Elston Gunnn

Nice pass from Lukaku, but Kone messed that one.

Deulofeu to Lukaku, again. Magic.

Lukaku missed that one. Opportunity definitely missed there.

Yes, that's my concern. Tbh, I'm not in a mood to trust Roberto. Would hate to waste a substitution if Stones has to be replaced early. But I guess Roberto doesn't intend to use his deep squad anyway.

Stones in tunnel with starters.

Stones seems to have injured his right foot during warmups.

I can no better understand Roberto's stubborn unwillingness to sub Mirallas or Lennon for Kone last Monday eve than can anyone else here. And admittedly that stubbornness -- not quite lunacy, but moving in that direction -- will cast doubt on my opinion here that Mirallas will start tomorrow. Although Kone and all the starters from Monday will have had sufficient recovery time, Kone's glaring ineffectiveness in the second half, topped off by his fluff attempt at the end, give Roberto a reason/excuse to pause the "Lukaku/Kone work so well together" storyline. Further, I'm wondering whether what I see as likely -- Baines starting -- works to Mirallas's advantage, in that it gives Everton a real left side. Is that illogical, in that Roberto doesn't "believe" in attacking down both sides in any single match??? (Help.) Ok, then maybe Roberto plans a left-sided emphasis tomorrow, starting Mirallas and Baines, and reducing the right-sided focus by starting Lennon for Deulofeu, who, if he plays 80-90 minutes every match, will be exhausted by April. I will conclude my own hallucinatory lunacy by hoping Gibson starts with Barry or Cleverley. (I don't expect McGeady to start, in case you're wondering.) My lunatic preference for tomorrow, a lineup that should beat Norwich City. Howard Coleman, Stones, Funes Mori, Baines Gibson Cleverley Lennon, Naismith, Mirallas Lukaku

Hope Roberto doesn't offload anyone too early in Jan. Five matches in 14 days, Jan. 3-16. Including Spurs, Man City twice, and relegation-threatened Chelsea.

I don't think Deulofeu is strong enough for a consistent 90 minutes, in that we (wisely) play through him quite a bit. This is good -- absolutely, get the ball to him over and over and over. But he does tend to tire, from effort, including his improvement in helping to defend. He's just not as strong as Lukaku, not by a long shot. So, why not start him maybe 3 matches out of 4, but bring on Lennon at 70 minutes. And start Lennon occasionally, bringing on Deulofeu at 55-65 minutes. A fresh Deulofeu can do some real damage in the last 30-35 minutes. That's enough time for 3-4 good crosses. And an occasional howler, too, but not out of exhaustion. On the left, why not alternate Kone and Mirallas, more or less 50-50? Ok, if Kone and Lukaku are good together, give Kone a bit more time than Mirallas, but not 90%-10%. Is Mirallas actually noticeably less likely to help Baines than Kone? And Barry sometimes runs out of steam, too. Last season he and Martinez admitted he played too much. It's happening again. Good heavens, Cleverley and the forgotten Gibson are pretty good players, with different strengths. Besic, too, when healthy. Might Barkley use a break just occasionally, giving way to Naismith, Mirallas, or Cleverley (preferably not Osman), either as starter or at 70 minutes?

(Sorry, attempting to edit, almost double post.) But I will say, the next time Roberto froths at the mouth about our "deep squad," I will chastise him.

After the frustrating draw with Palace, we're down to 4 matches to end the first half of the season. Assuming we're pushing for 5th, the bad news is that the only 2 clubs to play any of the top 9 the rest of December are Everton and Liverpool, both of whom play Leicester at home. Take a look at the EPL fixture list for December. The clubs now 5th through 9th are all playing bottom half of table clubs in December. So it may be that we'll need 10-12 from next 4 just to stay 9th or maybe get 8th.

I'm surprised Roberto didn't bring on Osman for Kone in the 91st minute. Maybe Osman would've hit the late winner. Don't think I possess sufficient footy expletives to express my disdain for Roberto's refusal to use his "deep squad."

Kone let his man glide by. Not good.

C'mon Roberto, Mirallas at 55 minutes.

Not sure why Barkley didn't take a couple of dribbles there. Seemed open for him.

To the halfway mark now means next 5 matches. Giving back 2 points at Bournemouth can only be exorcised by taking points from each of the December matches. And that means, for me, 11 or 13 points, either of which would probably get us to 6th, sitting just behind Spurs, who have an easy schedule coming up. Given that 12 is better than 11, 4 wins and 1 loss is acceptable. But 7 or 8 points would be very discouraging. Get to 6th, and that would set up the opening match of the second half of the season: home to Spurs. I hope we can be in 6th tonight. That would help, as staying next to Spurs isn't guaranteed, given their easy December.

Seems likely Barca would wait until 2017 to decide, as the increase in buy-back amount is relatively small. Two full EPL seasons for Deulofeu as a first-choice winger will provide plenty of info about his strengths and weaknesses. If, as we have reason to expect, his strengths gradually increase and weaknesses gradually decrease, it would be shocking if Barca don't take him back.

Serious issue, so serious question. I'd be interested in your and others' opinions about which of the following do and which don't make the grade. Can we stipulate that making the grade means occasional starts and regular 20-30 minute appearances as subs? Mirallas, Lennon, Cleverley, Naismith, Gibson, Besic, Browning, Osman, Oviedo, Pienaar, Hibbert, Howard, Robles.

We're going to see Man City a whole lot in January. T/W Jan 5/6 - home W Jan 13 - away T/W Jan 26/27 - away Two wins and a draw. Mirallas goes wild. One way or another. If he's still a Toffee. Piece of cake. Bob's your uncle.

Not clear that McCarthy will be healthy. I hope Gibson starts for either McCarthy or Barry. I'd like to see Mirallas get a start at LW. Bring on Kone at 60 minutes, and Lennon for Deulofeu at 70. Baines starts, I hope.

I'll be listening, but will definitely appreciate running comments here on TT.

I'm puzzled by Roberto's limited use of what he claims, and I believe, is Everton's solid squad depth. I think we will win. But if Mirallas, Lennon, Naismith, and Gibson were starting in place of Cleverley, Deulofeu, Barkley, and Barry, I'd still think we're going to win. (Admittedly, we could lose with either lineup.) Barry's inclusion, given his even-minor injury, is just strange, particularly when Gibson has shown excellent passing in his limited opportunities.

That someone was Cleverley, who after the goal put his hands on his head/eyes, certainly in shock but I think also because he knew he hadn't tracked his man and nudged him away from the open header. I've liked Cleverley's versatility earlier in the season, but he messed up on this one, badly.

I have to assume there is absolute unanimity that the stench lingers, and will only be (partially) removed with a win tomorrow eve. The question now is, who are the strongest 11, for Tuesday night? Is Kone or Mirallas the stronger on the left? Is either McCarthy or Barry likely to be as strong as Gibson and Besic? For that matter, will either McCarthy or Barry even pass a fitness test? Would the inclusion of Lennon mean RM is fielding a weaker team? I have posted repeatedly that we should get the ball to Deulofeu "over and over and over." But I think he's more likely to be effective playing 30 minutes than 70-95, so Lennon on the right strikes me as a good choice to start.

Forgot Cleverley in above ^ post. Put him on sub list instead of Browning or McGeady.