Impossible to be optimistic looking at this selection and as others have said you can’t help but feel there will be a big rethink at half time to put things on a more even keel, by which time of course, we may well be too far adrift.

3-5-2 with Gordon in the Central role.

Really pleased that Carlo has changed from the 4-4-2. For better or for worse this match it needed doing. I think we have to accept he is just trying to get to the end of the season now the best way he can. It's a different formation with some different players in some new positions , so hold on to your hats !

It will be very interesting to see how Anthony Gordon gets on in the centre. I like what I have seen from him and this is a great chance for him to show us more.

Anyone notice the look on Richarlisons face when Kean had the ball the other day? He basically just stood there watching him... wondering what he was doing. He is as raw as Niasse was but there is hope as he can hopefully be trained. Maybe

The lethargy of recent games needed expunging and with this team he is trying to achieve that. Whether it works or not is another thing altogther.

There’s not much more to say than what’s been said this last week, and a senseless penalty to cap of another crap fest of football.

My lads watching, I'm listening in the other room on the radio, but it’s getting to become a tedium these days listening to the game.

Let’s hope the second half they can resurrect any fighting spirit they have left. And get some belief in themselves.

Clever turn by the Wolves lad that foxed Digne.

Other than that neither side troubling the other much with Everton isolating DCL and Richie.

This looks like too many games in too short a time for a stretched squad. Richie in particular looks goosed. He is not making his usual bursting runs or reacting to balls played through or up to him as normal. Back on his heels a bit.

Hard to see a way back into this on the energy levels and all-round passivity displayed in the first half.

Yes, I think we all want the season to end, but sadly it won't be any better next season.

Year in year out, same old crap.

They keep getting picked, no matter how bad they play. How will we know if the kids are good enough, like Simms and Baningime? I know managers have their reputations at stake but you have to be brave in life sometimes.

I can’t remember a side quite as clueless as this one though. So devoid of everything. They don’t seem to be responding to Ancelotti at all. We’d best sort ourselves out very quickly or next season could be worrying.

Everton haven't come back from being a goal down at half-time in 5 years. Just come from a goal behind in any game bar one in last 3 seasons.

Game over again. Changes in the break before next season have to be made. Big changes.

Considering the money spent and changes made,this must be THE worst team in football history. I would like to get Vecino among others we need.

The mindset of the club is all wrong, thinking we are a big hitter when we are one of the worst teams in the league.

New season will be the same.

Prediction: 4-0 to Wolves – if we're lucky!

There's never been a worse time in our history to support us, especially with the redshite having their best side ever, arguably.

We must recognise where we now stand and, yet again, re-build. The alternative is too awful to contemplate.

Ancelotti is a fraud. Moshiri must be suicidal the money he has spewed on us.

On the other hand, Sigurdsson is on mega money and cost a fortune. He’s the guy who should be pulling all the strings and making things happen. But we can’t sell him as he’s too expensive.

Awful stuff. This match has been poorly managed.

I've just noticed that even the passes from Everton players go slowly along the ground. Like the ball after it's kicked just ambles along as slow as the players do. Gives the opposition all the time in the world.

I still have postive thoughs about CA. He can not have been sitting on his hands trying to find positives about keeping this squad together. I am not in the least qualified to tell him what he should do for next season.

I hope that he now has his dossier on potential imports and more importantly on his definite exports and those he can tolerate for just one more season as a necessity!

I can not believe that this is in hand for a manager of CA's reputation. If it isn't, heaven help us!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

PS. Scneidlin should have been got rid of when he and Mirallas were sent home from training. A pair of arrogant and devious possessed of total TWATITUDE!

The top class managers are the ones that can improve what they currently have.

Whole midfield needs to be changed and it won't happen. Davies doesn't belong to this level, Sigurdsson just collecting pension funds and Gomes gone as a player after injury.

Pickford is another glaring weakness. I just don't see the funds being there.

We have several overpaid wasters in the squad and the whole midfield unit is shambolic, no matter what permutation is played.

However, I still refrain from blaming Ancelotti until the new season has begun. With these players, we need a magician – not a manager.

So depressing to watch... Why should I torture myself?

We are not the worst team in the Premier League, but we are playing the worst football. I am not a tactics expert but, when your midfield cannot tackle, create chances, help in defence, or score goals, then what are the chances?

I expect some criticism but probably a season or two in the Championship is what we need. At least we would probably have a playoff final at Wembley to look forward to...

If we start the new season like this, it's going to be the same old story of looking for a new manager.

I would completely shame the lot of them on Thursday night and send the women's team out.

Davies, Sigurdsson, Digne, Pickford, none of them should wear the shirt again.

The rest of them I'd just bin off on free transfers.

This is worse than anything under Allardyce.

Gomes and Davies may well get decent fees. Sigurdsson and Bernard would be minimal transfer values, but their wages are huge. Iwobi we'd take a loss, but may get a buyer. Delph, we'd probably recoup what we paid and need rid of his huge wage.

Get rid of the lot.

Well, now we have a top class manager who has not improved these players. It has never been just about the manager. We need a whole new squad. This was yet another disgrace!!

If I never see Davies, Sigurdsson, Iwobi and Coleman in Everton shirts again it'd be a consolation.

Too many bastards on top money taking the piss out of our club and they need to be gotten rid of asap. Otherwise, we will go down.

Carlo and Brands need to start earning their money NOW.

Ancelotti and Brands have much to do, but how sad to see a side treating this club with such contempt.

Unless Brands, Ancelotti and the coaches get off their arses and actually do their jobs properly and we get players who actually give a damn and can play the game of football, then we will always be an embarrassment.

Richarlison will go in the transfer window; we won't have anyone lined up, as is the Everton way, and things will get even worse. We don't do the basics — that is why even the promoted clubs can beat us.

Brands (who some on here said would be a genius with his South American connections) was supposed to change all this and provide the club with real quality... he has provided sweet Fuck-All.

I remember when he was patting himself on the back regards Mina and Gomes signing, I expressed my opinion that it was a little early to be doing that.

As a club, we have an inferiority complex that has been going on for as long as I can remember. We have tried all types of managers and our current manager must be wondering what the fuck has he got himself into.

The majority of these players don't care enough and, if they don't want to impress the likes of Ancelotti, then it's going to get even worse for Evertonians.

Good luck to Ancelotti, he's going to need it!

We are broken though. We've hit that point that many of us are far too familiar with. Where a team can't do anything right, so they get safer and safer. Instead of being brave they drop further and further back to get on the ball. Pass sideways and backwards and slower and slower so they don't misplace anything. And make more and more mistakes because football just doesn't work like that.

I'm sick of wanting seasons to end by midway through the year. This is supposed to be my passion.

We have no central midfield: Gomes & Gana worked; Gomes & Gbamin may have, Gomes & Delph would have been a stop-gap. Even Gomes, now post-injury, looks like he is struggling to regain any form.

Sigurdsson and Davies are a pushover central midfield at Premier League level. We are getting annihilated.

I also feel the movement of our two forwards has been limited too. I think they are getting off lightly some of the time.

The transfer window can't come soon enough because one thing is for sure: we ca'nt go on like this. We need quality in midfield with drive, dynamism and toughness. We need major surgery in that area this summer.

The whole midfield has to look different and have a different mentality come the end of August.

Look at Sheffield United once they've won the ball in their area: swift, precise medium-range passes, with players moving into space, into the final third before you know it. Not difficult but beautifully executed.

For me, we need quality rather than quantity. If we have to put everything into a top class ball winning midfielder, then so be it. That one player could improve everyone else and then, next summer, when a load of the Walsh signings are gone, we can look at moving to challenge the top 6.

Our result at Anfield in the FA Cup this season was, I believe, the most shameful result in our history. Now I have witnessed the most hapless performance I have had to endure.

I am not going to pass any judgment on Carlo Ancelotti at this stage of his tenure with us. He has got a hell of a task on his hands.

It is depressing to see so much apathy and Ancelotti is using up his credit. He needs to focus on his midfield. When he brings on Iwobi and Bernard to rescue a game, I despair.

To be fair to the players, when they were given the line-up, they would have presumed that Carlo was taking the piss and so decided to act accordingly and play it for laughs.

Ancelotti has largely been good at game management, apart from Chelsea and Spurs IMO. He can't control us giving away cheap penalties. People saying he's a charlatan are entitled to their opinion, but it's frankly ridiculous saying that about the 2nd best manager in the world next to Pep.

Under him, we were challenging for Champions League places before the pandemic. The guy is now dealing with a mish-mash of players bought under 3 managers, a lot of injuries, and we have a non-existent midfield. While we can question some decisions like the ones I mentioned, saying he's a charlatan and he needs to be sacked are being overly dramatic. His credentials speak for themselves.

In fairness, he settled down really well and got in some good clean challenges. He looks a giant. Michael Keane looked small alongside him.

As for the game, 0-0 with 30 seconds to play out in 1st half injury time... and somehow, 47 seconds into the 2nd half we are 2-0 down.

The game is lost right there, in a single minute either side of half-time.

Their 3rd goal was a beaut, similar in many ways to the Digne - Richarlison combo last time out vs Southampton. And they should have had a 4th from an Everton corner with Patricio's superb kick out, Jota again leaving Tom Davies in his wake only for Traore to save our blushes.

As for us, Carlo I am sure already knows what needs changing. Today's game only further confirmed it. Wolves make for a wonderful comparative model.

Sensible and modest recruitment of the right sort of player that fits into a specific system. This was not accidental. They have further benefited from advanced planning and having a close association with Cristiano Ronaldo's super-agent, Jorge Mendes, who provides them with up-and-coming players from his stable.

Wolves also make nonsense of the claims that a club like Everton couldn't handle Premier League and European football together. They started their European campaign on 25 July last year, have one foot into the quarter finals of the Europa League and sit 6th in the Premier League.

Everton? Never a sniff of a European spot all season, bumping around mid-table, having spent £500 million on players under Moshiri.

