Everton complete deal for Aaron Lennon

On another note, I'm hearing we've turned down £8M for Naismith from Norwich. Maybe were not as skint as we thought we were..

If true, that illustrates quite clearly how crazy transfer fees have become for even the most bang average player. I appreciate Naismith for his attitude and endeavour but if being a busy but not very gifted grafter makes you worth almost £10 million in today's market, then something's got to give sooner or later.

Levy is deffo taking the piss out of us if this is true – hopefully not!

Twelve to fifteen goals would probably keep you up. With TV money next year getting silly, £8 million suddenly seems worth a punt.

By my reckoning, this puts 5 wingers on our payroll: Deulofeu, Mirallas, McGeady, Lennon and eventually Pienaar... what's that going to be, £250k a week? Plus we have two full backs who spend 50% of their time as quasi wingers-and no playmaker.

Unless of course Bobby has a cunning plan, but I'm buggered if I can work it out.

As much as I like Naismith, we need more goals, not endeavour. Although endeavour's also on the short side with some of our players.

One more Bobby on loan and then we'll see how we go.

It's not like you're stood in the hallways of Finch Farm reporting live. It's just some bloke on twitter isn't it?

Another struggling season. No number 10, no striker, and no idea.

Sky sources: Steven Naismith will be staying with Everton after they rejected an offer from Norwich City. We understand the proposed fee was around £7m to £8m.

Sunderland also understood to have expressed an interest in the Scottish forward but it was never close to happening. Naismith has been training with the Scotland squad today.

Probably is a load of crap but it would have been the best bit of transfer news (after us signing Deulofeu) if he had gone. I'm not a big fan.

The McCarthy / Barry partnership is not working, this is where we now need change and to strengthen. Lennon, a waste of money for a club with our (sadly) limited resources.

Smacks of desperation this.

We need a decent left sided player. The squad is so unbalanced.

I can't believe some people are happy with this transfer window and acquisition of Aaron Lennon. Come on everyone, lets all have a big wankfest over Aaron-fucking-Lennon. Exciting times ahead.

Mirallas must be wondering what the hell he re-signed for, because this headless chicken will probably be preferred to him by our increasingly clueless manager.

I can't wait to hear the waffle spouted about this: He's phenomenal, He's unique, gives us something we haven't got, etc.......

Contrary to speculation on this site and elsewhere, we have kept hold of our best players and added a mixture of proven Premier League players and two South Americans who will probably take time to adapt. All in all I believe this has been a decent window.

Some people are determined never to be satisfied to the point of bending the evidence to support their prejudice. Fucking hell, if we signed Messi some would find a problem with it. Cheer up FFS!

He is 28, has played at the top level, for England many times.

He did well here last season; I just hope he remembers to smile at the signing on photos.

Along with the continued growth of the squad populated by average players, this approach almost guarantees that we will be more skint than ever compared with our competitors and will head in a downward direction as the years go by. The board need to get a grip before the situation gets any worse.

At a time when prices have gone through the roof, ٢.5M for a player who’s already proven himself seems a pretty shrewd signing to me.

Lennon made the difference in the 2nd half of last season. We wouldn’t have finished as high as a 11th had we not brought him in. He was an inspiring signing. I think it was pretty much a given he was going to come back based on that. Yes, he’s not the inspiring we all wanted. But he’s still a good signing

If you want to criticise why don’t you have a go at the board. Going back to Derby, they’ve spent over 㿀M which is more than BK as forked out this summer, and they’re a Championship club. If we finish in the top half we’ll be punching above our weight based on expenditure.

I’m just pissed off with myself that I seriously believed we would sign at least one quality striker, or a No 10, and we’ve signed neither. We’ll just get the post mortem about Yarmolenko now, and the board will be excused because they tried. Well, the question I’d be asking is why did we go in 5 days before their incoming deadline closed. If he was a serious target why wasn’t it sorted out before?!

