nutmegwolf203

This lad is special. Very surprised he played for so long today, but how much class did he show?! So exciting. 
 
He needs to be nowhere near the Salford game on Wednesday night. Can’t wait to see him against West Brom now. 

Get in, how great was that!? 
It was brilliant to see them all thrown in but even better to see them perform as they did. I don't think anyone played badly either. There may have been a couple that you would have hoped for a little more but that was such an improvement on last season. 
A couple worthy of a mention.  Doucoure was probably my motm. He was everywhere and he could have ended the game with a couple of assists and a couple of goal saving challenges. 
Allan wasn't far off. He looks a bit slow over long distances but he is sharp over 5-10 yards, he is a leader and he looks to have a brain on him.
I'm not quite what to say about James, but I have never seen a footballer for Everton just have so much command of the game with the ball at his feet. It doesnt seem to matter where you pass it to him or how hard it is, as his first touch just kills the ball dead. 
A nod should go to some of the guys at the back too. Pickford was faultless and it was good to see him come off his line at the end. Mina was commanding at the back and Seamus rolled back the years again. 
Richarlison got better as the game went on but he should have scored at least one. He was a bit sulky early on but by the end of the game they couldn't touch him. I think DCL did well too. It was the type of performance he gives but when it went long to him or there was a ball to win like he did for the goal then he was winning it. 

Regardless of what happens this has been levels above what I expected. I hoped for positives but this is like a new team. 

Siggy and Gomes fighting for a shirt rather than thinking they are dead certs

I can't agree with that tbh.  But I think DCL has grafted.  He's put some beef on too.

I’m in awe. We are a new team.

I've always said I'll give credit where it is due.... He was very very good today.
He actually looked like he was in an interview for a job that he wanted rather than turning up for a job he had got bored of.  That's the best way I can describe it.  He had a purpose about what he did ... 
Long may it continue. .... I think Carlo has lit a few fires under a few arses. 

Oh and i love to see all the different MoTM votes from you guys! 

Can’t wait for him to get up to speed. Needs to build his stamina up but that’s perfectly normal. Sublime presence and ability. 

Played two, won two, none conceded. Yet to play one of the "big" teams but still

Fine for me. Once he’s fit, he can be a sub with brilliant finishing for the last 15. He’ll also work his ass off. 

In many regards I agree. Plenty of dicks out there doing exactly that. Where I think this situation is different is in the profile of the three signings. Add in Richarlison and Digne and you could argue these three signings are immediately 3 of our top 5 players in the squad. To sign marquee players on team-friendly contracts at a club like ours is very difficult to do. The credit is more down to the profile of the player rather than the age I guess, should have been more clear. 

I have just watched back some videos on  Zaha to see if there is anything to pick up on and I think the reason he isn't an £80mil player is because he does score enough. 
He is strong, quick, one of the best dribblers in the league (Hazard level), he can pick a pass well enough but isn't an elite level passer like KDB or Hazard are but he clearly understands the weight and timing of the pass and he can play anywhere across the front 3 attacking midfield positions. He also turns up in the big games, ripping Liverpool and City apart, leading to Klopp calling him world class and saying he needs to be double teamed. The problem is he doesn't score enough and even when he does score very few of the shots are what you would class as being elite level finishers. 
You watch Richarlison for a game and you can see he is a born finisher. His instincts are that of a striker and his finishing is more often than not as reliable as one. He isn't as good on the ball as Zaha but he is twice as clinical with it where it matters. 
Being in a better team would help Zaha in that it would take some attention off him and there generate him more space to play but I still don't think the technique or instinct is there at the moment. The challenge for him leaving Palace is going to be can he improve in that department because if he can could score and create 10+ goals a season. I could imagine a Sterling-esque transformation under the right manager albeit it will probably come a few years to late in his career.

I’d be livid 😜

When you make a great deal, though, you shouldn't brag about it. It makes the other party look weak, and that means others in the future will be wary of suffering the same fate. Make a great deal, yes, but keep it hush hush.

Welcome to the forum mate 🙂

I think / hope they want to / are going to announce all 3 signings together, and I suspect they will use De La Souls -The Magic Number over the funky transfer announcement video... We shall wait and see!!!???

Next summer is going to be a gold mine for us as so much in the way of wages will be gone. If we're spending now while we have so much shit floating around, imagine what would be possible next summer? Especially if we can manage to have a season that ends in a European place... 

Its nice to feel we now have more players who should get goals this season. Last season the pressure was on Dom and Richy, now we have 2 midfielders in James and Doucoure who should contribute to putting the ball in the net. 
Even if those 2 add just 10 between them, that could be the difference between Europe or not. 

As impressed as I am with the quality of the signings, I'm equally if not more impressed by the contracts. It seems like for far far too long it was 'you're a new signing here's a 5 yr deal'. Never understood that the club takes on all of the risk.  
Allan is 29 and his three year deal takes him to 32. James is 29 and his 2 year deal with an option takes him to 31/32. Doucoure is 27 and his 3 year deal with an option takes him to 30/31. 
If it's working out great sign him up to an extension and if it's not you don't get stuck with Martina/Niasse/Gylfi/Bolasie/Besic/Tosun. 

Spotlight will be off Kean a bit this season, with our big signings this summer. I think there was far to much expectations on him from fans last season - he was a teenager coming to a new country. I was only expected him to be blooded as a substitute in games we where playing well and had effectively already won - get on for the last 20mins, enjoy it with no pressure type of games. Unfortunately, don't think we had many/any games where you could effectively 'blood' younger player. Instead, it was more often than not being put on the the pitch in situations where we needed a goal or where the team was just playing poorly.  You can't expect a youngster who have just moved to the country to be getting the team out of the shit with 10-15mins to go in a game.  Not the way to build a lads experience and confidence. Nobody was really scoring in this team last year, so we shouldn't have been at all surprised that Kean only managed 2.
Think he will be far more relaxed next year, and hopefully he can be put on the pitch when the pressure is off him to deliver goals. 

I promise I’m not Gana mention Romelu again Matt!

Ya, this is a pivotal year on a number of fronts. We need to show real progress.

The midfield has well and truly been transformed. We now have an engine room.
I don’t think we’re done but I would be happy if these were the only deals we do this window. That’s how needed and how good our business has been. 

If you’re a midfielder at Everton, you need to seriously step up you’re game if you want to play again. 
Not a single one of them will get a look in if they aren’t at least twice as good as they were last season. 
The standard has moved, time to improve or get out of the way.