U23s hammer six past Spurs

It was hard to see how well they played without knowing the strength of the Spurs team. Lots of good performances from Browning, Foulds, Broadhead, with Harry Charsley standing out at right-back. It looks like Everton are trying to convert Harry to a right-back and the kid looked enthused tackling and driving forward at every opportunity; he looked good to me, again without knowing the strength of Spurs.

David Unsworth singled out certain players for praise, with Dowell being one of them. Unless Unsworth was trying to gee him up, I entirely disagreed with him – Dowell got an assist from a wind-induced corner but, for me, he looked like he didn't want to be there. Most of the individual pieces he tried, he loused up. Comparing his performance with Charsley, playing in a new position, I'd say he wants to take a good look at himself, and that's being polite.

Nevertheless, another good result for the U23 team.

The obvious spots needed in first team are a clinical striker and a dominant midfielder. To that end, it's good to see Hornby score and presumably Adeniran and Markelo played well but not sure many of these will get first team minutes any time soon; though if Hornby went on a scoring streak and Tosun & Calvert-Lewin continued to struggle, perhaps he'd get a shot.

It was emphasised even more when Bowler came on and was desperate to get on the ball and ran at his markers with skill and balance, scored with a powerful daisy-cutter into the bottom corner and also had two other decent goal attempts.

Bowler is the kid they signed from QPR's academy and he looked good to me,. Adeniran was another lad they signed from London.

And I can't think which one, big and strong but maybe tried too hard to impress, he was another to keep your eye on.

I was impressed when Unsworth brought him into the first team. Where is he now? Not even U23s?

I did think Beni was a bright light in some dark times under Unsworth. But, I don't see the clamour for him to be honest. He's the same age as Davies, but seems to be quite some way behind him in terms of development.

I think he could well come good, don't get me wrong, but I don't see why so many want him in the first team. For me, he's a good little battler, no doubt, but I think he needs to develop his game some more.

I felt great sympathy for Unsworth last year when he was thrown into that abyss and told to win with a team that had forgotten how to. But maybe, just maybe, he could be at least part of the answer in the future?

I have nothing against Silva but I believe he will go the way of Martinez, Koeman etc by virtue of the fact that the modern game has passed us by. I believe we have to do something radically different if we want to be competitive again. The big money buys of Richarlison etc are merely papering over the cracks and we will simply end up with players the top clubs don't really want. Moshiri will surely see this in the near future? I am amazed he has continued to bankroll purchases in the way he has up to now.

Anyway, watching the U23s seems to be the only way right now to experience the high of 3 points all in one go.

Glad you were able to attend Dave, though I'm disappointed with your assessment of Dowell. I'm pretty pleased for Charsley though as I've had a soft spot for him for a while, as does Unsworth. He is a player without the obvious talent of his peers but just continues to develop steadily where others stall and fall by the wayside. Very intriguing to think of him as a fullback but he is an obviously intelligent youngster who should be able to adapt (like the much maligned Davies).

I thought Galloway was a nailed-on certainty to become a regular Premier League player, and to a lesser degree Browning, but it seems there's going to have to be a lot of first-team players injured before they get a game in the side again.

It must be difficult for young players to decide should they stay or seek pasture new.

Have you considered another hobby as football doesn't really seem to be doing it for you?

If 4 can make it into the league system – Premier, Championship, League One, League Two – I think that's a fair result. Some years will yield better, some less. Can you afford not to land that hidden gem?

As a parent it's a numbers game, and the sad truth is that 99.9% of kids going through won't make it as Premier League footballers. The clubs are cash rich and are happy to spit most out as rejects.

Young kids chasing the dreams and money, would seem better off playing in the lower leagues and building up. The England World Cup team had a huge number of players that didn't go through the academy structure, at the very time that clubs have spent a huge sum on these things.

Anyway, if Everton don't give him a new contract he will be a free agent, he did well at Sunderland last season, I think he will get a nice signing on fee at a new club with decent wages, so he has a good ten years, at least to make a very good living at football, my opinion is he will
that living in the championship or maybe lower.

That said I don’t know if you can really call Calvert-Lewin, Holgate, Davies and Kenny first team players. Not yet anyway.

When you look around the rest of the premier league, there’s no replications of the Man Utd class of 92, and no I don’t mean quality, I mean the quantity who came through at the same time.

I think people expect too much. Our FA youth cup winning side of 1998 was exceptional. The Echo did a recent article on it Link

As you can see we produced six premier league regulars, five for us, one went else where:
- Richard Dunne - signed from our link up with Home Farm in Ireland
- Francis Jeffers
- Leon Osman
- Danny Cadamateri
- Tony Hibbert
- Jamie Milligan - left and came back to the premier league with Blackpool.

Dunne, Jeffers, and Osman were all capped.

Another way to look at things though is young Jonjo. He’s worth what? £10m at least. I’d say that saving of £10m has paid for the academy for the last two years. Barkley left for £15m that’s paid for at least three years. The academy pays for itself.

I think it’s a quirk of the area, the culture of the city, one of the last bastions of street football that leads to the city producing more quality footballers that any other city, and this has gone on for decades now. Even with shit facilities we produced that 1998 generation.

Since then, Jeffers, Osman, Ball, Barkley, Rooney, and jack Rodwell have all graduated from academy to the England national team.

Loads of clowns Kieran, let’s just hope we don’t have to sell the next batch.

I wonder if Michael or Lyndon could contact the club on the fans behalf to point out the number of occasions this broadcast system fails and the club would be better served not providing such a facility if it fails so often.

What did Hornby look like? I've heard good things about this lad... What was your view? I know you're an avid watcher of the younger sides.

He will come on the more he plays as a striker, he has only played in this position the last twelve months, got a good chance of being a good striker for the Blues.