Blades cut to the heart of Blues' incompetence

Sheff Utd will begin the game on the back foot, effectively having 9 men behind the ball.

Everton will play ponderous sideways passing.

Sigurdsson will find no space to play in and will be largely anonymous.

Schneiderlin will look ok at first, however the longer we take to score, the more Schneiderlin and Delph will become isolated in midfield.

Sheff Utd will grow in confidence and begin to overrun us in the centre of midfield.

Our defenders will then be on the back foot and they will carve out a number of good openings.

The game will open up and, if we score late, it will be another fortunate victory.

When the game does open up, Sigurdsson will come more into the game and will be praised for his good performance when in reality he will have done nothing for the first hour.

The alternative is
If we score early then Sheff Utd will come at us more and will play into our hands, Schneiderlin and Sigurdsson will both have a good game if this happens and Silva will be labelled a genius.

I am no DCL fan but why does this charlatan insist on picking him then dropping him, picking him then dropping him ?!?!

Why not try Kean and DCL together for a change?!?

Win or lose today - he has to go

Saves us all from watching the game.

Surely, but surely, when players are injured, that is the opportunity to give some youngsters a chance on then bench - rather than 4 different strikers.

Anyway, hopefully a confident 2-0 win.

Marcelino is available, Just saying.

All the stats favouring Everton, but the one that counts.

We have six corners and the delivery from our dead ball specialists didn't give us a sniff of a chance from any of them. They win their one and only corner five minutes before half-time, an excellent delivery sees their players running off ours attacking the ball, spooking Pickford who has to get a fist on the ball. Mina an unfortunate own goal.

They are leading - and haven't even registered a shot on goal!

Our two Brazilians are playing well. Kean, other than the cross he made to give Richarlison the chance of a headed equaliser, once again peripheral.

Nobody is playing 'badly'. Richarlison looks the most likely to score of his own making, cutting inside from the right. But nobody is producing the magic to suggest we can create good scoring opportunities.

As things stand, I can't see Kean staying on much longer in the second half.

Fuck this!!!

Didn’t actually expect them to score.

Like for like subs with two anonymous players in Schneiderlin and Sigurdsson staying on the pitch?

If Silva is not sacked right now, the board have no balls. We are going nowhere under this clown.

The only problem is, who will Moshori hire next? His record is disgraceful as far as hiring managers

Charlatan! And we head-hunted him!!?! What is that all about?!?!

Shocking at Watford, shocking at hull and we go and head hunt him ?!?

Unbelievable!

Why don't we break the bank for a proven manager

- Wenger with a young understudy?

- Mourinho with a young understudy?

Someone who knows how to set a team up with a game plan at least!

We need someone who can put this stinking club back on track somehow abs fast!

We need a new seasoned manager who knows the importance of runners when looking to beat teams that defend in-depth, knows that seven passes to get over the halfway line is far too many passes, understands you need a player with vision in the middle and that the job of the defensive midfielder is to win the ball back and give it to the visionary to release the fleet of foot so they can score.

Maybe it is time to give Arteta a chance because he certainly coaches a team that delivers that style of football.

No-brainer.

Silva, get out of this club!

In Moshiri We Trust. Absolute laughing stock. Joke of a club!

The issue was in the middle and that meant Davies or Iwobi coming on for Sigurdsson. We needed the ball to get it into dangerous areas. Kean and Tosun didn’t have a chance between them.

Furious at that. No one gets any credit here.

Silva has lost the plot this season in terms of team selection, formation, tactics and substitutions. My patience with him has expired.

I would give it to Unsworth again until we can find a new manager. At least he has a clue what he is doing

But to be fair, keep him until the City game. Let him take that embarrassing defeat, then sack him and start afresh.

We have the players to steer clear of danger.

Wouldn't want him, he's not so special anymore.

Silva out!!!

It’s Everton isn’t it?

Laughing stock of the city as per usual, as long suffering fans we are used to it.

All this “In Brands we Trust” shit!?

I’m sorry but we had another monumental cock up of a summer yet again, failing to rectify problem areas.

Nothing changes, frankly nothing ever will.

If we can see exactly what is going to happen lining up against a team like that, why can’t the manager whose being paid millions?

Jay 8 - I wish all my prediction was correct. I’m glad I saved myself the bother of watching it.

We’ll struggle to score 30 goals this season.

Spot on and I've said this for years now and especially during Allardyce, Koeman and Martinez. What is the common factor between all those managers! It is the core coaching staff and mainly people like Duncan Ferguson.

What the fuck do these coaches actually coach when setting up a team of supposed talented players. The standard of football has been shocking this season and something has to give.

Equally, I hope no-one comes and defends Silva, as I assume the majority spotted a fraud before he was appointed, but were prepared to back him, oh how he has let everyone down!

There is no way, he can possibly stay now, like Danny @64, says I believe we have the players, who just need a proper Manager to coach them with purpose. Some shouting for Brands too, I can't see why, he has provided reasonable ammunition (maybe a bit over-priced in some cases) but Silva has pissed on that and it is incapable of use.

Also the lack of fast CB. Bad luck about Gbamin.

Brands left Silva a squad with notable holes it. Though even then Silva is not getting the best out of what he has currently.

Silva just doesn't know how to set up the team, his tactics are woeful, we are slow on the ball, awful at set pieces, and we panic.

This is all down to the manager.

You can coach them forever and a day, whether they actually listen to you or attempt what you've said is another matter.

They're just as guilty as Silva.

Blue Fever/Silva poisoning!

Make no mistake, he will not be sacked now. Even if we'd lost 10-0.

I'd say the earliest they would sack him is December and even then we'd probably have to be in bottom 6. Brands and Kenwright are big fans of giving managers time and know that the best managers are usually available in the summer not mid season.

It's not ALL down to the manager but he has to bring something to the table. Case in point, corners. How hard is it to practice scoring from set pieces when you have two massive center halves? We scored a header from Iwobi at Lincoln that looked good until Iwobi said in the press that everyone takes the piss out of him in training cause he can't header. So effectively, that goal was a fluke.

Even the home games where we have won, it has neither been convincing or showing any promise of getting better.

He's got to go simple as, I've seen earthworms with more back-bone!

It’s hard for young Moise, he’s nowhere near ready, especially to solve a goal scoring problem in a bad team like ours, Lukaku played in mediocre teams but he carried us through because he was (at Everton anyway) a top quality centre forward.

I would have like to have seen a move for a unfashionable centre forward, Ashley Barnes, Fernando Llorente for example, someone who can get the job done in a dirty way sometimes.

Well said.

Though no one on TW will believe that, most think:
money spent = talent = good team

It doesn't!

We're polishing a turd!

Silva repeatedly says he won't make big changes to 'the plan' because of a defeat. He said it again in this week's presser.

But time and time and time again, from a losing position, he goes all 'gung-ho' with the schoolyard tactic of throwing on as many forwards as if the sheer weight of attacking options will shift the balance in our favour. It is yet to work.

He went earlier than normal with his first subs today and his double change immediately made me nervous. Any threat for us up to that point had come primarily from our two Brazilians, Bernard and Richarlison. Kean was having absolutely zero joy against the Blades' 3 centre backs who, it is worth noting, did NOT display their remarked upon 'overlapping centre back' tactic today. Chris Wilder instructed them to stay at home and defend the edge of their penalty area, confident they could repel anything Everton threw at them.

So what does Silva do? He withdraws one of his main threats - Bernard - and one of his holding midfielders - Schneiderlin - for Iwobi and Tosun which immediately unbalances the set up.

It effectively further narrowed the pitch for Everton as Tosun joined the ineffective Kean up front and Iwobi played more inside rather than directly play wide left as Bernard had done. Sigurdson was also withdrawn a tad and asked to play 10-15 metres deeper.

It made the visitors' task of defending even easier.

With 20 minutes to go, Silva further compounded this 'gung-ho' approach by throwing on yet another forward - Walcott! - for his right back and captain Coleman. The side looked bemused by this wondering how the hell they were meant to set up.

Eventually, it settled down to become Michael Keane playing half right back, half centre back, Delph kinda in between Keane and Mina as a very deep lying defensive midfielder, Mina half left back,
half centre back to cover for the still raiding Digne.

You had Iwobi and Sigurdson in no-man's land in a very loose midfield, Richarlison now switched to the left whereas up until that point he looked our most potent threat cutting inside from the right. Tosun and Kean nominally in a central forward role, but unsurprisingly, getting no service. Walcott doing what he does on the right flank: not a lot.

There was no 'bridge' to build through from back to front. There was no quality in our crossing, particularly in the second half with the bewildering substitutions and formation change. Not once from our 12 corners did we duplicate the quality of delivery they did with their first corner of the game which led to the opening goal.

It came as absolutely no surprise to me that we never looked like scoring following these substitutions, or that they hit us with a second on a simple counter-attack.

2-2-2-3-2. That's what the goals conceded in our last five games now reads. Once again under Silva we are in the territory where teams do not have to play particularly well against us, or be inspired, to score goals and win the game.

This is quickly becoming a crisis. With a big cup game mid-week then a rampant City next week, it could very quickly get very, very messy.

Steve Ferns, sorry fellah, but your man is floundering. Badly.

Can Silva lift & motivate the players? Can he be bold? Can he inspire?

Who can? Can we get them?

I was indifferent to his appointment. I'm becoming more indifferent to him match by match.