Barkley is our no 10 now and early season form is encouraging. Mirralas to provide cover.

My team going forward is
Howard
Coleman Stones Jags Baines
Macca Cleverley
Delboy Mirralas
Barkley
Lukaku

We are where we are, I guess, and that is heading for a long laborious season if the current games are anything to go by.

Seems to me we ended up ahead. I think Barkley will be a good Number 10 when he learns to pass more and not try to beat the whole defence when he gets the ball.

Naisy, £8million? It must have been tempting! But he cost sod all and he's a good man to have in the squad (Spurs hated him on Saturday). Something must be looking up.

We have a No 10, his name is Ross Barkley, we needed a superstar game-changer to play from the left. We now have four right wingers and Martinez keeps playing Kone on the right. Hard not to be pissed off.

£4.5M for a player they don't want who is out of contract next summer?

We needed that Yarmolenko type signing this summer – (1) for what we need in our style of play, but (2) to show some ambition and make a statement. We are developing a good squad, agreed, but Bobby identified the No 10 type player before the window even started and we didn't even get close!

He is now an Everton player so let's support and encourage him as we would any other.

I think it;s been a good window. Cleverley was slated but everyone's changed their minds about him; I hope he will be played alongside McCarthy and spray the passes. Barry needs to be a sub these days. Deulofeu for £4.5M, 12 months ago, you would have said a fantasy signing for Everton... no chance... but he is in an Everton shirt now and some Barca's fans are crying in their paella!

The South American boys will be a big surprise once acclimatized to the conditions of the Premier League. Funes Mori will be a class act, left-footed, good in the air with a wicked shot.

Leandro Rodriguez could just be the best of the lot, I have a feeling this boy is a natural predator and goalscorer and we have him for £500k!

As for the No 10 spot, yes the Yarmolenko business was a little disappointing, but do we really know what was happening behind the scenes with deals with the Ukrainians? Also, Super Kev can play in that role.

Added to this, we kept Stones after all that nonsense and bought Holgate, a promising youngster at centre back; who is to say we have not bought another Stones there?

When you consider what has been squandered at other clubs on crazy fees, maybe our club are a bit more savvy and I thank them for it. If this has been a bad transfer window then some of you probably don't enjoy Christmas either!

We may not all agree on how the money has been spent but please stop knocking the guy who has done a decent job of being chairman in recent weeks.

Lennon really isn't a player which will improve our starting 11. He is a poor passer and crosser of the ball. Work-rate and pace alone is not enough. Mirallas and Deulofeu are considerably more talented and score more goals. My guess is Lennon will keep them out of the team.

And for the record, I'm more pissed off with the board than the actual signing of Lennon. We were promised TWO more attack minded players, one of them a number 10 which would add much needed creativity. We have been once again let down by this inept board. And while we stand still in the transfer market, lesser clubs outspend us, while the top 6 clubs widen the gap.

As for the striker, he will come in January when Stones leaves for Chelsea for over £40 million.

Poor window and yet again, we are deflated by the lack of quality being brought in.

Although he may not be the player we are crying out for, £4.5m is a bargain for a proven Premier League player, who has already shown that he can improve our starting 11.

Injury to Rom is a big concern; also he is under no pressure for his place.

We should have gone for Austin I feel!

I for one am pleased we've got this one over the line. In my opinion, it's Deulofeu that needs to challenge Lennon for a starting place.

Mirallas will be predominantly left sided. McGeady is cover for either flank!

Barkley also has the tools. Player with that much technique and ability should be able to play left/right/behind main striker – enough of this square pegs/round holes bullshit. It just takes some work on the training ground – they have enough time ffs!

For the record – I'd love to have signed Payet, or a player of that ilk, but we didn't. We do have talent at the club though.

That is a concern. Hopefully Kone can continue his resurgence - confidence appears to be flooding back and we should really get behind him.

Maybe Leandro will be a world beater?! Not really comforting no, particularly as neither player are out-and-out No 9s...