Pickford made a couple of decent saves. And had a couple of bloopers that could have been worse.

Digne and Keane did okay. Mina seemingly suffered a very strange injury from nothing. Baines and Coleman barely influential. Davies a real off day. Sigurdsson okay, but still not influential enough. Walcott anonymous. Gordon peripheral. Iwobi at least attempted to inject some pace and forward passing into the game.

Bernard... I like the lad. He and Digne worked so well together last season, but this season? The ball escapes him. He can't find team mates with the simplest of passes. He now brings little or nothing to the table.

Calvert-Lewin once again totally isolated. Richarlison looked goosed and it was no surprise to see him withdrawn. Kean contributed the grand sum of zero.

The injuries to Holgate and now Mina shows the need for an additional first-team ready centre-back. But the defence has greatly improved under Carlo and is not the priority.

Clearly midfield is. Unless and until we introduce more bite, guile and speed into that area of the pitch, we will continue to be extremely ordinary. Because it is beyond those we currently have to call on.

Stop paying the bastards, drop them from the squad, call them out publicly in interviews but above all get a big bastard firework under his own overpaid arse and show some pride, passion and motivation.

Make no mistake — we will get relegated with this current set-up.

They clearly aren't playing for him just like many did not play for Silva or Allardyce or Koeman before him.

I would love to see every single player ousted out of the team today with the exception of Gordon as it's not is fault.

Do they care that they look like twats? Do they fuck.

Embarrassing the lot of them, we had shit teams years ago but at least they had some fight and some passion.

This lot are the worst of the worst, shit at footballer and heartless and I include Davies in that, the local boy that gets an easy ride, absolutely dreadful footballer.

Hope to god Carol knows what he's doing. As for players putting themselves in the shop window.... Charity Shop window only!

I agree. The main problem today was a midfield led by Sigurdsson, who basically abdicated on all creative responsibility, and who fellow midfielders could not depend on for a good forward pass or support. The attack was left completely isolated and Wolves were able to run through midfield unchallenged. Passing in the final third was non-existent for most of the game.

Ancelotti will need two years to sort out the mess.

I'm certainly not saying the guy is beyond reproach cos he's dropped the ball in at least two games I can think of. I actually don't think today was one of them. He started with the right formation and we were largely nullifying them. Once we gave a cheap pen away he tried to change things with what little he had.

If I'd be questioning anyone I'd be looking at Brands. How the hell we spent as much as £34M on Iwobi is anyone's guess. Let's hope now we've got a world class manager in, we will have a greater pull for better players

The team that played today should not represent the Everton club. There is a great big problem with the midfield in the fact they don’t have one.

If at all possible, they should get rid of all the players they can and start with players that look as if they care about playing for Everton and are not just there for the big paydays.

Let’s get some effort and pride in the way they play!

They provide handouts and free money for doing fuck-all.

At the risk of repeating myself, if Carlo fails to improve (not just replace) the vast majority of this squad before next season, he will go the way of Silva, Koeman et al in the blink of an eye.

This season was written off months ago but the last knockings of his honeymoon period will see him through till the break. But overseeing another crap transfer window producing fuck all but more mediocrity will see his arse on toast within weeks of the restart

Of course, at his age and the monies he's on, he might not give a shit – we'll soon see.

We can for now just about take insipid but defensively sound displays as being an improvement. But when we set out to be as unadventurous as anything under Allardyce and stop getting even half-decent outcomes then we have to be very concerned.

For me Jordon Pickford will have lost his England position to Nick Pope, and proved again he’s Jekyll & Hyde in every game.

Seriously depressing watching or listening to Everton, and I am questioned by my resolve.

If the club don’t back Ancelloti this summer, I can’t see how he or anyone will turn these pansies into a proper football team.

The shame and scorn the club has born the last week is the worst. It’s seems they had packed in when lock down started.

Note much more to be said.

The only good thing about it being I figure I have longer on this earth than Everton have in the Premier league.

Please forget all this stuff about playing in Europe...

He is dreadful. Can't we give him away to someone like Tranmere? He probably wouldn't get a game for them.

Do you remember our first meeting in London? It was the time when you were trying to find a new manager. You told me then that you were only two or three players short of a side that could challenge for the top six. It was when Duncan had shown that playing 4-4-2 and putting a bit of fire in the bellies of the team could bring good results.

Well, like we agreed, I’ve given the squad a good run out. What do you think now? Personally I think we need about eight new players. Good ones, mind. Not like the dross you bought in recent transfer windows.

It’s up to you, of course. If you don’t want to take my advice and invest in quality, you can sack me before Christmas and I’ll get my £40 million payoff.

Ciao

Carlo Fantastico

Oh, and Carlo needs to be backed 100% in the transfer market and squad cull.

The only other thing he could do is play Beni. Until we bring in 1 or 2 centre-midfielders and Gbamin or Delph get to a consistent level of fitness, we are going to have the slowest and perhaps the worst midfield in the Premier League.

The first 11 is a mess, the squad is a mess. At least with Big Dunc you could see the structure and some passion.

Playing two left-backs and leaving two right-+backs on the bench was just plain weird. Something must be going on. As I said when I saw the starting line-ups – it might be Carlo forcing the owner to invest.

Richarlison
Digne
Calvert-Lewin
Gomes (and pray he gets his mojo back)
Coleman (as backup)
Holgate
Gordon

The rest can go.

Spurs game was the key. They, like us, are really misfiring and if we'd taken it to them, got a decent performance and positive result from that game, the players may have got enough of a boost to keep them going. However, that game effectively ended our season and this bunch of players don't seem to have enough inner fire to get psyched up for largely meaningless fixtures.

As a consequence, we are pretty much into ‘pre-season' for 20-21 and I suppose some of the players will have one eye on just getting through these games pretty much unscathed.

We need recruits in midfield but I doubt a wholesale clearout is on the cards. That would be too much work for both Brands and Ancelotti. Instead, it will most probably be a mix and match process with Ancelotti deciding who he can ‘improve' by giving them a few key team-mates.

I'm very disappointed that Baningime still hasn't been used considering how poor and ineffective our midfield is.

Norwich was a win, but we were poor in that one.

Then we were terrible against Tottenham and Saints and now even worse against Wolves.

My point is we've been poor since the restart. I thought the crowd made our players' heads go down. I am very wrong on that. Looks like we can't play away from the backing of the Goodison faithful. It also looks like we are the most mentally fragile team in the Premier League.

I ask myself why I am expending so much emotional energy and inner turmoil on a bunch of players that do not warrant playing for the club ever again? It is really apparent a number see they have no future to play for. Given Steve Ferns comments about The Esk's analysis, Steve is right to suggest we need to invest in improvement not numbers in the window but who decent in heaven's name will want to come?

Carlo has a major job on his hands and Brand's has failed us as miserably as a number of the players of the past decade thus far in my view.

We can't buy more than 2 or 3 this summer. They'll need time to settle in and remain uninjured playing week-in & week-out to make a difference.

And if we lose any half-decent player we have, which is quite possible, we're back at square one. This has relegation written all over it.

So where do we go from here? We can't get a half-decent player to sign for us, we end up having to sell our few players that look like they have some quality.

I'm fed up flogging a dead horse, for that is what supporting Everton is. It's time I did something useful instead of following this club.

Pickford = Most schizophrenic goalkeeper I've ever seen, makes some decent saves but I will never feel safe with this fella between the sticks.

Coleman = Nothing left to offer, legs gone, shadow of the player he was.

Mina = Made of glass, can't rely on him through a season.

Keane = Nervous man needs a steady partner but not good enough to be where we want to be.

Holgate = Not as good as some people think he is. Better on the ball than at actually defending. Maybe use him in midfield; keep him on for the time being.

Digne = Spent all season looking half-arsed, shit defender, weak and mentally seems to be a bit weak too, gives away so many cheap fouls, nowhere near the player I thought he'd be.

Baines = Just read Coleman.

Sigurdsson = Just read Coleman and Baines, get rid.

Gomes = Even before the injury, he was one great game then ten shit ones, too casual, too immobile for a team that needs energy. A squad player, no more.

Davies = Sell him to some cats home or something, dreadful footballer, not good at anything, can't tackle, can't shoot, can't head a ball and is too slow.

Delph = Who is he?

Iwob i= Poor man's Theo Walcott, that says it all.

Walcott = Poor man's Yannick Bolasie, that says it all, lol.

Gordon = In a better, more confident team ,there's some promise for him as a squaddie.

Bernard = Major letdown after a decent start to his career, too lightweight and offers nothing really. Squad player at very best.

Moise Kean = Headless chicken, brainless footballer and can't see how he's ever going to become a regular in this league, probably be loaned out back to Italy with a view to a permanent move.

Richarlison = Moody miserable bitch but the only real hope we have when he's in the mood

Calvert-Lewin = Purple patch aside, he's still a pretty bang ordinary player, tries hard usually but I still don't think he's ever going to be the answer long-term to seeing Everton become a successful team again or even challenging the better sides.

So there you have it, just a bit shit really, ain't it?

There is no point in becoming hysterical about the situation, we just have to suck it up and hope that the management can persuade players, of the quality we need, to come and join us. Until then, we must dig in, dig deep and support our club. COYB.

Injuries and below par players contributed further to today's performance. In the end Everton where chasing the game and looked better, but got caught on the counter.

We need 2-3 new players in midfield. Players who can run, have a stamina, are quick, and never give up. About all things we miss now. Right now we most likely have the slowest midfield in the Premier League.

Of course, this is not going to work. It does not matter what Ancellotti does. We are not good enough and need new midfield players. Not wingers etc, we need central midfield players that can run and pass quickly.

There were some absolute ‘disgraces' on the field today, chief amongst them for me: Digne. Caught out once for his yellow card and was rash in the challenge all game. The penalty was brain dead, not only on its execution but he knew there were but seconds remaining. He then twice idly fouled players in the second half saved by the referee's advantage.

