Zoo 2.0

A mature and knowledgeable answer I see. If ''any fucker'' could look good around players in that team then why was Andre Gomes being put in the shop window this summer in a desperate attempt to get rid? Why was Jeremy Mathieu sold after coming in just a few seasons previously? Why was Cristian Tello shipped out on loan and then sold this summer to Real Betis? The reason is because they wasn't good enough for the squad and as a result got sold. In other words, not just anybody can go to the Camp Nou and succeed like you've naively suggested, not to mention that Paulinho has been something of a talking point in Catalunya at the moment as he's totally reinvented himself from the flop that everyone saw at Tottenham, he's been a key cog in the Barca machine and has won them points on his own, most notably at Getafe when he bagged the winner. What am I bothering for though, you clearly watch enough La Liga football to know that anyone could look good in Barcelona and Real Madrid. The mind boggles as to why they bother having a scouting department .

Great post Mike. I think that any fan has the right to criticise the manager when he makes mistake but to then still bash him when he has done well just doesn't sit right with me. People's biggest complaints about Moyes and Martinez was that they made subs too late in the game to have an impact, Koeman spotted that we were going to lose and changed things around so that we didn't bringing on Tom Davies who was involved in two goals and Oumar Niasse who got them. No. I'm guessing because it's the perfect time to make a change. If by Christmas things aren't being run to an acceptable standard then the manager has had enough time in the season (i.e. - five months) to make things happen and obviously doesn't have the knowledge or skill to get what the fans expect out of the players. By sacking the manager at Christmas the new boss (providing he is appointed in good time) has five months himself to get things the way he wants it and hopefully do what the other boss couldn't.

I thought that the Bournemouth goal came at a bad time and as a result what ruined what could have been a good performance from us. I thought that we actually looked decent in the first half and whilst we didn't cause Begovic too much trouble you could see that we were growing into the game and looked the more likely of the two teams to break the dead-lock. Fast-forward three minutes into the second half and Joshua King has pulled the visitors ahead and we hit the panic button. You could see the cracks from the past few league games creep into the side and from there it turned into something of a nightmare. Kudos to Koeman (who is still being bashed despite us winning) for changing things around and bringing on Davies and Niasse who totally changed the game, without those two changes being made I do believe that we'd have lost. Once we got the first it was only a matter of time until we got the second and let's not forget that we would have had another had the ball not been cleared off the line when the score was at 1-1. Once we got that first goal we were a totally different team and had we played like that for 90 minutes would have won considerably and comfortably, I just hope that we take this run of wins as a confidence boost and play Burnley off the park in a week's time. We've got the quality to make things happen, it's just a case of things clicking into place and us catching that big break. Jordan Pickford I thought did well, he smothered the long balls that were thrown his way when Bournemouth were behind and denied Jermaine Defoe from close range just after King had scored to make it 1-0, if we had conceded there then it would have been curtains for us so he deserves as much credit as the rest of the lads for the points that's we've claimed today. Cuco Martina had another poor game for me, I know that it's the flavour of the month to get on his back but I thought he was awful in most departments. Even when he managed to get forward his crosses were gash and either hit the first man or found the opposition, you could really see the game change in this respect when Ronald added Kenny into the mix and I'd really like Jonjoe to start in midweek against Apollon. Ashley Williams again had a mediocre game, it wasn't as bad as his performances against Spurs, Atalanta and Manchester United but he's still about as much use as a chocolate fireguard, I'd much rather we brought back Phil Jagielka or Mo Besic rather than playing a David Haye look-a-like for hire that struggles at the most basic aspects of defending. Mason Holgate alongside him I actually thought did well and looked the more experienced of the two, hopefully he gets a run of games now either in the centre of defence or instead of Cuco on the right flank. Leighton Baines had a quiet game for me but did what he needed to, we were rarely exposed on the left and he did make some moves in the oppositions third that gave them something to think about, I do think that he would have done a lot better if he had an out and out left winger to work with. (How I miss the days of Steven Pienaar in his prime...). In midfield, Idrissa Gueye was awful and probably the worst player on the pitch in many ways. I'm actually a big fan of Gana and think that he was a cracking purchase but today he was totally incapable of finding a man in a blue shirt, I lost count of how many times a move ended with him and worryingly a lot of his misplaced passes were on the edge of our own box. Had we been playing a Chelsea or Manchester City I fear we may have been punished in this respect so it's lucky that Bournemouth are no such team. Alongside Gueye I thought Morgan Schneiderlin did OK although I do wish he would pass forwards more. It seems that sometimes his first instinct is to play a pass to Pickford rather than passing it through the lines but hopefully once we start playing better he takes the risks that he needs to in this respect, he was a great player for us last season after his move but has struggled to get going in this campaign. Gylfi Sigurdsson was anonymous (sadly) and Davy Klaasen didn't seem to get into the game, I think that the 90 minutes passed both of these players by. Wayne Rooney I thought played really well up until the elbow in the face which knocked him for six. At first I thought it would be good for him to be wound up but he seemed to just grow more and more frustrated as the afternoon went on and in the end started becoming a real weak link, I was glad when he was whipped off and replaced with Oumar. Up top, I thought that Dominic Calvert-Lewin was superb as he was all over the show. He brought down the long balls that Pickford pumped forward like Fellaini used to do in his prime and did look a threat on the rare occasion that he was let loose in the box. I was begging for him to add to his account following the brace against Sunderland but it wasn't to be, hopefully he starts again against Burnley and finds the back of the net as he's turning into quite a player for us. I still think that we need a striker in January but I'm more than happy for Dom to serve as our number two. Overall, it was a shabby result in the end, there's still plenty of questions to be asked but at least we're winning again. Hopefully this serves as a confidence boost and snowballs into the Burnley, Limassol and Brighton games. If we can get through the next three or so games unscathed then we can hopefully put this bad run of form to bed once and for all as the quality of the team is there for all to see it's just that the machine isn't quite oiled up yet... Oh, and Martin Atkinson really is a walking advert for contraception isn't he? What a complete bellend. Yeah, I remember many ''fans'' on social media calling for Koeman's head last year and it was all forgotten once we started winning again. It'll happen this season too, we'll start beating teams and all of a sudden the same ''fans'' will be rimming him and buying ginger wigs. Football fans are fickle unfortunately but that's just how life is. Amen - +1. He was all set to sign for Manchester United and they announced the signing of Victor Lindlehof, because of this Keane turned his attention elsewhere. I'm not sure on what basis you've decided that he was ''scared to go back'' considering how he's a Manchester United fan at heart and because of the facts that I've just stated.