We need to think about who/what we need, whether Silva can be that and whether we can attract/afford someone who can.

Likely Silva will say:

"we made individual errors that cost us"
"we didn't take our chances"
"it's difficult when we are missing Gomez to control midfield"

Which begs the following questions.

1.What do you do in training to eliminate these constant individual errors?
2.Do we ever practice finishing?
3.Seriously? Did you see him in the Villa game?

I’ve said it a few games back, but the loss of Silva’s trusted right hand man (Joao Sousa) is possibly the one big reason for what we are seeing this season. Silva may be struggling without the person he has leant on for many years.

I don’t buy it that a big manager would not come to us. Maybe not a top draw manager, but I don’t think it’s out the question given the money we could offer. Newcastle took Rafa and WH Pelligrini. Not advocating for either, but a manager with a history of winning can be found (and I do acknowledge Silva has won silverware).

Big week coming up - beat SW with a committed performance and we’ll feel better, but a defeat

"The way things are going Marco Silva could be managing Watford come Monday"

Just a bunch of players thrown at a football pitch.

When we go behind any team cohesion gets worse.

When substitutions are made they exacerbate the situation , they are slapdash and not thought out in any shape or form.

I have growing concerns about our season, we are struggling to score. We are struggling to make any clear chances at all. Other teams look fitter , physically stronger and bully us out of it where it matters. We cant win away from home. And now we are leaking 2 ridiculous goals a game.

Time for a proper team, properly set up, to show up.

Why two defensive midfielders today ? It was a great opportunity to play Tom Davies in the centre of the park and give us something extra there. We were flat as a pancake in the middle of the park.

Time to make coherent substitutions that don't completely destroy what little shape and control we had. ie keep the shape and inject some pace.

Sorry to pop your ego, but virtually nothing you wrote @ 4 happened. That's not how the game played out at all.

Nice try, though.

These are dangerous times. Someone needs to get a grip but I don’t think anyone will.

Fucking hopeless!

Feel a long winter ahead.

Proof is the pudding. Since RMs second season our players have commented our repeated failures by saying “we know we have a good team” or words to that effect. Out of boredoom yesterday I Googled “Coleman Jagielka puzzled” and found about 12 almost identical quotes to that effect from the past four years after shocking defeats. What does that even mean? How can you be “good” if you play badly constantly. It’s like a Trumpian universe when you lie so often it becomes true.

The guy is simply not up to the job. Was utterly underwhelmed when he was signed and nothing has remotely changed that since. I call him Martinez mark II bit realise now thats actually doing Martinez a disservice - if that’s even possible.

We need a proper seasoned manager who can communicate properly and knows what the premiership is about and has had some success (winning the Greek league with Olympiacos doesn’t count!). Stop signing managers who talk bollocks for a start. If West Ham can get Pellagrini why can’t we get someone with that pedigree?

People should not be asking the usual ‘but who would replace him?’. That’s for Brands and Moshiri to sort out.

Southampton
Millwall
Watford
Newcastle
Fulham
Aston Villa
Bournemouth
Sheffield United

That’s a list of teams that have beaten Everton in this calendar year.

Joke.

We have yet to go through
- the manager saying he is determined to put it right
- the new players to settle in
- the senior players telling us it is down to them not the manager and they are determined to put it rightzzzzzzz yawn
- the board saying they have every confidence etc
- the board being 'concerned' but want to give the manager more time

We are not going to win the Caravan Cup so a damaging loss to Sheffield Wed may help but complacency is rife and I can see that loss dismissed as coming at 'a difficult time and the club is not about to panic'.

I’m only going off reports and what people were writing on here, but the general consensus I got was that we had a lot of possession, made a lot of sideways passes, created little, Sheff Utd day back, started getting a couple of chances, scored one of them. There were plenty of moans about Schniederlin and Sigurdsson did nothing.

After they scored, they continued to sit back and soak pressure up with the afore mentioned being complete passengers.

That is pretty much what I predicted in the first part of my prediction, I just thought it would go on longer until the first goal.

Injuries to Gbamin and Gomes have no doubt played a role - Schneiderlin and Delph are not a good enough pairing.

Mina's og was unlucky and from there it was kind of inevitable we would struggle - but this stuff happens & Silva does not seem to know how to change the course of the game.

His run last season came on the back of clean sheets or - crucially - scoring first.

Law of averages says you can't always win games that way.

The only positive I can take from our current situation is that Silva's ineptitude has been confirmed early enough in the season to allow us time to get in a new manager and maybe salvage something from this season.

I just hope that Brands and Silva can see what most Everton fans know - that this guy is not good enough and they need to begin their search immediately for his replacement.

Nothing really to add on what has already been said, just frustrated, disillusioned, fed up with the very poor or non existent tactics of Mr. Silva and asking the same question that Darren Hind asked a week ago, were do we go from ?

Villa, Bournemouth, Sheffield United all losses.

That's really all you need to know.

The tactics and the system just don't add-up, because we keep trying to get the ball wide, but don't try and get bodies into our opponents box.

Their centre-backs dealt with every cross, our two go for the same ball, and don't look like they will ever strike up a proper understanding.

Kean, looked like a fish out of water, and with a ponderous midfield, then the spine of the team is not only not good enough, but it's also not playing to its strengths.

Maybe we can come to an agreement Delboy and Doucoure, in exchange for Silva Schneiderlin, Keane and Sigurdsson.

No Compo, no Clegg or Foggy!

Too many useless bastards taking the piss out of our club. Top money paid for very average players. We will never offload these shitheads to other clubs because they are on too much of a good thing at Everton.

No heart. No pride and no fucking idea. What a shambles and we are only 6 games into another long hard disappointing season. Just awful...

Steve I said prior to the game that Silva was no motivator and you challenged it. Still think I’m wrong?

As regards to the team. 2 defensive midfielders 1 up front against the mighty Sheff Utd.

He had a chance today to show everyone he could motivate these fraudsters, change the team and tactics and show he has a plan B. He showed nothing but total incompetence.

Had he picked a decent starting 11 we would not have had to witness the embarrassment of his substitutions and panic tactics. You wouldn’t see the likes on a park pitch

Silva missed a great chance for himself today and just dug a bigger hole for himself

There are no excuses and nobody should look for any. A disgrace

All of the above does not give me much hope for the future.

Schneiderlin, Siggie, Kean and Coleman all need to be dropped.

Silva has to be sacked, it does not matter who comes in this fella ain’t got a clue.

I take the novel approach of:

a) watching each game play out without first making a 10-clause prediction as you did before a ball is kicked.

b) I then watch the game to make my own judgement of how the game ACTUALLY played out.

If you are to be believed, you didn't even do that, but still patted yourself on the pack believing your predictive post played out as you said.

On the law of averages, some of your scattergun predictive clauses would prove right. At a stretch, maybe 2-3 of them did.

Nostradamus you ain't.

Ronnie Goodlass on the local phone-in said that the players looked as though they’d just been introduced to each other before the game. Indeed they did. Why?

I have no answers.

I would hazard a guess that the first 7 paragraphs were correct (out of 10).

The last 3 paragraphs referred to what would happen if the game dragged on goalless until the second half, and if we managed to score first.

Like I said, I didn’t watch it and have gone on what others have said. If I’m wrong, let me know what parts.

I’m not claiming to be some form of mystic, simply pointing out what has happened time and time again when we line up with a similar line up against a team who defends. It’s not exactly the first time this season it’s happened.

I think he has 5 games to improve the situation or we will need to replace. I don't think a neejerk reaction today with no one lined up is the right way to go.

Given our current squad, I think we should move to 2 up top and play a diamond formation with Delph playing there until Gbamin is back.

The players didn't look like they believed in what they were supposed to be doing, and it didn't half show, but still they wouldn't brake rank, and go off their own backs.

No positives except the weather, which was that deceiving it felt like we were already in April, but no such luck, only a very long winter ahead of us, how much more can we take?

He may be a coach who is obsessed with detail, but he hasn't got a clue when it comes to picking the right combination, or assessing the opposition, he has no fight or knowledge of how to right the wrongs after going a goal down to weaker opposition.

That's a laugh, we were the weakest team on view today, and I'm afraid it is all down to him, plain and simple.

I further would make sure he received zilch in the way of compensation, otherwise it is being rewarded for failure, and they will be queuing up to take the reins, beats buying a Lottery Ticket!

Your predictive talents now extend to events that have concluded, but which you have yet to see.

Your 'guess' of 7 out of 10 is wrong.

Watch the game. The majority of events you listed didn't unfold as you predicted.

You say the game played out differently. However then make sarcastic comments without actually stating which predictions weren’t accurate.

How did the game play out? I didn’t see it but it would indicate on here it was fairly accurate.

It's like he's adopting the attitude that he can only go with what people have signed him, and as you say I don't think there is a better industry in the world for rewarding failure, especially if you think you've been failed by your bosses, and it really isn't your fault!

The other thing that worries me so much is that this is now the sort of football that bored and infuriated us all under Martinez (seasons 2 and 3) and Koeman. Why have we reverted to that type? Why did Martínez flop after that dazzling start?

We are somehow frightened of the stuff of success.

Nevertheless, the manner of defeat against Villa, Bournemouth and SUtd bear evidence to some serious mismanagement. Where is the team that murdered Manchester Utd that glorious Easter Sunday last season? Was that a one-off? Why were certain players left out today after Bournemouth and others who hardly performed, retained? Why is Walcott continually given a chance? What's wrong with Sigurdsson? Why is Davies not being considered? Where is the passion?