Just look at Saturday's game. Lennon would've offered a far greater threat on the right than Dembele, or that other greedy Belgian (plenty of them about!) Chadli.

Ditto Everton. It's no good having the quality to make a killer pass with nobody making the runs in behind the fullback!!

We were going to pay £15,000,000 for a player who is out of contract next summer. £4.500,000 seems pretty reasonable in comparison.

Martinez said we needed a Number 10. Which meant it was important to the way he wants to play when teams sit back against us. Yarmolenko may have been the player that fitted the bill. But we should not just have a plan A. We should have an A and B, and if we ended up with both then so be it. Especially as Yarmalenko could play wide if required.

Also, though I like Naismith, we could have recouped some money at the end if we had over stretched the budget Scrabbling around at the last minute to get a player that is so important to the team is not dignified and just poor planning. Imagine if Martinez got his way with a shorter transfer window. If they can't sort something in two months, how is 1 month less going to help the way Everton complete transfer business.

The only plus side, I see in all this, is that Martinez may be forced in to the counter attacking style that the players, and ourselves, are happier with. Let's hope eh.

We have stood still while most others have strengthened which these days means going backwards. The ambition of the club seems to be at an all time low and any kind of finish in the top half of the table should be considered amazing really given our lack of foresight in getting in the kind of players we need. It appears that workhorses and triers are where we are shopping now. Southampton game apart we have been poor yet again this season and while a point at WHL is nothing to be sniffed at, really we should have taken a hiding there. Good job Spurs are shit too.

So while Lennon may give us some badly needed energy, I am not going to be celebrating like some of you as we have, yet again fallen far short of what we actually needed to be competetive again.

Last season teams came to Goodison and we struggled to create chances. This season, you only have to look at the Spurs, Man City and Watford games to see virtually every pass is sideways. Lennon is not going to change that. In my view Barkley is not a natural No. 10 and is too inconsistant.

Sorry to be negative, but nothing has really changed from last season except the fact we are not in Europe. Long hard season ahead, especially the Home games. Can only see us finishing 8th or 9th.

Time will tell what the likes of Funes and Leandro may bring but right now I feel pretty underwhelmed.

I'm a big fan of Yarmolenko and would love to have him at Everton. I also would love us to sign a quality playmaker.

However, Yarmolenko is not a creative playmaker, as you seem to think.

I haven't seen enough if Yarmolenko to categorise him one way or the other but was just saying that we badly needed a playmaker and yet again haven't got one that's all, mate.

At least Lennon makes runs in behind defenders. He also offer incisive 1-2s - something we've been sorely missing since Baines/Pienaar axis was broken up.

He showed a willingness to come narrow and try and sniff out a scoring opportunity.

With or (frustratingly) without that elusive playmaker, Lennon is an asset to the club. Lukaku is crying out for someone to hit the byline and put the ball in an area to attack. Watch this space..

Having just heard Tim Vickery on R5 - I'd be more worried about £9.5m on someone who may not have any of Lennon's attributes and is also unproven.

My big quibble is the lack of balance in the squad and the ongoing failure to add a plausible third goalkeeper to the squad. Joel did far better than expected last year when Howard was injured, but his performance at Barnsley was worryingly back to what we'd seen before.

Roberto,like God, works in mysterious ways, so let us hope he has got it right with South americans! COYB!

What a complete waste of money we don't have... Better giving it to EItC

The fact we kept our best players is massive.. We done what the Red Shite couldn't achieve. COYB

McCarthy and Lukaku established in the premier league and paid top wack for, the man hasn't found anyone that you can say great never heard of him might be a gem!! What do his scouts do except look at ageing average players.

Galloway and Deulofeu excluded, not the greatest record in the markets so far!! Besic the just is still out. Hibbert, Gibson, Pienaar, McGeady... even Ossie are now past it or not good enough or always injured need to replace them with our youngsters or younger purchases not more bang average players!

