Arouna Kone

[Btay]

Despite not scoring (what a save from Guzan!) yesterday I thought he had a brilliant game and was very influential. I mean, Barkley owes him a a drink of his choice for the graft and never give up attitude he showed when Barkley got his second. He chased all over the pitch and held the ball up so well.

 

Because he put so much into this game it wouldn't surprise me if he had a bit of a stinker against Bournemouth and I'd actually be tempted to start him from the bench for that game. He's a player that Martinez needs to manage carefully.

Although I haven't seen the game, from what I've heard I think we should look to manage his time. We've got him firing now and if we can get 25-30 good games out of him a season that should be out aim.

[Hafnia]

Although I haven't seen the game, from what I've heard I think we should look to manage his time. We've got him firing now and if we can get 25-30 good games out of him a season that should be out aim.

I said a while back he will be walking a very fine line with his knee. If he's had cartilage removed then he will likely get severe inflammation after playing. He probably has very limited training and sits on a bike to keep in shape.

 

He's a fookin credit to his profession - overcoming that injury and shattered confidence. Only last week I watched that waste of talent David Bentley talk about retirement at 29 due to "falling out of love with the game" - quite convenient at the end of his , £50k a week five year deal.

[Finn balor]

I'm made up for kone. He is a credit to himself. If he can weigh in with 10+ goals we are in business

[Guest rusty747]

Kone is rapidly becoming an adult ntegral part of our best starting eleven. If he feels good hen keep playing him. If he does need a break then I am not in favour of bringing him on from the bench. I think it is better from a psycholigical point of view to start him, but make him aware that he will be subbed at half time or 60 minute mark to keep him fresh as he is so important to us.

 

In other words, reinforce to him that he is in our first eleven!

[Matt]

So pleased he has proved me right.

Not just because it's good to be right, but he had improved us as a team and certainly led by example in showing Rom the elements of forward play that I have been frustrated with in the big Belgian.

If anyone remembers back to his season at Wigan he did a tremendous job. He allowed them to commit players forward as he would press when not on the ball and hold up play when he had it.

Very good player.

and me, and quite a few others. I stand by my criticism of him last season, he was shite, but so was the whole team aaaand he had to come back from injury. Was getting worried after the first 5-7 games this season that he was being played too much too soon but some decent man management from Martinez and the international breaks have really allowed him to get some rest in the meantime and steadily improve.

 

Didn't see much of him in the 20m highlights bar the goals, but made up to hear he's putting in more consistent performances and contributing, rather than meandering around and giving the ball away all the time

[Romey 1878]

http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/arouna-kones-influence-romelu-lukaku-10576197

 

Most definitely, he's helped Rom massively. Martinez really needs to be careful with him and not get carried away with the influence he's had and use him right. Christmas is going to be hectic and it'll say a lot about Martinez the way he uses Kone. The last thing we want to do is run him into the ground over this period and he picks up a long-term injury.

[Lowensda]

http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/arouna-kones-influence-romelu-lukaku-10576197

 

Most definitely, he's helped Rom massively. Martinez really needs to be careful with him and not get carried away with the influence he's had and use him right. Christmas is going to be hectic and it'll say a lot about Martinez the way he uses Kone. The last thing we want to do is run him into the ground over this period and he picks up a long-term injury.

 

Long term, we need to find a younger Kone. A partner than Rom can thrive off....

[Romey 1878]

If kone doesn't score goals on a regular basis I would replace him in the summer.

He probably needs replacing in the summer regardless of that tbh.

[Hafnia]

 

I actually think he is just a goal and a run of games away from being in a good place. After a decent game against newcastle he was dropped, the same in europa, I think he needs counselling along with Robles.

 

 

 

I think it will work well in the sense of, "This is what you are meant to be doing - now get making runs!!" - it will also work in the sense of that the players can hit Kone and know it will stick - too often we see the ball get sent to Lukaku and players are tentive to push forward in case he loses it.

 

Lukaku can make runs off Kone - midfielders and full backs can advance knowing that the ball will be retained. In short Kone does the things that Lukaku can't.

 

I knew Kone was strong - but he looked extremely strong last night - we miss that up front.

 

 

It's clear as day that Roberto knows what the lad can bring and even with the emergence of Naismith and addition of Lukaku and Eto since we signed him RM is keen to get him involved.

