Premier League – Week 12

Massive fan of Rudiger. I wish we had a centre-back of that calibre. Great defensive recovery and block to stop a certain tap in followed by an immense header for the goal.

Kante is a Rolls-Royce Gueye.

Chelsea looking strong. Leicester's game plan not working. They need to change it but I'm not sure they can as they're pretty one-dimensional.

Could be a long last 15 for Leicester unless Chelsea take their foot off. Champions League fixture coming up?

Did I hear Rodgers linked with United?

Great movement again, this time by James, for one of the disallowed goals.

Chelsea looking very strong and probably favourites for the title this season.

Interesting as only 2 weeks ago I heard a pundit "expert" claiming it was only realistically between Liverpool & City.

Can't even remember which one, it's just all noise when most of them speak.

Chelsea really landed on their feet with getting Tuchel.

And agreed, Tony, he's more suited for Serie A.

Oh to see a marauding centre-back carry the ball from one 18-yard box to the other and drive the team forward.

Due to very close family connections, Dale: No comment, your Honour.

Any of your family members at the 3 games against Aston Villa in the 1977 League Cup Final? I went to all three, riding shotgun in dad's black Hackney, believe it or not. First and last time I cried over Everton.

Although, the same year, I very nearly – in the FA Cup Semi-Final Replay vs them shower, after getting robbed by that twat idiot ref.

I think we are all mentally scarred, one way or another.

Now that would be one to work into the Live Forum. Stakhanovite!

I'd take a Stoichkovite.

Lacey, who apparently wasn't keen on the company of other Guardian writers at big games, replied "Very nice for you, Frank". Subtle.

And when Paddy Barclay told him he was leaving, having been offered the number one football job elsewhere, Lacey (according to Barclay) said "It's the end of an earache, Paddy"!

Ole has to be gone; even if they make a comeback of some sort, you can't see anything else given the run of results they've had since October.

I said earlier and did hear Rodgers linked. I think a lot of Man Utd fans would find that underwhelming when they look at their rivals with Pep, Tuchel and Klopp.

I thought Villa v Brighton was an entertaining half. Brighton edged it. I do like Bissouma. Good at spotting danger and breaking play up.

That was some finish by Raul. No backlift, just snap from 18 and side netting.

Nice football. Easy on the eye. Lots of possession. No end product.

I'm thinking a less charismatic Eddie Howe. Another English Martinez?

Can we have Bissouma for Christmas? Well January!

I'm getting concerned looking at the next few games.

Who watched Wolves v West Ham? Talk of the Irons going 2nd before kick-off. Classic choke or unlucky?

NBC coverage shows all the goals of all the matches straight after the covered match, which is great.

Although they play some kind of odd Jurassic Park music in the background under the remarks of the pundits. Very dramatic sounding!!

Looking elsewhere, not sure if that's back down to reality for Newcastle or time for concern for us next week!!

And great to see Arteta giving Klopp the Eye!

Occasionally, calm down man, take a step back and take time to assess the game!

At half time, Michael Owen said he didn't think that Mane's tackle on Saka was a bad tackle...!

Why do they insist on biased pundits?

This game was exactly the same very early last season without the crowd, and I smiled after that game listening to quite a few Reds thinking they were invincible, simply because the opposition had made it way too easy for their team.

Don't get me wrong, we can't go trying that tomorrow, you need the players, fitness levels and players with sheer desire.

Absolutely world class striker, one of the best in this league over the last 30 years and I was at the game at Goodison in 2015 when his prompt actions in stopping the game to aid the ill health of a fan in the Gwladys Street.

Top fella and a truly world class player, in an age where "world class" is bandied about too easily, Sergio Aguero was exactly that.

Don't get me wrong, we can't go trying that tomorrow, you need the players, fitness levels and players with sheer desire.

Danny, I totally agree. I bet Arteta feels a cocktail now for his handbags.

Yes, going to take a while and new players with a different mentality to sort us out.

I've got to watch us at 8am tomorrow so can't even have a calming drink.

Against most teams, the forward puts the breaks on realising he's not getting the ball to get back in shape. Defender, having read the game well, comfortably collects the ball and Arsenal keep possession.

This scenario. Salah keeps going at pace. The defender, having read the game well, collects the ball, but knowing Salah is bearing down, feels the pressure and puts a heavy touch on the ball. Throw-in to Liverpool in line with the Arsenal 18-yard line.

Forced error.

I fully agree. It's as if the ball was stuck to his feet. What a spine: Kompany, Silva and Aguero.

He's just one of a huge list of overated 'defenders' in this league. Can't read the game and can't run... what use is he? Be better off sticking the nugget up front.