There definitely appears to be a right-sided imbalance to our squad though, particularly with the Baines / Pienaar situations.

Let's see how things progress. Given RM's footballing 'philosophy' I'm surprised there is nobody recognised as a creative midfielder that has been targeted.

Howard - GK
Coleman - RB
Baines - LB
Stones - CB
Jagielka - CB
Lennon - RW
Deulofeu - LW
Barkley - CM
McCarthy - CM
Mirallas - No 10
Lukaku - ST

On our squad, we still have the best starting 11 and bench in years. We'll do very well if they all stay fit. What scares me is that if anyone one of the core get injured our bench starts to get light

We are stronger now but would've loved a star signing. Playing manager for a second, my strongest first eleven would be:

Howard
Coleman Stones Jagielka Baines
Lennon McCarthy Barkley Deulofeu
Mirallas
Lukaku

Subs: Robles Mori Barry Besic Cleverley Kone Naismith

Team player, works his socks off, and never neglects the defensive side of the game. I believe if he concentrates more on his attacking play, he will create chances for the team, even if, I'm sure we never needed another winger.

And unless BK sells to a billionaire who takes us on a spending level on a par with the chavs and city. Then we are stuck with the Naismiths of this world. That is the nature of the beast, for us Evertonians.

Not what we need, but a good squad player for only a relatively small amount.

Who the heck is going to play on the left though? I guess we'll have to have them swapping sides through the match or something so everybody gets a bit of the right wing.

With Cleverley, Gibson and Pienaar injured we have a talented but weird squad available.

We should say we will buy season tickets when the stock has matured. We are not investors of might be in the future. We want it now!

I'd get rid of McGeady in a heartbeat but we'd only get £2 mil max for him. More goals in Austin than Naismith, that's the big difference.

We DO NOT need another winger!
We need a back up for Lukaku
We need a forward thinking midfielder
We need a back up CB
And a goalie
We haven't got much money - apparently - so why waste it on Lennon?

Spurs are trying to offload players, Lennon is in his last year. They should be made up to get him off the wages and US Divvies come in with £4 million. Absolutely ridiculous!

Fuck me we have a team of wingers and defensive midfielders.

As far as Lennon goes I'm happy he's here cause he does the dirty week as well as upping Coleman's game. Sure it takes him 15 or so attempts to get a cross right but he's there trying. His pace does frighten the opposition and free up others as well. So not a bad addition in my opinion.

My biggest question is when is my boy Jimmy Mac going to find his groove. He's been below par to say the least this year.

Lukaku was a loan signing. His loan fee was, what £3M?

Aaron Lennon, who is essentially a LOAN SIGNING!!!! because he has 1 YEAR on his contract, £4.5M.....

Lennon on loan costs more than Lukaku on loan???

He hasn't even been given a squad number by Spurs, and we don't need yet another right winger when we only play 1 winger anyway...

Please explain how this is good business?? Not being funny, but I'm genuinely confused here.

The reason most people are upset is that we have let Eto'o and Atsu go and Garbutt out on loan; Chris Long gone; Ossie, Pienaar, Gibbo and Barry on their last legs and we haven't added any extra quality into the squad.

Okay, Galloway, Pennington and Browning all show good potential and I don't know about the lads we have signed from South America but we all know we need a GK, goalscorer and a creative MF player who can score goals.

It is also upsetting to find we have taken another £20M loan out from the BVI. WTF is going on Bill????

The reason most people are upset is that we have let Eto'o and Atsu go and Garbutt out on loan; Chris Long gone; Ossie, Pienaar, Gibbo and Barry on their last legs and we haven't added any extra quality into the squad.

OK Galloway, Pennington and Browning all show good potential and I don't know about the lads we have signed from S. America but we all know we need a GK, goalscorer and a creative MF player who can score goals.

It is also upsetting to find we have taken another 20m loan out from the BVI. WTF is going on Bill????