 

As I say, I watched him a fair few times for Wigan, and without being a fox in the box - he is a very effective forward in terms of holding up the ball, and using his athleticism. He is the type of player who will supplement Eto and Lukaku's goalscoring instincts.

 

I do fear that this injury will have taken a yard of pace, but fingers crossed he can make a decent contribution for us. At least just to patch him up and sell him on for a few million if needs be.

 

 

 

I'm finding this a strange thread I really am.

 

Anichebe wanted first team football, he wasn't good enough for this and used to sulk and moan even when he had been given a chance. The number of times I seen the likes of Baines flip at him because of his brainless antics said it all.

 

Do I think he would score as many as Kone? No.

 

Do I think he offers the same qualities to the team as Kone? No

 

Is there anything concrete to prove this? Not really, just the fact that Kone scored 11 goals in a relegated team and brought the likes of Maloney into an advanced position by utilising clever and strong hold up play as a lone striker. A very unselfish team player who Martinez rates for his link up play.

 

I look forward to seeing him in the squad and giving us options.

 

The only resevation I had was his injury... £6m looks a bargain for what he has given this team.

[Lowensda]

 

The only resevation I had was his injury... £6m looks a bargain for what he has given this team.

 

 

 

 

1 out of 3 ain't bad fella!

Edited December 10, 2015 by Lowensda

[Hafnia]

 

 

 

 

1 out of 3 ain't bad fella!

 

I think Kone is an example of people making a judgement without ever having "watched" him. I only judge players I have watched - rightly or wrongly... i mean some people on this forum were moaning about £3m on stones...

[Lowensda]

 

I think Kone is an example of people making a judgement without ever having "watched" him. I only judge players I have watched - rightly or wrongly... i mean some people on this forum were moaning about £3m on stones...

 

To be fair, we couldn't ever watch McGeady because he never turned up. Lukaku has just proved that the faith we had in him, was right and he was always better than you made out. Difference being the team ARE playing better for him and it shows. You expected him to carry the other 10 players, which was unrealistic.

 

People moan about all sorts. Some just accept when they're wrong sooner than others

[Hafnia]

 

To be fair, we couldn't ever watch McGeady because he never turned up. Lukaku has just proved that the faith we had in him, was right and he was always better than you made out. Difference being the team ARE playing better for him and it shows. You expected him to carry the other 10 players, which was unrealistic.

 

People moan about all sorts. Some just accept when they're wrong sooner than others

 

No - I just didn't close my eye and put my fingers in my ears and try to block out and words that may have included:-

 

lazy

touch of an elephant

cant jump

muscled off the ball by smaller players

 

Funny isn't it - he has "improved massively" in all those areas but for some reason the same people who agree that he has will somehow say he wasnt that bad "well which one is it?"

 

There is a big difference between wanting and hoping someone to do well and actually seeing them do well - unfortunately the first one tends to cloud your judgement.

 

"IF" - Lukaku was a player I had seen who demonstrated sound technical abilities, good use of his size, committed displays along with his goal scoring instincts then I would not have had the issues I had. The fact of the matter is that bar a few good games for us on loan he flattered to deceive and aside from his goasls he was a bit of a liability in terms of ball retention.

 

The team are playing better for him? - I guess when a team mate is blamed for passing a ball in the manner that he finds difficult to control and no one wants to blame the star striker then thats what you weill see. The reality is that he is better at receiving passes now - you could have been led to believe that passing a ball to him with his back to goal was against the rules "through balls only".

 

Stop blaming the team for Rom - a player who relies on service needs to be able to control the bloody thing. If anything its an insult to Rom, the reason he is better is because he has clearly worked hard improving in the areas he needed to. It took him long enough to realise that Gerry hits the ball across the 6 yard box.

 

Anyway - back to our £6m bargain - would you still have Vic back instead of him?

[Matt]

[Hafnia]

 

well - if someone is going to respond on a Kone thread using Lukaku to call me out then what do you expect?

[Matt]

 

well - if someone is going to respond on a Kone thread using Lukaku to call me out then what do you expect?

[Lowensda]

 

There is a big difference between wanting and hoping someone to do well and actually seeing them do well - unfortunately the first one tends to cloud your judgement.

 

My judgement? Like the other 98% of this forum and fan base? OK then.

 

Did I say I wanted Vic back?

