Martinez plans summer Mirallas and Lennon talks

The fact Martinez is still the manager shows the clubÂ’s lack of ambition.

Lennon and Cleverly brought in will be phenomenal business....

He can go to Stoke, Swansea, a club like that; maybe Spurs. I say heÂ’s going nowhere and we hope for the best with him next season.

On Lennon? No problem with me he wonÂ’t be here. They come and they go. HeÂ’s only still around because of his lightning pace. HeÂ’s flat not a footballer

"When both fit, the two players have been vying for the one wide role that has been available in the CatalanÂ’s team of late"

Why would you play with only one wide man if a wide man if, as I understand it, is a winger?

In my neanderthal understanding of the game of football thatÂ’s a bit like playing with only one full back isnÂ’t it?

Surely you have two of each in either of those positions?

I read an article recently about how Ancelotti sets up Real Madrid - he defends in a 4-4-2 formation and attacks in a 4-3-3 formation. According to Ancelloti 4-4-2 "is the best defensive system".

So getting back to Mirallas and Lennon, I would love to see us playing AncellotiÂ’s system with a "wide man" on each side of Lukaku when we attack and one of them dropping back into midfield when we are defending.

Mirallas and Lennon look tailor made for that system so I would like to see us keep both of them.

Should Pienaar start at Swansea with Lennon on the other flank, we may get back to some semblance of that missing balance but Roberto's preference for the last few weeks/months has been to use one winger and then play Naismith and Barkley off Lukaku... with one of them (presumably) given some loose instruction to play wider than the other.

I've backed him for most of his career, and don't begrudge him a move to a CL team - good luck to him. I just think Lennon offers more than Mirallas as a team player rather than someone who likes to flit in & out of certain games.

Lennon might not be able to cross the ball but the neither can Mirallas and the simple fact Lennon works so hard makes him worth keeping. He breaks up oppo attacks more often than our defensive midfielders!

I too would love to see Pienaar back against Swansea with Lennon on the other wing. Perfect foils for Baines and Coleman. Balance indeed. Whoever played up front in that set up, be it Lukaku, Kone, or even Mirallas, would benefit.

I know Mirallas hasn't covered himself in glory this year but he is not Robinson Crusoe - I do think we should try to hang on to him.

Couldn't keep a wry smile on this comment in your post "Martinez appears to have dispensed with that notion altogether this season." On second thoughts I'm not going there.

I'll just keep doing what I have been doing since Christmas - hoping for the best one game at a time.

I agree with everything RM said in this interview. Let the players make their cases for the rest of the season, and let's push for a top half finish.

Iv'e said on other threads, when we're paying players 㿨k a week, we should be buying players which have quality as well as work-rate. We obviously don't have the financial clout of Man City but we aren't fucking Burnley either! We have the entire globe to scout players and don't need to buy over-priced mediocrity like Lennon.

I think we should cut our losses with Mirallas. It's pretty obvious he doesn't want to be here any longer. Lets just get as much money as possible for him and buy a worthy replacement. Mirallas on his day is top class (anyone remember him against West Ham this season in FA Cup? He was outstanding).

Trouble is, his day doesn't happen often enough and he can be frustrating. He seems the sulky type and in his own mind, he probably thinks he's better than Eden Hazard. The reality is, he's inconsistent, a little injury prone and not quite as good as he thinks he is. Kevin is talented though and does chip in with goals and assists but the time has come to part company and find a replacement. Deulofeu perhaps?

Lennon, I wouldn’t bother with. We need to be aiming to progress and for that we need better quality.

I love Mirallas for being the way he is. So what if he is selfish? He's exciting. He's unpredictable. He has flair. He can tear a defence apart from the halfway line and score. And he frightens defenders with his directness and pace.

Are the days of the likes of him and Deulofeu destined to be just a fleeting memory, as Roberto reveals his true colours and we develop a team based on journeymen like Naismith, Lennon, Cleverley, McCarthy (who, much as I rate him, doesn't do much else), Barry and whichever other second hand bargains we can bag for a few bob in the sales?

One good season and one worryingly bad one coming to a close in a few weeks' time.

Never mind the critical second series or second album... it's the third where we're going to know if we're going anywhere or not.

Right now, the signs are not good and deals such as Mirallas out/Lennon in, would be a huge step backwards in my opinion.

Lennon is obviously playing for a contract so I'm not surprised he's impressed the manager with this 'work rate'. Whether the same intensity will remain should he be given a permanent contract is another matter.

Barry is a case in point, playing for a World Cup place and a new contract last season, his performances this season have been far below the level of last season's. Whether that has anything to do with his 3-year permanent deal, who knows.

Personally I'd sell Mirallas to the highest bidder and send Lennon back to Spurs as you're onto a loser from the off trying to get a good deal out of Levy. I certainly hope we don't splash ٤-7M on a player Spurs don't want and whose contract runs out next year. Not overwhelmed by Lennon tbh and certainly not for the rumoured ٤-7M for a 28-year-old who'll have zero value when his contract runs out.

As for Mirallas, well he can sod off. Never really rated him and after the WBA game he can do one.