He wants to play 4-2-3-1, well he's had the time to bring in the players he wants to execute it. Whether or nor we're happy about it, this gives Ross a real chance to prove whether or not he has what it takes to impose his will on games in attacking midfield. Best 11:

Howard
Coleman Stones Jagielka Oviedo (well, Baines)
Barry McCarthy
Deulofeu Barkley Mirallas
Lukaku

Subs: Besic, Kone, Browning, Mori, Lennon, Naismith + 1 (Cleverley, Baines, Galloway, Pienaar, Gibson - perpetually hurt; McGeady, Hibbert - shite; McAleny - can't get a look-in despite impressing in preseason)

Let's back the team until it's clear there's a need for a change, and give our young players a chance to show what they can do!

Stones is the last of the Moyes "profit" buys that have been vital to the club's very survival for this century. When he, and possibly Coleman, possibly Barkley, is finally sold then that is pretty much it for the buy low-develop-sell high strategy we have had to have for a long time as a differentiator.

None of Martinez's buys will have any real resale value as they are either too old (Kone, Lennon), known quantities (Cleverley), capped buy backs (Deulofeu) or he has paid probably top dollar already with a significant risk of losing it (Mori). This is fatal for us as our revenue streams are low compared to clubs around us and especially even minor London clubs.

The days of the unpolished gem which has subsequently enabled better quality of players is completely gone under Martinez and whatever people say he has been backed with funds.

And somebody please tell me it was a SSN joke that we turned down £8M for Naismith???!!!

Lennon is on a 3-year contract and we now own the player.

Lukaku was a 1-year loan, and we did not own the player.

Just because he's got a year left doesn't make it a loan fee. Same as Real Madrid weren't paying £29m loan fee for De Gea (before someone cocked up). We could've played Tottenham and tried to get him on the cheap, and they could've dug their heels in and let him rot in the reserves or U21s for a year. Who's to say after that he'd be inclined to sign for us anyway?

Moot point, but we were rumoured to have been offered him by Leeds for £1m when he was 17. I don't know why Moyes turned him down, but wouldn't surprise me if it was because we couldn't afford it at that time.

I'd rather have ten Lennons than one Ukrainian (who has hinted that he'd only join Everton if no other prem club came in for him) who would only use us to get a move to a 'bigger club'. I'm sick of mercenaries.

Comparing it to Lukaku's loan deal is a bit odd and not relevant. It isn't effectively a loan deal, just because he's in the last year of his contract.

Lennon has been around for a long time, but at 27 brings Premier League experience while entering his prime years. It's a good deal. I can see him getting back into the England squad.

I don't ignore these guys you mention, they don't even register as gems yet. Play 10 games in the Prem before they even count in that category. Until then they are Baxters, da Silvas, Greens, or Branches or Cadamarteris or Chadwicks. We get excited about youth teams but rarely fulfilled. Even Anichebe counted as a big success in coming through.

Henen is in his second year here and is he pulling up trees? Are you predicting he is the next Anthony Martial in terms of profit? No I didn't think so.

You didn't mention Ryan Ledson, where is his big push for the first team? These guys don't even get any game time under Martinez when the likes of Barry are guaranteed to play.

The view of Martinez as champion of youth is another myth, spun by his supporters. He does not look like polishing any of these alleged proto-gems.

Welcome to the Mighty Blues, Aaron!

Yesterday's other signings were very much for the future but it is good to see the manager has confidence in our squad to make a good impression this season.

No reason why a climb of half-a-dozen places shouldn't be achieved come next May.

He made a big difference to us last season and as Colin said in his post he wants to play for us and he always puts in a shift - that will do me.

Just wish we had someone like Arteta to plonk in the middle of this lot and let him loose because, no matter how hard I try, I just can't come up with a balanced team from what is now a pretty good squad.

Lennon had a year on his contract, no squad number, and a large section on here deem it good to pay £4-4.5 million for him. Andre Ayew on a free was good business. This was a desperate bid to appear active in the market to appease fans. Couple that to paying well over the odds for Mori and we have had a poor window.