 

A strikers main goal, is to score. At present Kone isn't scoring. On the grand scheme of things, he's an ineffective striker, NOT doing his primary role. If you don't think it is, we may as well stick him in net because apparently his hold-up play is that good (and he doesn't use his hands), imagine if he could

 

Do I think he's contributing elsewhere, yes, of course I do, i'm not AS blind as you make out I (and many others) am. Do I think he's good enough for Everton as a striker still? Honestly, no. He has his influences, all positive. Good lad.

 

You thought Lukaku was shite. Proved differently. He had it, didn't use it as effectively as you'd have liked (i.e. played GK, defense, midfield and attack) but he was scoring goals. Good goals. Pulled us out of the crapper a fair few times and you STILL lambasted him. So no, he wasn't always as bad as you felt but that doesn't mean everyone else was wrong (or "blind" as suggested).

You thought McGeady was class and he could offer something to the team. Definitely not. Hasn't. Will not. Will never. One good cross in two seasons IS NOT the sign of a good player. Bily did more in 3 games than McGeady ever has.

Finally after 2.5 years, Kone is proving to be some worth to the team and HOLY FUCK don't we all know about it because it's the only thing you've been close to being right on. Halle-fookin-lujah.

 

"IF" Kone hadn't have found some of the form we're seeing now, would you be bringing up your "got an eye for talent" previous posts? Probably not. Then you would have been 3 players down on your opinion. Luckily, you got 1 half right and we're all seeing the ego trip.

 

Stop it. You had your pat on the back for Kone. We love you, he's not the greatest player to have walked this earth and never will be. I'm happy for him.

Edited December 10, 2015 by Lowensda

[Hafnia]

 

My judgement? Like the other 98% of this forum and fan base? OK then.

 

Did I say I wanted Vic back?

 

A strikers main goal, is to score. At present Kone isn't scoring. On the grand scheme of things, he's an ineffective striker, NOT doing his primary role. If you don't think it is, we may as well stick him in net because apparently his hold-up play is that good (and he doesn't use his hands), imagine if he could

 

Do I think he's contributing elsewhere, yes, of course I do, i'm not AS blind as you make out I (and many others) am. Do I think he's good enough for Everton as a striker still? Honestly, no. He has his influences, all positive. Good lad.

 

You thought Lukaku was shite. Proved differently. He had it, didn't use it as effectively as you'd have liked (i.e. played GK, defense, midfield and attack) but he was scoring goals. Good goals. Pulled us out of the crapper a fair few times and you STILL lambasted him. So no, he wasn't always as bad as you felt but that doesn't mean everyone else was wrong (or "blind" as suggested).

You thought McGeady was class and he could offer something to the team. Definitely not. Hasn't. Will not. Will never. One good cross in two seasons IS NOT the sign of a good player. Bily did more in 3 games than McGeady ever has.

Finally after 2.5 years, Kone is proving to be some worth to the team and HOLY FUCK don't we all know about it because it's the only thing you've been close to being right on. Halle-fookin-lujah.

 

"IF" Kone hadn't have found some of the form we're seeing now, would you be bringing up your "got an eye for talent" previous posts? Probably not. Then you would have been 3 players down on your opinion. Luckily, you got 1 half right and we're all seeing the ego trip.

 

Stop it. You had your pat on the back for Kone. We love you, he's not the greatest player to have walked this earth and never will be. I'm happy for him.

 

Never said he was anything other than a good goalscorer with a poor touch - and with that in mind not a very good footballer. A player who could be a good impact sub for a man city bearing in mind how much he would cost.

 

Now bearing that in mind - do you still think a player with a bad touch, low work rate, not really up for the physical battle could do it for us??? I don't but lets all say yay because he was the lone forward who got to apply the finish so you can get excited.

 

I even stated that whilst he was a better goalscorer than someone like a welcbeck or even Boney - I would take their all round game because of its necessity to the team.

 

There really isn't any need to get all creative about what I said or didn't say - I'm not after your "know everything about a footballer playing in the Mozambique second division" title - so don't get precious because I got Kone right.

 

What I will say is that my opinions are based on judgement - my judgement is based on what I believe it is that a footballer needs to be competent at. If you disagree with my belief that a foward needs to have more than just an ability to find the net and be poor at the fundamentals then so be it - but dont try and generalise - there is plenty of context around my opinions, they are tangible.

 

Moreso - I actually did say "if he can improve his touch and work rate then he can be a very good player"... if you want to disagree with that then feel free to search.

Edited December 10, 2015 by Hafnia

[Matt]

must.... resist....