I'm old enough to remember the day, or rather night, the great Howard Kendall turned us around. Footballing fortunes can change overnight with one decent result. I'm still willing to give Marco a chance to show the moral courage to make changes, to stamp his authority on this group of players which seems incapable of performing for him. My patience and his time are running out though.

The failure to bring in a striker since Lukaku keeps hurting us hard. This would not happen at any other Premier League club with, *ahem*, top 10 ambitions.

I must be bloody mad.

Spurs fans are fed up with Poch. Any chance of a swap?

Agree. All the subs were basically the wrong ones. If we are ever going to win a game we need to score first. Once we are down Silva goes into "Total uninspirational mode", and we become even worse. He has the worst body language and looks defeated as soon as the opposition score.And that is against the might of Aston Villa, Bournemouth and now Sheffield United.

What worries me most is that Silva doesn't learn from his mistakes. The Bournemouth game was a mirror of the Villa one. Palace was very similar without the goals. Overwhelming possession but very few chances created and those that were, were missed.

Today we had two holding midfielders against a side which last season was in the championship. Overwhelming possession but very few (if any) clear cut chances created. Their goalkeeper had very little to trouble him. The service to Kean was non existent and remained so even after Tosun was introduced.

Silva's substitutions are mystifying to the fans and, it seems, to the players. They completely disrupt any semblance of balance.

I'll be at Hillsborough on Tuesday but I'm starting to feel it may be best to take the pain so that Silva's position becomes untenable.

He must go soon or we face a relegation scrap.

#3 Sigurdsson did find space. Indeed, if the two young players Kean and Richarlison had laid off the ball to him rather than blaze over for glory, he was twice in an excellent position to open the scoring. You were wrong.

#4 Once again, Schneiderlin was the best of our midfielders, but for many on TW they cannot acknowledge that. For the 55 minutes he was on the pitch, at no time were he and Delph 'isolated in midfield.' Silva's substitutions totally scrambled the formation. Again, you were wrong.

#5 Sheff Utd were a metronome all game, sticking to the game plan, so they never 'grew in confidence'. They were simply steadfast throughout. At no point did they 'overrun us in the centre of midfield'. They didn't have to. You were wrong.

#6 Our defenders were never on the back foot and the Blades did NOT 'carve out a number of good openings'. They took the lead, even, without recording a shot on target! At no time in the game was there wave after wave of Sheffield attacks. Again, Silva's bizarre substitutions and resultant mish-mash in formation led to eventual exposure and concession of the second goal. Again, you were wrong.

#7 The game never 'opened up' for either side. It was played very much on the Blades' terms. Sit deep and comfortably repel. You were wrong.

#8 as the game never 'opened up' as you incorrectly predicted, it follows that Sigurdsson didn't 'come more into the game' under those conditions.

#9 In reality, Sigurdsson did a lot MORE in the first hour (rather than nothing, as you predicted), but he was another victim of Silva's shambolic substitutions and shifting sands formation. Wrong again, Kevin.

# 10 Your alternative history didn't happen. Wrong.

Clear enough for you Kevin?

Try watching the match without a jaundiced eye rather than look for confirmation bias from others supporting your (80% incorrect) pre-match predictions.

0-1 in the thirty-odd minute or so. Fecking typical. Everton. That.

Why is it compulsory to play 4231? The substitutions are like something off football manager or local league !

I’m so disappointed as we have become possibly the most pointless team in the league! There’s no chance of a trophy but little chance of being relegated ( which I suppose is a positive!).

Silvas interviews are incoherent and bizarre! Has he watched the game ? Is his English too limited ? He doesn’t inspire me at all ! Can he inspire a load of millionaire footballers ! Against Bournemouth when he sat on his seat staring at the floor with 15 minutes to go ! Criminal !

I hate we’ve become a sacking team but he’s really on borrowed time now ! I’m sad to say I really think Moyes would do a better job until the end of the season but my real hope is for Arteta to come in with Pep’ winning mentality!

Promoting your view is the only legitimate one (not that we know what it is, because you haven't stated it).

And more, you now speak for the whole world, do you? What remarkable gifts you credit yourself with!

Read what I've written in the ENTIRE thread. Neither Silva nor the players are getting any praise from me. It was crap and that is exactly the word I used to describe the season to date.

Silva just moved into a house this week. Permanent residence after temporary for the last few years. Guy has got his young family here now too. He ain't going anywhere. Brands is also a cool customer, he'll not be pushing the button any time soon. He'll tell Moshiri to "hold his nerve" again. I predict results will improve and we'll see the season out.

Silva has to sit down with his team and accept that whilst the players are playing badly, and making mistakes, he's making things worse. He's being far too reckless and his paying the penalty. He needs to stop throwing everyone on like a kid on FIFA and make sensible substitutions.

If it were me at half time, I'd have tried to get Kean into the game. He barely got a touch all game. So bringing Davies on for Sigurdsson. Moving to a narrow 4-3-3 with Richarlison and Bernard up top with Kean. If that wasn't working, then it was a game for Calvert-Lewin. Their centre-backs were too strong for Kean. We got a good deal of crosses in, but Kean offers little in the air. Calvert-Lewin is certainly more of an aerial presence.

The Coleman substitution was wrong, but it did make some sense. Just before he came off, Coleman was getting a lot of the ball on the right, he was doing little defending and a lot of attacking. He was slow and ponderous on the ball and his crossing was ineffective. Silva was thinking if only that was Walcott. But Walcott didn't get the same chances or as much of the ball.

Sigurdsson also dropped deep on 55 minutes. He was anonymous there as he was when he was further up the pitch. We lost this game in midfield. Sure we had plenty of the ball, but we were too slow in possession. The ball moved slowly or when hit with pace, it moved predictably. Sheff Utd looked very well drilled. They knew we would get the ball out wide and they stopped us using it effectively from there. They showed us outside time and again and we kept obliging. Digne has not been the same player this season and again he didn't have a good game. Coleman looks a spent force.

The moment to sum the game up though was when Moise Kean felt like he'd been injured and threw himself to the floor. He then lay face down on the pitch, whilst we were 1-0 down and increasingly desperate, and kicked his feet like a toddler throwing a tantrum.

I still have no doubt the boy will be a top talent. The boy is a boy and he is not ready to start games. Calvert-Lewin has to start. Let Kean be eased into the season as we play well.

There was so many things wrong with that game, and Silva cannot come out and hold his hand up and say he got it wrong. It's ridiculous to expect him to do so. He may as well resign right there and then. However, he needs to sit down with his team and accept that they fucked up badly. Sigurdsson is not the same player, and he needs to drop out. The formation needs to change. We need to get rid of the AMC and play three central midfielders with Schneiderlin sitting and holding until Gbamin is fit and ready. Some good news with him is that he does not need surgery and so he might be back sooner than we thought. Gomes has a rib injury and hopefully he will be back soon. Those who criticised Gomes, well look at the midfield without him.

I genuinely believe most genuine supporters have seen enough, and had enough to realise that this guy isn't going to lead us to the Promised Land. He hasn't a clue where it is for starters, or what direction to start off in.

I know as some players are before they sign, you are never sure what you are going to get (the Forest Gump Chocolate box syndrome) it's even worse with Managers, because there is only one of them, then of course all the hangers on who masquerade under the name of Coaching Staff.

This Boa Morte (Dead Snake) I don't recall seeing the job advertised in the Echo, but he suddenly appeared when his other side-kick moved on to other pastures.

Unfortunately with 4 young children I can’t always watch the game, so I then rely on information from elsewhere. We’re not all privileged enough to be able to watch every game live - this shouldn’t stop me from having an opinion.

Unfortunately Jay - it is people like yourself who I suspect cause a number of posters to simply stop posting. You regularly become embroiled in arguments and often deflect any responsibility in causing any of them.

As for bias - it’s interesting that on some news outlets, the three people with the lowest ratings where Schneiderlin, Sigurdsson and Kean. Could it be that, rather than 80% of posters on here being biased, that it is actually the 20% that you suggest you fall into.

Thanks for the breakdown anyway, that is what I actually asked for in my first reply (however without the passive aggressive sarcasm).

Where is the goal-scoring Centre-forward and additional Central Defender, we were screaming for?

Can anyone on the Board read or do they Not peruse the applicant’s CV’s?

Martinez, Won the F.A. Cup with Wigan and they were relegated. We employed him.

Big Sam, just a total mercenary. We employed him.

Silva, won the Portuguese 2nd division and took Hull down. We even head hunted him!!!!

Stubborn, Zonal marking which creates such panic in defence that we’re now scoring own goals.

Why didn’t Davies start. Why do Tosun & Walcott get on the bench, done nothing since they both signed massive contracts, no wonder they don’t want to leave.

Spent an absolute fortune and the team’s the worst I’ve seen since; “It’s been very disappointing” Walter Smith.

We cannot wait and I know I’ll get the vitriolic responses of, “Rubbish”, “You don’t know what you’re talking about” et al.

Well, we stole the points v Watford, had the rub of the green v Wolves, dragged out a point v Palace, got a snotting v Villa & Bournemouth.

Today, another Championship side had two attacks and scored two. No confidence, No quality and definitely No idea.

Had our players been introduced to each other? If Silva stays we are in the deep proverbial, I guarantee it.