I know exactly what mean and how you must feel watching the Blues. Everything is so bland and ordinary, nothing happens for minutes on end and the worst part is you don't even expect anything out of the ordinary anymore. It's never been has bad as this for a long time; something has got to change... but I do not think it will change under Roberto.

But they won't be fit enough to last more than 45 minutes if this season is anything to go by.

What makes you think he will be better at Everton than he was at Spurs??

This will be a bad signing and a step back. If he signs him, RM clearly isn't good enough to manage our club.

Spot on for sir.

In all competitions, Lukaku has 18 whilst Mirallas has 9, despite Mirallas playing in 12 less games. In the league, Lukaku has 8, Naismith has 6, and Mirallas has 5. However, Mirallas has started 6 less games than Naismith and 12 less than Lukaku.

As much as this raises questions about the overall impotence of the team this season, Naismith is widely thought of as having a decent season yet Mirallas, for all his lethargy, has arguably contributed (where it matters) more regularly when he plays. I'm not a fan of his attitude and his continual attempts to force a move during an international break through the press. What would concern me is how we could replace his goals within a side that has struggled to score for the majority of the season?

Personally I would be pleased to see him sign up. He offers something different to our play and it's nice to finally have genuine pace in the side. ٤M is good business you won't find proven players with his pace for twice that.

Mirallas should be sold at the earliest opportunity. I lost patience with him long ago. Fair-weather player whose mind is already elsewhere. I would love to see Bolasie replace him. Bolasie on one wing and Lennon on the other would really change how teams set up against us.

You say:

"٤M is good business you won't find proven players with his pace for twice that."

Proven players? By that I assume you mean proven mediocrity? Pace is a nice luxury to have but it doesn't excuse poor passing, poor crossing, and general poor technique. Lennon is 28 now and once he loses his pace he will have very little to contribute. Also there will be no resale value on him in a couple of years time.

We should be scouting abroad for younger players with potential. Do Arteta and Pienaar ring any bells? Both cost ٠ million each and are far superior to Lennon. We are running the risk of turning into Stoke (or even worse QPR) by signing players like Lennon. Their squads are full of players which weren't good enough for their previous PL clubs!

Howard
Coleman
Baines
Jageilka
Lescott
Stones
Distin
Pienaar
Arteta
Fellaini
Gravesen
Cahill
Mirallas

So far we have Robles, Kone, McCarthy, Barry, Lukaku, McGeady, Alcaraz.

Speaks for itself really.

I'd much prefer the headline 'Kenwright to talk with Martinez'.

Because, as he's 28, its his last big contract as well. Which, on recent evidence, we will be stupid enough to give.

We need to be taking players in their early 20's.

Don't sign him. As mentioned above, always been hit & miss and is 28 so no sell on. He wont hold his value at all.

And when the clubs whole transfer policy seems based on this, its worth considering.

Plus he cant play both sides effectively, he's strictly a right sided player. We run small squads so flexibility is handy.

Lennon at least looks like he has the stomach for a fight. He's got some grit and is much better than McGeady who should be sold, we have had plenty of loan signing who have been gutless mercenaries and been shown the door.

We were led to believe that Martinez had contacts all over Europe and during his world cup stint he would be able to check on players playing in their international teams and yet all we got was a player who made his name in 1 game by marking Messi and is still not a starter for Everton.

As Mark # 12 said ," we have the entire globe to scout out and have no need to buy over priced mediocrity like Lennon.

Buying the players mentioned "Lennon and Cleverly" to me is showing a lack of ambition and if this is the level of expectations that Everton are even looking at, means this season will not be a slip up but the norm.

With Roberto's record in the transfer market I think it would be a case of better the devil you know, than ship in another McGeady or Astu. He does show a lack of ambition in the transfer market but BK seems certain to retain Roberto for the full 5 years he admires him.

I'll assume our manager made a mistake with his 'two years' quote.

Admittedly we robbed united and city blind with the Lescott and Fellaini deals.

Lennon has been good since coming in but Levy is a nightmare to buy from and will probably demand ٥M+. I think there could be better and younger found for that though and as pointed out Lennon's pace will only lessen over the next few years...

Romelu Lukaku;  

Gareth Barry;

Jindrich Stanek;

Aiden McGeady
James McCarthy

Joel Robles;

Arouna Kone;

John Stones
Matthew Kennedy;

Bryan Oviedo;

Kevin Mirallas;

Steven Pienaar;
Nikica Jelavic;

Darron Gibson;

George Green;

Apostolos Vellios
Mageye Gueye;

Joao Silva

The combined fees paid for these players is circa 㿴M and we have received circa 㿺M so all this Moyes did this or did that isn't really true for the last few years of his tenure. That's not his fault and it's not really Roberto's fault either but times in the Premier League have changed as has the Board of Directors generosity in relation to actually purchasing players. Lennon coming to Goodison will be tempered by the loss of Mirallas probably to the same club, is this good business, only time will tell.

Stoke are a pretty well run club with a solid defence have no fear we won't turn into them under RM.