BlueBlood81

Congratulations Pete!
 
Enjoy the sleepless nights my friend

Me either as it stands, I'm just hoping Bob's got something up his sleeve and all the talk of no more business being done is a smoke screen.
 
(He said we wouldn't be getting McGeady until the summer and he then joined a few days later.)

Wow, what an amazing listen.
 
One of the things that really stuck with me was when he talked about Barkley playing like he was afraid to make a mistake at the beginning of the year, and how he tried to get him out of that mindset.
 
I've always believed, in sports and in life, that fortune generally favors the bold, and that's as true in the BPL as anywhere else. Too many coaches, especially coaches of second and third-tier teams, have a "damage limitation" mentality, where they don't always make the smartest substitutions or tactical decisions because they're too concerned with preserving their jobs and reputations to take a gamble that might backfire and leave them open to criticism or second-guessing. They'd rather settle for a draw or a 1-0 loss than go chasing a win and possibly end up losing 3-0 or 4-0. I know what some of you are thinking, but I'm not singling out any particular manager when I say that simply because 90% of them are guilty of that negative/conservative strategizing, regardless of whether they're managing in the BPL or Serie B or some part-time league in Outer Mongolia. How often have we complained this year about teams like Cardiff and Palace packing ten behind the ball against us and spending more energy frustrating our attack than trying to score? I'm extremely thankful that Martinez is in the other 10%, because that 10% are the managers who are winning games and winning trophies while their peers are too busy trying not to get fired.
 
Circling my point back to Barkley though, players aren't any more fond of losing their jobs than managers are, and a player who gets the message from past experience that he has to play safe and avoid mistakes if he wants to stay in the starting lineup is a player who's hamstrung; he starts thinking too much instead of being able to just play his natural game. By coaching to win, Martinez gives Ross and the other players the freedom to play to win, and not be afraid of making an occasional mistake. For instance, even after their farcical two-man comedy act against Sunderland, Howard and Osman were both back on the pitch the next time they were eligible to play. And that's what we're seeing with Ross - someone who has the backing of his manager and the confidence to try different things on the pitch, and as a result of stretching himself like that, he is finding out just how good he can be at this level, which is only going to make him even more confident.

I wish this rumour would go away....

It does indeed, I stand corrected.
 
I wouldn't want him for £10mil either way, could be better spent elsewhere imo.

Del in for Mirallas against Crystal Palace next week for me. Good game to give the lad a start, while also giving Mirallas a well earned boot up the arse.

I thought we started the game very well and were dominating the game. We had control of the ball, passed it accurately and with purpose. Everyone was wanting the ball and each attack was a team effort. Hull were chasing shadows and I was thinking that if we could break them down that we'd have a comfortable win. We deservedly took the lead through Mirallas, albeit it was a lucky goal really. But we don't get the luck going our way all that often so I'm more than willing to take it when it comes our way. After we took the lead, though, our levels dramatically dropped and Hull started to get a foothold in the game and their confidence grew and it showed in their play. They saw more of the ball which in turn meant that they could be more of a threat. They got back in the game in more than just possession and were on level terms before half-time. I thought Baines defended the situation very poorly as he was beaten far too easily to allow the ball to be played into the box for Sagbo to smash in.
 
Second half we saw a lot of the ball but I didn't think we did very much with it at all. We struggled to impose ourselves due to a lack of intensity and a lack of movement from players off the ball. Everything was played at a pedestrian pace and I didn't think we'd manage to find that second goal. Bringing on Pienaar changed that. He brought a freshness and directness to our play. Ossie's been a good servant but he's a pointless wide man in the modern age and Pienaar gave us what we needed out there. He scored with his very first touch after a good move involving another 4 players. What a cool finish it was too.
 
It was good that we showed that we can grind out a result under Martinez even when we're not at our best. And it's also a positive that even below par we restricted Hull and they weren't really a threat from open play. However, the negatives were there too. Our intensity levels were simply not good enough. Our movement was lacking for the most part. And the biggest concern was our defending, again. Especially from set-pieces. It was scary just how many free headers they had throughout the game. Every time they put the ball in the box I wanted to hide behind my hands. Better, more clinical sides, will punish us badly if we allow them that much space. Our centre-backs had a bit of a shitty game all round really and if they can't get used to being asked to play it out from the back pretty quickly they'll more than likely find themselves replaced.
 
 
Howard - Couldn't do a thing about their equaliser and wasn't really called upon to do anything else. Played a part in our winning goal as well. So a fairly good afternoon for Tim.
 
 
Baines - Offered very little resistance for their equaliser but was pretty good going forward and was involved in the majority of our attacks.
 
Distin & Jagielka - I'm putting them together because they were a joint nightmare yesterday. The pair of them defended set-pieces terribly and it's a wonder we didn't concede more than one because of that alone. Then you've got Jagielka thinking he's fucking Beckenbauer spraying long balls out from the back, except he failed to find a team mate every time and handed possession back to Hull. Distin looked like the ball at his feet was a totally alien concept to him; awkward does not do justice to how he looked in possession of the ball. Even though Jags is captain and Distin's pace at the back is valuable I think Martinez will have his eye out for replacements for the pair of them (Stones is probably one that's already here).
 
Coleman - A nothing game really tbh. Other than a couple of forages forward in the second half we didn't use him an awful lot in an attacking capacity and I don't remember him being called into action too much in defence.
 
 
Mirallas - A better performance from him than in recent games in that I actually realised he was playing and he influenced things (goal and an assist) but I still didn't think he was anywhere close to as good as we know he can be. He started the game looking very good and then got his goal. I thought that goal would give him a much needed confidence boost and he'd go on from there, but I didn't think that happened. Some improvement is better than nothing though.
 
