Everton Banter Archive November 25 2016

25 Nov 2016 10:15:28
I'm sure there will be mixed responses to this. How does everyone feel about the state of the squad? For me, it's easier to group the players into 3 categories:

a) players that we need to keep, either because they are currently indispensable or because of great potential

b) players that we are indifferent as to whether they remain or leave, and may be unconvincing but have the potential to be useful

c) players that are simply not good enough and need to be moved on

My list is as follows:

a) Lukaku, Barkley, Bolasie, Davies, Gueye, Barry (1 year deal) , Coleman, Baines, Holgate, Galloway.

b) Stekelenburg, Robles, Pennington, Browning, Jagielka, Mori, Williams, Besic, McCarthy, Deulofeu, Lennon, Mirallas.

c) Oviedo, Gibson, Cleverly, McGeady, McAleny, Kone, Niasse.

Therefore, over the course of the next 2 transfer windows I think we need:

GK with quality
RB cover
LB to challenge and eventually replace Baines
CB with experience and quality
CM who can be a long term replacement for Barry
CAM who can challenge and/ or develop Barkley
RW or LW who scores goals as well as assists
ST with quality to challenge Lukaku.

{Ed025's Note - if i was making a list it would not be much different to yours tommy, maybe coleman and baines would flitter between A and B, and besic would get a 1yr deal mate..

25 Nov 2016 23:42:01
Blue Tommy: you make good points.
However, wearing my "miserable/ cynical old git" hat, I no longer regard any player as indispensable.
If certain members of our current squad did leave, I would probably be disappointed, but I'd be more concerned that we could bring in (by transfer or developing via the U23s/ U18s) replacements that improve the overall squad quality and depth. If we can't improve year-on-year, then we're doomed to mediocrity or worse imho.
Players (and their agents! ) want the best deal and loyalty very rarely comes into it.
As for the club, loyalty shouldn't come into it - indeed misguided loyalty to under-perfrming players has cost us results in the past. That's particularly worrying when players retain their places because we don't have adequate cover at the club.

26 Nov 2016 06:41:30
I agree with you Ed, I put Baines and Coleman in A as we already need 6-8 players. Just thought it worth keeping them so as to avoid any more essential signings. In particular Coleman would be hard to replace as there aren't many good right backs about. Besic 1 year sounds good to me. I like the lad but he's nearly as injury prone as Gibbo.

As for your reply Sid, I agree with you in principle. However, with 6-8 signings needed already, which is already a big ask in the time frame of two transfer windows, I think it would be too much to ask to also replace other players as well.

{Ed025's Note - it is a major building job tommy and if its done properly then the team should be unrecognisable in two years, FFP rules may even means it takes longer but the mentality at the club needs to change if we are to progress mate..

26 Nov 2016 08:10:46
Fantastic post Tommy. Sums it all up really. Totally agree.

26 Nov 2016 10:20:39
Blue Tommy:I agree that too many changes - especially during the January transfer window - would probably be too disruptive.
Besides, the nett expenditure (fees and wages) on that many incoming/ outgoing players in January - especially if bringing in higher quality replacements - would be exorbitant and we'd be strictly limited by the financial regulations.
However, during the Summer transfer window, if we did our business early and prudently - and the revitalised squad had a full pre-season under RK - then perhaps, just perhaps, that many changes could be accommodated - especially as theincoming players should be less stuck in the old Everton ways than the departing players.
I still maintain my original point: no player is indispensable even though I, like every fan, have my own favourites.

25 Nov 2016 18:22:55
I'm not actively advocating this - merely posing the question: why does the club bother running an U23/ U18 setup?
Very, very few players have progressed through our academy in the past decade or two to have established long-term careers with us. I can only think of Osman and Hibbert in recent years. Hopefully, Barkley will become a consistent, long-term performer, but I can't at the moment think of any other long-term "successes".
The most gifted - like Rooney and Rodwell (he was highly regarded once! ) - soon moved on in search of success. We got reasonable fees for them, but we no longer need that sort of regular transfer income just to keep the club running.
Players like Stones, Holgate, Calvert-Lewin have been brought in from elsewhere - they haven't come through Everton's junior ranks.
In the current setup, the U23s especially don't get the competitiveness and intensity to develop. Even those we've sent on loan don't - in the main - actually get the game time at lower-league sides to learn and most eventually seem to return only to fairly quickly move away from Everton. Notwithstanding this lack of game time in the present setup, perhaps we should have a closer relationship with a lower league club that becomes, in essence, a feeder/ development team for us. I can see plenty of organisational challenges, but we surely need something better than the existing U23 arrangements.
I guess that if you can unearth a Rooney every 10 years - and hold onto him - then it's worthwhile, but that quality of player comes along much less often that that!
As I said, I'm not advocating the removal of our U23/ U18 setup - I'm just asking for other posters' opinions and suggestions.
.

25 Nov 2016 20:11:05
Sid
I believe we will still require the transfer revenue from youngsters making the grade as our new major shareholder is a businessman and shouldn't be regarded as a fairy godmother.
If he removes our debt and funds a new stadium as well as providing funds for the transfer kitty, eventually he will want at the very least to be repaid.
Whilst I appreciate television money has enabled the Football League to pay huge amounts of money to clubs, it will take a substantial amount to finance the club's projected aspirations.
I acknowledge it costs to run the youth and academies, but I'm fairly certain it has proved financially cost effective. Therefore, we will very much need the next 'Rooney' to either meet the first teams squad needs or to generate the funds, we have achieved through past sales of youth players, to help the financial cause.

25 Nov 2016 20:40:02
Fancy Smith: you make some interesting points. I'd be intrigued as to what other posters' opinions are.