SpartyBlue

Fight! Fight! Fight!

Commendable. Can never question his work ethic. It’s a weird spot as you’d like to trust your player and he will know his body best. That said I’d prefer to see him off the bench a couple times along with some lighter training for a bit. He’s had his preseason so conditioning isn’t a factor.

You might be right, but we never really have all the facts. Perhaps this is one for the future/an emergency starter while we wait until January or the summer when we will have more financial flexibility. It’s hard to believe we’d have the ability to sign a good, proven RB and we’d just pass so I tend to think if we just make a move like this it’s part of a medium term strategy. Given that Godfrey can be asked to play out there I can see us choosing to spend our limited funds elsewhere this window while at the same time taking a swing on a youngster.

I think Gbamin will be an important player for us if he can stay healthy. Who knows with Allan. It could just be age starting to catch up with him and there is no cure for that.

I would think. This is how it looks right before we sign someone.

Yea, there are several levels between U-23 and the premier league. Not too many make it through.

I think this is why Richie is probably our best player. He’s not the finished article but he’s productive offensively and actually quite responsible defensively. He’s always working hard.

I think it’s always gonna be iffy when you have a one dimensional player. That dimension better be very very good. The issue for me with James is he isn’t a striker or even the sort of winger who spends all his time at the top of the pitch. A lot of the time when he’s lazy with the ball or giving no effort to hinder an opponent it’s in our own half and it’s really hurting us. Gerry would try his tricks and not really get back but it was generally in the attacking third where it didn’t really punish us. This is a tangent but I’d have liked to have him on the squad for us last season down the right.

Do you think he would have disliked him if he was his best option though? His ability is obvious. So are his deficiencies.

I think you have to always take the full picture. Even for someone whose job is at the other end he does cost us some with the nonexistent defensive effort. If you like I’ll also include giving the ball away in our own half trying to be tricky when it’s not called for. This all sounds like I hate him as a player, I don’t and I’d take him again in a heartbeat, but I get why he couldn’t get on the field for Real Madrid.

True enough. Or if he had the energy to contribute defensively. He’s basically a Ferrari with mechanical issues. If you’re uber wealthy you might not be bothered but for most everyone else IT’S STILL A FERRARI!

I’m not sure if I agree he’s our best player overall. We need the creativity for sure but he’s our worst defensive player every time he’s on the pitch, by a mile. Plus he’s fragile so the odds of getting 30+ games from him are minuscule. I think a guy like Richie is better once you consider his overall game and you can make a case for a couple others. Important for us for sure but his deficiencies, like his left foot , stand out

We have a limited amount of financial resources. CB is far down our list of priorities. This is like saying there is a great deal on a new car and you want to get it when you already have two cars and you need the money to fix your leaky roof.

Keeps picking him? In preseason? All of our first team players get a run-out to work on their fitness etc.. You can call it a lack of effort or just focusing on one end of the pitch but it has the same effect. Offensively he’s our most creative player by a wide margin and distributes the ball well. On the other side of the coin, he does give the ball away too easily at times (and in our own half) and he provides almost no effort defensively. His normal procedure is to wave a leg and hope it disrupts you. If it doesn’t then he’s over it. It’s a tough puzzle for Rafa if he stays as his ability with the ball when we are in attack is much needed given our struggles to break teams down but he’s an absolute liability defensively and fragile to boot.

Dog days of summer

It’s almost as if some bias exists in our player valuations. Other teams should be willing to pay a premium for our players while also giving us theirs on the cheap and taking the current members of our squad that we don’t want.

Kane is light years ahead of him as a player at this point though. Richie also coming off a poor season by his standards. I think he’d have to have a season where he scored 15+goals from the wing to be near that price.

I’m having a “discussion” with some people in the Everton USA Facebook group who are saying things like “Well, he’s not wrong”. Crazy times we live in.

My new thing is to just get the third kit as I like having a bunch of different colors and styles and then I’ll get a main kit if it really appeals to me (or if we get a new main sponsor). I quite liked last years Home Kit. This year’s is fine but I’m not particularly inspired to purchase.

I’m not sure if you guys have this phrase across the pond but that makes a “sick” kit. Our third jerseys have routinely been the most attractive the last few years.

Yeah, Seamus is captain until he’s no longer playing, for me. Rafa isn’t dumb. He knows many in the fanbase don’t want him. Can’t imagine he’d want to pour fuel on that fire by removing Seamus as captain even if he thought it was a good move for some reason.

Holgate was outstanding two years ago. The talk was “could we keep him”? He took a step back last year for whatever reason (covid year, injury issues) but it’s way too early to just block him by bringing in another CB. Mina has had a bit of an up and down career with us but I thought he was quite solid last year and is a premier league starting quality CB at this point. Unless someone goes it’s just not a position of need. With the exception of Keeper, it has to be last on the list.

I thought he’s done fairly well when played inside in the “gylf role”. He’s not a bad passer and he’s strong enough, he’s just not a winger.

Yeah he’s not a winger. He plays slower than he is because that’s not where he should be playing. If you’re not the type to take on your man 1 v 1 or whip in crosses you’re gonna look out of ideas/slow imo.

I’m unfamiliar with this guy so how would you rate the credibility level here?