I've bitched about Mina‘s fitness for months and got completely mad at him when he pulled up lame. You cannot carry a centre-back with a bad injury record. Either his lifestyle (diet) and or regime is wanting because it would seem he cannot string more than 7-10 games together without breaking down.

Big deep breaths required!

I just hope they get complacent and, despite them seeing off 4 managers, someone cottons on to their cunning plan and bins the lot of them. With one or two exceptions.

We have a bunch of bodies in midfield, not footballers. The only ones I'd keep are Gomes and Gordon, the rest can sod off.

RW: McNeil. Really good young player.

CM: Brownhill. Who? I am a self-confessed stats geek and I don't know this guy.

CM: Westwood. Very limited.

LW: Pieters. Journeyman left-back with really fit but vacuous wife.

I know that our first 11 is depleted but look what organisation and motivation can do.

As Si Cooper states, a full-scale clear-out will not happen, recruitment has to be made of players that not only improves the position they are bought for, but they improve their teammates around them. Just because you have money to buy players there is no guarantee they will come, there is too much player and agent power during negotiations.

We also have 2/3 players who if an offer comes in may force the club to sell them, for example Richarlison, Digne and Holgate.

You can't repair the damage from previous seasons in 1 transfer window, and as we are in an extremely difficult position, you have to hope for once, we have the right personnel in position – Brands and Ancelotti – who are capable of upholding their reputations and turning this club around with the correct players.

It is a disgrace that as supporters we have to continually have to ask the pPeople who run this club, to produce a team that supporters can believe in, instead of the continual criticism.

We started okay, let them have the ball and it was just pass, pass and pass. Nothing to worry about, so good stuff, but you know what, you pay a high price when you have no outlet and at times it was Calvert-Lewin against 4 defenders. I mean what the fuck is that all about? 11 players against 11 players and we end up with Calvert-Lewin against 4 defenders, that is shocking.

Well, we cant keep that up for 90 mins, I mean it is asking a lot with it being Super Sunday. Defend, kick the ball out, and then defend again??? Carlo you fucking genius, you almost got us to half time as well with a tidy nil-nil in the pocket.

Note to Carlo: Give Gomes, Davies and Sigurdsson a break, actually give all the midfield a break and play 6 at the back and 4 up top. It's long-ball central, I know, but fuck me, we might have a shot at goal...

Next season more of the same according to Brands. I say keep Richie and Carlo, if we can, also Holgate and Gordon for the future, and dump and replace all the rest – including Brands.

Really poor today. A lot of squad changes needed! But for some to blame the manager though seems harsh. Not sure Pep or Klipperty could get a tune out of that midfield.

Trouble is, we have been playing like that for years.

What happens when the perfect storm and high tide comes in?

We play like we did today against Villa and we will lose.

It may not feel like it but we have in fact taken eight points from six games since the resumption. That is actually slightly better than our points per game average over the season as a whole. I don't believe we have seen much since the restart that is different from what we witnessed before the lockdown.

If there is any mitigation for today's dire performance, it is that some of the players are running on empty, most notably Davies, Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison. Wolves, with a bigger and better squad, have played three games in nine days, allowing three full days for recovery between each fixture. Our team, beset by injuries and lack of form, has had only two full days recovery between each fixture. Ideally the manager would have been able to rotate his attackers. Unfortunately there is no scope at present for the manager to change the front pairing who have the thankless task of chasing scraps.

For those demanding wholesale changes to the squad, the club is in no position to deliver that. Even if it was feasible, the last thing we need is another raft of imports who will require time to settle in a squad bereft of confidence. We need to strengthen with two or three quality additions to add pace, energy and craft to our outfield play. Obviously we also need a keeper to offer sense and stability to our defensive play.

At least he has the presence to persuade quality players to sign for us and, equally importantly, retain our best players.

I agree as usual with Colin Glassar; it's time now time for Usmanov to openly join Moshiri. FFP is going to be out of the window for a while and significantly more funding is required.

Now people on blame Carlo, we can't exempt Davies from criticism cause he's cheap and Gordon cause he's young as they're two thirds of the midfield with Sigurdsson, who's a loser.

We can't exempt Gomes and Coleman from criticism because they had bad injuries as they were largely playing the same way before those injuries.

Sometimes, one or two crucial signings can make a huge difference in how a team and a system works. Just look at Fernandes at Man Utd. Are we capable of finding that player or two to make the whole thing work properly? I'm not sure.

The likes of Wolves and Sheffield United will rightfully finish above us despite less investment. The one thing they've had that we haven't is consistency. Carlo will get a season at least with this lot.

One thing's for sure and that is that he now has a hugely different challenge from what he has faced before. He's got to cajole better performances from many of this lot. Hope he's up to it.

I wouldn't even keep Gordon, I'd terminate his contract immediately to put the fear of God into other youngsters that “Okay is not good enough.”

Hit the ground running or hit the road. Nil Satis Nisi Optimum.

After 60-odd years of mostly pain, it's amazing what this pandemic has achieved for some. My heart bleeds when I see the score and read a few posts; however, it's not as bad as actually watching the no doubt pathetic efforts.

Switch off, less stress, enjoy Escape to the Country or some other crap on telly.

I think all of the aforementioned and some of your list are luckily out of contract next summer.

I'm sure Davide is saying, “Papa, dees Iwobi is a cazzo, ee need to go pronto.”

About the game itself, Ancelotti's tactics seemed to be paying off until 2 incidents happened – Mina getting injured and then the penalty incident, of course. That forced Ancelotti to change tactics at half-time and he had to bring in 18-year-old Branthwaite, and again I think that was a cheap foul to be given by the referee. God, I think referees hate Everton, don't ask me why?

The performance and result is somewhat mitigated by the injuries during the game – Mina, of course, then Pickford seemed to have picked up a knock just before the interval, but somehow carried on. Digne was barely able to walk in the last 10 mins, and played on only because we had used up all our substitutions.

In the end, we were lucky to keep the score down to 3-0, it could have easily been 5-0.

Let us temper our expectations for the rest of the season by remembering that 3 of our midfielders and 2 of our centre-backs are out injured, and allow Ancelotti to try out the rest of the squad, to help him evaluate who is good enough to keep at Everton. I had great hopes on Baningime but, if he cannot get a game in when the squad is so depleted and Ancellotti prefers Iwobi, Bernard, even an aging Baines over him, then his Everton career must be over. Sad!

I would sell: Sigurdsson (surely he would fit into a mid-table German Bundesliga team), Iwobi (worst buy in the history of Everton), Delph (too injury-prone), Bernard (might do well in Germany), Mina (ditto), Kean (joint worst buy in the history of Everton).

A few weeks back, I posted that buying a centre-back should not be a priority next season – I was wrong! Ditto about a right-back, we need one now!

My list:

CB: Zouma
MF: Gueye (buy him back from PSG, he will be good for a couple of seasons at least), Buendia, Hojberg
RB: Aarons
Forward: (I don't know)

Another investment of £80-100 million, I think.

Hasn't the deadwood Sandro deteriorated into charcoal at this point? Glad the French archaeologists were able to locate and excavate Schneiderlin at least. There are still people who think Danny Williamson is buried close by...

Not that that detracts from utterly woeful and spineless performance.

I don't know what Marcel and his scouting network actually do, or get paid but how we didn't pick McGinn up at that time for that money was sn absolute dereliction of duty.

I don't know how he played today but he's still playing with an injury, regardless, we wouldn't have lost a penny on him.

No, thank you.

From what I've seen of him since his busted leg, he ain't worthy of a place in the team. Over-rated – Barca had him weighed up and acted accordingly, they don't crack empty nuts like our beloved Everton. How many empty nuts have we cracked in the past few years??

We're being taken for mugs by everyone – players, managers, foreign teams that want to offload their deadwood, everyone. Poor little Everton.

When it's all unraveled, even the better players look lost and off-colour. Look at Richarlison this afternoon, sulked and became petulant.

So you're both right, two quality additions can completely flip the dynamic. It has to be a centre-mid and a centre-back, augmented with two loans. No more... or it's too much of a transition.

I actually expected performances like today before the resumption, given the unusual times, the players available and previous form. I am glad and relieved that Everton have got whatever points they have got, largely down to Ancelotti's management.

The others factors you describe have also come into play and I agree with you and Sam that a few strategic players will be brought in, due to feasibility. I also feel that, if Gordon had played as he could, which was a really big ask, taking over from Sigurdsson, and Mina had stayed uninjured, Everton might have got something from the game.

Ancelotti did rectify problems from the last game with his formation. But we badly need someone in midfield who can tackle and we can't have passengers like Sigurdsson in it.

I think that's a very valid point about transition. A team is more than the sum of its parts and buying a whole bunch of new players in one go just takes you one step back in trying to build an integrated whole.

Very often, less is more.

We've continuously spunked millions on players who aren't good enough for Arsenal's and Man Utd's first teams, or players from clubs relegated.

It's not good enough. We haven't moved on, we're too slow on every occasion, whether that's the stadium move, moving for a top-class manager, or in the transfer market. We should've pushed the boat out as soon as Moshiri came in for a top manager instead of a sacking a conga of shite coaches dancing off with millions in payoffs.

Leeds are coming up and West Brom have a very good team. The worst teams by far in Norwich and Bournemouth are gone or nearly gone. Stick with this group of players and we'll go next year – guaranteed.

Just when you think it couldn't possibly get any worse.

It always amazes me that other teams find their players and have a pass out of defense or give options for the man in possession... but Everton?

This afternoon's performance was just a rerun of our other attempts since the season has resumed – just dross.

I can see Richarlison in a Man Utd shirt sooner or later as he is clearly exasperated with what he is seeing. The transfer window will be interesting as we need energetic tacklers in the midfield for starters.

