Ex-Ghana skipper dismayed by Atsu's lack of action

Probably the same reason a player like Barry can walk into the squad.

Who knows what the deal was between the two clubs. Martinez seems to pick more duds than diamonds. Maybe the lad is just not cut out for the Premier League.

Atsu played plenty of games in the African Nations Cup, had some decent form, was named Player of the Tournament. I though hereÂ’s someone who can come in and hit the ground running.

I know sometimes Players just donÂ’t gel in the Premier League.

Or will this be just another of this season's mysteries until the post-Martinez revelations surface... whenever that may be?

Lukaku and Barry played regularly and well enough to keep their place. Deulofeu was good when on a run of games.

You could argue that this season has seen a poor use of the system although Wenger has kept quiet.

Atsu certainly hasnÂ’t had the opportunities to play. I still maintain that we might have seen the best of him if he had been played on the left which I thought was his preferred position instead of the right but he had a good African comp on the right....

If you take players on loan, ideally you want them to be ready to play regularly like Lennon is. He is not to everyoneÂ’s liking but doing ok.

The lad certainly hasnÂ’t had a fair crack of the whip with us, and would probably have got a shed load of game time with any other Premier League side, but we at Everton live in Roberto-Land, where logic is suspended, anyone who fancies it can take a penalty, and where in-form players are dropped in favour of returning crocks (Robles - Howard).

Poor Atsu never stood a chance though he must have thought heÂ’d get at least 10 or 15 starts through the season. IÂ’m sure he wouldnÂ’t have signed if heÂ’d known how little Martinez would use him.

Wherever he goes in the summer I wish him well, and hope one day his skill and goal scoring ability come back to bite Martinez on the bum (hopefully not a winner against us, though). RM really does need to sort out just what he wants from his signings. If he ainÂ’t gonna use them, donÂ’t waste the clubÂ’s money signing them in the first place.

Bizarrely underused given how much we have been crying out for creativity. If Martinez really didnÂ’t fancy him, then he should have sent him back.

I think the African lads tend to play the game very casually which sometimes, unless they are sublimely talented, doesnÂ’t always suit the hurly burly pace of the English Premier League. A prime example is the clearly uniquely talented Yaya Toure at Man City, a great player but hard work and rolling sleeves up on cold wet days isnÂ’t always his thing. That for me has been why Manchester City have lost the league title: a lack of characters; quality is there but are they all individuals?

From our own experiences with the African lads, Yak was a great goalscorer but, letÂ’s be honest, he was well known at all the clubs he was at to "quickly lose interest". Nyarko and Bakayoko... well, the less said the better. Amokachi was a slight success, mainly down to just two goals in the semi mind you, didnÂ’t do much else.

Yobo was arguably the most stable and consistent guy over the years.

Atsu to be fair might be a decent player in a league that better suits his slow pace, he clearly has pace but in his mind he canÂ’t reach the tempo needed in the Premier League. HeÂ’s a relatively small guy like Aaron Lennon but the notable difference is Lennon knows whatÂ’s required in this league, you have to run and work hard to drag yourself into the matches, even when you are not playing well.

Atsu just thinks the game is going to come to him, he needs to go to the game and get himself in it, but he just doesnÂ’t do it. He will be playing in France or Holland next season is my bet.

If his captain thinks he should have regular football, maybe he could suggest the fucking Ghanaian second division to him. ThatÂ’s his level, based on performances.

he had his chances and wasnÂ’t good enough, I actually remember Les Ferdinand slaughtering him at half-time in a Europa League game... Another one of BobbyÂ’s gambles whoÂ’s sat on the bench.

I wonder how much Martinez had seen of the player before signed him? DoesnÂ’t seem to have been a lot of thought has gone into this signing.

We have no idea what he might be capable of as they guy has mainly had 10 minute cameos here and there and I canÂ’t see what the point of loaning someone to that end is...

I think we DO actually have a fair idea of what heÂ’s capable of, we have seen the guy play a few tines and from what we have seen, heÂ’s looked lightweight without the workrate. Yes, he has pace but in the games heÂ’s played has he once looked like going past a fullback?

He would maybe do a good job in a slower league, he does have some assets but just not suited for the Premier League. Let's face it, if he had any attributes then Chelsea would be keeping him in their squad and not loaning him out year-in & year-out; he hasnÂ’t even kicked a ball for Chelsea.

