Reports claim Belfodil deal agreed

If he's someone who'll hold the ball up, be a presence in the box and can get say 10 a season this is a good addition. Worth rolling the dice at this price.

I found some video... he certainly knows what to do with a free kick -- this one was from 26 meters: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtZRH7zg5yY

Does well to get on the end of a cross with a header here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnZ8nmDJ-98

...and another one here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0bne1JaZhk

He's also Liege's penalty-taker: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6TbtOGsHnc

No shame not to break through at Inter or Bologna, but one goal in 23 at Parma is a pretty ugly statistic. As Will says, however, perhaps a late bloomer... scored for fun at Baniyas and Standard.

I know prices are inflated but this is not a price to pay for a second string option I wouldn't have thought.

I did a little bit of online digging on this lad and to be honest I don't know what to make of him. He's a big huge lad at nearly 6'-4'' and they say he's good at dribbling but from the small piece I saw on YouTube he doesn't exactly get me too excited. You would imagine he will be backup to Rom as opposed to playing alongside him but who knows.

He struggled to get games and goals in Italy with Inter, Parma and Livorno before moving to the UAE where he scored 11 goals in 23 games. Looks like he's doing okay with Standard Liege with 7 goals. I'd imagine Koeman looks at his height and thinks we can win more long balls with him.

Probably not a potential superstar but I'm happy to trust Walsh. I'm assuming he's watched a lot of the lad and perhaps feels he's about to kick on? Let's hope so. This one was certainly under the radar and seems to be getting wrapped up pretty quickly.

This would take our January spending to approx £40 million! I'm starting to get a little excited.

I go with the consensus. I'll trust Walsh's call, but his stats in some relatively lower leagues aren't encouraging. Fingers crossed he's a late bloomer.

We don't need any more average players we have enough already, thank you very much.

He was always quite highly rated when younger as well, hence Inter taking him at such an early stage of his career. 

I also wouldn't read too much into him moving around a fair bit or being available on a free twice in recent years, nor worry it's a neon warning sign of probable 'shiteness'.

Immediately prior to his first move on a 'free', Parma were financially in the shit, had been unable to pay wages to their players for most of the season and had just suffered relegation to the second division. Belfodil, as one of their highest earners, struck a deal which saw his contract (which would have run until 2018) torn up in return for him waiving any claim to wages earned but not paid. 

When he signed for Bani Yas and moved to Abu Dhabi, he (or his agent) was astute enough to secure a 2 year contract that gave the player the right to terminate after a year if he so wished: 

“Since the first moment I decided to play in the Gulf, I was convinced I would not stay forever. I signed a contract for two seasons and the club gives me the freedom to terminate the contract. I want to go back to Europe and play for a club in a major league, and for that I am ready to make great sacrifices.”

Faced with losing one of their star players (who had scored 14 in 29), Bani Yas tried to stand firm, with their vice chairman publicly announcing they would force him to honour the full two years, but it was always a forlorn, posturing stance on their part. 

Either it's a Walsh gem or he's signed as back up.

One point. I really don't see the point in buying 'back up' players as reported if that's what Koeman sees him as. Buying 2 absolute crackers for the first 11 would seem much better including someone who triggers our return to the big time.

Anyway, I guess only time will tell...

Spot on. People love a good moan on here. Personally if this happens I'm looking forward to seeing him play.

Remember Lucas Perez who we chased till he went to Arsenal. Until arriving at Deportivo La Coruna on a permanent deal (on loan 6 in 21) he hadn't done much till he was about 25.

Some players are like that they develop later. I have my reservations about the deal but think he should be given a fair chance if signed. Surely the scout who's watched him and Walsh won't bestow us with a dud like the previous recruitment gurus did with Niasse.

I would like to see a championship player step up but when Hogan of Brentford is quoted at £15m that looks more of a risk.

It seems a lot of money for a player who can't get in the Algerian squad.