A lot of these players don't even look bothered, all smiles and fist bumps at the end of the game. If they had put a show on like that in front of our away following, they would have got dog's abuse, as they did in that abject defeat at Burnley under Silva.

All that said, Carlo has to be given two full seasons to turn this around. The problem is the players.

If Carlo can get the right players, we will be a different team next season, even some our current midfielders will look better!

Players can be transformed just by having the right type of player alongside them.

The best thing to happen to Everton is to be relegated next season.

A full reboot/reset is needed.

Please, everyone stop wishing to get this Mistake-Waiting-to-Happen (and will frequently) Zouma.

Given those figures and the shite we have, it's only £35M to £40M per year. So net outlay of £160M. How much for Digne, Holgate and Richarlison? As a guess, over £160M. So FFP seems less of an issue.

Oh so optimistic... ;-)

What is "very Everton" is for those who see the writing on the wall to be heavily criticised by those who would need to employ the services of sniffer dogs to even locate the wall.

The only thing I can't see which is "very Everton" is: Yet another famous hired hand being totally exonerated for serving up pure unadulterated zombie football.

Too many Evertonians have become accustomed to furiously paddling away on this hamster wheel.

What is "very Everton" is for those who see the writing on the wall to be heavily criticised by those who would need employ the services of sniffer dogs to even locate the wall.

The only thing I cant see which is "Very Everton" is; Yet another famous hired hand being totally exonerated for serving up pure unadulterated zombie football.

Too many Evertonians have become accustomed to furiously paddling away on this Hamster wheel.

,,michael.kenrick@gmail.com,1,17:14:02,,2.219.181.3,ok,13643,07/12/2020 17:14:02,dashin@cheerful.com,reader,,,no 1078537,39669,toffeeweb,12/07/2020,John Pierce,johnstuartpierce@gmail.com,"Zouma, on a par with Keane & Mina as players. However, crucially he does have decent pace which often made up for the mistakes he frequently made playing for us. I'd take him over the other two; it would, in simple terms, allow us to play a higher line.

This transfer window has never been more important, we have to sign some leaders who can transform our fortunes; if we fail, I think it will be curtains for Everton and Carlo. Our standing will dip even lower if we sign another couple of useless, greedy mercenaries. Who knows where we will end up if we get it wrong again?

Martinez was the last manager to make some important signings that altered our fortunes, for one season at least, when he signed Lukaku and Barry. That's the calibre of player we should be after; for now, we must just wait and see. The speculation will be intense. I hope Brands isn't picking new players... if so, we are truly doomed. He should be sacked.

The question is: Don't you think there are better out there or do you just think they wouldn't come to us?

I would ask the same question to those mentioning Gana. Fantastic at breaking play up and immense work rate, but still a bit behind Kante. Shouldn't we be looking for the next ‘Kante'?

An important summer ahead. The comings and goings will tell us plenty.

Nice to have you back, Darren.

Our dramatic improvement in defending set pieces is certainly a function of Carlo straightening out Silva's mess, but it's also because Mina and Keane know how to mark an attacker in the box and get their heads to the ball under physical pressure. Zouma does not.

Their mostly on silly money also, so that is another barrier to selling or even loaning them.

The club has been rotten during the whole Kenwright regime, there will come a point when it is relegation again at Woodison. That will be the end of Everton.

More a Neil Redfearn type surrounded by hopeless clowns. Yet our £100 million midfield and £100 million back line will make him look like Di Stefano.

It'll be the Azzuri – Italian national job next for Carlo. That's the trajectory he's on as a manager, and we happen to get him at the lowest point of his club career, while still paying him the wages of someone who at the very least should guarantee a club Champions League football.

We are a sucker-club, a soft touch for players, managers, agents and directors of football alike. Buying one player like a Bruno Fernandes isn't going to transform our situation, as some have said above.

Solksjaer has some good players there, and he's trying to develop a fast, progressive style. I don't see any attempt at a style being developed here, and I don't think we will. ,

Ancelotti's just going to sleepwalk into a massive payout on his contract when he's sacked at some point this (or next) season.

Even if your dismissal of Carlo is accurate, doesn't he still have more to offer than other Premier League managers who aren't has-beens because they never were great? Klopp stands out but people even say Pep is on the wane. Flavor of the month Wilder stands out but so did Dyche and Howe. Neither progressed.

So my point is that it's not like all the other clubs have a Klopp. The greater impact is the players. We have had five very different managers and seen no sustained improvement. So, even if Carlo is shit, we have to accept that all of these players are worse than shit.

Gordon on the right with New, New and Richarlison – two new forwards.

Onwards and upwards.

Since the restart we've all been calling for good recruitment. It's a must. Probably 2 or 3 first-teamers and maybe a couple of prospects like Nkounkou.

Unfortunately there is a danger that we're now so shit that Digne or Richarlison moves on. That really would be a disaster.

But whatever the playing staff, the team spirit, motivation and energy in the camp needs to improve. It all feels very pre-season to me. Carlo must see this. Ferguson must see this.

But it doesn't look like anything will change until next season.

Exactly. One player, Bruno, has had a massive impact at Old Trafford. These players are out there so there is always hope.

It's interesting to watch Carlo on the sidelines – often lacks animation, even when we are a complete shambles. Good sign or bad? Not sure.

Likewise during the drinks breaks – I would expect him to be going fucking mental given what is happening on the pitch, but he says very little. Not sure if it matters...

He probably doesn't go mental cause, by all accounts, we've a team of anxious, depressed cry babies who don't react well to pressure or rebuke. He probably worries they'll be even worse if they go into their sulking shells after a lecture.

We have Richarlison. Everyone else is not good enough for Everton FC.

Obviously there are some players who are worse than others, and some girls' Mothers are bigger than other girls' Mothers, that old chestnut.

There's so many bad players at Everton that's it's beyond a joke. About 12 of them don't even play and need to be excised. I just hope for exciting signings that'll deliver some brave, skilful players on the ball who are good to watch.

Trimming the squad drastically and having a coach who they want to run through brick walls for, and who increases the intensity of training, it's what's needed right now. These feeble-minded players need to be drilled daily, and the best option out there for this currently in England, is Marcelo Bielsa.

Yes, he'll be at Leeds next season in the Premier League but, after next season, someone will try and poach him; my hunch is Newcastle. He'll transform the Toon back into the entertainers with little or no transfer funds, given the chance.

Meanwhile, find 20 or so thuggish blondes named Stig from Stockholm bars and have Joe Kinnear mold them into long ball merchants for a few years until the favella kids are of age.

Another transfer window to save our bacon. Every year the same.

In the run-up, I said that:

- we might go for Moyes if the money was drying-up

- we might go for Bruno Genesio (ex-Lyon) if the plan is to develop players (esp the conveyor belt of value talent from France)

- we might go for Ancelloti (then a improbable rumour) if Moshiri was planning to spend big

On turning up, I was really encouraged that he didn't jump straight for the cheque book but improved Holgate and Calvert-Lewin while adding a bit more cohesion to what Dunc had built.

Since the restart, I've been pleased to see him pick Gordon and develop him too. That's about the only plus and it's not a big one.

If this was Moyes or Allardyce, we'd baying for blood and saying the manager is out of his depth. Clearly Ancelotti knows his stuff, therefore I can only assume there is a seriously rotten core at Everton – which, if left unchecked, can take a club down.

A big summer.

Wishful thinking on your part, I think. The best we can hope for is 3 signings to cover the whole squad, so only two of your list will go.

You could add Davies, Bernard and Gomes too, plus Kean or Calvert-Lewin, depending on who we sign. They're all sub-standard.

Personally, I'd like to see the whole squad replaced but we have to be realistic.

1. Demand an explanation from Ancelotti in respect of the chaos his bizarre team selection created today.

2. Dismiss Brands on the spot for gross incompetence.

3. Meet urgently with the manager, his vast staff and players and express total disgust at their lack of effort and performance.

DEFINITELY THE WORST SINCE THE 1950's RELEGATION.

With some of the players in this Everton team, they will not care, as we have seen before. But Ancelotti will want to deal with this.

To get some pride back, this has to change. I am distressed at seeing us suffer, we have to have a central midfield of some description. What's the solution? You tell me.

Who do we stick in there for the rest of the season ? Mason and Gomes (if Mina and Holgate get fit again!) and back to a simple 4-4-2. This may bring a bit more organisation and structure to the team and stop the damaging rot that has set in.

I have watched a lot of football since the restart and we are the worst team I have seen by some distance. Had Allardyce, Silva, Koeman, Ferguson or Unsworth presided over this shite, they would have been crucified.

Carlo inherited this poor squad but it is his name that is attached to the team he sends out. This has not been an Italian defensive master class. This is a bunch of second-raters coached by a man who has never seen the like of them in his life!

There is nothing cunning going on here. There is no couple of signings that Brand is going to magic up. Carlo is going to have to find, late in his career, an entirely new skill set.

Funny!

Carlo is going to have to dig very deep to find a very deep problem, I think... and discover how to motivate players that simply, aren't.

We had a pretty solid defence on starting back, Keane has played well but we have lost Holgate, then today again Mina, who appears a sick note. So the back four was makeshift. Pickford was at his erratic best.

Our problem is obvious: midfield is pedestrian and bereft of any creativity. I cannot see any other than Gomes staying and he needs to be match fit.

People are on about Richarlison but I have seen nothing from him in three games. Having said that, I feel sympathy for the front men as they receive precious little decent service.

I put little blame at Brands's door; most of what we have were signed under Walsh. Although Iwobi is awful.

We have suffered from a lack of quality for years but we had effort and desire. That has disappeared with large wages and names. It should be standard: you're getting paid, you put the effort in. Maybe they should go under standard management tools for performance.

One of the basics I cannot understand though is how you can't pass to a teammate. All of these issues have been manager after manager, so it's a lack of respect for themselves, the team, the manager and the fans.