[markjazzbassist]

i'd rather a better striker and formation if we are going to use 2 strikers from now on, 352, 4132, 442, etc. Kone has shown he has value and talent and all the more reason to sell him in the summer if there is any interest in the slightest. injury prone and gassed after 60' he's not the kind of guy i want sticking around the club.

 

or we can find a left sided player who can do those things Kone does well to assist Rom but be an actual wing/left mid and do those duties as well. Cleverley might be that person, Pienaar sure was when he was fit.

[duncanmckenzieismagic]

 

No - I just didn't close my eye and put my fingers in my ears and try to block out and words that may have included:-

 

lazy

touch of an elephant

cant jump

muscled off the ball by smaller players

 

Funny isn't it - he has "improved massively" in all those areas but for some reason the same people who agree that he has will somehow say he wasnt that bad "well which one is it?"

 

There is a big difference between wanting and hoping someone to do well and actually seeing them do well - unfortunately the first one tends to cloud your judgement.

 

"IF" - Lukaku was a player I had seen who demonstrated sound technical abilities, good use of his size, committed displays along with his goal scoring instincts then I would not have had the issues I had. The fact of the matter is that bar a few good games for us on loan he flattered to deceive and aside from his goasls he was a bit of a liability in terms of ball retention.

 

The team are playing better for him? - I guess when a team mate is blamed for passing a ball in the manner that he finds difficult to control and no one wants to blame the star striker then thats what you weill see. The reality is that he is better at receiving passes now - you could have been led to believe that passing a ball to him with his back to goal was against the rules "through balls only".

 

Stop blaming the team for Rom - a player who relies on service needs to be able to control the bloody thing. If anything its an insult to Rom, the reason he is better is because he has clearly worked hard improving in the areas he needed to. It took him long enough to realise that Gerry hits the ball across the 6 yard box.

 

Anyway - back to our £6m bargain - would you still have Vic back instead of him?

 

 

Either way you got it badly wrong

 

Can you honestly not see that we are now playing more to his strengths, particularly with Delefeou in the side?

[Btay]

Think we are over reacting on Kone here.

 

I think he's excellent, albeit for 60, if we swapped him out for a pacey winger at that stage we could really hurt teams. At the moment even Lennon and Kev straight swap for both wingers.

[MC11]

Never said he was anything other than a good goalscorer with a poor touch - and with that in mind not a very good footballer. A player who could be a good impact sub for a man city bearing in mind how much he would cost.

 

Now bearing that in mind - do you still think a player with a bad touch, low work rate, not really up for the physical battle could do it for us??? I don't but lets all say yay because he was the lone forward who got to apply the finish so you can get excited.

 

I even stated that whilst he was a better goalscorer than someone like a welcbeck or even Boney - I would take their all round game because of its necessity to the team.

 

There really isn't any need to get all creative about what I said or didn't say - I'm not after your "know everything about a footballer playing in the Mozambique second division" title - so don't get precious because I got Kone right.

 

What I will say is that my opinions are based on judgement - my judgement is based on what I believe it is that a footballer needs to be competent at. If you disagree with my belief that a foward needs to have more than just an ability to find the net and be poor at the fundamentals then so be it - but dont try and generalise - there is plenty of context around my opinions, they are tangible.

 

Moreso - I actually did say "if he can improve his touch and work rate then he can be a very good player"... if you want to disagree with that then feel free to search.

 

Lol

Edited December 10, 2015 by MC11

[Matt]

Ok, I'm in. I am amazed that you are so defensive/insecure that you have to go back and quote yourself so you're "right". I was genuinely flabbergasted when I saw you quoting yourself.... It just comes across as "look at me! I was right! Ner ner ne-ner neeeeeeeeer", serious playground behaviour. Intended or not, that's how it's perceived. I'm 99% sure that's not what you intended, and I know that's going to come across as rude, so apologies there. Also, I got to use the word flabbergasted which is a word I hardly ever get to use, because of that post, so thank you for that Oh, I'm also going to come across quite hypocritical now, but I at least won't quote myself.

 

Back to the topic in hand. You've got Koné half right. And I'm not referring to the fact he's only been fit to play half his contract, that's not fair on him. I mean, despite being injured for the first half of his 3 yr deal, the first 6 months (12 games last season) after coming back, he was shit. Like, really shit. Nothing worked for him. Nada, nichts, rien, zilch. A large part of that could be put down to him coming back from a horrible injury and taking an age to get fit again, considering his age. Coincidentally though, the whole team was shit too, had no morale when he came back in and playing a completely different strategy to the first season, which will undoubtedly have had an impact on his performances too. Don't know if that's been mentioned by everyone anywhere else...