City should look good from my Upper Bullens Seat next week, probably after Sheffield Wednesday have softened us up and give us another tonking

If we take him again anytime soon it could represent child abuse. He and I will be seeking counselling on Monday!

Although he loved the sirens and Z Cars but found the noise intimidating.

Disappointing, to quote Walter doesn’t begin to describe it. It was very difficult to put a positive spin on it, and to suppress a natural tendency to let rip in a profane and colourful way in front of him.

I managed that, by and large, but I reckon I’ve shed years from my diminishing life expectancy with the effort. This I can Ill afford.

I’ll leave the BP monitor until tomorrow morning!

A lovely family occasion ruined - five generations of our family now Matchgoing Everton supporters.

Jesus, why do we bother? But as Scarlet said tomorrow is another day.

Abject shite, utter garbage, fucking rubbish, arse, wank, twat, knobhead!

Serenity now.

Pickford - an accident waiting to happen.

Two lumbering buffoons in the middle at the back.

Two flatter-to-deceive full backs who didn’t manage 1 decent cross between them all day.

Delph looked lethargic and off the pace and got caught in possession too often.

Bernard’s did a few runs but zero end product.

Moise Kean looked out of his depth.

Richarlison was at his petulant worst.

Sigurdsson huffed and puffed to little effect.

Only Schneiderlin had anything like a half decent game and that’s probably only because the others stunk the gaffe our so much.

The subs:

Walcott - what’s the point?
Tosun - got more touches of the ball acting as the ball boy for their goal kicks and throw ins.
Iwobi- touched it 4 or 5 times.

We're in for a bottom six battle if he stays, not top six. That's gone, we've no chance. Probably the most frustrating thing is other than City and the referees faves the league is wide open.

Any goodwill he built towards the end of last season has long gone.

Team selection, motivation, tactics, organisation etc etc are an utter shambles.

Good players being used very badly.

I think you dumb down the debate questioning if Silva is the right manager to meet our ambitions by claiming those calling for his head are listing the characteristics and profile of Sean Dyche.

I believe you do so deliberately to be provocative as a round-about way to defend your man Silva. I honestly haven't seen any such profiling to suggest there is a body of thought that (possibly unknowingly) are identifying Dyche's best qualities as a good fit for Everton.

Indeed, I haven't read anyone recently putting Dyche's name forward as a replacement for Silva. Mourinho has been mentioned (ain't happening, don't want it to happen), Marcelino (available), even the return of Moyes (have people no pride?)

Now I remain of the belief that - as bad as things are (and they are bad Steve. VERY bad. Your '1 point off third' lament of last week no longer applies) - it is still premature to think of dismissing Silva.

That said, Moshiri - for all Brands' possible counsel that you reference - dismissed Koeman just 9 games into his second season. He dismissed Martinez even though Roberto got us to two semi-finals that season. He dismissed Allardyce in spite of the manager equalling Koeman's 8th placed finish. So Moshiri has history of pulling the trigger.

He won't be swayed by any sentiment or emotion, such as Silva has just moved into a new house this week with his young family.

As I said, Koeman went after 9 games into his second season after a humiliating 5-2 home defeat to Arsenal. Silva is on game 6 of his second season and the results are similar to those that got Koeman his P45.

In the next week alone, there is a tricky away tie in the LC, followed by a now daunting home game to the rampant Man City. If City gives us an Arsenal-like home tonking which proved to be Koeman's last game (and possibly on the back of an early cup exit), Moshiri could well get antsy.

Look how empty the stadium was before the final whistle today. Listen to the boos that came from those that remained. Silva, his coaches, his players, his team, are under severe pressure from a very large number in the fan base already.

Three more games for Silva to match game 9 after which Koeman was sacked: H City, A Burnley, H WHU. What constitutes an acceptable return in those games?

Together with the LC game away to Wednesday midweek, it could make or break Silva.

How many of us would take, say, 11th and winning the EFL Cup? I would.

Go all out to get Arteta. He’s learnt from the best in Guardiola and Wenger. He understands our club and our fans. Get Cahill to support him, and bring Unsworth up into the first team coaching.

If Moshiri can’t see just how bad Silva now is (that final formation was nearly as insane as playing Morgan and Delph together again) then the fans will start to turn quickly on him. This manager is a fraud.

Mr Ferns, a self appointed Attorney for Silva's Defence has long managed to find his way up my nose and no doubt will continue to do so until his mate is dismissed from high office at Everton FC. I trust that will not take too long!!

I am old enough to remember how ruthless John Moores was when he had control of this great club. If I had poured the same amount of money into Everton FC that has been spent this summer would at least have expected 9 points against 3 of the promoted sides.

It's obvious to me, that as a tactician, Marco leaves a lot to be desired. The door is there and he should be shown it. He IS a good manager, but not at the level that Everton FC should require.

I have never been so ashamed at these last few weeks. I keep saying to myself, well it's only the start of the season but where is the formation and balance of the side? I hope that the club gets a strong centre half to replace Phil Jagielka. We NEED one. And a manager that is not afraid to drop under-performing players.

God help us next week as they hit 8 past Watford this afternoon.

No Kevin, I don't 'love looking for arguments'. I challenge posts I don't agree with. There is a world of difference between the two.

You consider my responses 'condescending' and 'passive aggressive sarcasm' yet in the same breath say you never say anything derogatory about me. Rigghhtt!

I only further contested your predictions (after my original playful comment to you @ 8 pre-game) when you returned to the thread @ 69 and - guess what - addressed ME directly, Kevin.

Acknowledging that by your own admission you hadn't watched the game, I again (playfully) told you that the game did NOT unfold as you predicted. A view I stand by. In a later post I advised you to watch the game yourself to better judge if your predictions matched the actual game play, rather than depend on the opinions of others as you admitted you did.

That does not constitute me attempting to suppress your opinion as you try to imply. A common (and devious) ploy used by many on TW who resent having their opinion challenged in any way.

As for your highly speculative claim that I am 'the cause of a number of posters to simply stop posting' and that 'I regularly become embroiled in arguments and often deflect any responsibility in causing them...'

Seriously? Guess what. I have my own opinion on all things Everton. I represent my view, and my view only. I never ever claim that I speak for the majority or that my view is the only valid one. Many on TW do, however.

In support of my view, I debate... I contest... I defend my position... eloquently. Supported by reasoned counters and data. I also am self-aware enough to know that is resented by some, particularly those who dislike having their opinions challenged or undermined.

Unlike many on TW, I always-always-always take responsibility for my words and actions and their consequences in life, never mind just TW.

And as I said earlier, in my viewing of the game, 80% of your predictions @ 5 simply didn't happen.

Over time, I have found your posts to be long-winded and often tedious but at 207 I believe you are spot on, both in your reply to the said apologist, Steve Ferns, and in your suggestions that Silva's reign could well be short-lived.

Knock-on-Wood!

I sit around our dinner table with four Evertonians, two sons, a son-in-law, and a daughter, and we usually disagree about many of the others' opinions and get very annoyed. The only sane person in the room is my wife, who couldn't care less who won but thinks we are all daft.

And I don't give a stuff what you think about me and my posts as you never have anything of interest to say, other than very rare appearances to gratuitously abuse others before scurrying off and hiding behind the sofa again.

Give me the likes of Steve Ferns over a half-trick pony like you any day.

Sheffield United were very poor today which probably says it all given the result.

I can't make my mind up about Silva. Following the good run at the end of last season, I thought he was starting to look the part. Our battling display at Lincoln and determination shown against Wolves also gave me optimism. The defeats against Villa but particularly Bournemouth and today are bordering on unforgiveable. Silva looked lost in both games; to me that is very worrying.

Needless to say that a decent result on Tuesday is a must. A good result against Man City would work wonders for all but difficult to see it happening,

The players look like strangers, so much talent being wasted should be a crime. I have no idea what the answer is, not convinced about giving Silva more time but equally unconvinced about sacking.

Whatever happens though, anyone calling for Moyes needs to see a psychiatrist – get a fucking grip.

How many years is it since we won anything, how many managers have we had since we won anything, Why is it that teams we play seem well coached, and we put in performances, and our players look like they had just met. How long will we go before we can win a game after going a goal down?

Having to continually having to ask these questions to me reads of disgraceful management from the top. I worked in mining for over 25 years and worked under some poor management that effected production rite throughout the organization; once the shareholders and owners realized what was going on they brought in more experienced managers and the production improved. This demonstrated that success starts at the top. And this is were Everton are failing.

Another statement I made was strikers may get you points but it is the defense that wins them. It is no use Silva complaining about the defense as he trains them, and the owner and board have no excuse to allow what is going on as they or him hired Silva

Today's tactics were on par with a teenager on his PlayStation; taking off a right-back for a winger is something you would do in a cup tie with 5 mins to go, he's totally out of his depth and needs to go now.

They would have made a shambles of any tactics. Passing the ball with no real purpose going through the motions and not being available to receive the ball. The Goalkeeper and centre-back prone to an error, because of lack concentration. The players that want to play, can't amongst this level of mediocrity around them.

The whole attitude and culture of the training ground must stink to high heaven. Silva and his head coach may be working hard and trying their best, but there a bigger push of poor attitude emanating from Finch Farm in the opposite direction.

They may even be successful and get Silva out of his job, because he tried to get them to work to get the best out of the players. Some of the players' attitude is questionable as well, the lack of self-motivation all too clear.

A fan on TalkSport who was at the match said that the players weren't playing for Silva. The truth always comes out in the wash, no matter how unpalatable it is.