Think of Coleman when he first played. Or BarkleyÂ’s ill-fated loan at Sheff Wed. Sturridge struggling at Chelsea due to a lack of faith in him.

Maybe Atsu is not a PL player. Maybe heÂ’s not a decent player at all but thereÂ’s no way you can make that judgement on the pitiful opportunities heÂ’s been given this season, in my eyes.

He should have been used when we had no winger fit and then I am sure we would have seen his true worth. No fan on here knows how good he is as he has never had the chance to play.

Lukaku was on loan here last year but he showed enough in that time to leave us convinced, likewise Lennon now.

Atsu is 23, not really that young, not old but not young either.

LetÂ’s be honest, we could have all sat here and kept harping on about Vellios, Magaye Gueye etc, about buying young and not seeing them in enough games... but the reality is they just were not good enough for this standard.

Martinez and his staff must see Atsu regularly in training to get a judgment of him, we know if he had anything at all that we were missing then heÂ’d surely be given chances that Mirallas and others are getting.

I hope Atsu finds a club or league that benefits him, I really do, because he seems a cheerful lad. But really we are wasting our time on this thread over a player who probably wonÂ’t kick a ball again for Everton.

Perhaps Martinez has been put off by his training, IÂ’m far from convinced that I trust his opinion. But the point remains that we, as fans, have not seen enough to make any lasting judgement on this player as far as iÂ’m concerned.

Personally I think (from watching him elsewhere) heÂ’s a clever little player who offers a creativity that we have sorely lacked.

I also agree that we wonÂ’t see him in an Everton shirt beyond this season. But who knows?!

He constantly miscontrolled the ball, misplaced passes, turned into trouble, or was bundled over so often that I felt for him. He was so bad that the manager bringing him off was a merciful act of kindness akin to BrundleflyÂ’s bird blowing her boyfriendÂ’s buggy brain out, at his behest, because he had ended up with big metal teleport pod plums where his ball sack should be.

Why Martinez feels the need to spout bulldust so often is beyond me because it,

1) Sets himself up for obvious flack; and

2) The fans then get on the player's back that Martinez has "hyped up to the hilt" because heÂ’s turned out to be a nothing player: Atsu, McGeady, Lacina Traore etc etc.

Despite the use of 'ffs' to signify mock outrage that should be mutually shared amongst the masses, I fail to see how pointing out heÂ’s put in mainly piss-poor performances to date amounts to a lack of Â’supportÂ’, or how, by mere virtue of being an Everton player, heÂ’s immediately hoisted above any criticism.

Especially when people are responding to a piece claiming that he deserved more game time and should be able to walk into the Everton team simply because he turned it on in a some tin pot tournament.

Maybe heÂ’s a decent player and should have been given more of a chance. Personally IÂ’d pick Lennon every time over what IÂ’ve seen from Atsu.

Just because he is playing for us doesnÂ’t mean we should just blindly "support him"!

He has been gash every single time he has turned out for us, with no exception.

It goes to show how shite the ACoN must be if this useless twat was the Player of the Tournament.

That twatty clearance against Kiev, what was that about?

Then again, why the fuck Martinez put him straight in and then kept out Stones because of "experience".....to coin a phrase... FFS!

I don't know if the lad is any good as he has hardly played a full game for us. But this idiot of a manager signed him on loan plus his wages and decides not to play him. Now, for all those saying Atsu is rubbish, then ask why the charlatan signed him.

IÂ’d say even the brilliant Wayne RooneyÂ’s success is in part due to his being a nasty, rough customer opponents learned not to fuck with. He didnÂ’t get that from Moyes or Fergy. ItÂ’s innate.

The seasonÂ’s almost over and the kid then gets sent back to Chelsea. RobertoÂ’s done pretty well with loans. This one didnÂ’t work out. The kidÂ’s departure is hardly up the list of player movement worries this next window. "Good riddance", if you like. The important thing is to open up that roster spot and try someone else.

No doubt, heÂ’ll make himself a nice little career somewhere. IÂ’d wager heÂ’d do well over here in MLS. But the combination of athleticism and physicality required to play and stay in EnglandÂ’s top league? Nope. He moves on and so do we.