Obviously the one concern is physicality, playing in a league were this is a necessity. He's not played anywhere that tests this particular facet.

But Ross better pull his finger out. As the transfers take shape, it feels like there is less room to squeeze him in. One hopes competition for his place, something hes never had, could be the making of the lad?

John at 19, thank you for some real information. Sounds positive.

We, the dichotomy that is Everton fans, is there for all to see. Whatever the quality of the current squad, most have one thing in common: they are stale, been here ages.

At least changing those players, good or bad, will or should inject life into the side. Swing the dressing room away from a culture which needs changing?

He could be a dud, this lad, but we know for sure some at Everton already are, so there's room for a 'maybe'... right?

Give them a chance, koeman and Walsh have a good track record. Moshiri is putting his money where his mouth is with the interest free loan and the training ground sponsor with shirt sponsor to be announced. It can't happen overnight, we can't go out and buy James at Madrid. It will take time.

Good points. Stats aren't the be all and end all. Depends on when a player matures, the system they're played in, how they "fit" with a team.

Hell, Alan Shearer had a 1 goal in 5 record for Southampton, over more than 100 games, when Blackburn signed him. On that basis, we'd have been saying "he looks shit".

Now we bring in a player under the radar, without an obvious pedigree, and the default reaction is "Oh, well I haven't heard of him. Must be crap."

Walsh and the scouts think so to; he's 25 tomorrow, 6ft-3in... Be happy, Evertonians.

Mahrez?

Only £300,000? He must be shite.

I need to go and lay down.

The information we were given hardly sets the pulse racing; now if it excites you, all well and good.

I seem to remember a lot of the naysayers on this thread also questioned the sanity of the Gueye signing.

Get a fucking grip and let's see how he does shall we.

The point is, if Koeman thinks he will noticeably improve the first 11, then fine – it's the comment about being backup I don't like. We don't need anymore backup.

So he must be really shite then!

Look forward to seeing what this guy has to offer. My only quibble is if we've (hopefully) been scouting him for a while then why not get him on a free in the Summer? Hopefully we're not buying him based just on 6 months form. That way Niasse madness lies.

Mikel turned out to be a fantastic signing so hopefully this lad will surprise us all. I think Cahill was a similar age when we signed him and he'd not really done much in his career at that point either.

£10M isn't a great amount these days so let's just wait and see.

We just need to offload Cleverley now. If we've got bodies leaving this window I'd still like us to grab a creative central midfielder too. Bid £30m for Sigurdsson, Walsh.

That said, on another thread Niasse has apparently turned into Georgey Weah and not the awful footballer I saw.

Imagine Koeman sees something similar in this player. Hope he has similar impact in the Premier League.

Look forward to seeing another Walsh bargain pull up trees.

It looks as though he has the physicality, and that the Premier League may be more suiting his style more than the type of football played in his previous leagues.

I'll keep my opinions under lock and key before I see him play a few games. That's if the rumour is true of course.

Link

Where's our resident Benelux expert, Eric Dol?

Let's go out and beat Man City. COYB

Some players come here and struggle and drift in to obscurity, others thrive and make the step up quite comfortably. We've seen big money players come to the Premier League such as Shevchenko, Falcao, Crespo etc and do zip, yet we've seen bargains like Mahrez and Coleman come over and take like a duck to water.

Proof is in the pudding, fellows Blues!

I must admit to having no knowledge of this player until now. Worth mentioning that Standard Liege are 12th in the Belgian League and are not the force they once were. They are owned by Duchatelet who also took over Charlton Athletic with similar downward trend in their fortunes. Possible connection in the Lookman and Belfodil signings?

My view is that we have Steve Walsh scouting these new signings. He has far more experience than any of us, so let's just see how this chap goes. All signings are a risk. In Steve we trust!

We just have to trust those with their asses on the line doing these deals because time waits for no man in this league and apparently we have enough money not to just speculate.

Take "Belfodil" – guaranteed to ease your stress. Please follow the dosage, read the instructions carefully, and report any side effects to your GP.