It is so important that we bring in some quality with a different mindset, particularly in midfield, a forward who can hit the back of the net regularly, and another centre-back. These additions must contain pace, creativity and guile. Probably the most important thing, though, is a positive and winning mental attitude.

We should sign 20 players. Well, that sounds sensible. Any names?

We should cut our losses on our highly-paid, under-performing stars and, if we can't sell them, just give them free transfers. Sorry, guys, but it doesn't quite work like that. What if they don't want to go?

Virginia should replace Pickford for the remaining matches. Is this the same Virginia who was sent packing by Reading after just three disasterous games?

There were many others but my favourite was the post suggesting Gordon should have his contract cancelled "as a lesson to all the other young players". Harry Catterick was a hard man but not even he would have thought of that one.

Let's all just calm down a bit; that performance wasn't wholly unexpected. We all know where our weaknesses are and a couple of astute midfield signings could transform this side. We'll get rid of the deadwood as their contracts run down or maybe let the more expensive ones go cheaply if that would enable the other club to meet their wages. The unfortunate reality is that some of the wasters will just see out their contracts.

Bielsa did come relatively close, he took a young Basque Bilbao side, made up mostly of young players from the academy who he worked with and fast-tracked into the side, to the Uefa Cup Final in 2012 (losing obviously), but not only that, playing great football, exciting to watch.

I wouldn't mind a bit of that for a couple of seasons. There's no guarantee any manager can win anything.

Failing that, we'll go with Kieran's Joe Kinnear plan, I'm into it.

Andrew, I do believe you have hit the nail on the head.

Almost every one of the new recruits except Richarlison and Digne has been some other team's reject or not wanted by any other decent teams.

This has to stop and we need to up our game — recruit players the manager wants, not Blue Bill or Moshiri or even Brands who knew them from the past.

We need to pay proper money for proper players — not some cheap lad with potential. We need to be looking at the players performing well in the Championship who show fight and desire.

This was a dreadful performance. I can just about stomach losing to a better team (and Wolves were), as long as there was desire; as long as you walk off that pitch knowing you couldn't have done any more, you were just beaten by a better team on the day. Everton cannot say that today.

I hate to single out players and really do not take pleasure in saying, but Tom Davies is not the standard we should be aspiring to be. That's not picking on the local lads or academy graduates, it's just plain to see.

Why would they not try if they're told they're not wanted? They could have the opposite reaction: try harder to get noticed, to get a good move.

Also, if true, is that really great management to tell them they're all not needed with a few games to go?

Even then, some would stop mid-dance, blowing out of their backside with hands on their thighs.

But a manager who has only realistically had 4 months at the wheel with sub-standard players he inherited cannot yet be judged in the longer-term picture.

When he's had the chance to build his own squad and have that squad play the way he wants them to, then we can judge.

I appreciate everyone is raw right now, but today I saw a classic end-of-season performance from a team who were disinterested – either because they have nothing to play for... or they know that they are on their way out.

The so-called genius who sent the rabble out to play without adequate preparation for such a strange formation was not entirely blameless, was he?

Obviously, he has Champions League with RB Leipzig, but he also appears to remain under the radar in terms of interest from Premier League clubs. Very good player with goals in him.

If we want hungry players, we have to find players on their way up. That's it for me. I don't want any more deadwood from Barca, Man Utd, Arsenal or whatever big club we are talking about. I rather get Zinckernagel from Bodø for 2 million euros.

You could be right. But I think Ancelotti has realised what you say. He has described them as unprofessional and having a poor attitude. He has further stated this is unacceptable.

For a manager of Ancelotti's stature to say that means that he will be thinking about what he can do about it.

It will interesting to see what he does, since this problem runs deep within the Club. This is nothing new.

1st, the ridiculous non-call in the 1st minutes of extra time when Boly fouled Calvert-Lewin on the edge of the box.

2nd, the ensuring penalty call against Digne later in added time where the contact was certainly less than the contact on Calvert-Lewin; and

3rd, the foul called against Branthwaite within the first minute of the 2nd half where there was almost no contact and certainly not enough for the Wolves player to go to ground.

I think these 3 calls, added to the ongoing treatment we've received from the refs all season, were the consecutive blows that drained the fight and character out of the team today. In particular, on the ensuing free-kick, no Everton player, let alone Keane or another defender, spoke to or tried to position Branthwaite. At that moment, the team had accepted the inevitable.

My enduringly boring theme whenever I post a comment has been that we are simply not good enough, particularly with possessing and advancing the fall forward in the opposition half. That was the case again, achingly so!! We were so bad but now it is abundantly clear that we just don't have players who can fight through adversity and even thrive on it.

I had hopes that Ancelotti could finesse us through with tactical acumen and few shrew additions. Those hopes are gone. I can see clearly now that Ancelotti will not be able to succeed. There's not enough money or time and too many clubs have leapfrogged us - Leicester, Wolves, Sheffield and I think even Burnley is poised to stay ahead of us.

Assuming we can even stay up, I think our future is in a muddle with Newcastle and West Ham, fighting it out for 11th, 12th and 13th place for the next few years.

So

All players are slow and not good enough (Davies, Gomes and Sigurdsson). Maybe Gomes is good enough but, if he is going to shine, he will need quicker players around him. With 2 good central midfielders, we will be a totally different team.

We would most likely look pretty good if we had a quality midfield with players like Fernandes and Pogba or De Bruyne and Rodrigo. Bad examples maybe, but a couple of new players in the midfield might transform our team.

We need surgery on the midfield and an injection of winning mentality, but once I take the emotion out of the frustration of what I saw today, it is not as bad as we are making out in the heat of the moment.

He was a rising managerial star. But 2012 was a looooooooong time ago. And nothing good has happened for him since. He's a master theorist and teacher but, as a manager, I don't think he'll even finish his first Premier League season at Leeds.

Now, Kinnear.... hmmmm...

I think Gordon has a good skill level, certainly better than many of our senior first-team players. But I still don't see enough. I'm happy for him to play the last few games to gain experience but I don't think he is the next level that we need. He's already falling into the backwards passing ethos of the main group and I'm not seeing that he has exceptional vision though better than our current lot.

Baningime, how deficient must he be that he can't impress Ancelotti to play him in this truncated, 5-substitute mini-season?? But please play him so we can be of no doubt.

Kean must start the remaining games and play the full 90. Either rotate Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison with him the rest of the games or change formation i.e. play with Kean up top, play Gordon as 10 in a 4-2-3-1 with Bernard and useless Iwobi as the wide mids and Baningime and Davis as deep sitting mids. Use any back four (except Holgate) that is available including Brantwaite if necessary.

But the front 6 that I identified are guys all under contract that we now need to see in the full heat of battle to end the season – no matter the match outcomes. In midfield, Adeniran should be the first option off the bench. Use Walcott, Sigurdsson, Gomes, Delph (if he's available) only if absolutely necessary – we already know what they CAN'T do.

Wrap Calvert-Lewin, Richarlison and Holgate up in cool cotton padding til next season.

Oh and give Pickford a 3-game break to sit, stew and watch. Give Virginia an extended run out of 3 games. I doubt he is ready but this will advance his development by leaving no doubt for him on how he measures up.

I have supported the Toffees for eons since 1947 and will continue to give my support for as long as I am around. I have seen the very best and the very worst. The game against Wolves falls into the last category.

However, I have read many comments about teams such as Leicester, Burnley, Sheffield United and Wolves, who are all doing far better than Everton. I just need to say that each of these teams AND their supporters have had to put up with far worse than what Everton supporters are presently going through. They have all been in League One or even worse. We have spent just four seasons outside of the top Division since 1878. Relative to all of them, we have been spoiled.

I can hear those who respond, "But we are Everton" and I actually agree. I, along with all supporters, expect the best but sometimes we have to accept being annoyed with what is happening. I will give Ancelotti at least a dozen games next season to have a positive impact on the team.

In the words of the famous four lads who took over the World: "All I am saying, is give Carlo a chance". And always be glad you are an Evertonian. There is no other option.

Yes, he left Lazio without really playing a game, but he said that was due to transfer promises not being kept, and Marseille he left after the first game of the season when he read his resignation letter to the press in the press conference, much to everyone's shock, again blaming the board for not keeping promises he had put into his contract.

Bielsa doesn't care about how much he is paid. He agreed to join Leeds without even discussing his wages. He's a wealthy man, but he is not concerned with the trappings of the profession. It's all about the football for him, and there's no way he will leave Leeds.

I predicted last season that Leeds would set the early pace before crashing and burning, as Bielsa teams always do. They did just that. Bielsa has only won the league twice. Both times with Messi's favourite club in Argentina. However, if you look closely, you will note that he won "half-seasons" of 19 games, and not 38 game seasons and the half seasons he won were not back to back.

Sure, it looks like he's finally beat the Bielsa "burn-out". I'm glad of that. But it is an issue that should never be discounted. I think that getting the second season has made the players more accustomed to it. Leeds are his sixth side in Europe and the first one he's been able to put two half-decent seasons together at.

Bilbao, due to Howard Kendall, are my favourite Spanish side, so I followed him closely there. And it was not his fault that after that first season, the team got broke up, and with the "cantera" policy of only signing Basques, they had no chance of rebuilding.

Bielsa seemed very much a man on the way down. Indeed, the first 6 months at Marseille are the only decent 6 months he's had in club management since the Bilbao blew up in his first season there back in 2012. The guy is 65 and it was easy to think the fire and energy had diminished and Bielsa is not a wise old owl, he is nothing without the fire and the energy.

It's great to see him have one last hurrah with Leeds. But that is where he will end his career, barring a catastrophe over the next few games or a nightmare start to the new season. He will see the Leeds project through, and he will get off to a great start next season as he will make very few signings, and it's those teams who always start well, even Norwich had a good opening few months to this season.

I fall into the camp that thinks these players (with two exceptions) are either just not good enough or just not tough enough for the Premier League.

I said before the Spurs game, with everything we had to play for, that game would show us what we were made of. Now we know.

