thoward18

Near post corners are perfectly fine. What gets frustrating is that sometimes Baines and Miralles don't get enough lift on them and so they're just drilled into the knees of the opposing guy at the 18. Honestly, I don't know how much you can work on corners. Have five or six general plays drawn up regarding what area of the 18 the ball is going to go. After that, it basically comes down to luck and desire. It's not like Tim Cahill does anything particular special tactically. He is just able to jump high and then wants to get on the end of the ball more than anyone else.

All the usual names do well, but Arsenal, Liverpool, and Tottenham in particular seem to have massive followings. Chelsea and Man U next. I don't think I've met a single Manchester City fan.

We have a pretty strong national supporters' network. We have "Everton USA" and then subsections of it by region. So Everton New York, Everton DC, etc. Really hoping that the recent success at the World Cup, particularly from Cahill and Howard, will mean our numbers are boosted.

Ahh yes, I didn't even consider the West Coast. Yes, it's even worse for you guys.

Wow, the ignorance here is astounding. Guess what? While you're comfortably sitting on your sofa cracking a beer, we "Yanks" are dragging ourselves out of bed at 7am on a weekend despite feeling a massive hangover or desperately needing more sleep just so we can watch Everton play. Sometimes, the game isn't even on TV in the US, so we have to resort to NBC's stream of the game on our computers. Now that Everton are in Europe, it's going to mean games at about 2PM in the middle of the week, meaning that watching those are going to be even more difficult for those of us who work or are studying. But we'll find a way. But yes, please tell us about how we're just a bunch of casual bandwagoners who don't know the difference between Duncan Ferguson and a corner kick. The fact that you're a miserable cunt doesn't mean you're a better supporter than we are. It means you're a miserable cunt.

I'm pretty excited for when Everton do announce 2-3 signings in the same week so that you can move on to bitching about how we brought in the wrong players.

Equating the random shit that the tabloids throw at the wall with what Martinez is thinking is probably a poor decision.

Most of the guys Roberto mentioned are 19-20. Duffy turns 23 by New Year's. If, say, Matt Kennedy is not ready, then it just means he's not ready. If Shane Duffy can't make the squad, then it probably just means he's not good enough. That's what I infer from Martinez' comments.

If the goal was to spend as much money as possible then Everton would have been relegated ages ago and QPR would have won the league in 2013. I'd rather Martinez take his time and make the right, calculated moves than throw money around at first chance just so we can compete in a dick measuring contest with Liverpool and Chelsea. Last time around Martinez waited until literally the final hour to make his moves, and I think everyone will agree it was for the best. It would thus seem a bit silly to freak out because of a lack of movement in early July.

Serious question because I genuinely do not know the answer to it. If Man City had signed Rodwell from, let's say, Aston Villa instead of Everton, would anyone here really want him?

My parents are in their late 50s and can barely use email. This is fucking impressive. Anyways, welcome from a fellow American! My biggest advice to you is to not be afraid to ask questions. What I love about Everton fans is that they don't have the usual Eurosnob attitude. They're very proud of their history, and thus they are not only willing, but happy to explain things to you about the club and its history.

I find it absolutely maddening that people are so eager to replace Howard. By all means, let's bring in a few 18-20 year-olds for when he inevitably needs to pass the torch, but for right now we're not going to do much better. In fact, after Neuer and Buffon, are there any goalkeepers in the world who are head-and-shoulders above him?

We can't catch every murderer, so therefore let's just not arrest any of them.

Well this is pretty ridiculous. Most people, sir Alex Furguson included, have put the better MLS teams on par with mid-championship teams. There's no doubt in my mind that some of these teams would compete with, if not often beat, a Barnsley. You know, where John Stones came from. So I guess we should have said no to John Stones. Because a bottom-tier Championship team is nowhere near the EPL so therefore no players good enough for the EPL could possibly exist within the team.

Was our team's Player Of The Year last season. He's dealt with some injuries (shocker) this season but otherwise he's doing for RBNY exactly what you guys would think he would do. He would still be useful to a team in the bottom half of the table, but at Everton he'd basically be what Hibbert is.

Yeah, I'm not against keeping him. He's been here long enough that he's earned the benefit of the doubt, and if nothing else he's a good depth/clubhouse guy.

I think MLS would be a smart move for him. He's exactly the kind of player who thrives here in the U.S. I'm not sure, given the injury and now being 32, how much he has left in the tank to play at the level Everton are at.

Even if we never get another Barcelona player again, the testimony from them is itself tremendous. Any time we want to sign a young player, it's going to be a pretty convincing bit that Roberto can put in front of players and agents. "We can develop you into the player you want to be. Check out how Lukaku and Stones have done. Hell, fucking Barcelona trusts us so much with that that they handpicked us as their priority destination for all their kids." What an endorsement.

Agreed. A few MLS teams have already shown interest in him I like Lescott but think we need to move on. Distin's in the twilight of his career and Jagielka's not too far behind. Alcaraz is the frailest of all of them. We need to add someone on the right side of 30.

It was one game. Cristiano Ronaldo looked like shit in one game. It amazes me how small of a sample size some of you guys are willing to base things off of.

As has been pointed out in posts above mine, it literally was a dream come true. Amazing.

Here's an amazing stat I just saw. It's amazing to me how so many of you discount what he's done at such a young age. "User Actions Following Elias Sports Bureau‏@EliasSports Two EPL seasons of 15+ goals at 20 or younger: Robbie Fowler, Michael Owen & Romelu Lukaku

More goals than Rooney! Break the bank!

Michael Bradley would without a doubt be a starter for Everton and most EPL teams. The guy was a key figure for AS Roma for a number of years. Cameron would no doubt be higher than Stones on the depth chart (for now, Stones clearly will overtake him in a couple years).

On the other hand, Sergio Ramos' stock is at an all-time low!