Matt

Hi mate, thanks for givin me something to do at work! 1) With last seasons injury troubles behind you what are your hopes and expectations for this year? Honestly, if we find the form we had at in the second half of last season, and when we get Jags and Arteta back, i can see top 4. Weve sorted the right hand side which has been our biggest weakness and brought in some quality players to replace those who left. Biased, sure but still possible. whats likely thought is 6th or 7th... 2) How do you feel you have done in the transfer window and do you feel you could have brought in more? wouldve been nice to have brought in more, our squad is paper thin. but, if you look at some of the players who left, eg Van Der Meyde, Valente, Jacobson - all these left but barely played, ie bench warmers. Lescott has gone, and we got Heitinga (a quality defender) Distin (a proven, steady defender) and Billy (an out and out winger). for the first time in a while, we have a complete squad, with a bench of able players too. like i said, wouldve been nice to have more, but cant complain! 3) What do you think of your new home kit? I think in the minority here when i say i like it, but then again, i liked last seasons. as long as its blue i dont really care! 4) How has the possible take over talk been received, would you like Mr Moyes to have access to the sort of money Mark Huges has or would it make you a ‘plastic club’? talkover talk? i would love Moyes to have the same money that Hughes has, but not sure he would spend it as wildly as MH did. 5) How do you think Fulham will do this year? I think Hodgson has done a fantastic job, with the exception of only one dodgy, overpriced signing! i'd give you 8th... 6) Predictions for the game? again, biased, but im going with 1-3 win to us, since our away form last year was so good. best of luck to ya!

gone a little heavier today because of work, so far: Lamb of God - Ashes of the Wake DreamTheater - Train of Thought next up: Deftones - Around the Fur

ive put him on the right for 2 reasons; 1. he will be able to cut inside and shoot with his prefered foot and 2. i dont want to split up Baines and Pienaar, since theyve been our main threat for a while and work very well together. But i would like to see Pienaar and Billy to switch eventually. after Billy and Johnny have settled in the club, it would nice to have the wingers on their preferred sides and therefore, prefered foot...

i really dont see what the big problem with it is. it would be very difficult to implement but not too difficult to maintain. could also go hand in hand with the plan to limit clubs to spending within their means. off the top of my head (ie, idealworld), a basic "low" wage should be set for each league and players would earn their money in more lucrative bonuses: goals, assists, clean sheets etc and deductions for yellow/red cards etc. i like idealworld. its nice and fair here...

i only saw 2 replays of the incident and didnt notice him touching the ball after the keeper, so i youtubed it and, ok your right. My point with them being nearly identical was that they both went down knowing they werent going to be able to do anything with the ball. Rooney is nearly on his knees as the keeper touches him! and from what you describe, this is a worse offence than Eduardo's, Rooney is actively seeking a penalty and whats even worse, he looks round to argue for the penalty. granted, in the Eduardo replays i cant see how he reacts other than jogging back with the ball in his arms. as for a decent player not accepting it, ive never seen any professional stop and turn down a pen. only sportsmanship ive seen on the pitch was DiCanio catching the ball in our area from his corner because something had happened. but, that is a 1 in a million event...

depends on his personal terms, but looks like he could be a useful addition to the squad. saying that, i never trust the youtube videos; they can make anyone look handy! look up James McFadden, looks like a world beater...

Romey has hit the nail on the head here, this season he has been dreadful, with the exception of his sub performance. I think he is a cracking player when he is fit and in form, and have defended him to the hilt with the arguements youve made (with the additional one that he is just starting his 2EPL season). simple fact is though, he hasnt been very good so far. whether he is just hitting a bad patch of form or not fully recovered from his virus is irrelevent when choosing a team. so far he hasnt been good enough but im sure he will force his way back in soon...