At the very least we've identified a clear target and got it close to completion without it being bandied around the papers for months. That should be welcomed by us all! I agree Belfodil's goal stats don't seem to suggest he's a £10M striker, but if he does prove a useful squad member then we should be very glad that Steve Walsh looks beyond the obvious and makes the right judgements (just as he did with Riyad Mahrez).

If Walsh proves with this signing that he still has that ability then we can look forward to a bright future of canny player recruitment, wise use of Moshiri's cash and Walsh's signing will indeed turn out to have been the truly important one!

Shut up!

"Might be another Stracq!"

You too!

I have never heard of him but that is why we engaged Steve Walsh. He is paid pretty wel,l I would guess, to know more about footballers than any of us and I am trusting him to know that this guy can do a decent job for us as either a support or back up striker – not the main man as we would have to pay a hell of a lot more for that player but someone to help Lukaku or replace him for certain games or parts of games.

If Walsh is wrong then so be it but the price is right, the players age is right and he seems big enough to cope with the physical stuff. I'm happy to give him a chance if he does sign – and I'm happy also that we will have acquired three players within the first two weeks. I'm happy all round really!

Seems he has been rated at times in his early years but maybe just not given enough opportunities to build up his confidence.

Let's hope we all grow to love him for his efforts and contributions to the team whether they are assist, goals or just giving some centre-backs a hard time.

COYB

Under £10M = Shite
Over £20M = Overpriced Shite
£14M = Oumar Niasse (therefore, shite)
Under 25yrs = Raw Talent, probably shite
25 years + 1 day = OAP, Shite
Eager to join Everton = Shite
Willing to join Spurs, Arsenal, Man Utd, Man City etc = Money Grabbing Shithouse
Playing in:
Russia, Greece, Belgium, Holland , France, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Scotland... Anywhere = Shite!

But this is TW, and we are "The Custodians of Shitefulness".

Because our beloved "Bullshit Billy by the radio", has turned us into "The Museum of Premier Shite".

The saying, "You can't please all the people happy all the time"... Christ, how true!!! We look to sign an unknown, he is shite/waste of money... it's another Niasse... "What's Walsh doing?" Or we sign a Man Utd player and it's "Wot the fuck is Steve Walsh doing? I could've spotted that player"!!!

We have short memories. We yearned to invest in players, do a Leicester – not getting freebies and loans. Let's support tthe team and enjoyt the journey. After all, I would never enjoy giving money to moaning bastards if I was Moshiri. In Koeman I trust. COYBs

https://youtu.be/50ogR-akGSg

I know You Tube can make anyone look good but at this stage it's all we've got to go off and to me he looks bloody strong, determined, gets on the end of crosses, and a finisher.

In short, exactly what we fucking need!

Oh and Berahino? You mean the tit who thinks he's too good for his club and thinks it's all about him? Yeah we are desperate for that...

Written in July 2013, I'm trusting he has matured a bit since then, or else ... Caveat emptor, 'buyer beware' as the Italians like to say.

Some extracts.

Having scored, assisted a goal and got sent off in a game, in the next match his team won a penalty (stop me if this sounds familiar...).

"Nicola Sansone had gone down in the area and won a penalty for Parma. Belfodil's teammate Marco Marchionni picked up the ball and walked towards the spot when he was confronted by Belfodil who petulantly demanded that he take it. ‘You better not miss, then,' Marchionni probably thought. Except Belfodil did. Albano Bizzarri saved it but couldn't hold onto the ball. Fortunately for Belfodil it fell to him and he made amends, blasting it into the net only to then shush and insult his bench.

"After the match, Parma coach Roberto Donadoni warned him that if he wasn't careful fans would associate him with action like that first and his goals second. “Zinedine Zidane had a great career,” he said, “but people only remember the headbutt he gave Materazzi in the World Cup final.”