I'm not sure anyone really deserves singling out over the rest as they were all shite, but I'll reserve a little mention for our 'promising' centre-forward. I don't think I've seen a worse centre forward performance at Goodison. I'm including people like Brett Angell in that.

If he thinks that effort was in any way acceptable then he won't be here within a year. Send him on loan or something while he figures out how the game is played.

Dyche, much as I admire him, is not for me and the return of Moyes would, to me, be more unpalatable that the appointment of Allardyce.

Robert Williams, Steve Ferns's post well thought out, considered posts. I like the way he writes and he always treats those who disagree with him respectfully.

I share your view, Robert, that the game is up for Silva, but I respect Steve's views and I think your comments are unfair.

As I said last week, I just have a gut feeling that there is no way back. I have no confidence in Silva and I look at every game with trepidation.

The coach has talked of nerves. That is utterly down to him. He looks uninspiring and utterly clueless. His performance today was as abject as Martinez at Southhampton in that dreadful 3-0 surrender. He must go.

Passive-aggressive behaviors are those that involve acting indirectly aggressive rather than directly aggressive.

Some comments from yourself are below - you decide...

“Sorry to pop your ego, but virtually nothing you wrote @ 4 happened. That's not how the game played out at all.
Nice try, though.”

“b) I then watch the game to make my own judgement of how the game ACTUALLY played out.”

“Brilliant, Kevin! @ 159.
Your predictive talents now extend to events that have concluded, but which you have yet to see.”

“Clear enough for you Kevin?
Try watching the match without a jaundiced eye rather than look for confirmation bias from others supporting your (80% incorrect) pre-match predictions.”

In addition - re-read what I posted. I did not make a comment that could be considered derogatory until all the above had already been said. I referenced your post @8 saying that I wished the game had ran like my last couple of paragraphs, with us managing to nick one. I referenced that post because you had replied to my original one - nothing sinister about it.

You made the whole thing into an argument while I was just trying to gather a view of how we played from others as I couldn't watch the game. I take no pride in predicting what might happen based on a team selection; however, several other posters have seen it differently to yourself.

Except he (obviously) forgot to add (as well) "Please can someone get rid of that fuckin Jonah, Bill Kenwright."

To my eyes, the last thing Silva is at the moment, is “reckless”. His conservatism is killing him. Sigurdsson, Schneiderlin, maybe even Coleman (though I love him) all need to sit out games. He seems incapable of changing the structure or pattern of play and it is his inflexibility that worries me most.

He doesn't have to go full Lampard and throw in the kids but trusting only 14/15 players who let him down consistently will get him the sack sooner rather than later.

And every one of those isolated quotes you attribute to me is taken out of context, ignoring the flow of our exchange and your own responses either side of them.

The written word is always starker than the spoken word. I would absolutely speak to you in the same terms face to face, poking fun at you for continuing to claim your original predictions were proved correct even though you hadn't seen anything of the game.

Sorry couldn’t resist.

I watched a game today, I saw an enthusiastic side roared on by enthusiastic support.

I have been going to Goodison since 1969, when we won the league, and have witnessed the good,bad, and ugly. Like many on here, we have played at whatever level and effort is the minimum criteria.

Not sure I saw a lack of effort today, but a complete lack of guile, tactics, imagination, enthusiasm, movement, were all there. Players, especially in midfield taking too many touches, an approach play that was so predictable, a defence that looks like the players are strangers, all together, a disjointed group.

Sheffield United were that, United. Limited, but with a plan they wanted and were willing to commit to being executed.

The job of the Manager is to .

A more uninspirational man would be hard to find, a body language analysis would be welcome to me at least.

To be fair, the owner, he is, for me is a property speculator, will do well out of the rumoured move to BMD. But the hardworking Evertonian, will have to pay to watch the sort of stuff served today.

The link is that the team needs to perform at a level that will maintain the fantastic support that the club enjoys, and always has had.

Today, as I walked to the pub after the game, there was unanimous opinion that what is being served up now is not good enough.

Who is to “blame” I am not qualified to know, Brands role must come under scrutiny, the Manager must be in the spotlight.

The players, well they are not exempt. Pickford is as inconsistent as can be, how a defender has confidence in him is beyond me. An accident waiting to happen, for all the good stuff he shows. Seamus shows how good he used to be, the centre backs look like they have never met each other, Siggy, great player on the ball, but bone idle, throws his arms about like our previous centre forward, Gomez, leggy, slow, Tom, full of energy, but needs managing. Snide, just get rid. Bernardo, the no nonsense Sheff Utd guys sorted that wimp out. Theo, moaning about time on pitch, get him off it. DCL, play him, develop him. Same with the guy who fell over every chance today. Richarlison is our best player, if I was him, I would leave.

So, friends, after the best early season fixtures we could have imagined for, we are where we are, allowing for Sunday outcomes, at best mid table.

I read on here how we are doing and the live forums, it is all so predictable, like our feeble attacking moves today, and I can only see one course of action.

At a higher level than me, taking the course of action may be easy, costly too, but who to get in is another matter, but it needs to be done sooner than later, and well before the next widow and the costs that will be incurred in merry go round of player and manager changes.

I have tried to be balanced in this contribution, to be honest, today we were absolute shxxe as bad as I have ever seen and someone needs to get a grip!!

Thanks for reading, Ian

We had none of the above against Sheffield, plus a manager in trouble from the beginning of the season. And most of the last one too.

Wrong team. Davies needed to play not Morgan and Iwobi for Glyfi just made sense as did Bernard returning. But even that may not have been enough. We simply haven’t come close to replacing Gana and Zouma. Gana should never have been allowed to leave regardless of age or contract, without a strong replacement and Gbamin isn’t that. We arrived at the start of the season with only two senior CB’s and we all knew that was a huge problem.

I know what some will say about Gana going. But we are too soft. Same with Lukaku. Neither replaced and it’s cost us so much.

No idea how bad this is going to get. Silva is stubborn and I can’t see him changing his approach but by Christmas it could be too late. I’ve always scoffed at those absurdly early sackings but six games in and there’s nothing. Zero. No optimism just dismay at the hopeless performances, lack of guile and fight, no urgency. A manager starting to look lost tbh.

People here will dive in I’m sure. Rubbish, fume, OTT, it’s early days, give him time, Marcel needs several windows, the wind was against us nada nada nada.

It’s been the same since Mr Moshiri arrived. And for years before. Identical in fact. OTT hope, stinging disappointment. Embarrassing, dire performances. Year after year after year. What to do? Stop doing the same thing or the same things will happen. Change the mgt? Play several kids? Change the setup of the team ? I’m not paid to make the decisions like everyone else here but I can’t believe that carrying on like this will work for us.

But in the meantime the stadium plans are going great, EiTC win more deserved awards. We have the best ever potential start on record and most of us haven’t a clue how we are again embarrassing ourselves. So doing something different, drastic even, feels more and more attractive frankly as we’ve tried everything else and are still rubbish.

Winning is the only progress.

The problem is that things are now so bad at Everton that there is no easy quick fix.

We need a plan and a champion who is also a leader and will not accept second best in any function.

That person is not Moshiri and its as sure as fuck not Kenwright and don't get me started on Lady "Everton in the Community". Its no wonder we are a laughing stock..

Silva is like a lamb to the slaughter so was Martinez. Koemans answer to the nonesense that goes on behind the scenes was to take a golfing holiday and wait for the payoff. In his first season we were building something then Kenwright agreed to let Lukaku go and did not replace him.

We need a Shankly, Clough or Ferguson but instead we've got a lamb.

The team are playing like little lambs.

After today I am convinced that Silva hasnt got any balls and has zero imagination and tactical nous.

Anyone who can follow the debacle at Bournemouth with that nonesense today does not deserve to be a premiership manager and is certainly not fit to manage Everton.

FUCK OFF EVERTON

I agree with you about the midfield. It's a big problem.

One paced, slow and ponderous. Minus Gana, it doesn't offer the centre backs as much protection. There's no energy, no legs, no pressure on the ball.

In addition, no-one gets beyond the ball and breaks lines and makes runs in behind. This was a problem anyway and one we did nothing about. The passing is slow, predictable and lacks tempo; only Gomez offers any kind of incisive passing. Oh, and there's no variety and no real depth.

Steve #195

That's optimistic on Gbamin. He hasn't had a pre-season and will need to get up to speed, new to the Prem fresh off about 3 months out. It's going to be around 2020 before he's up to the required level physically. And he has to adapt to the Prem. By all accounts (I didn't see it) he seemed way of it at Palace. Its already got a bit of "one for next season" about it.

I thought over the last couple of years we had made positive strides in improving the spine of our side. But minus Zouma we are weaker at centre back. Minus Gana we are weaker in mid. And there is still no proven front man to replace Lukaku. The spine of the side is poor. It's slow and lacks athleticism. Our mid lacks presence and running power. And not having a quick centre back, especially when Silva likes to play as he does, is inexcusable.

And this is after trousering £50 million for Stones, £30 million for Gana and £80 mil for Lukaku. The Sigurdsson transfer was a joke. He's 30 yrs old already.

Silva was shit last season and (you guessed it) more of the same this season. Honestly, seriously... How is anyone on here surprised?