People are forgetting about the summer Gylfi had, for those that are in the forgetful camp he didn't get one. He was exiled from the Swansea squad for most (if not all) of their pre-season games and was then thrown into the mix as soon as he signed for us against Manchester City. I know that he's not tore the league apart but then again who would in an Everton side that has had it's confidence shot to pieces after massive defeats against Chelsea, Tottenham, Atalanta and Manchester United? Just like Koeman, the lad needs time. He's not had a pre-season and has had to adapt to a new team and a new way of playing against the league's best sides in a time of turmoil. If he's still anonymous come January then by all means get on the lad's back but to do it just a month after he's signed it absolutely ridiculous. You could say the same about Paulhino though and look where he is now. Scoring winning goals for FC Barcelona in La Liga alongside Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez.

I was shocked at the line-up when it was announced but it's hard to know whether it would have worked or not when you consider the deadlock was broken so early. It wasn't as though Manchester United took advantage of our poor shape or broke through the lines it was a case of Antonio Valencia hitting an absolutely world-class strike into the top corner of the goal. For all we know that formation could have worked and got us a point. Koeman was raised on the theory of ''Total Football'' by his mentor Johan Cruyff. The latter confesses as much in his autobiography. As a result Ronald wants us to dominate possession, defend from attack and in theory dominate the game in all areas of the pitch which is why he has bought so many creative players in the summer. People have been complaining about these players all playing in the same position but in the theory of ''Total Football'' each player plays in each position, the striker should be able to drop deep into the midfield, the goalkeeper should be comfortable with the ball at his feet and if need be a defender should be expected to push up the pitch and help in attacking areas. The problem we face that instead of playing with the likes of Xavi, Lionel Messi or even Koeman himself we are playing with the likes of Cuco Martina and the absolute car crash that is Ashley Williams. Once we start winning games the players will grow in confidence and from growing in confidence the games will start getting better and better for us, we'll start to dominate again and play how the manager wants us to, how we were playing when we qualified for European football after a three year exile.

Glad I'm not the only one, I really do struggle to support Everton at times and stand shoulder to shoulder with some of the wooden spoons that follow our club. ! The friendly against Wexford Youth ''B'' Team was dominance to say the least . We'll be five games into the season, there will be 33 left to go. Plenty of time to turn things around and I'll be very surprised if we're anywhere near a relegation scenario. Like I said in my earlier post, we've played all the hard games so in theory we're now playing the teams that are below us so we should make up ground. I'll only be worried if we start to drop points against the Burnley's and Brighton's of this world, losing to Manchester United this afternoon shouldn't ring alarm bells to people about going down.

Anyone thinking that we should sack Koeman needs to give their heads a wobble. I'm not saying that he should get a free pass but we knew when the fixtures were released that it was going to be a hard start to the season so it's mind blowing how some people are now calling for Ronald's head now that we're dropping points. I'll admit that the second half of Spurs and the first against Atalanta were a disgrace but are we really going to pull the trigger on the boss because of 90 minutes of football?! We're Everton Football Club, I grew up believing that this club was about loyalty and honour, we kept David Moyes for 11 years and he didn't do half bad. Even though Roberto Martinez turned into an absolute car-crash of a manager we gave him a few years to at least try and turn things around. We'll struggle to get a result this afternoon but from there we play Bournemouth, Burnley and Brighton with APOEL in-between. If we lose all of those then by all means start emailing Moshiri but until then let's keep a lid on it and get behind the team. We signed a full squad in the summer and it's going to take time for this project to come to light, do we really want to become another Crystal Palace who sack managers after 40 minutes in the job? This post isn't directed at anyone on here for the record too, it's more aimed at the idiots on social media that make this club look like a laughing stock.