Barry - I know he was lucky to be on the pitch but he was easily one of our best players and covered a phenomenal amount of ground throughout the game. He was everywhere. When Baines went forward he covered the left flank for him time after time. And he could see how uncomfortable our defenders were at playing the ball around at the back and seemed to make a conscious decision to drop very deep in the second half as much as possible so he could receive the ball from them. He also marshalled the space in front of the defence brilliantly too and was a big factor in why Hull weren't much of a threat from open play. Despite a couple of bad challenges he also put in some great challenges too to win the ball back. His partnership with McCarthy is blossoming and he looks like an astute signing. My MOTM.
 
McCarthy - I was so pleased with his performance yesterday and I hope it's gone some way to proving some of our fans wrong. His energy and willingness to put himself about by putting challenges in were invaluable to us. He and Barry were the reasons why Hull found it difficult to get at us from open play.
 
Osman - I didn't actually think he had a bad game per se, I just don't think he offers enough to play in that position. He doesn't have the strength to make up for his lack of pace to get past his man so he's always looking to lay the ball off for someone else to finish the job. His position should only be centrally but we have better options than him there too so hopefully now Pienaar's back it'll be the end of him as a starter.
 
 
Barkley - It wasn't a great performance from him but there were still some good things that he did, so I'm not going to get too downbeat about it because this is what you expect from a player making his way in the game; inconsistency. His passing wasn't as good as we've come to expect but at other times it was top notch. He showed the ability to go past players like they weren't there, other times he'd get caught in possession. He showed intelligence to be in the right place to get to Lukaku's knock down and then lay the ball off to Mirallas for our winner, but at other times showed poor decision making by shooting when in an impossible situation or passing when a shot really should have been taken. It'll all come together. All in good time.
 
 
Lukaku - Completely dominated by the Hull defence. He was locked in Davies' back pocket from start to finish and didn't get a sniff. What was disappointing though was that he just seemed to accept it and didn't try to do anything to combat the situation i.e. change his movement. In fact, his movement throughout the game was abysmal and he seemed disinterested.

I love Tony, and Ossie for that matter. Dont want them in the first 11 anymore but definitely want them around the club.
 
They are a lesson to youngsters about what you can achieve with application.

Our last 6 visits to Man City have produced 4 wins, 1 draw, and 1 loss.
 
Our last 12 matches have resulted in 9 wins, 1 draw, and 2 losses.
 
I therefore conclude that if City play well, they might just sneak a draw, and it's time to remember how good we are and kick their arses yet again.

Lukaku. Purely for not just the goal, but the way he carried on playing even after going unconscious.

As big of a supporter of Jelavic as I've been, he has been given countless opportunities of "faith". While I understand our style with RM is different than that of Moyes, I think Jela's moment has passed. He just hasn't shown anything this season that justifies him keeping his place.

Looking forward to read Dalziels summary of other peoples posts.

I think Baines is in a tough position - he knows that the fans are well aware that the only way he will be going is if he refuses a new contract and asks for the move in January. He is unlikely going to want to run the risk of upsetting the fans as he is a rare breed of footballer.
 
In all seriousness by January the whole situation could have an entirely different perspective. United could be out of the running for the league, out the champs league and moyes fighting for his job. United have 3 months of football with a squad that for me is maybe 4th or 5th best after - Man City, Chelsea, Spurs, and maybe on a par with Arsenal. Moyes will not utilise the creative talents of that side - as we have seen with our own club. Would Baines seriously want to go to a club in that state?
 
I honestly think united are in for a tough run, clubs cans smell blood - a little bit when Tiger Woods lost his air of invincibility, Fergies gone and the new boy appears out of his depth...
 
Back to Baines and Everton, we have a nice looking "footballing" team now. Martinez has done great business, Barry and McCarthy are elite professionals, Lukaku is a real goal threat and a prescence with something to prove. The squad should be settled and Baines may want to stay a part of something big.

DK has a great memory but it's not that good dammit :shaking fist:!

Phil Neville proved me wrong, Darron Gibson Proved me wrong, and now Gareth Barry will prove me wrong.
 
Oh long may I continue to be wrong on Everton signings.

Gareth Barry, Instant Hero!

I fucking loved it!

Yea I thought that as soon as I read it back.
 
I sincerely hope he Never rams anything down my throat lol

Will Ferrel - Ron Burgundy
 
Paul Hogan - Michael.J."Crocodile" Dundee
 
Al Pacino - Tony Montana

Ffs people. You know nothing about this person. Could be dyslexic for all you know. Could have been building up enough courage for days, weeks, months or even years to be able to post on here. A forum for the team he clearly loves. Clearly goes to games on a regular basis.
 
This board is full of idiots at times. You can all read what he/she is saying, discuss the topic instead of slating the writing.

I only watch internationals if Everton lads are involved to be honest except the actual tournaments.
 
Wales were just starting to look half tidy, when we had the Gary Speed tragedy.
 
All I want these days is For Jags, Bainesy and now Ross to have a good game, and much more importantly not to get injured.
 
Ditto Mirallas, Coleman etc.
 
Don't know how you all feel but compared to Everton it matters little to me.

I personally think BK has played a blinder this summer
 
Appointing Martinez as manager, getting £6M for Vic and £27.5M for Felli , telling Man Utd to do one over Baines, bringing in the likes of Roubles, Del Boy, McArthy and Lukaku and above all else Im fairly sure in my drunken haze that even Haf complimented him on a couple of occasions tonight!

Sad to see big Vic go in a way. Always like to see academy graduates progress.
 
But £6m...............
 
:jump for joy: ........... Dare I say well done the board?

Or not! Just tried to like this and it wouldn't let me. Fucker.

Likes are back :jump for joy: .