Classic Everton, hiring a big-name mercenary with no record of turning around a team of this level. Massive payoff in the next year is inevitable, plus we've a squad full of liabilities, not assets, which will take 4 years of contract running-down to rinse out. Worst run club in the Premier League.

Leeds and West Brom would, and will, batter this abject disgrace of a team.

Never heard of them or that club, so looked them up.

Saltnes is 28 this year, Zinckernagel 26 playing in a minor league. Perhaps they'd "cost absolutely nothing" because that's their value in top-level footy.

Hauge is 20 years old, so one for the future perhaps? Being a striker who's scored 21 in 109 might prove a hindrance.

All that aside, a team scoring 4-6 goals every game? Don't care what level of soccer they play at, that's got to be a fun team to watch.

Totally agree! Reset/Reboot!

Every promoted side will batter Everton.

The point was not really to buy those players in Bodø. I just want our scouts to scout youngsters and up and coming players in different leagues. Not buying deadwood, as we do.

However, Hauge would be a cheap and interesting investment, but rumors say he will go to Club Brygge.

If, lets say Hauge was a good buy, our scouts would never pick it up anyway. Why don't they? When did we buy a youngster that really made a difference the last time? It seems we buy youngsters that are not either good enough or they don't really get the chance to play. I am not counting Lukaku as scouting. He was already an established player, but a very good buy indeed.

Why could we not pick a guy like Alexander Isak (now playing for Real Sociedad)? He was never really expensive and is more or less doomed to be a top player for another 10 years. Or Erling Haaland (Dortmund)? etc.

I agree with you 100%.

John Boon @222 -

Great post.

Our last 3 games will be ugly. We're playing for nothing. The players know that. It's tough to motivate them, that's just the reality no matter how much it might gall me, and seemingly every poster before me.

The other dynamic occurring is that Carlo is experimenting. He's subbing like nuts, trying different people in different positions, he's changed formations, etc. Now is the time to do that! You know why? These games don't flipping matter! Let the man tinker about so that come September 12th we'll be ready to roll.

We absolutely need midfield additions. And yes, there's serious effort issues. But I sincerely believe Carlo knows this, and he will start to rectify it after he's done basically fucking around with formations and players so he knows exactly what he has.

Everyone's pissed. We're playing shit, we've been on a 5 to 6 year dive (recent past, not historical), we're looking at Wolves, Leicester, and Burnley (seriously WTF with that last one??) passing us. There's complete and utter justification for anger and demands for improvement.

But if you go all spoiled kid / scorched earth and become impatient with Carlo?

We're fucked. And when I say fucked, I mean well and truly fucked.

FFS give this guy a chance for a few years before the nailing to the stake occurs with anyone wearing Blue on the pitch or in the corporate offices.

We need some degree of consistency. We can't do a "reset". We can't afford it, and it just screws up the timeline and sets us back. Let Carlo figure out who his guys are for the short, medium, and long term. Then let's inject some quality (real quality) in the window.

If you didn't like today, I'd tune out were I you for the remainder of this season.

"Carlo is Fat Sam on the pasta."

The biggest issue for me is that nobody, absolutely nobody at all at Everton deserves the benefit of the doubt.

Yes, our Italian boss has none of his own players and that's an excuse of sorts. But I've had too many years of people defending Walsh, Koeman, Silva (!!!) and now seemingly Brands and others as well.

Brands just has not got the job done. I spent some time on an Ajax fan site the last two weeks, they weren't exactly mourning when he departed either. Silva was a fraud. Walsh was a fraud. Brands appears to be a fraud. Darren Hind is calling out Ancelotti as a fraud.

This season is a write-off, another footnote in the story of this clubs downfall. But next season, realistically, doesn't project as much better.

Just don't see Brands actually doing his job, and I don't see our eminently qualified and respected manager sticking around to try and get a tune out of the dross he's been gifted.

Am I missing something?

Why would Ajax fans mourn Brands leaving since he didn’t even work there? He came from PSV but thanks for your investigative insight

I agree we have been really poor since restart, and it now appears a stroll to the end of the season, no-one willing to get injured etc, most likely as its likely to be a 'summer' transfer window of turmoil.

For CA to come out today and criticise spirit is telling.

There simply has to be large scale bootings. There has to be a ruthlessness with some players that we have not shown previously. Example - the fact we carried Niasse for so long (who refused to go out on loan, was arrested, etc etc) speaks volumes, we are scared to make ruthless decisions due to public reaction. People on here actually criticised the club and Koeman for not giving the fucking fraud a locker. Would the same whiners moan now if Sigurdsson was not given a locker next season, or any of the other people who have clearly outstayed their welcome.

The club simply HAS to show it is not prepared to be a laughing stock and have the piss took out of it by people who want the pay for a 'big team player at a top 10 Premier league club', but not put in the performances. Those who have stolen a living recently... fucking shame on them, but its time that the club took an overt stance about it. The difficulty is not with shaming those who will not or cannot perform at this level, the skill is managing those who remain and also ensuring that Everton are a draw to the proud, hungry, ambitious players who we should be seeking to attract... making sure bold and brave decisions do not deter those players from joining.

Everton Football Club now must accept that they have to take a significant hit financially to weed out the players who are dragging the club down. What happened with Schneiderlin is likely to be needed with some, taking low value transfers and probably subsidising wages too. Lets not forget that FFP is what is causing issues now, not capital outlay or whatever the phrase is.
If Player A is on 100,000 a week (no player specifically here, just making a calculation)... with say 2 year left roughly 10 million in wages. Player A has no future at the club under the new manager and performances recently have vastly reduced the transfer value compared to our initial outlay... Player A may have cost millions, but value has now decreased. We can flog him due to this, but no fucker wants to pay 100,000 a week. We may end up subsidising those wages to Club B who are desparate enough to take player A from us at a minimal fee. Exactly what happened with Morgan. We have a number of Player As on the books and I think we all know who they are - some have been here a few years, a couple have yet to finish their first season...

We have a couple of Player Bs... players who have not had a significant value drop, may fetch a decent amount, and may be seen as sound economic sense in seeling by some, or as giving in by others. I'd be comfortable naming Jordan Pickford in this Player B bracket. Getting rid of the Player B's may assist in offsetting the loss from getting rid of high-earning, dead wood Player A types. I do not believe that JP is the future of Everton Football Club and would now accept a good bid and see him moving on as beneficial for the club, but I appreciate others think he is England Number One and upcoming youngster etc etc. I think he causes too much confusion amongst the back 4/5 and his brainfarts have not been trained out of him.

Player C - the type of player we need to build the club around. High earning superstars who are hungry and need to see improvements, youngsters with potential who are pushing through, beginning to earnt the bigger money, and can offer us some sort of spine. The type that we do not begrudge the big bucks being paid to. But only those with character and who are willing to fight. Instantly I would be thinking Richarlison, Holgate, DCL (fights, seems to be developing as a leader and got stuck in for Richy last week, has potential if coached right, physically one of our most coachable players I woudl say).

Player D - those that are needed to flesh out a squad. They can put in a shift, show some good games but due to their inconsistency will never be a Player A or a Player C. Usually lower earners, usually younger, if not younger then usually less ambitious. Or those willing to see out the career in reduced roles. The types that we would look to shift on if we didn't have so many Player As and Bs who should be the priority to shift if we really want to move forward. We can't get rid of As, Bs, and Ds, so we must accept the Ds as part of a squad and hope that some may become Cs and if not, then maybe next season we seek to shift them on. Davies, Baines, two players I would count as Player D.

Player Es - players elsewhere who need their future deciding. If Mo Besic was eligible to play at the moment, he surely would at least be making the bench. Bolasie, I would instantly pop him into the Player A category. JJK, I would say is a Player C. And so on

Once I would categorise the squad accordingly, I would be looking at the younger squads. Beni is one source of confusion lately, why CA is not playing him. If he cannot get in ahead of Siggy lately - he has no future. End of. Whatever the reasons, if we are backing CA, this seems to be the case. To not have the trust for a single minute of playing time in this shambles of a midfield, goodbye. Someone like Ellis Simms, to be fair, the three forwards are generally playing. DCL and Richy are taking up 90% of playing time and then the engima of Moise Kean comes on some games for a few minutes - I want to believe in Moise Kean. I had hopes he would score a few this season but he has not yet hit the ground running. So would Simms do any better... who knows, Moise has the figures to back up initial trust given his bursting onto the scene at Juve. Would Ellis get any more game time... at the moment no. Is he the Everton equivalent of Mason Greenwood, who knows? Even looking at Anthony Gordons picture on the Everton under-23s site, you can see how he has changed since that pic was took last season, shows that there is a lot still going on with these young lads in terms of development physically and they don't all develop at the same pace. DCL for example now is a completely different beast to 2 years ago.

Everton simply have to now be willing to accept losses on players, prioritise what to keep and what to get rid of. If I get time I might pop on what I think in terms of the current squad in relation to how I would cull it. FFP basically reduces our ability to slash the fucking stale, weak, cancerous elements out of the club. However, I'm hoping and praying that as Colin Glasser said, Usmanov now gets off the fence and we are in a position to cut loose the mistakes, the parasites of the last few years, and now push forward with a more ruthless, but more professional, Everton Football Club. City are hearing today whether their FFP breaches result in a two year ban. This CAS decision will impact clubs from now on, I would take a two year ban for Everton in European competition if it meant we could start afresh and shift the shit, who knows, under the right man...

I don't know if Zouma is the answer. As Colin says, he always looks like he's got one brain fart in him each game. Personally, I hoping we bring in Gabriel or Salisu.

The Ancelotti family have been paid since December. They pick the team. They thought it was okay to play Davies, Sigurdsson and Walcott in the same team. What did they expect?

The fact that the Ancelottis didn't buy any of the players is irrelevant. The job of manager is to get the best of the resources that they have. I'd sack the Ancelotti family today and get in people appropriate for the job. But then I wouldn't have appointed them in the first place.