Fear not, he is central to Engerlands plans isn't he Gareth? Keane had him down to a tee and Southgate knows it.

Worryingly, all the new managers are winning games now!

Sergio Aguero, a truly world class player and goalscorer who always looked like he was enjoying playing football.

Very sad he has had to pack in, was it his heart trouble that forced his retirement?

Yes it was. I agree with you and Jim on his quality. The physicality of the prem never phased him when he came from Spain. A tough customer as well as skillful.

I wonder if in 20 years or sooner, we will be studying problems with heart conditions in elite footballers. In a similar way the discussion about frequent heading of the ball and links to dementia has come to the fore recently.

There have been a few cases of players collapsing with cardiac on the pitch and who can forget that awful moment with Christian Eriksen in the summer.

Of course there can be natural defects that go undetected, but the modern footballer is a total athlete who's body is literally punished to get to the level he does.

Good health Sergio. As already said, genuine World Class footballer.

Horrible watching Sky, listening to the after-match talking. I'd love to have the time to start following some of the pundits though, who have a very similar make-up to referees in the way they can change their opinion, depending on the player or the team.

Souness saying managers can't be asking for bookings or sending-offs is the first thing I'd be looking out for over the next few weeks.

I watched the Liverpool - Arsenal game this evening and my overwhelming feeling at the end was, boy Arsenal were terrible. Makes me feel a bit better about our lot. The Gunners are 5th and should have been full of confidence with the run they were on.

I didn't watch all the game but Arsenal at times were naive and a lot of the time overawed by being at Anfield and playing Liverpool.

Surely Arteta should have had them ready for the occasion, given the many times he had played there for Everton and Arsenal? Maybe the Moyes approach of Everton going to Anfield had rubbed off on Arteta...?

Watching Shearer last night on MotD saying Fernandes was wrong to gesture to the fans "It's more our fault than the managers" – typical ex-player who couldnt hack it as a manager taking the players' side.

He says them players didn't want to play for the manager and that shows exactly what's wrong with the game these days.

In all the years of watching football, I can never remember a time when managers were sacked as often as they are now; how many have already lost their jobs managing in the Premier League this season? – and we have only played at most 12 games.

Money, money, money – that's all this game is about now; the game I grew up watching no longer exists. But maybe the demands of the fans have caused what we're seeing now? Fans were always passionate for their clubs to do well... but now there is no patience from owners or fans these days.

I miss the good old day's watching the old pundits we had here in Ireland. Dunphy, Giles and Dunphy were quite often wrong but they never failed to deliver great entertainment. Not least this clip below from 16 years ago around the time Roy Keane left Man United.

The row really kicks off 5 minutes into the clip below and includes Dunphy's infamous Rod Liddle quote which went along the lines of "I'll tell you who wrote it [The Sunday Times article about Keane], Rod Liddle - he's the guy who ran away and left his wife for a young one,"

You wouldn't get that on Sky these days. Worth a watch for sure. Link

And I see Man Utd are to appoint an interim manager. Maybe waiting for Rafa. He's a good manager and could do well with some decent players.

So yes, I give a fuck who manages the opposition and who plays for them. This may be a Everton website but funnily enough, we nearly always talk about football and, last time I looked, it took two teams to play a match.

Don, seen this morning they could approach Pochettino, who they were linked with prior to letting their heart rule their heads.

Only came back here as it seemed a logical place given I've just seen the announcement Rangnick is to be Man Utd's interim manager.

I so wanted him in the summer. He was my choice. The builder. It would have questioned Brands's role though as he's more of a bridge between a traditional manager and DoF who usually has a head coach working under him.

As well as being known as the football professor, he's known as the builder. He builds structures within football clubs. A DoF in all but name but generally has a young head coach looking after the first team. The coach who worked under him at RB Leipzig during his last stint, Nagelsmann, assumed the role of Head Coach at Bayern Munich in the summer, aged just 34. Keep an eye on him!

I am guessing he was ruled out because it just wouldn't have worked alongside Brands. He builds clubs from academy up and is a hybrid manager come DoF.

It's sort of returning to where they left off with Alex Ferguson towards the end of his tenure. With Ferguson being more of a figurehead who set the tone, set the standards etc and then had coaches and others to see it all through.

It might mean they will give Carrick (or someone else) a role as coach and only that, with Rangnick having a title of manager but being closer to what we'd recognise as a director of football.

Interesting to see how it plays out.

Something Jerome Shields said yesterday makes me think Benitez is trying to change the club culture at Everton and finding it a challenge. Rangnick has a similar challenge at Man Utd but with money to spend, an excellent squad and recent history of winning.

I can only imagine what an uphill battle it is to raise the standards at Everton.