I am hugely disappointed, no Number 10 which frankly beggars belief, none of the deadwood moved on. The quicker this board are out the better.

I am just glad we kept Stones because the money would have either disappeared totally or been wasted from the looks of things. At least we have an easy run of fixtures, eh.

You said his face was tripping him, but then neglected to talk about the effort and commitment he put into playing for Everton. Maybe he just hates getting his picture took!

He's playing Stones, Barkley, Galloway, Browning. He can only bring a few in at a time, and only if they're good enough. Roberto is putting together a core of young players, but that doesn't mean he has to play a bunch of kids.

He deserves a little more time before being judged in this particular department, regardless of how you feel about his tactics, system etc.

"Aaron Lennon, who is essentially a LOAN SIGNING!!!! because he has 1 YEAR on his contract, £4.5M.....

Lennon on loan costs more than Lukaku on loan???"

You do know he was on loan for the second half of last season and we have signed him perm now don't you?!?!?

"He deserves a little more time before being judged in this particular department"

You're entitled to think that, but I don't agree.

His career has not started in the time he has been with Everton. I don't recall him having bought a player low and sold on high at Wigan. You can't point to players like McCarthy since RM paid the fee from the other side!

What I certainly can judge him on are the purchases he has made at Everton to date and, in my opinion, he has paid well over the odds on quite a few occasions.

I'm thinking Kone, loan deals for players who were injured the whole time (Traore wtf!).

Basically I am saying I think RM is very poor in the transfer market and spends money with wild Latin abandon whereas Moyes spent it like it was his own and true to form conjured up images of Pte Fraser in Dad's Army parting with his cash (or not) from his little purse.

This may have infuriated us and may have unfairly even been reflected back on BK withholding cash when it may have been Moyes - I don't know.

But long term this cautious approach was exactly what was required for Everton, like it or not. Whereas, in my opinion, RM pays top dollar prices for players who do not significantly improve the squad and more importantly have no sell on recoup. This is a slow death for us and I am not basing this on a contaminated view from RM's tactics or team selections, but granted I don't like those either but for entirely separate reasons.

I was actually surprised and concerned that the board has not pulled the plug on his contract but then I remind myself of the actual board we have and realise that actually there is no real hope or expectation any more for this club to progress.

It's no longer a pleasure (for me) being an Evertonian the habit has turned into pain. For me, Martinez and all he stands for and particularly his "style" of football, combined with Kenwright and his band of not very merry men, have just about finished me off.

No need to ask which side I'm on!

In fact, there are barely any similarities in the situations of Yarmolenko and Lennon in terms of the factors that would affect their transfer value.

GK: Howard, Robles

RB: Coleman, Hibbert (Stones, Browning, Pennington, Holgate)

LB: Baines, Oviedo, Garbutt (Galloway, Funes)

CB: Stones, Jagielka, Funes, Browning, Galloway, Pennington (Besic, Barry)

DM: Barry, McCarthy, Besic, Gibson

CM/AMC/'10': Barkley, Cleverley, Osman,

AML: Pienaar (Osman, Cleverley, Mirallas, McGeady?, Oviedo) Not Barkley or Naismith

AMR: Mirallas, Deulofeu, Lennon, McGeady (Kone)

SS/'10': Naismith, McAleny (Mirallas)

CF: Lukaku, Kone, Rodriguez (Mirallas, Naismith)

The problem is certainly not having a small squad, as a couple of people have mentioned. In fact one of our problems is we don't give enough game time to good players who need it and would help the team if they were given it.

The huge, gaping problem is that there is one player at the club whose primary position is on the left, and he is injured, and none of the players who fill in there have done it particularly successfully. The other one, which has been commented on, and drives fans absolutely barmy, is that we now have four right wingers, and Martinez seems insistent on playing people out of position there as well.

The fact is that football fans are never happy no matter what the club does.