Today we had over £250 million pounds worth of talent in our team. Imagine if someone said that 5 years ago or 10. Problem is we don't have players who want to do the hard work of the game. Sheffield united won the battle, stopped us playing, no fluency to our game. The midfield is were it's won and lost. We have no-one to do the donkey work. Tackle and pass it to a player with more ability to change the game. A graverson or carsley who break up play and stop the opposition playing.

In the summer we let Gueye go to PSG. A player who made more tackles and covered more ground than anyone in the league. Sadly not replaced. Need a striker or centre half? No, we needed another Gueye or two like him. Our recruitment has lost its way. Our team lacks the grit, fight for your team mate, will to work harder against teams like Aston Villa or Sheffield United. We don't have those players. We will struggle against teams with less ability but will work harder than us.

Today was about getting at them. We are to nice and no fight when going behind. Today we expected to win. Against Wolves they let us play and like wise. If we are not going to struggle all season against less talented sides, then the manager needs to drop players not working hard enough. Ability is pointless without work rate. Sadly today and last week we showed a soft belly. I fear this will put our Premier League status in question unless the director of football addresses this in January.

Those who hammered Silva for not starting with Kean in place of DCL in previous games saw today why the manager has been reluctant to use him. The lad is not ready to lead the line in the Premier League. It was sad to see the confidence being drained from him in this game.

Chop.

It wasn't a surprise. I was surprised people were surprised. But I guess optimism helps keeps people coming back. I don't fault the optimists – I just have no optimism left.

He doesn't have a lot to lose by throwing in kids at this stage, he needs to start rolling the dice to save his job.

As an example Klopp paid c£50m for Naby Keira – then had him in training for most of his first season until he acclimatised to the British game. And this guy was an experienced player.

However, and it pains me to say it, the RS go about their business in a far more impressive way than us – and their recruitment is excellent.

Tony # 209 - “The one happy thing is that we never lose to Sheffield Wednesday when it counts. It's the law.”

No offence but I wish you hadn’t said that.

I started watching the pre match press interview and turned it off after about 5 minutes. He is going through the motions. I wasn’t in the least bit surprised by the result.

We need someone with a proven track record.

We need Cahill and Arteta. Or, Arteta and Cahill. Whatever way they want to work it. That's the combination we need.

How do I know? The answer is, I don't. I just feel it extremely powerfully inside.

And the people who want Mourinho, guess what, you don't know how that will go either. My feeling on that is - very badly. If Zidane is sacked and Perez reappoints Mourinho, that will go very badly too, because Mourinho is finished as a top level manager.

Arteta is the tactics, Cahill is the motivator - that's what we need. Make it happen, Moshiri. I know you're reading this, pissed yet cogent, just like me.

Players as well as Managers have to start somewhere to build a reputation for being a regular and consistent performer. Thing is, the way the Prem is now, it costs millions to find out the hard way.

Strange is it not that Guardiola has just advocated a couple of days ago, that Arteta would be the ideal choice should Pep not extend his contract, coincidence or perhaps he knew there was a bad odour at Everton.

That would be a dream team for me, Arteta with Tim as Coach/Motivator, they couldn't possibly do any worse than the long line of Clowns and their Assistants that we have recently appointed.

You must have read my mind.

I said on another post that Mikel and Tim would make a great combination and, with Moyes as general manager to sort the admin out, we would have a very capable management team.

Only an opinion because you don't know till you try it but anything has to be better than this tripe.

We got like 13 shots vs. 1 shot...

70% possession...

12 corner kicks to 3 corner kicks...

It's just plain dumb luck that the 1st corner we conceded turned out to be an own goal and our opponent was just as lucky to score on their only shot of the match...

Let's face it, it's not every team that can concede two goals on one total shot!!! That's quite the stat!!! And we did this at home to a newly promoted side...

This would be comical, except it's the truth... and this is the the team I support...

I won't be switching my loyalties but I'll be lowering my expectations... This year's Everton team isn't a top half team and I just hope they find a way to head off a relegation battle!!!

"Marco Silva, collect your belongings and all of your so called Coaching Staff and get out of my Football Club immediately"!

It was clear Moise Kean needed replacing as he was starting to struggle and Sigurdson also was having little impact and so could have been subbed. The final straw was taking of Seamus who had played really well and putting on Walcott.

The team at this stage became totally out of shape and completely clueless. Going with two up front and playing more direct was a panic move by Silva. We just needed to up the tempo and intensity of our play and Sheffield Utd would have cracked under the pressure.

I do feel Silva will have to go as he is showing no signs of learning from previous mistakes. This is his usual predictable tactic which clearly doesn't work.

Arteta is a great shout to replace Silva assisted by Cahill. No need for Moyes in my opinion. Moshiri needs to act quickly before we lose team morale.

That is an interesting point of view - I am going to have a think about that.

Managers need some time to show their capabilities, by results, use of players and tactics for different opponents. Silva has demonstrated he has only one plan, that being against an open attacking team. He has no idea of breaking down a defensive set up like Sheffield United and many more we have failed against.

Like the last 3 managers it is obvious he is not going to get better so Brands and owner should be doing everything possible to find a successor, then sack him.

I must admit I would like to try Arteta and Cahill.

If you're going to use tricky on the floor type players - Kean, Bernard, Richie, Iwobi (I know he was a sub) then play the game on the deck, which is where we seem to make better in roads.

As Brian Clough (I think) once said - grass was made for playing football on, so keep it on the grass - or words to that effect.

Finally how we can have accrued just one point from Palace, Villa, B'mouth and Sheff Utd is just staggering. Two months ago you would have banked on at least 9 and probably wouldn't get a price for min 5 points. And just 5 more points would have us sitting third today.

I feel utterly despondent about our club today, having perused the league table..

We should start looking for a new manager though. A winner from the lower leagues or an experienced bigger name.

It's not so much a matter of personnel as much as it's a matter of tactics. A good manager (and backroom team) would have us comfortably safe this season.

If a forwards makes runs and no attempt is made to get the ball too him, he will get feed up making runs. Secondly if the play to him is slow it means he is easily marked or he has made the run and the opportunity wasn't taken by the player that's feeding him quickly enough.

And lastly in Everton s case the player who has got the ball going through the motions, making himself available to receive the balls in unchallenged positions and than passing the ball on with no meaning and purpose, just to get did of it.

If you are a forward watching a ball passed backwards, you are not in the equation at all, you might as well have a seat in the stands.

To anyone watching its like watching a game of pass the parcel with no prizes. Yes there is loads of ineffective possession and tactics that look unproductive. If you where a opposition team manager, you would like Everton to have as much of possession as they want, to tire themselves out and tel! Your players opportunities wil! come. Possession like that is no threat what do ever.

Lack of Speed and movement the result of poor preparation and training and a total lack of motivation.

As I said, I believe you were right on that one point. Keep spouting something cohesive will eventually come out!

Panic rather than changes, maybe more accurate.

if that was the strategy why have DCL on the bench?

There just doesn't seem to be the basic joined up, logical thinking through of tactics at the moment.

Sheffield had 11 players and a manager not many people have even heard of, but to their and their managers credit they had us worked out before the game started. And executed it well throughout the game, players playing as a team working hard and becoming more than the sum of their parts.

A shameful day for Everton, and marco Silva got one thing right when he said it is ''just not good enough''

When the new man comes in we can tell him to start Kean over DCL then when that fails we should say it should have been 442.

This is just a comical cycle now. Exactly what I predicted 2 summers ago and this summer.

I'm not clever at all but could see this coming a mile off.
We have so called genius's working for us that thought we had done great things in the summer.
How embarrassing.

All those that loved the grim summer window are now turning on Silva because we don't like to admit our own poor judgement while Brands will get away with it.

1. We do not need a world class CB pairing to defend set pieces half decently. Worst record in the division last year. Changed it to mix man marking / zonal at the end of last season and hey presto we looked better. Inexplicably in the last 2 games our man marking goes to pot again costing 3 goals. Why? Mina may lack pace but is absolutely not inferior to Zouma at defending crosses.

2. Pickford has a weakness on crossing. Why are the coaches not working on this?

3. Iwobi & Kean start together in two games and we score 7 in total. They are rotated in next two and we score one. Same story in first 3 games of the season where we scored 1. Does that not suggest keeping them in starting line up? How will forwards build an understanding if they are constantly rotated?

4. The biggest point of all is this. Silva is coming up to 50 games in charge. In his reign, we have not won once after going behind. His record of points gained after making substitutions is also pretty dismal. How is that going to work out? Law of averages suggests we will fall behind in a few games. As soon as opposition score first, under Silva it is game over. That is absolutely a coaching and tactical issue.

5. Finally, if you are telling me the squad assembled by Brands is inferior to Villa, Bournemouth and Sheff United you are having a total laugh.

No, I am afraid the 3 poor results are to be pinned on the coach. We are near 50-games into his reign and there are deep rooted flaws emerging.

As for our squad, factually we have more pace and power going forward than we did before Brands arrived. We have bought Richarlison, Iwobi and Kean. There is no way such a good array of talent should put in such a dismal attacking performance as we saw yesterday.

That array of talent (3 full internationals) is definitely capable of turning around a deficit at home against an inferior side.

That they were used so poorly in the last 2 games is an issue for the coach, not the DoF.

After that interview yesterday I can see why.

We were lots of things yesterday, unlucky was not one of them. Some may take comfort in a barrage of meaningless statistics, my eyes saw a slow, ponderous team create very few chances and make basic defensive errors. A pattern we have seen regularly under Silva. Of course players make individual errors, when the same failings show up again and again, the finger points to the manager.