Didnt we host the Euros in 96 and get to the semis? i wouldnt mind not having to qualify to be honest, less chance of players getting injured...

i know what you mean mate, but for me another Carsley is very much needed. He broke up so many attacks and was a huge help to the defence. But i think he will go the Gerrard route, cant see him being as 'firm' as Cars was! Plus, the way he can strike the ball, he could be a match winner...

that could be it then. my financial knowledge is hardly wonderful...

2-0, Skippy and Johnny. right, im going to break the mould here with what i would like to see, seeing as most of the probables are already posted. ..........Howard Heitinga...Distin....Baines .........Neville Billy.....Rodwell...Pienaar .........Cahill ......Saha......Jo 3-5-2. Maybe swap Rodwell for Felli or Osman (Ossie is much better in the centre, he is no winger!). Subs as usual...

of course not! merely saying Jack could be a strong defensive power (like Cars) or someone who picks the ball up deep drives it forward (Gerrard). I would be happy if he followed either path!

youre going to give the board ideas! 10quid a brick/plank! we could make a small fortune!

agreed, he should take a Carsley/Gerrard role in my opinion...

SteveO: how? we have increased the debt every year for the last few years. this year might be the first in a while we havent. working towards mate, didnt mean we were actually getting anywhere with it! i assumed (i know, i know - big mistake) that record profits would start the curve of debts coming back down...

i was going to leave this alone because ive argued this over the years. just nice to see that again im not alone. maybe this forum will save my faith in evertonians and general sanity!

ok, thats pretty much what i was going for. But if Lescott was worth 24Mill then we shouldnt be accepting less than 30+ as previously mentioned, and therefore a replacement would be easier to find. Finding someone who turns out to be as loyal and hard working is another question....

apologies, youve been misquoted there. but arent nearly all clubs selling clubs? as for the topic, i agree with ya, and if anyone can help him improve whilst keeping his feet on the ground at the same time, its Moyes. I would love Rodwell to be the blue Gerrard. Im very excited to see him play with a fit (and in form) Arteta...

god this is different to the blue room! i wouldve been torn a new one! not used to constructive debate! now back to it. we werent just lucky, we were capable and people who needed to step up stepped up (Baines, Pienaar, Cahill...). I agree completely that we are a better team with him, if he is in form. the beginning of last season he wasnt up to scratch and it took him a few weeks. once he is on form, he is formidable. but still replaceable. we signed him for what, 2.5 mill if i remember correctly? from a business point of view, to sell him for 10 times that is incredebly tempting, and there are people who are younger than him that would cost less. for 30 mill, for example, we could have Defour/Fernandes and Mouhinto, 2 quality players for 1. i want to see him stay, i want to see him in form. we couldve kept up with Arsenal last year with his help, as many people have claimed. he can be that good. but there could be a life without him, and for the right price, we could even improve...

Again, expecting backlash, but Arteta is replaceable. we played half a season without him and finished 5th and a Cup final. We are missing him, there is no doubt, but there are replacements about and good ones too for 20 mill. all players are replaceable...

aaaaaaaah! ok! sorry. problem sorted. sorry for the hassle!

just seen a few names i recognised from the BlueRoom. Anyone else nicely settled here now? makes a change from the abuse hurling doesnt it!

Jeffers is 29?! And played for England?! Good lord, where have the years gone...

Im not going to argue with this BK stuff and a selling club. Personally i think its all nonsense and the man does everything he can for Everton. That may not be much but at he does what he can. its a fact of football that players move from one club to the next and it was a fantastic bit of business from BK, DM and the board to get 3 times the worth of Lescott in a deal, of which nearly all went back into the squad, which is now stronger for it. Also, Citeh wouldve bid for Jags too if he was fit, who in my opinion is a much better player than JL, defence is not one of their strongest areas. Arteta, in the form he was in before his injury, would grace any teams midfield, no matter how full. I wouldnt be suprised if DM asked specifically for a clause in his contract that stipulated that he soley was in charge of transfer dealsins, which is why is so adament. If BK was going to sell him behind his back, which i doubt, Moyes wouldve resigned.