Of course this won't happen. Prepare instead for a fatuous new ground announcement. Everton are a club going nowhere.

We can also add to the list Mina, Sidibe, Moise Kean, Delph, Martina, Bernard, Iwobi and probably now Gomes. Not forgetting we still have Tosun and Bolasie back on the Everton payroll.

The above players all do have some consistencies to be fair. Yes, they are consistently shit when playing for Everton and they consistently cost the club £millions a month!

What kind of business model do Everton operate compared to the likes of Wolves and Sheff Utd! How much more money does this club have to waste on garbage. We are a fucking joke.

I've enjoyed the Championship title race games and it worries me to know that any of the above payers mentioned wouldn't last a game playing for either Leeds, WBA or Brentford!

It is only a matter of time before we end up in a relegation battle the way we are going. It's also incredible that there are teams in the Prem worse than us!

There is something wrong at the club. It is the sort of malaise that gripped Sunderland and Villa.

I know I moan but the players are not terrible. Bolasie, Walcott, Sigurdsson etc etc are all competent premier league players. They'd be doing fine at Burnley or Palace put it that way. The problem is the whole stinking atmosphere around the club.

Maybe a few bad apples need to be removed. Maybe some big personalities need to be brought in to show some courage. Probably both.

I keep reading how Everton should do a boot sale, a buy one get one free, a new year clear out with up to 90 pct off. Great, but this will not affect the players one iota, not a fucking jot. The likes of Siggy, Walcott & Bernard and many others could not give a fuck; they are multi millionaires already. Their agents are probably setting up deals as we talk, knowing full well that Everton will take the hit. Next club please moneeeeey.

We are suffering big time from too many managers and the fact that this club has an image of being far too fucking nice. Look at the RS claiming furlough payments for their apprentice players and they are probably one of the richest clubs on the planet. As Alex Parr states above we moaned big time when NIasse had no locker, fuck it that the boy could not trap a ball. Fuck it that we paid him 50k a week, lets just get this boy a locker (a fucking big one for all his cash).

Everton have been in the top league for so fucking long we have become almost like royalty. Totally stagnant. Everton needs stature, we need to show, not just these players but the rest of the league, where this truly great club stands.

Maybe it's because there's no crowd to criticise the play but I've never seen such an apathetic performance from our millionaires.

I watch Everton TV to remind me of my accent and, on the player ratings, Sigurdsson (I refuse to call him Siggi as it sounds friendly) and Davies got 0! I thought that was generous!

There is something wrong with our club at a very deep level and, as I'm not there, I don't know what it is but it's something?

If we were to repeat the Alex Nyarko incident, there would be 11 fans on the pitch offering their shirts!

A shameful event... and the sad thing is, they don't even care!

I've seen contributors on these pages who'll talk about Bernard as though he's David Silva. I've heard Sigurdsson be described as a great footballer and a 'class act'. His free-kick skills are one of the biggest myths in football. If you look at his highlights reel, he looks amazing but YouTube doesn't show the 9 anonymous games you get out of him for every half-decent one.

I posted on here around January time saying how I thought Iwobi was a shocking buy. A regular contributor questioned whether I'd seen any Everton games this season and that he'd been great. I hate being in the 'told you so' mindset when it means being proven correct that we aren't good enough.

Whenever a player shows one good game, we start eulogizing. Whenever we make a signing that looks good on paper, we start proclaiming that we'll win the derby or even mentioning 'Top 4'. I fall into the same trap myself. As others say, it's the hope that kills you.

The only time during this season where I felt we were onto something was during Big Dunc's few games in charge. At least we seemed to have some spirit and organisation and didn't make it easy for the opposition. I even remember seeing Sigurdsson going in for challenges during that period.

I couldn't name all of the problems at the moment. Only Richarlison is anywhere near good enough if we want to achieve anything. Baines has been a great servant and I love the guy but which other club would be offering him a contract extension at his age?

Coleman's legs have gone and he hasn't been the same since his horrific injury. He's another though who can hold his head up high. Keane isn't good enough but he has been decent since the restart. Mina is an accident waiting to happen in every game. Digne is one of our assets but costs us games, defensively.

Davies isn't even Championship standard and that's not being unkind. He has no positive attributes - no speed, tenacity, passing ability, can't run with it, can't tackle, can't shoot, his so slow and has no energy. I preferred Schneiderlin, that's how bad he is.

Sigurdsson, Bernard, Walcott, Iwobi, Delph, Sidibé and Pickford need getting shut of. Pickford annoys the hell out of me. He plays like the kid in the schoolyard who wants to make a save and then make another one.

We've had two great goalkeepers in my 40-odd years of watching Everton: Southall and Martyn. Pickford is nowhere near as good as Tim Howard was. Moise Kean is a more expensive version of Sandro. Some of these players should have never pulled on the blue jersey again after the debacle in the FA Cup against the RS's kids.

I said it on another thread last week but Marcel Brands is getting too easy a ride. He has been joint-responsible for frittering away the biggest opportunity we have had in years to close the gap. I genuinely think that we could pick a panel from ToffeeWeb contributors and they would have made a far better job of spending the hundreds of millions we have wasted since 2014.

Anyway, hopefully my new home shirt will arrive this week...

It is almost a joke when you consider that we may fall foul of of FFP Rules, when you look at, not only what we have spent money on, but the length of contracts and salaries some are on.

While Marcel Brands cannot be blamed for what happened during the Martinez and Koeman eras, question marks can certainly, and should be asked, as to the deals he has brought in.

I know Iwobi has come in for a lot of stick, and a lot of it on the field of play deservedly so, although there could be some mitigation, being played out of position, but the lack of commitment is definitely down to him.

Also he had no say in his transfer fee, or salary, but is he value for money? Certainly not, on evidence to date, and he is not alone, the lack of finding an opponent with simple passes is basic and unbelievable.

When you look at other so-called lesser sides, and you see the passion generated by their players to either retain their place in the side or to try and thwart relegation, makes us look even more amateur and immature.

Terry, I saw that post on the Live Forum and started looking for a shredder immediately. I'm torn on model and capacity (some won't last 90 minutes, it seems). Any suggestions, preferably before Thursday?

Doh!

How outrageous that I suggest he may make the switch to another team, whatever the unforeseen circumstances may be, in the Premier League, once all the PL Chairmen have seen how exciting his team is next season.

Is there no scenario where, let’s say he does brilliantly on hardly any resources next season and finishes around about 7th, then demands funds to strengthen to try and break the top six?
Leeds deny him. He’s gets pissed off.
Mike Ashley swoops in, or whoever’s in charge of Newcastle, promises him a decent kitty to spend.
There’s no way that could happen?

The real point I was getting at though,
was we need someone with the intensity of the Bielsa method, to play fast, exciting football that engages the crowd (whenever that happens) and lifts us out of this stupor.
So, Pochettino would fit the bill.
His salary would be less than Carlo’s.
To me, that’s real ambition, going for Pochettino and convincing him to come here and be successful.

Take Wolves as an example they rebuilt with a new manager in the Championship and are a really good team similarly Sheff Utd engage a former non league manager and he has his team playing a successful brand of football with very little finance compared to Everton throwing money and 5 year contracts on dubious recruits. I don't know whether Ancelotti is the right age for knocking a team of misfits into shape just like I don't know whether this Director of Football lark is any good looking at the shambles Walsh and Brands have had in the transfer market.

So although unthinkable in my and many others eyes would the shock of relegation shake the place into it's senses, although BMD might be sacrificed to achieve a miracle.

that's a NO from me.

Relegation would be a complete, unmitigated disaster. I think you're assuming we would bounce back fitter and leaner and be raring to go. The reality is we would lose any quality players we had and have to do a complete rebuild. Added to that we would be every other side's Cup Final

Maybe float the idea past Sunderland or Stoke fans and hear what they have to say.

Steve will (reluctantly) recall that last season I put him right on his claim that Bielsa's Leeds 'typically' collapsed in their final games to miss out on automatic promotion because of the high intensity game his team's play.

His belief is that they simply run out of gas in the final games of the season. The following brief data of Leeds' closing 4 fixtures and two play-off games v Derby tell another story.

H Wigan lost 1-2, even with Wigan down to 10 men after 15 minutes. Possession stats: 77% to Leeds 23% Wigan. Leeds total shots/shots on target 36/10, Wigan 8/2.

A Brentford lost 2-0. Possession 37% Brentford-63% Leeds. Shots Brentford 12/3. Leeds 18/3.

H Villa draw 1-1. VERY memorable game this. Villa on a 10-straight game winning streak. Leeds controversely took the lead from a situation when Villa expected them to return the ball following an injury/ball into touch situation. Exceedingly sportingly, Bielsa ordered his team to stand like statues at the re-start to allow Villa to walk through and equalise, even though a draw ensured Leeds could no longer secure automatic promotion, condemning them to the play-offs.

Even against such an in-form team, possession was 69% Leeds, 31% Villa. Leeds shots 27/5, Villa 13/4.

Away to Ipswich lost 3-2. Possession Ipswich 35%, Leeds 65%. Ipswich shots 6/3, Leeds 27/7.

In the two semi-final play-off games v Derby, Leeds won the 1st leg at Derby 1-0. Possession Derby 44%, Leeds 56%. Derby shots 7/0, Leeds 12/3.

2nd leg Leeds 2, Derby 4. Possession Leeds 57%, Derby 43%. Shot Leeds 22/8. Derby 5/3 (one of their 4 goals was a penalty).

Do the stats from any of those games suggest Leeds were a fatigued team? I would say not.

I have family and friends around Leeds and Bradford, big Leeds fans. To a man, woman and child they agreed Leeds failed to get over the line because a young naive team couldn't close out games they dominated, not because Bielsa's high-octane football left them goosed for the run in.

