Nothing wrong with a deep defence

Deep defending worries me because you are testing the laws of average. I couldn't watch some of those Moyes teams and even Ancelotti, once he realised the tools available, had to revert to it. We are doing it now.

If I take an objective view, this is the problem. Under Ancelotti, I kept banging the "We need better players" drum.

Undoing the mistakes of several years of neglect in terms of squad investment, irrational spending with no plan or strategy, and firing countless managers to try again, has harmed us. Meanwhile, those decision-makers are still in place, looking down from the stands… looking at the next sacrificial lamb.

Back to your point and taking my personal opinion away from it. Defend deep or play a high line?

It wouldn't matter too much as long as the team plays as a unit. Defend as a unit. Move forward and attack as a unit. Don't leave a sole striker isolated with big gaps between defence and midfield or midfield and attack.

Man City are a great example. They are content playing a deep and patient game, stroking it around at the back with the goalkeeper a virtual sweeper. But when they decide to go forward, they do so with intent and meaningful purpose. And as a unit. The entire team pushes up the pitch.

My simple view.

Moyes had to play really deep with them due to their lack of pace, and not until he had Yobo & Lescott as well as Jags & Distin that he could afford to start pressing teams at the front, play a higher line and a more adventurous style.

Jermaine Defoe was very underated though. Something like 160 Premier League goals.

I think Danny is right that whatever a team is trying to do it must do it as a unit; stay compact and when the opportunity arises be ready to exploit gaps left by opponents.

One of our problems in recent weeks has been the retention of a 4-3-3 with two wide forwards either side of a central attacker. This set-up in a team lacking pace at the back and control in midfield is in my view the worst of all worlds. We are too predictable with the ball and thus easy to defend against and too open without the ball and thus easy to counterattack.

I also thought in the two games at Bournemouth the players themselves no longer believed the set-up could be made to work.

Two very long, sad and painful trips.

But your point about us being wide open was made all too obvious. Yet we went and done the same thing against the same team in the space of 4 days and practically ended up with the same result on both occasions.

It goes back to the point. What is available? Then what is the best system to make those available most effective.

Until we can get the players to make it more palatable and easy on the eye and exciting to watch.

We seem to need a midfielder who sits and conducts the side from a deep position. Needs to be good technically, intelligent and a good long and short passer.

Unfortunately we just seem to have runners rather than passers – unless you count Iwobi but he seems poorly suited to a deep midfield role. Allan wasn't great but he did this much better than Gueye. Garner may become this player so it's a shame he's injured.

We also need fast mobile versatile forwards like Gakpo and Depay for the deep-defending Dutch, who are not really strikers. But both have the right physical attributes for counter-attacking and excellent technique too. Maupay can't do this on his own.

It comes down to finding a first XI of players who complement each other – and then to play as a unit.

Watching Everton's midfield this season, there is no glue, but three players, who all seem to have different roles, and are often miles away from each other, and this has become a massive problem recently?

How does Lampard change this. 4-4-2, with two very disciplined central midfield players who mainly sit? 3-5-2, if he can find a left sided wingback? or 4-5-1, in a system, that closes all the gaps, and makes us very hard to play against?

I'd go with hard to play against, because recently we have been the complete opposite, and look to be a team, without any real thought.

If we are to simplify it and even go 4-4-2 as you suggest, then it strongly suggests that we should have hired Dyche instead of Lampard.

The optimist in me says Lampard can do it, especially with a couple of forwards in Jan, but he's learning on the job and making plenty of mistakes along the way.

I haven't outright suggested 4-4-2, Robert, but definitely believe he's got to simplify it though. Our midfielders are just not complimenting each other, and this is why a lot of gaps have suddenly started appearing all over the park, imo, mate.

I'd go for a formation that I don't really know that much about, if I'm being honest, Robert, but only if we can go and find a good left-wingback.

Mykolenko and Godfrey can both play full-back but are better defensively than going forward (there is actually a question mark if this is true in Godfrey's case?), so I'd play them either side of Coady or Tarkowski.

Patterson looks like he's a natural athlete, which is very important if you're going to have to play wingback, but we would still need one on the left, although I'm certain this would give us a good defensive balance if we could find someone.

I choose this formation, even though it's frowned upon by many, just so we could get three players playing together across the midfield, and also because I believe both Gordon and Gray might be better floating and playing off a centre-forward rather than being stuck out wide.

Again, it's all about the midfield because I personally sit there totally bemused when Iwobi goes pressing like a lunatic and nobody else follows him, and suddenly the gaps start appearing everywhere!

Move up the pitch together as a unit. Drop back as a unit. Mind the gaps.

Although he gets a lot of praise for his massively improved performances, I often think Iwobi is breaking rank and this is leaving us very exposed.

I don't want to mention Lukaku after his bovine banjo performance. But still , after he came on Belgium had a presence up front, the defenders bounced off him and he could just about shield the ball and get it to a Belgian midfielder. The team is then in possession and in the ascendancy.

This one player in this crucial position will change the dynamics of a team. Playing Maupay there is madness, nothing sticks and there is no respite for the midfield as the ball never stops coming back.

If we've got any money this is where it needs spending and if we're skint, go and beg, borrow or steal. I'm expecting Thelwell to be all over it.

If defenders prefer to sit deep for fear of getting caught for pace, if supporting wing attacking defenders are able to be pressed into a back five, if midfielders are pushed deeper and pressured into loss of possession, if forwards are not effective running into position, holding the ball up, or interplay is non existent, if there is no attacking threat, then you will have a deeper defence, as space is surrendered to the opposition.

Errors just compound the situation. But the main ingredient is being a yard short due to poor application at training and preparation.

All-in-all, it just perpetuates defeat.
Everton are deservedly hammered, and will be in the Premier League, as a result.