him being a lot more attack minded when the opposition have gone defensive. It surely must be easier for him to lend his presence in and around the oppositions area and run back if they threaten to break than it is for Gareth Barry, and at times we need one of them to become primarily attacking for extended periods rather than fleeting moments.

I thought we had finally realised Osman's most effective role in the squad only for Martinez to go right back to square one. It has become apparent that Osman's ideal use is to throw him on against the opposition as a substitute in the final 15-20 mins. That is when he is having is biggest impact on the team against tired legs.

Why oh why is he still starting at CM and even more infuriatingly being switched to the wings? Is it not obvious to anyone who knows anything about football that Osman is awful on the wings and his lack of pace is exposed time and again to great embarrassment.

It's just like the first few games of the season all over again; without a proper striker, we are going to struggle to score against any half-decent side unless it's from a set-piece.

We need to play Mirallas up front as Naismith is not quick enough and not direct enough and simply not good enough. He constantly runs out wide down blind alleys when there is lots of space to run into centrally which would put him through on goal.

When he did that step over and let the ball roll out of play, I was left in complete shock that a professional footballer in the Premier League was capable of such a lack of ability.

I'm not an Osman fan by any means.

Naismith is a trier and I love to see him score... but that step-over — OMG indeed. Simply shocking.

I desperately want us to win every game, so when we do lose — which has been incredibly rare this season thanks to Roberto — it really hurts. Palace on Wednesday... no predictions from me!

Everton are going to need a large squad regardless if they qualify for either competition and although I would like to see them in the Champions League, I still think if they only make it into the Europa League, it will gain them a lot of experience in Europe.

As far as me bragging about visiting brothels in Europe, as I presently live in Canada and am 73 years old, I don't think I will bother.

In case you just think I am just someone who supports Everton because I've seen them on TV or like their jerseys, I first started supporting Everton after playing at Goodison Park in 1953 and changing in the home team's dressing room.

I think Roberto has been fantastic and it’s the best football in years but no Plan B. Some games you just have to have an alternative to tika-taka and the WHL pitch was not the best for that today. We were lightweight again – all small guys (Pienaar, Osman) getting knocked off the ball too easily...

What I would give for a target man who can hold the ball up as an option when the short crisp passing is not working. I fear we have missed the top 4 bus and it’s Europa League... still, let’s hope we can keep the good cup run going.

We sold Jelly and loaned a crock. Naismith may be a Number 10, but he hardly touched the ball where it counted and his colleagues don't seem to trust him. The next 7 days could be as black as the weather.

During the window, I said we needed strikers and we got one... soon. A disappointing window. I'm all for getting rid of Jelavic as he wasn't good enough. I can only see the logic of a loan striker for a short-term push for 4th. Unless Traore turns out brilliant and we can keep him beyond the summer, I'm puzzled by this one.

Whoever ends up playing upfront, one question will define Martinez's time at Everton; How can he keep that generally excellent defence and midfield cover, while injecting pace and quick delivery into the final third?

If he solves that one, we break the ceiling. Let's see what he can do!

You say it's folly to start Osman and Pienaar, yet it was only in the second half, when admittedly both tired, that Spurs got a look in. I don't know how short of fitness Barkley is but he started against Villa, gave the ball away for their goal, and was quite rightly taken off at half time. Then yesterday came on again, lost the ball again in midfield, and gave Defoe a chance of scoring.

As for the suggestion that Mirallas play as the main striker well against Villa, he kept drifting out to the wing and left nobody in the middle. I know he played up front for Olyimpiakos but he is definitely not the player to lead the line. Obviously Traore is not fit, even to come on for 15 minutes when were losing away, so I can't see him playing on Wednesday.

Despite all of this, we went away to a club that is fighting for 4th place and outplayed them for most of the game, so I don't think there is a lot wrong with our team.

A TEAM IS ONLY AS GOOD AS ITS STRIKER(S).

I'm so unoriginal, sorry. And to make things even worse, I have grave doubts about the quality of Lukaku — otherwise, he'd still be Mourinho's choice.

Over the past few seasons, teams were doubling up at right back to oppose the threat of Baines & Pienaar with it being widely discussed that they were the best partnership in the league... I can't recall one goal that has come from their link-up play on the left — it's as if they're strangers!