Bielsa is a maverick, of that there is no doubt. But in double quick time he changed completely the mindset at Leeds which, I am sure, will see them back in the PL next season.

One of the most memorable initiatives he implemented pre-season in his 1st season was to discover how many hours the average Leeds fan needed to work to buy a match ticket. It was calculated at 3 hours. Informed with that knowledge, he ordered all the players to pick up rubbish around the training ground for 3 hours.

The thinking behind this? To better appreciate the sacrifices the fans make to follow their passion.

Bielsa at Everton would have been a high-risk, but not dull appointment. But it's not going to happen now. I have to agree with Steve on one point: Bielsa is not the sort to jump ship for money. He is more likely to leave a club on his own accord for a far whackier reason.

A big, loud and clear NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

This totally barking high-risk idea surfaces now and again.

It doesn't improve with age.

Madness to even think it.

Their owner backs the Club while running a fair and solid business plan. He’s forward thinking - in that documentary about Leeds I was really impressed how they collaborated with the San Francisco 49ers brass.

Their DOF is a passionate man who clearly loves football and can pick a player.

Their coach is nuts - but fucking hell can he coach.

It wouldn’t surprise me in the least if they were mid table or higher next season.

Carlo has to, in his style and mold, stamp his image on this team next season. If he doesn’t, you can add Leeds to the list of Clubs finishing above Everton.

It’s sickening. From my inception, Everton were perennial contenders. 5th place, seemingly well run (small finances, “punching above their weight), and decent-ish to watch. Leicester were I think in League one as were Sheffield United. I’d not even heard of Burnley, Spurs were managed by Wande Ramos (pretty sure?) and languished at the bottom of the table. Wolves were a “minor league team” with a cool logo - no where near our standing.

One thing all these teams did - they didn’t overpay for talent. They found hungry players, not expensive ones.
If there’s one thing we must do, we need to start to ask is the player hungry? Another way of looking at it - it’s a team game, is this player actually worth 25 million?

Have to change recruitment policy. Hungry players for under 10 million supplemented with 1-2 massive buys of players Carlo is comfy with.

Shit first touch, unable to weight a pass and no belief in there own ability are all hallmarks of players either bought for laughable ammounts or brought through the academy in recent times.

I think Ancellotti has done a good job of getting the team to 11th when you consider the spineless individuals that he has at his disposal.

I am hoping he is using this time to plan who stays and who is shown the door by the end of the month. Playing players out of position is never good. Baines at CB? Walcott at wing back? Captain Coleman rested for a hard game?

Certainly a midfield 4 yesterday comprising basically 4 number 10's shows where the problem lies. Major surgery is needed throughout the team but is that realistic? Focus needs to be on the midfield as a priority. We desperately need a defensive mid or 2 who can put a shift in and give the opposition something to think about. Selling Gueye and even McCarthy were huge errors. Anyone else noticed how when we have the ball the player in possession is immediately under pressure? Yet, when the opposition have the ball there is no pressure applied and they quickly force us backwards. The only time I can remember us controlling a game under Ancellotti was Newcastle but we all remember how that finished.

Sigurdsson, Bernard, Davies, Iwobi, etc get a lot of criticism but non of them are defensive mids or "deeplying playmakers" that Ancellotti likes. We have too many flair players brought in to open up the final third. What is the point of that when we cannot get to the final third?

The lower we finish the harder the recruitment becomes. A top half finish is a must to have a chance at getting some semi decent players. Bottom half and the likes of Richarlison and Digne may think they are better off elsewhere. I don't fancy starting next season with a 37 year old left back and only DCL up front.

Everton by comparison keep getting mugs with money so that Black Bill can continue to run his personal ego trip.

Moshiri cant be in the country that often because of tax reasons.

Do you know many successful clubs with "absentee" owners.

Do you know ANY successful clubs that appoint a CEO based on their success with charities and their closeness to the chairman.

Thats where the culling needs to start until we get all of the "pluckiness" out of the club and start to demand NSNO.

I would imagine that City have driven a coach and horses through the FFP rules, and it will be very interesting to see if the Premier league also drop their own investigation into City. As I have said before I cant think of any other business which is not allowed to invest whatever it wants as its competitors object.

I don't care how much owners want to pump into their clubs, as long as they agree to a bond which wouldn't leave the club in financial difficulty if the present owners put the club up for sale.

Who knows what’ll happen?
Even if there was a cat in hells chance he came to us at some point, he’d probably resign after a couple of months when he realised we weren’t a serious football club.
I just have a strong feeling that Leeds are going to do so well, it will shock the Premier League. So well that, of course there will be approaches from other clubs. Maybe Leicester will get tired of Rodgers by the end of next season, it’s possible.
I don’t think mid to late 60’s is that old, especially for someone with his drive and obsessive qualities. Does he really want to retire any time soon, what would he do?

As others have said on here or maybe the other post-Wolves match report, Wolves' recent success didn't happen overnight in the way its portrayed. They were fortunate to receive the financial backing of a supporter come benefactor who built them a ground and invested when they were literally staring into the abyss. And the genuine abyss, not a frustrating, mediocre, mid table top flight finish. Their journey has been an up and down (literally) often painful journey that has taken nigh on 30 years.

Leeds United, when they start a Premier League fixture in September, will kick their first English top flight football in 16 years. During that time they spent time in the 3rd tier of English football.

Not for me. Relegation is disastrous which ever way you look at it and never a target. I don't seek demotion and a salary decrease in my own professional life as a means of moving forward and I doubt many on here would.

My thought is Carlo won't be here next season unless five players are brought in. I still believe Carlo was a surprise appointment but is he the right fit? No? Carlo has managed clubs with world class players and miles ahead of 95% of clubs in their respected leagues. Playing from the back with a goalkeeper that scares me to death and a midfield well enough has been said about that. It's not working whatever is being implemented.

Changing style of play must be implemented with players that can. How many goals comes from us losing the ball from the back? I'm bored of tappy tappy football coming to nothing. Our set plays are shocking. What is improving? I want hard work and the shirt to mean something. Our club has had players with limited ability but work rate unquestioned. I want that now. This comes from the manager.

Anyone questioning Ferguson on the management team, don't. I want him there. He loves Everton as much as us. Carlo needed him to do the team brief on Sunday. Let him do the shouting.

Everton were first relegated in 1930. Promoted the next season and won the First division on the first season back. That would never happen today. As Danny noted a big club like Leeds will have spent 15 seasons trying to get back. Most promoted teams are happy to just stay up for the season after promotion. This year will be five relegations for Norwich.

I was 12 when we were relegated and it was three tough years to get back. As I have mentioned before we have only spent 4 years out of the top flight since 1878. We have been lucky a few times but long time Evertonians should accept those close encounters. When you consider the ups and downs of many teams supporters should thank their lucky stars to be fortunate enought to support a team with such history

I also do realise the frustrations of following Everton over the past few years and sympathise with younger fans who have had little to cheer about. The Wolves game was about as bad as it could get. However you just have to be patient to the Nth degree to support the Toffees. I think it is impossible to change your support even when you announce you will never watch another game. I KNOW. I have told my wife that well over a hundred times. I still love Everton more than I HATE those @#$%* across the park. I do try not to swear on TW. COYB...We will rise again. In my case VERY SOON I live in hope.

I believe its the players we have, their mindset is all wrong.

I will judge Ancelloti over a sensible period of time just as I would any other manager. Scratched record time, but he's realistically had this lot for 4 months. Let's judge him when he shapes his own team. As he does so, there will be poor performances along the way, but to suggest now he's not the man after 4 months with an inherited and poorly assembled squad is premature at best.

Those predicting he isn't may turn out to be prophets, but I'll wait and see. In my experience, you more often than not can't predict football that's why I never gamble (especially on Everton!!).

One thought that crossed my mind as I spoke to the wife about the upcoming Villa match as she is from the West Midlands and her family are a mix of Villa and Wolves. The reaction will be interesting. Will we get one or have the recent performances reflected that Ancelotti has already privately told large parts of this squad they are done at Everton? Maybe the outburst after Wolves was just the first time he's gone public?

Clearly the wife is hoping Carlo has told many of them they are dead men walking!!!

Expecting players to give 100% whatever level is what every manager expects and Carlo is no different. The club is in no danger of relagation and still Carlo picks players out of form or simply not good enough at this level. Trial youth players. Give senior players a kick up the arse.

Carlo needs his own players but with a director of football. Will he? Furthermore, realistically how many players can we bring in? We have players on big contracts not going without a pay off. The only positive this season is the appointment of Carlo but he must find a way of motivating players to work harder as many will be here next season.

A manager may get the most out of players through motivation and keeping their roles and expectations simple. Others demand players fit in to a game plan, a certain style and execution of tactics.

Either is good when winning; terrible when not. Is it all down to a manager?

Players likewise can learn to adapt to an individual role or play their usual preferred default style that has helped get them to where they are.

None of us know what is being asked of players but I can see that for several managers who all have different styles and methods, the players have failed to play in a cohesive or consistent way.

Poor players or bad management?

In terms of mistakes and being at fault for goals conceded we are our own worst enemy. Successive managers have continued to let defenders try and play out from the back or allowed keepers to dink it out to an advanced (out of position) full-back.

We simply don't have good enough, (pass and move) smart enough (know when not to risk it) or confident (mentally weak?) players to play this way.

Sadly it appears Carlo wants us to continue shooting ourselves in the foot. This may be to test players ability, confidence, game management, or other, but I sincerely hope the needless risk-taking stops next season having assessed them.

A top manager would achieve more with the same players. Over several years we have failed to improve.

As much as Carlo has achieved in the past it means nothing to me as an Everton fan. Carlo has been sacked several times, is he the real deal or just been lucky?

I believe he is a good manager, but timing and luck always play a part. His methods may not fit or may simply be outdated.

I remain hopeful and excited. NSNO.

The lad just isn't good enough. End of story.

Okay, tackling is not his strong point but he can play a killer pass to our forward line.