I donÂ’t think it was idiotic to take him on loan at all. He was a young player with a reputation as a rising star a few years ago. HeÂ’d done well enough during his previous loan and in international games to suggest he could possibly step into the pacy winger shoes recently vacated by Deulofeu.

It was a gamble that hasnÂ’t worked out for either party, but theyÂ’re the sort of moves the loan market is utilised for. ThereÂ’s no real risk involved because if the player flops heÂ’ll be flinging his suitcase back in his boot at the end of the season and the club can count their blessings they never blew a transfer fee on them.

As for why he suggested Atsu might set the league alight after the Afcon? We all know thatÂ’s just what heÂ’s like. The man will always look up and claim thereÂ’s a positive on the horizon, whilst ignoring all the gaping crevices in the ground. Seriously, if you showed Martinez pictures of Jeremy BeadleÂ’s big hand and little hand, heÂ’d say it was of great benefit being born like that because heÂ’d be able to pull off some phenomenal shadow puppets.

IÂ’d fancy myself to have a good tournament in the Afcon after seeing some of those defences and keepers, so this fella obviously needs to keep his thoughts to himself. No loss whatsover when Atsu goes wherever at the end of the season.

We have Mirallas & Lennon, then McGeady in the pecking order followed by Atsu. With Mirallas and/or Lennon fit, the others rarely get a game – end of story. These players are brought in as cover, nothing more.

If this guy is complaining about Atsu not playing, he should be talking to Jose Mourinho, not whinging at Everton.

Steavey, he was an early second-half sub against Leicester and if he was named Man of the Match, it goes to show how bad the rest of them were.

Cannot figure out what the point of signing the guy was if we were not prepared to play him regularly. If all were fit heÂ’d be on the bench but even when we had midfileders injured, he still wasnÂ’t played. It will likely make a few players think twice about coming on loan to us in the future.

He heard somewhere what the supporters asked for...
Yeah, do you think he has a ToffeeWeb account?

I believe that Atsu is a decent player and will blossom somewhere else in the Premier League. He should have played when we were short of Mirallas and Pienaar. Perhaps this lad could play the Pienaar role if he was given a chance. He can certainly pick a pass which is the sort of player we need. Why are we loaning in Atsu if we are never going to play him?

I do envy those on here who support Martinez still. If he pleases, then it is unlikely that any manager in the coming years will ever ruin your support of our great club. Martinez has taken favouritism, incoherence, manifestly poor management and the piss to an extreme.

Martinez Out!

This was a very bizarre loan move almost from the start. To loan a player who we knew was going to miss 6-8 weeks of the season, then not pick him at the start knowing he wasnÂ’t going to be available later on was daft. He seemed like heÂ’d provide depth and the ability to rotate the squad, which was just what we needed with Europa and League cup games to fit in, instead Martinez decides he doesnÂ’t really want to rotate, and runs the same players into the ground playing three times a week. He then does start Atsu twice in three days, then heÂ’s back out of the side.

ItÂ’s looked clueless from start to finish. One of MartinezÂ’s many problems as a manager is that he tries to be too clever. No doubt he has some deep theory about why he did all this, but basically he should have given the lad game time off the bench early on, then started him gradually more and more, especially in the period when we were playing two games every week.

ItÂ’s clear that Martinez isnÂ’t the kind of person that will say heÂ’s not playing him cosÂ’ heÂ’s not cutting it, so why expect it? The fact that he got Lennon and put him straight in the team tells me everything.

The young man may have talent, and be a good teammate but this does not seem to be working out for him here so good luck to him and I hope he turns out to be as good of a player as he is tipped to be.

Where? In some hallucinatory dream of yours?

HeÂ’s not a Prem player. Nothing more or less. They come and they go and AtsuÂ’s just another. Let Chelsea worry what to do with him.

Atsu is of similar build and stature to Pienaar and Lennon, but unlike them, he never tracks back. He does look like he has some ability to go forward, but heÂ’s a luxury player who would have been more suited at a team that was doing well, who could have brought him on for half-an-hour when theyÂ’re 2-0 up, unfortunately those games have been few and far between for us this season.

John Daley, Yes, the Beadle analogy was brilliant. I donÂ’t know how your mind comes up with half of it but you should defo consider making another career as a scriptwriter in left-field comedy.

Probably the funniest thing I have ever read.

ThatÂ’s a pretty sweeping generalisation there Jim with not too distant racial undertones!