"Belfodil to his credit apologised and quickly put it behind him. It was the start of a hot streak through the winter months. That's when he really stoked things up, scoring five goals in eight games. Juventus wanted him. Napoli did too. At the time, though, nothing came of their interest and when the transfer window closed in the spring, Belfodil was still a Parma player.

"He was disappointed. Some claimed he sulked. There were other tantrums.

"During Parma's 3-0 defeat at home to Udinese in April, Belfodil got embroiled in a row with his captain Alessandro Lucarelli. “I didn't like his attitude in a particular game situation,” Lucarelli said. “Ishak has to understand that it takes humility to reach a certain level. The advice that I give and not just to him is to put yourself at the service of your teammates and improve. Follow positive examples and you'll go far.” Donadoni also suggested he should make more effort to get on with his teammates."

Now these incidents occurred when he was 20-21, so hopefully he has matured since then. Some good stuff in the article about his build, style of play and potential. Likened to Benzema (which Belfodil himself rejects), the player's preferred model is no less than 'Il Fenomeno' – the great Brazilian Ronaldo.

I wish!!!

It would certainly be an interesting acquisition with a particular tactic / style of football in mind.

I haven't seen anything from him that really gets the pulse racing, but if he can help bind the team together and rattle a few centre halves along the way, then I can see a modern day Denis Stracqualursi in the making!

This could be a defining signing in terms of Walsh's value to the club.

Hopefully this lad does better and consigns Kone to a swift departure like Niasse.

And let's get Galloway back from WBA whilst we're at it. Be like a new signing...

I wandered lonely as a scout
That floats on high o'er Bill and deals
When all at once I saw, and tout,
A gem, a golden Bel-fo-dil;
Bill, sort the contract and the fees
Cos this big bugger could be the knees!

Well here's hoping anyway.

A little caution is okay...

He did join up with the squad only to be told he was ineligible.

None of us had really heard of Radzinski prior to his showing in a European game against Man Utd and at the time £4.5m felt a bit steep also Fellaini cost £15m on the strength of his performances in two games and again not many of us knew of him.

Jury is out for me on this one, mind you I fancy us having a go for Depay so...?

YouTube or not, slap an Afro wig on him and those headed goals were Fellaini ones. Looks good with both feet, too. Again, like Fella (who we've never replaced).

Boy, I'd love to see him and Lukaku paired up top. Let the other team's manager have to worry for a change, instead of simply wrapping a cocoon of defenders around Rom for 90 minutes.

Nothing on the clip showing if he knows how to defend from the front, though. With that, I'm choosing to be excited that we get him in.

I'm sure Walsh isn't going to be perfect, that's impossible.

This signing and the whispers we are looking to sign another centre-back seem to indicate a 3-4-1-2 system. I hope so. Never been a fan of 1 up front.

Have to take a leap of faith in Walsh et al. Fingers crossed this isn't a slightly cheaper Niasse, Mk II.

Positives... He's tall. Could be a good target man!?

Concerns...
1. Showed petulance and insisted on taking a penalty from his own player and shushing his own team mates after he scored screams attitude problems.

2. Being passed around like my ex and seeing more of the planet than ET at age 24 does not sit well.

3. Having promise and failing every time could amount to laziness and not being able to apply oneself... a la my school years.

4. Shit goalscoring return... 23 in 105!

5. Tired of hearing Walsh and Mahrez in the same sentence... He did sign others who have failed.

6. £10.5 Million is not a bargain unless he scores a lot or contributes tirelessly to the cause.

7. and finally I was more upbeat with Niasse's arrival!!!

He might turn out to be bloody brilliant, but we on ToffeeWeb have the right to voice our concerns.

I have been daydreaming about us playing 4-4-2 with two big strikers – one 6'-3" who can hold the ball up and head it and the other 6'-4" who can run with it and finish.

I wouldn't like to be in a defence up against that combination.

Just need the "enforcer" from Atlanta now and we will be back in business.

Up the Blues!

