Cornish Steve

I agree. I'm surmising that a player lost one boot and borrowed a second. If we knew the owner of each boot, we identify the player to most likely be one of two.

Looking at the other pictures, the blue boot is Jagielka's, right?

Turned 40 today.

Then I respectfully disagree. 'Sportsmanlike' has always been a compliment and something to aspire to. In our generation, it's been replaced by 'competitive', which includes using the letter of the law to your advantage. When I coached youth teams, we stayed with the original goal of sportsmanship. Despite usually finishing in the top two or three in the league, we were known for our sportsmanship. We even had players requesting to join our team because of our reputation. I was as proud of that as I was our achievements on the pitch.

And for people like me who doesn't yet recognize all the players in each picture, this webpage shows each player's number.

There's a nice interview with Conor Grant at the evertonTV site. It's great to see youngsters like this getting a chance to work out with the first team players.

Yes. he did earn a reputation - just not the one I'd want to have.

I suppose I'm just old-fashioned. Personally, I admire the great sportsmen of the past. Take, for example, the legend of golf, Bobby Jones: Bobby Jones was not only a consummately skilled golfer but exemplified the principles of sportsmanship and fair play. In the first round of the 1925 U.S. Open at the Worcester Country Club near Boston, his approach shot to the 11th hole's elevated green fell short into the deep rough of the embankment. As he took his stance to pitch onto the green, the head of his club brushed the grass and caused a slight movement of the ball. He took the shot, then informed his playing partner Walter Hagen and the USGA official covering their match that he was calling a penalty on himself. Hagen was unable to talk him out of it, and they continued play. After the round and before he signed his scorecard, officials argued with Jones but he insisted that he had violated Rule 18, moving a ball at rest after address, and took a 77 instead of the 76 he otherwise would have carded. Jones' self-imposed one-stroke penalty eventually cost him winning the Open by a stroke in regulation, necessitating a playoff he then lost. Although praised by many sports writers for his gesture, Jones was reported to have said, "You may as well praise a man for not robbing a bank." With one simple act, Stuart Broad could have earned himself a reputation that would last a lifetime. Instead, he did what most of today's players do - acted selfishly.

Some of the comments at Red Cafe are amusing. One person, for example, is suggesting that Phil Neville take over from Danny Welbeck as striker, since he couldn't do any worse. The more serious comments relate to the current miserable state of the ManU midfield - which means that Moyes may become even more aggressive in trying to buy Fellaini.

They played 4-4-1-1. What with injury (Rooney) and absences (RVP), United has only one recognized striker in the squad right now, and the video above reveals just how successful he was. These games, are experiments, right? They provide little insight to how a team will perform in the league. Still, it is rather embarrassing to lose to a team from Thailand.

Trying to keep emotions out of this and looking only at statistics, some numbers are revealing. Despite being regarded as one of the best and most consistent left backs in the EPL, some of Baines' numbers are rather poor. He wins 53% of ground challenges (second worst in the league) and 39% of aerial challenges. Compare this with Wigan's Figueroa, for example, who wins 67% on the ground and 59% in the air. Baines' passing accuracy stands at 72%, compared with Ashley Cole, for example, at 86%. On the other hand, Baines is very much an offensive player and more successful in this role than other players in the league. He created more than double the number of goal-scoring opportunities for Everton than did his peers for their teams. (The numbers are from the 2011/2012 season.) While it's an obvious statement, I suppose, Baines' value to Everton depends very much on how he's played. With RM's 3-4-3 configuration, for example, he would thrive. Maybe, going forward, he should assume an even more offensive role.

OK. I didn't realize that. Still, highlights are better than nothing. Also, ESPN3 is a free Internet channel, and they broadcast live one game every Saturday. After that, I play it by ear finding other live channels online, such as Al Jazeera. I wonder why evertonTV doesn't broadcast their games live. They'd make a boatload of money. I suppose they are held hostage by the big sports channels.

Excellent. Thank you.

Long gone, it seems, are the days when 'sportsman-like' was meant as a compliment. Examples abound of great individuals in sport demonstrating that fairness and fair play are more important than winning. Not so with Stuart Broad. Clearly today, he was out. The video replays showed beyond doubt that he had made contact with the ball and was caught at slip. The umpire missed it, but Broad had the opportunity to prove his character by walking back to the pavilion. He did not do so, and I for one believe he should be ashamed of himself. It's just not cricket.

So let's put some meat on the argument: 1) Fellaini and Baines leave for £40m plus maybe a couple of youth players from their academy 2) Follow-on fee for Fellaini, agent fees, etc. bring this down to £32m 3) Bring in Clement Chantome, Toby Alderweireld, Jorginho, and Victor Moses for £8m apiece 4) Bring in two or three young squad players with what's left of the TV money Now there is one powerful team for the future.

With £40m, Everton could lay a strong foundation for the future. That's ten players at the £4m mark, four players at the £10m, or even two £20m players - excluding the wage and agent fee implications, of course. Throw in a couple of up-and-coming young players from the ManU ranks, and it would be an offer hard to refuse. In the end, logic and planning for the future have to weigh emotional attachment to any particular player, right? The goal is to playing again in Europe, and no single player is essential to that bigger goal.

According to this report, ManU said to be "closing in" on a £40m total deal to get Baines and Fellaini. This meets Everton's valuation for Baines of £16m and would be enough to activate Fellaini's buy-out clause.

On the latter item, I've read conflicting reports. In the radio interview I quoted, though, the commentator stated that RM was heavily involved and spoke several times. Re Guardiola, the commentator states that Guardiola got on a plane and met with the player. Moyes could have done that too but chose not to.

Regarding Thiago, the latter half of this report is revealing. It seems that ManU was ponderous and slow in negotiations, even after trying to recruit the guy for three years. Pep Guardiola, once he'd decided he wanted the player, got on a plane, made his target feel special, convinced him of the move, didn't let contract details slow progress, and appears to have won him over. This, surely, is how you chase the greatest players: Do what it takes to let them know they are really wanted. Contrast this with Roberto Martinez, who apparently spoke several times with Deulofeu, taking whatever time was needed to reassure Barcelona that it was the right move, and sealed his arrival in short order. There are right and wrong ways to convince the world's best players: In the case of ManU, taking the slow and cautious route was the path to failure. In the case of Everton, a laser-like focus won the day.

Last year, I did subscribe to the Fox Soccer channel. Given the increasingly high cost of cable, though, I "cut the cord" at the beginning of this year. This is why I'm looking for Internet channels. I'm quite happy to pay to watch games over evertonTV but want to be sure they won't be blocked like all videos associated with the BBC.

Latest news from Arsenal: Move for Fellaini looking less likely.

The most reliable is usually Al Jazeera Sports. Isn't it ironic that the BBC blocks games so fans overseas cannot cheer English teams, whereas AJS broadcasts over the Internet for free. What's wrong with this picture!

Past his prime and wouldn't fit with RM's style of play.

Look at the skills and goals in these two videos. One is almost a carbon copy of the other - while 40 years apart. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pp7cTlvHgUQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85g-GLdFkN4

Watching the video clip at this site, I'm reminded of George Best in his heyday: the same dribbling skills, the same arrogance, the same ability to weave through five or six defenders in front of goal. This young man has awesome skills.