In that interview, Silva looked and sounded like a man who couldn't believe what he had just seen, like a man bereft of solutions, like a man drifting towards the end of his time here

He needs to respond on Tuesday. His job depends on it.

Its all on Richarlison and Sigurdsson to get the goals and they are not exactly lethal as even Vardy or Rashford.

The cost of having no real striker is immense. Nobody to take the pressure off the defenders when its tough.

I don't believe for one minute we would be this bad with a real striker. I can't believe anyone does.

We don't even have anyone making runs like a striker.

Team GP W D L WIN% DATES
Everton 53 20 15 18 37.7 31 May 2018 - Present
Watford 26 8 5 13 30.8 27 May 2017 - 21 Jan 2018
Hull City 22 8 3 11 36.4 05 Jan 2017 - 25 May 2017

The next man will take us so far and show flaws.
The honeymoon period will fade out and we will see younger players with indifferent form and anyone getting headlines sold.

What's to worry about?

Views are so distorted its unreal. If we want results with this team we have to play a Wilder or Allardyce way because theres far more class in the league than we have.

I don't see Silva ever setting up this way, does anyone?
The board were crazy for going for a style of play manager without buying class. It hasn't been thought through properly as the saying goes.

Bournemouth have tried playing football for years and they lose at least 10 games a season and draw loads. Give them De Bruyne, Sterling and Bernardo Silva and I reckon their football gets higher rewards.

We needed three top players, proven striker, quick dependable centre half and of course Gana needed replaced ( and a player like him was always going to be hard to find ).
Brands delivered none of the above so he must take it on the chin like the manager.
I remember when I gave my opinion of Brands after his version of events and how he signed Mina, I said it was a little early to be patting yourself on the back, some on here thought I was out of order so to speak, well I stick by what I said, fucking anyone could have done better than the Walsh and co.

I would respect Brands and Silva if they came out and said "our players need to stand and be counted " or words to that effect.
Shocking at how some of them are faking it at the moment from rolling around on the ground, not getting stuck in to 50-50's and just not be able to pass the fucking ball.
rant over for now !

People seem reluctant, incapable or scared to go and question what has been going on with the squad since Moshiri arrived.

Nobody has even asked why theres a 2nd "genius" above the manager and we are finishing lower than we were before Moshiri.

I'm not even bothered if we sack him now its just continuous mis management everywhere.

We beat City 4-0 and the press grilled Pep on what changes he was going to have to make. He said none. We will work harder.

He knew he wasn't going to change up because he was going to get the players he needed to go for teams.

City are a different scale of course but we can't be playing beautiful football with nobody to kill teams on a regular basis.

We still have players that struggled under Koeman's poor football.

Unless matters deteriorate catastrophically there is nothing to be gained with yet another change of manager at this stage. Silva has shown he can pull the team out of a bad run and get us through a season. I expect him to do so again once the new players have adjusted to their new environment and/or recovered from injury. On that basis we have to stick with him at least for this season.

Er no, we went 2-0 down against Watford (for whom Silva was in charge) and won 3-2 in November 2017. Under Unsworth, a rookie at this level.

Under Koeman, we won 4-2 v Leicester after going a goal down in April 2017. Even Allardyce steered us to a win vs Swansea after going behind in December 2017.

Coaches who were rookies or mediocre (Allardyce) have managed to garner a win from going behind. Allardyce & Unsworth also had a vastly inferior line up to what Silva can field.

With Silva, the sense of deflation after conceding a goal is palpable. The law of averages also says we will go behind so it is a problem that must be addressed or we will lose many more games.

The squad we have is capable of beating Bournemouth, Villa and Sheff United. Instead we accrued zero points from three winnable games, 1 goal scored 7 conceded.

If Silva you think deserves more time, fine. That is a different debate.

But to pin this on Brands is ridiculous, especially as the glaring failures of the current on pitch set up are so obvious.

Think Clough said something like football was meant to be played on the ground, otherwise god would have put grass on clouds.

Take your point non the less.

Lot of analysis of the game and tactics, which is to be expected, but personally I think it’s all a bit pointless. The man in the dug out is simply not up to the job and never was in English football. Let him go back to Greece or Portugal with his millions for failing and stop wasting our time.

Also a few saying we were unlucky given possession and shots. I can buy that in isolation but when you add the Bournemouth and Villa results then things look decidedly different. You make your own luck and setting up with 7 defensive players to start a game at home to Sheffield Utd says it all. Also it’s easy to have loads of possession when you just pass it sideways and backwards. We had a live example of this not too long ago with another manager.

Looking forward to the city game as thats apparently when Silvas counter attacking legendary tactics come into play.

However I can look at the bigger picture and easily hold Brands Moshiri and Silva all being at fault.

Only Silva has to work with their faults. No doubt he will make tactical errors but I don't doubt for a second we have dominated in our 3 defeats and lacked the quality to go ahead nevermind come back.

I could go on with many other of his glaring deficiencies, but I'm sure there will be many more to highlight those in the days/weeks to come. What exacerbates the situation, is he has better quality players under his tutelage then ever before, and still can't fashion a decent showing.

As many have stated already, the pre-season was poorly planned, with very disappointing results, against mediocre opposition, and the start to this season, (all games we were expected to win and should have) has yielded 7 points out of a possible 18.

Those wins haven't been convincing by any stretch of anyone's imagination, with the possible exception of Silva himself, who still probably didn't see anything wrong.

Only one solution I'm afraid, and it involves a human cannon, preferably close to a cliff.

How can you really say we were lacking quality against Utd?

On paper we have a much better team than Shef Utd and Villa (Bournemouth debateable). Whilst the summer transfers weren’t perfect, I have to disagree that we didn’t have enough to win at least two of those three games (never mind losing all three). That lies squarely with the manager for me. We play the exact same tactics regardless of opposition or whether home or away, and continue when they’re not even working. It’s fairly easy for other teams to play against us as it’s so obvious how we’re going to play.

That stat of Silva not managing a single win in 50 games after going behind is incredible. Even I didn’t think it was that bad.

The guy is a complete empty suit as a Premiership manager. Only shame is that when (not if) he’s fired he’s still going to walk off with millions in comp!

Having watched all 3 defeats, and saw us dominate, i would say if you want us to play like the teams we lost to I am all for that too.

Their fans were on the ropes throughout them games. We couldn't finish our moves off.
We could go for the smash and grab football and I will be happy if we are winning.

1. Moshiri's decision making: No doubt in my mind that the bloke has been good for us financially, but were you to say you worry over his decision making on appointments I would probably agree with you. The appointments of Koeman, Allardyce and Walsh were a huge mistake. I think Silva is presently going down that road too. As for Brands, see below.

2. The performance of Brands. Here I diverge. It is without question that Brands was given a brief that he has followed to the letter. First, clear out the dreadful acquisitions by Walsh and Martinez and replace ageing legs. Buy young talent and the odd seasoned pro mixed in. There is no doubt in my mind that he has done that job in tough circumstances.

3. The pursuit of Silva. To this day, this is a mystery. Remember the approach was pre-Brands. He was Moshiri's man. If Silva is axed, then Moshiri will have failed with 4 out of 5 appointments.

Here's the thing. The job of appointing the next coach should unquestionably be left to the DoF. Brands is a proven operator and deserves the chance to head hunt the next coach.

Moshiri's judgement is suspect. Kenwright's too (viz. Martinez). Brands has not appointed any coaches to date.

My view: if Silva is to be given time fine, but if he fails to deliver, the job of finding his successor should be left to Brands.

Under Koeman/Walsh we bought wastefully. Part of that was out of necessity, as we have to pay over the odds in wages to attract players. Part of that was over-played confidence in Koeman's judgement of players and Walsh's fiscal discipline.

Koemans departure left us with an imbalanced squad on high wages with little sell-on value. Big, big mistake letting Barry go - he had more to offer as a player and should have been earmarked for the coaching staff. What is our problem with having top PL players on our coaching staff?

Allardyce bought Walcott & Tosun for c£50m. That looks good now, doesn't it?

In my view, particularly given the above fiscal handicap, Brands/Silva have done better in the transfer market.
Gbamin was bought to replace Gana and got injured, that was unlucky. Tomolli was joining us until Luis unexpectedly left Chelsea. I would argue that Mina, Digne, Richarlison, Bernard, Iwobi & Delph are good signings. Kean is a promising kid that'll need time. I'd have liked a 'proven' striker, but they're hard to find. Sandro & Tosun are clogging the wage bill, making that particular gamble even more risky.

With the squad we had yesterday, I see any half-decent manager producing a reasonably solid defence and midfield, with an abundance of pace and movement up front.

Why are we not showing this? Why are we playing like the over 60s priests team from Father Ted?

I don't think Brands is the reason.

I'm sure Silva wants the fast, flexible, energetic, creative team we all want. But it's not happening. If we had the proven striker, would he get enough chances to score under Silva?

I hope in a couple of years time, I've been proven wrong and people are taking me to task on this post. I think Silva's the weakness here. Moshiri has created a system where the manager delivers or is dumped. Paying him off will be cheaper than buying a journeyman player from the Championship.

I'm an optimist and even I'm struggling with Silva. I hope Moshiri & Brands are sounding out coaches and their agents as we speak.

I cannot forgive the lack of options the manager has got - to make the difference in games we are not playing well in. If we are playing well its even more beneficial to have a good forward.