Be interesting to see what those same people say if there is in fact no deal and he doesn't come to us.

Now go get Pulisic, Dembele, or even Mor from Dortmund, all of whom play multiple attacking positions. Pulisic looks to be the most creative at setting up opportunities though. Also look at Durm (left back), and the GK Bonmann. Any of these will address needs Everton has. They won't be cheap but we just spent £22 million for a player who wouldn't make the bench on that team.

Yes, I know Reus, Schurrle, Weigl, Gotze, Kagawa, and Aubameyang are there also but I was trying to keep some semblance of reality to my wish list.

(I am happy for the guy to sign... although his track record does raise a few concerns.)

Surely we need a playmaker to knit front to back together more effectively, why do we never seem to be in for a Coutinho, Firmino, Silva type. I got so excited when we were allegedly in for Mata in the summer.

I get we need backup to Rom, but this would indicate a low cost like for like backup? So is the way we're currently playing the way we're supposed to be playing?

Best of luck to him. As with everything at the club right now, we'll just have to wait and see.

I know very little about him – not many seem to at this point – but what I've seen reminds me of old fashioned 9s like Graziano Pelle, Bobby Zamora, Hakan Sukur and Christian Vieri. I should think that Walsh et al are trying to find footballers who will help other players to be more effective, and the team to be more balanced. With decent service then I should think he will score goals.

Barbs from Koeman to the board in the presser and the extra £2-3M is found. Niasse off the books and another one in.

His career stats don't look great at first looks and it seems he's a bit nomadic for a 24-year-old. But actually reading up on him it is not as bad as it looks.

There are some decent sized transfer fees involved and much of the movement in Italy involves co-ownership deals which are very common for highly rated young players. Even the free transfers he's been involved in have economic reasoning behind them.

Like everyone else commenting about him, no one really knows anything about him. I see that a number of people are throwing out that he isn't in the Algeria squad for the AFCON. They only have taken 3 strikers and one of them is Slimani. The other two players I haven't really heard of but looking at their current stats, they look like they are banging them in for their respected club sides.

I think a number of fans are skeptical about this deal as they see 'big money' for an unknown player. With the new money we have, I think many people are looking for a Galactico signing, but having Walsh on board it looks like it's going to be more unearthing gems as well as a couple of bigger name players.

An odd sense of self-entitlement pervades. Apparently Lukaku is not good enough for us, and some claim Schneiderlin isn't too. This guy is relatively unknown – but it is not as if Walsh has had any success in buying an unknown Algerian from a different league before? Or for that matter a French midfielder and a lower league talent... but Wikipedia stats are probably a better judge of a player.

I'd also like to see a playmaker come in though. We are in need of a creative presence to play in front of Gueye and Schneiderlin. Schneiderlin can pass the ball very well, better than some will expect, but we need someone to make us tick and control the tempo.

I'm interested to see how Walsh Stamps his authority on this job and I hope that in a market where average players seem to all be worth £20 mill plus, that Walsh managers to find us a gems like Kante and Mahrez

He was left off this year's AFCON roster on the manager's decision, not due to paperwork problems.

He's seems a real physical presence though which I think is an attribute Koeman's signings, by and large, are going to possess moving forward. Maybe the vision is this guy with Lookman feeding off him? Planning for life without Rom?

I don't understand the negativity either way though – I'm always filled with hope and expectation on the eve of a new signing, it's like a mini-Christmas day. Next please!

Let's see what this lad can do.

Therefore I think it would be best all round if the lad is shite – just to keep the majority happy.

Where is my Everton and what have you done with them??

Thanky ou so very much I "double snotgunned" twice in rapid succession.

Still chuckling.

"Happy birthday Ishak Belfodil, 25 today . . . "

Price? £10.4M. Bloody hell! The club have actually applied the TW laws of quality.

No, hang on he's playing in Belgium = Shite

Just when I thought it was safe to come out from behind the sofa...