Everton have a tricky game against an "upwardly moving" yet still eminently beatable Crystal Palace which they should be able to do? If results went as they very well could do, I wonder if it would change the tenor of much of the comments/analysis post Spurs? Oh and I wonder if Fulham could just have enough reserves of energy to spring a surprise against you-know-who?

All as we need is for one/some of the obscenely paid footballers at Everton to perform the essential task of football which is to put the damn' ball into the opponent's net more frequently than they do into yours!

http://hereisthecity.com/en-gb/2014/02/10/keys-on-spurseverton/?

This is the only referee I have ever complained to the FA about along with many others after THAT derby match. Maybe this is payback time!

One of the papers nailed it with this comment: "One of football's endearing oddities is that a side can be comprehensively outplayed both technically and tactically, yet still emerge victorious........"

I really, really, hate losing games (especially Derby matches); my insides squirm, I get depressed, become extremely moody, sulk.... the list is endless. And yes, I probably need help, but as I know a lot of Evertonians, I am far from being the only one. If there is a saving grace in all of this, I am not still living back in the 'Pool, suffering even more so, being around those lovable reds!!

Considering we have had such a lengthy injury list, I am surprised we are still in with a shout, I really am!! I honestly don't know of any other team that would have lost their key personnel and still be within touching distance?!? I also believe that, because of our well-deserved victory (for the first time in eons) at the Theatre Ov(iedo) Dreams, plus a tremendous effort at the Emmy Rats (Gooners), our ambitions have jumped up a notch or two & rightly so, IMHO... almost NSNO.

The one HUGE blip to many, was the fiasco at Anfield and, even with a depleted side, a lot of Bluenoses were expecting a win. instead, we were handed a mauling, similar to what the League leaders Arsenal strangely received too a few days ago; not sure what to make of those two games.... bad management by RM & Wenger... a fluke maybe (twice), a resurgent Red Shite, has Brenda finally sussed out teams that can play footy at Anfield?? ... I think he has, by playing like the away team and pressing the opponents very high up the pitch (not unlike Rush et al used to do, all those years ago) and also having two players that are in tremendous goalscoring form and one of THE essential things needed in today's game — PACE!! (Sorry, just threw up.)

On a side-note, the fact that the RS won the toss yet AGAIN @ home, for the umpteenth time, going back to the 60s... (Can anyone tell me how they defy the law of averages, by winning so many coin tosses, seriously.... HOW??)

What I can't fathom, is Arsenal lose a game and now their ability to win the league has diminished rapidly — according to the media. Last week, after the RS 'only' drew at WBA, the same media were debating if they could keep the 4th spot; one victory later — can the reds actually win the league?!? The media world has gone crazy — ask OFM at Cold Trafford; he will agree.... I think!?! I would like to add our wonderful club into the equation and say, let's give us a few more games to see how we do, before the really BIG knives come out (to a gunfight) to slice and dice the players, RM and any supporters that still actually back Everton Football Club.... in good AND bad times, no matter what, come hell or high water!!

It's a funny old game, as Greavsie used to say. I have to agree with him; just when you think you have sussed it... along come a very average footballing side, who thrash two very decent football teams... and suddenly, accolades and exaltations from high (Sky) are now bestowed upon them. Yet, after the same team lost to Hull City 3-1 back in December, the media came up with this beaut: "Brendan Rodgers claimed to draw inspiration from Coronation Street in a left-field eulogy to Britain's longest-running soap before kick-off. Managing a Liverpool team with all the vision and footwork of Alan Bradley as he careered into a tram on Blackpool promenade was not what he had in mind!!"............

Still a long way to go, boys & girls, no fat lady singing... yet it is very possible, we fall flat on our faces make some of our supporters happy. On the other hand, there is an outside chance we could grab that 4th spot; admittedly a long shot & it's dependent on what others do... but I would like to see when Barkley, Deulofeu, Coleman, Baines, Distin, Pienaar, Jagielka, McGeady, Lukaku, Traore & Alcaraz are all match fit (well most), maybe....... just maybe, we still have a chance. It might be too late for the above to happen, but it's still 13 League games to go.... not forgetting the FA Cup too?!?

A not so depressed Bluescouse!!