I am also ignorant to Brands past in Holland. Its a completely different ball game and way of doing business.

How many Dutch genius have left Britain with their head in their hands now?

Not that defines Brands but substance has to be consistant and this summer has left Moshiri's man short of quality.

I feel alot of head scratching to be had tomorrow. How much longer can the owner keep pouring money into our club? Funny how we thought money would bring success. More confused now than when we didn't have it.

Mind you, I do respect Paul S' views.

What I am sure we all agree on is yesterday was a terrible day to be an Evertonian. Our supporters club gathering was a pretty morose affair. It must have been 100x worse for match-goers!

If I saw it coming, the high earners should have easily seen it.

That put the first smile on my face since yesterday, PT

A twat of a day, but absolutely no reason why we should be looking to soften the blow.

Admirable opportunism

Keep doing the same things and hope for a different result. Watford fans laughed when he came to us, they knew, they'd seen it. He's a shit manager. I for one never wanted him.

The sooner he leaves the better. And no, I don't know who could do the job because of who we can attract, and also who's available. Just not this jester. He even sounds like Martinez in his interviews now.

40 years Evertonian and I've lost all interest in the club. I barely sulk or react when we lose these days. Maybe it's age, or maybe I've just had the heart beaten out of me. It's just not fun anymore. I don't even bother going to games either. What's the point?

2. Marcel Brands has been a breath of fresh air, albeit too late, as millions (which could have been more sensibly been used) has been proliferated on players and compensation for previous managerial mistakes/dismissals.

3. Who the hell advised Moshiri to head hunt Silva? Not only was he a serial loser, but had never achieved anything of note. As you so rightly pointed out Brands was not on board/Board then!

Hopefully Brands will be involved in the approval/appointment of the next Manager, and I also hope it is sooner rather than later, otherwise we will have the best Stadium in the Championship/League 1.

There are many who know Silva is not good enough but baulk at change because we have a veritable revolving door.

Time is the luxury we cannot afford, and that is not the reason not to Remove him. Yes it’s short term, and yes it’s feels unstable but the structure we have is there to make that change.

Brands has a good reputation, a reasonable eye in the market, however I will say he dropped the ball on both a CF & CB. I’d expect he already has replacements lined up for Silva, succession is part of the role.

I’ll repeat my own view is the only way we will make the leap, and it’s a big one, to the top six/four is to find a coach who can make wine from water, to make us an overachieving outlier. From then we have one chance to make it stick.

I cannot foresee any incremental time based approach working as, like Spurs, because we are simply too far behind the others to catch up.

Otherwise we are doomed to become, if we are not already, a Watford, a Bournemouth, maybe a Villa.

Silva is simply incapable of adapting to the situation. You say the 'style' Marco is trying to play is on the pretty side, however I see a team that tends to have loads of possession but for the most part doesn't do anything with it, just like Martinez. On paper the players we have are high quality so who's fault is that? You don't need to go down the Allardyce route to play effective football. We have decent players but we don't seem to be getting the best out of them. We don't ask enough questions of opposition defences and most of the time our build up play is too slow.

Taking Utd as example. Everyone knew they would come to GP and close ranks. However we still set up the same way at home with 7 defensive players to start against a team set to defend against us. The players we have should have more than enough trickery and pace to be able to get past a championship defence but we struggled to even create chances never mind taking them. We did not need 2 DMs as we were obviously going to have most of the possession. Yes, we had loads of possession, crosses and shots but most of that was toothless and so in my view these starts are a bit irrelevant and saying we dominated using those as back up is a bit flawed. 70% odd possession is a pointless stat when the ball is going sideways and backwards most of the time. A lot of our shots were half chances or not even chances. Whats the point in lumping crosses in with no target man. Why can't we be a real threat from corners with a 6ft5 CB? Etc.

Yes on another day, we may have had more luck and gotten something but this is becoming a regular sob story and we should not be needing luck at home against Sheffield United. Fact is we have played 6 games and have 7 points. We haven't yet played a single team who finished top 6. We're easy to score against and the opposition know if they score first its game over. If we can't win against the Villas and Shef Utds of this world, we really are in trouble. The two teams we have managed to beat are currently bottom and second bottom - i.e. the worst in the league.

We just don't look like a joined up team and for me Silva has shown nothing to suggest he has more than plan A, and even Plan A isn't great. Next league game will be the same 4231 and the one after etc. Same players, same tactics, same shit.

Boring and predictable - if we the fans know this its not difficult for an opposition manager to set his team up against us.

Liverpool today have Henderson/Fabinho/Winjldum as their midfield 3. There is a bit of nastiness and uncompromising professional athelticism about all of them. Milner and Oxlade Chamerlain are in the same mold. As was Alsonso/Mascherano.

We never seem to have them uncompromising players, who have steel running through their veins instead of blood.

This is our soft underbelly, has been for years and years.

Joe Royle toughened the midfield up and fed them raw meat and told them to fight with every last ounce of energy to win that midfield battle. We just dont seem to be able to battle any more and then win the game by means of brilliance from a talented player. We seem to have an abundance of talent and not enough worker bees . Gana was our main [only?] workaholic and he has gone.

We never win midfield battles now. We have the talented players but the midfield is so weak that the talent doesn't come into the equation.

I think Gbamin was brought in to address this, and it is a crying shame he is injured. But we need more from our midfield 3 in the way of fight and steel.

We all know Tom Davies has some development still to come , but the lad has more about him with regards steel and determination than most of them that get picked. Yesterdays game was perfect to put Tom in with Delph and tell him to get stuck in and drive forward. I was very disappointed he was overlooked , especially for this match , what a poor decision .

Vieira is highly thought of, doing a decent job at Nice. Arteta also highly rated but zero experience - are big risks.

Marcelino did excellently at Valencia and has had a decent managerial career in Spain, but never managed out side of Spain (probably doesn't speak English).

An out the box option could be Željko Buvač - Klopp's previous Assistant Manager. Hasn't ever had the top job, but thought to be the tactician behind Klopp's success at Dortmund.

Ten Hag - teh Ajax manager would be an ambitious one, maybe he could be convinced - if we paid enough.

Rudi Garcia has always been a decent manager, and is unattatched.

Laurent Blanc is still unattatched, too.

There are many options out there. We shouldn't have to suffer Silva any longer.

I am just hoping with Brands about, there maybe no daft decisions taken and the problems are identified and sorted out. No doubt Silva is in panic, but he has Brands to talk to and listen to him, and hopefully offer advice.

But Silva is here now and I believe we must give him more time to sort things out. The transfer window in the summer saw us lose two players who were key to the recovery in the spring. We failed to replace Zouma who had formed a good partnership with Keane and it is unfortunate the replacement for Gueye is injured.

Silva has some key decisions to make in the coming matches. I think he is better placed to make them than any new manager would be. The priority must be to sort out the midfield. I think the time has come to give Tom Davies another chance because he would complement Delph more effectively than Schneiderlin who plays in the same style as Delph. Davies was on the receiving end of a lot of criticism last winter, much of it unjustified. Possibly fans will be a little more patient if and when he gets his chance this season. As someone said leaving the ground yesterday he cannot be any worse than the player he would replace.

Sacking Silva at this stage of the season seems to me not only pointless but also potentially counter-productive. As there is no obvious ready made replacement it would leave us going back to David Unsworth or one of the many journeyman managers currently without a job.

Sigurdsson is stinking the place out and so are Keane and Coleman. We over-rely on our full-backs and have been for years now. We hardly ever test the keeper every game and create any chances.

If Silva goes there are tons of names such as Howe, Arteta and Mourinho etc but there are still so much utter shite at the club who are bleeding the club dry.

Brands is doing a good job but the failure to get a top striker and centre half is killing us.

There is one name who might change things around if Silva gets his marching orders and that is Massimiliano Allegri. He's out of work and was great at Juve and Milan. His sides play good football and he gave Kean his breakthrough.

Italians are the best coaches in world football. 3 have one the Premier League while Sarri and Di Matteo won the Champions League and Europa League respectably.

Maybe the penny has dropped. Maybe people are beginning to see the glaring deficiencies throughout the team.

We have got to make ourselves hard to beat again. The guard dog has gone to Paris and our defenders our being exposed week in week out. They clearly need the protection they enjoyed last season.

Scheiderlin isn't the answer, if anything he adds to the problem.
Holgate is faster. has a better touch, sees danger earlier and he isn't frightened to play the ball forward. He couldn't possibly offer the defence less cover than the current so called DF's.

Given the current set up. I'd play him in the Gana role in a heartbeat

Interesting shout re Holgate, but Silva doesn't rate him, does he?

I hope Brands can steady Silva because, despite the awful start and the accumulating evidence against him, I retain some faith in this manager.

I remember hearing this over and over again about Colin Harvey in 1987, but that didn’t prove to be true, did it?

Harry 320 - “What about Slaven Bilic?”

Based on his last stint at Goodison, he’d be missing for 9 out of 10 games with unexplained injuries or illnesses.

Darren 322 - “Over 300 posts and hardly any criticism of the center forward”

Funny, I noticed that too.

Really conflicted on this. We need stability, there’s a good side there that needs a bit of magic dust to click. Just not sure that Marco has the nous to sprinkle it. But he has to be given the opportunity. Some imagination required though because if he keeps doing the same thing he’ll get the same results. So frustrating to see Man U, Chelsea and others dropping points while we fail to capitalise again and again.