I have just ordered two of these items, one for me, the second for you. Email me your address, please ?

Link

In the post-Brexit, post-Trump world, aren't we supposed to trust the wisdom of crowds over people who actually know stuff? Experts = shite.

He's about to piss on us all.

Now if you want to complain about negative posts ,wait to we lose again and all the players are termed shite, the managers an idiot the worst that's ever lived, the world's at an end etc, etc!

Also I just read that Payet does not want to play for West Ham again. They said he is not for sale. But I think we should put in a little bid and see what happens.

We have had the full range over the last few weeks.

"What has Koeman ever done in football"

"He's shite;hasn't got a clue it's obvious what the selection and tactics should be"

"The fans and the tv analysts forced him to play this player or that player.He had no choice but to play them"

"Moshiri is a fraud he is in Kenwrights pocket"

Sad to say ,a few are hoping it doesn't improve so they can say " told you about Koeman"

I understand mate. "Radio Billy" and his cronies have "taken the piss" for two decades!

Ishak Belfodil only played 133 days for Standard. His return:
21 games
10 goals
5 assists
A big transfer fee

Seems like it's happening, and based on that record and conveniently ignoring his previous records, seems decent.

Just saying...(Ignoring the fact he was/is utter garbage, I'll assume he's erm decent...?)

Only thing that makes me hopeful re Belfodil is that Martinez is nowhere near this transfer and the Koeman & Walsh team must rate the guy.

At least Niasse had a good goalscoring record and wasn't given a chance. Another waste of space, methinks, to add to our misery.

My first thoughts on watching his Youtube highlights (which are sparse) were that he's a bit ungainly ... or as my mate commented .. "he runs as if the hairs on the cheeks of his arse are tied together."

If he joins then welcome to Everton matey and the very best of luck .. let's hope that his form continues in its current upward trajectory and whatever the reasons are for his past failings are behind him.

Never heard of this guy and it appears there's not been a queue of Clubs in for him. I also hear his contract is up in the Summer.

I would have thought a Club having a player going on a free would be happy getting a few quid for him in January as opposed to nowt in the Summer.

There is a report from some Belgian rag that the fee is only 4 million which seems more likely. Weird.

Years of Kenwright's juggling act and contributions to Philip Green's off-shore savings has left the squad in a dangerous state of disrepair. The media always highlight that we have a decent first XI, which would have been enough back in the 1980s, but in an era where the likes of Chelsea and City effectively send two teams out on loan we need more quality in the depth of our squad.

I hear some here talk about the need for four or five signings, whilst I would argue it should be more like ten or eleven. There's just no way to do that by only looking in the most obvious places for players with big reputations and big price tags to boot. That is why, I presume, that Walsh was brought in: to make what transfer funds we have available go as far as they can. Seemingly speculative punts and players that have gone under the radar will be a symptom of that approach.

Take him on loan till the end of the season if the club really sees something we can't.

Peter (#187), Had you heard of Mahrez or Kante before they went to Leicester? Were you underwhelmed by the signing of Gueye? We could go and spunk a fortune on a "name" to appease people like you, and they could turn out to be like Crespo, Falcao, Veron, Shevchenko

You'll probably love it if he fails so you can sit back, put your feet up and claim "I told you so."

If Southampton go out of the League Cup, expect a late bid for the centre back too. Going big in the summer for Butland.

I for one am quite excited at the prospect of seeing the new players in action. COYB

But in most of these scenarios they do not turn out to be any good. Much easier to get excited about a known quantity, and that's also why those players cost more, they are much more of a guarantee.

James (#192) is absolutely correct, Mahrez had scored 6 in 60 for Le Havre before joining Leicester last season.

Can't we give the lad a chance. We will know by the end of the season if he is a Niasse or a Gueye.

No, let's just try someone who relatively recently was in a local Sunday club in zero league for £12 million. Hmm....

Wouldn't he be an amazing round peg in a round hole for us right now?