IÂ’ll remind you that we have a certina Mr Pienaar in our squad who hasnÂ’t been too shabby a player for us and the league is dotted with African players of exceptional talent. It would be great if you didnÂ’t describe someone as Â’lazyÂ’ just because they come from Africa!

Do they call you Â’bigÂ’ Jim by any chance?

By the way you failed to mention that "TheyÂ’re alright from August to October like, but when the cold weather comes and the pitches start to cut up and the tackles start to fly in, they..." (Well, IÂ’m sure you know the rest.)

These ridiculous comments are an embarrassment. Players like Bony, Benteke, Toure etc etc etc would be welcome in any Everton team (if we could afford them).

DoesnÂ’t detract from the fact that Atsu is gash though...

It's not a judgement on these guys itÂ’s simply plain fact from what we have witnessed with our own eyes and not just from our own club but the example of Toure at Man City speaks volumes of a player spitting his dummy out over trivial things.

I donÂ’t remember turning this thread into a racial argument, can people not be allowed to make a honest judgement anymore without being accused of something sinister?

I simply suggested that African football has been neglected in terms of coaching and they are more known as individual type players than team players, it is not an argument over race just my assessment over whenever I see African teams perform.

I hope you have your tin hat here with you because you're likely to get pelted from all angles and accused of things youÂ’d not even say.

The point of mine was every country or continent has different styles in its footballing beliefs, coaching etc.

The Dutch and Belgians seems to have a very high opinion of themselves and like hyping up their own abilities even ordinary ones.

The British stand alongside headlines of the Americans, Australians and the Far Eastern players in terms of what they lack talent-wise they make up for in their appetite to continually run and work for their team-mates.

The African players do seem to be more individualist in their playing skills, too often watching the African Nations Cup games were ridden with bad decisions made and selfish play and that’s not the fault of the players – it’s just the coaching isn’t there to coax through more team ethics.

"The Dutch and Belgians seems to have a very high opinion of themselves and like hyping up their own abilities even ordinary one's"

Really?

Name 10 then, including four Â’ordinary onesÂ’ who like Â’hyping up their own abilitiesÂ’ (and when youÂ’ve done it, IÂ’ll give you 10 English players guilty of exactly the same).

Then there’s – "The African players do seem to be more individualist in their playing skills, too often watching the African Nations Cup games were ridden with bad decisions made and selfish play and that's not the fault of the players, it's just the coaching isn't there to coax through more team ethics."

Again, selective nonsense, real 2 + 2 = 5 stuff.

African players playing in Africa may play a slower pace because of heat (or coaching) but the suggestion that thereÂ’s more Â’selfish playÂ’ and less teamwork from the average African is tripe.

IÂ’ve lost count of the amount of times IÂ’ve see non-African players in the PL go it alone, rather than pass to a better positioned player. (Sterling does it more in one game than most African players do in a season.)

Is Ronaldo not as greedy? Mirallas? McGeady? Sterling? Bale? Stanley Matthews?

Sorry but it’s all sounds very... um... ’Farage’ – pointing out faults in foreigners, even though it’s obvious players (including English players) are prone to exactly the same strengths and weaknesses.

Zaire certainly looked naive in 1974, but that was 40 years ago, now there are simply footballers – some great, some average, some hopeless, some team-players, some greedy, some hard, some weak and I’ve seen all the above from every continent (and so have you).

By the way, I didnÂ’t accuse anyone of racism, however I believe Â’unconscious xenophobiaÂ’ would be appropriate.

That said, IÂ’m impressed Â’ItÂ’s political correctness gone mad!Â’ has been avoided (guessing one or two must have been itching).

Africa is a continent with 50 plus countries with over 600m odd people and many African players have in fact been coached in Europe before they even came to the UK (work permits being an issue they tend to go to places like France, Portugal, Italy, Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands as teenagers first).

Hence, yes coaching standards are generally poor in Africa compared to Europe (obviously due to financial issues) but most Premier League players from there were coached elsewhere anyway. The continent is littered with European scouts afterall.

As for Atsu, we will never know if he was good enough for Everton given the manager didnÂ’t exactly give him a proper crack in the first team. That has little if anything to do with his nationality.

According to you we should therefore not sign anyone from Africa at all, avoid all Belgians and also steer clear of all Dutch players. Do you not see how ridiculous that sounds?