I have a soft spot for Liège and see then play from time to time. I have seen the lad, to be honest I wouldn't have expected him to go to the Premier League. He's good for standard but to me nothing more. You wouldn't expect it with his height but he is not that good at holding the ball till the midfield arrives.

Let's hope I am wrong and he is the next Pelle. Belgium press is saying he is a typical Walsh-signing.

Hope Slaven let's him rot in the reserves.

You in effect did not answer the question but instead made reference to circumstantial information, ie, obiter.

Lots of us rate Walsh highly because he brought these lads in to Leicester and they did so well last season but a lot of it is down to other factors and how well the team are doing.

Strikers and attack minded players depend a lot on confidence and lack of fear and I think Leicester had that last year with Rainieri.

Koeman has us playing a lot more defensively, and with fear I reckon.

I wonder if we'll keep up the pace and make it six by the close?

*Runs to get his tin hat.*

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REPl2ttGISE

As several people have already posted – to make progress, all he has to do, is be better than Niasse!

So let me get this straight:- you have made your mind up that Belfodil is a Sunday League player with a £12m valuation? Or "relatively recently was in a local Sunday club in zero league" ,ergo he must be, to use a ToffeeWeb favourite, shite ?

Have you seen much of Belfodil? Just asking. (I must confess, I haven't, then again, since I no longer play Sunday League, and rarely visit Belgium these days our paths would be unlikely to cross... ;-)

I just find it amusing the way transfer valuations just keep rising, at least, on ToffeeWeb...

The Snodgrass shout isn't a bad one though, but Hull will no doubt do all they can to keep him. "learn to deal "...I'm learning all the time, John.

Obiter dicta indeed. Not heard that for years..

Proud to be Blue.

As for having to pay out big bucks for 'name' players, according to the media Everton are literally rolling in those bucks right now, so money should not prove a problem to honour our motto 'Only The Best Will Do'. To my mind Mr Walsh still has to prove himself as a master spotter of potential star material (for us). If he turns out to be half as good as David Moyes was in that field, I will be extremely happy.

Our club usually steps up in circumstances such as these. Wonderful club to support.

We certainly need another striker, and at least one attacking midfielder as a minimum. Anything else is a bonus.

Interesting article in the Red Echo, about the Plymouth fan whose son died in hospital while the fan was at Anfield last Sunday. Condolences to the family of course.

The article goes on to say the RS fans have done a collection to make a banner IRO the son, which they will display at Plymouth in the replay. The sum raised... £320!!

Got no problems with the money raised, but what galls me is one RS fan in the comments stating. "Fantastic, best fans in the world" Has this fan not heard of the collections done by EFC fans IRO Bradley Lowrey, or the money donated by the Everton board?

And another point, no mention of any comments from the RedShite hierarchy regarding this sad occasion. Everton have invited Bradley and his family down to be the Everton mascot on Sunday before he departs for his treatment. Let's see what the RedShite offer the family of the dead son?

Perhaps a free trip to Anfield for a Premier League game? I won't hold my breath on that one!!

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. We'd all love to win trophies, but the one thing they will never be better than us at is the off-field activities, the Everton in the Community, etc. Everton as a club are head and shoulders above them, as are us fans.

WE ARE THE BEST FANS IN THE WORLD!!

Good on the Liverpool fan who started the appeal and to those who responded. I'm proud of the fact that as Scousers we're able to empathise with others when misfortune strikes and we do it out of humane feelings and not so that we just look good.

Condolences to the family of the Plymouth fan.

It's being reported that this deal is going ahead. It was expected to be announced yesterday but there has been some delay caused by interference from intermediaries who should not be involved apparently.

This is from the same source that broke the story originally and may explain the delay in announcing the Schneiderlin deal.

Who is Ishak Belfodil? Meet Everton's unpredictable new attacker once compared to Ibra

Sounds like a lad that has talent in there somewhere and is slowly starting to show it, may just be worth the gamble.