 

This season, he has been playing well for most of the 15 games he's played for us this season, not great, not shit - he's done well. I'm made up because 1) its good for the club, 2) I supported him from the beginning too, and it's nice to see faith repaid. I know I gave up on him around March, like I was starting to give up on just about everyone but he's come back well. Funnily enough, that seems to have happened to everyone and the whole team is playing well.... Hmmm... But it would be very unfair to put it on the rest of the team, right? It's only himself who is responsible for his performances.

 

Before I go any further, I want to point out the good he has done himself and Everton. That smile when he scored was priceless, he really does love it here and you can see it in most of his performances. He sometimes gets accused (by myself included here), of being lazy. Now, that's usually true in terms of tracking back, but a large part is not laziness, it's exhaustion. He's busting a gut trying to keep up with the likes of Barkley, Rom, Geri, Mirallas, McCarthy who are a lot younger and a hell of a lot faster, and he nearly kills himself keeping up. That's incredibly admirable and it's infectious. But, he can't do 90mins at that pace, and that's down to the manager to, well, manage him correctly. Oh, and he is very good at defending corners, which is fantastic because most of the team can't.

 

The big plus? As you, me and nearly everyone else has maintained, he has also brought the best out of Rom. Not by "giving him a kick up the backside", but by the manager actually getting him to support. I don't just mean the obvious stuff like the assists (that cross for the Southampton goal was sheer class), but I mean in terms of actually supporting our main striker, meaning Rom doesn't have to be main striker and link up man, meaning Rom wasn't spent after 60mins trying to do 2 jobs. Arouna has done that job, incidently the job Ross is supposed to do in that #10 role. He has been selfless and always made himself available to either take defenders away, link up with or feed off Rom and keeping the pace going. Rom, having this support, has in turn flourished. It's amazing, Rom gets some support in attack and suddenly he plays a lot better. Why don't people point these out damn it!

 

However... there are still some terrible moments of control, passing, not using his strength properly, effort/fatigue and especially his shooting. Half the time it's not an issue but the other half, it's nearly a 50/50 tossup when the ball goes near him as to whether he is going to control it perfectly then pass to the opposition or completely fuck up the control. I find it hilarious to be honest - he makes all the mistakes that Rom made last season, without the excuse of time to improve. Everything you used to seemingly pounce on with glee when Rom made any of those mistakes. Trouble is, Koné is a lot older and not really going to improve anymore. But, he's seemingly immune to the same level of unadulterated berating you aimed at the young striker with glee, who is some fantastically proving you wrong.

 

Now, in your defense, 2 of the things you maintained about Rom were right.

 

1. His touch needed to improve.

2. He needed to use his strength better.

 

It's a shame that those messages were so often lost in "he's shit, he's never going to learn, never going to be good enough, stop telling me he's 21, he's useless".

 

Now, not even I ever argued those 2 points. I argued that it was a lot better than you gave him credit for, and probably went OTT in defending him to counter your OTT 1 man smear campaign. Where you've been reeeeeeeally wrong, and I'm paraphrasing here, is the following:

 

1. His touch won't ever be good enough, you've either got it or not at this point, he's missed his development: Clearly not. Within the space of 6 months his control has improved dramatically and he is improving all the time.

2. He's can't jump, he'll never get there: Again, wrong. Last season, he had no one around him, he was constantly isolated. This season, he has actual people following him up, feeding off, giving him a target to knock it down to or flick it on to. Still a work in progress but again, this knee-jerk reaction from last season is being constantly debunked.

3. He's been sussed, he's coasting, can't be arsed, doesn't want to be here: Does that really need correcting?

4. He will never be a good enough footballer: Some of the media are starting to say he's nearly the complete forward; scores with his head, left and right boot, assists, holds up play, links up play. All the attributes of a world class striker in the making. Not there yet though, for me, but he's only 22

5. He'll never be worth the money: Not that the transfer fee had anything to do with him, but fuck me 24m looks cheap now, doesn't it?

 

The final thing I'll say.... If you applied half of your "balanced" criticism to any other players, specifically thoyou vouched for who under perform (McGeady, Kone, Barkley, Martinez, McCarthy) when they under perform like they all did last season, you'd actually be giving balanced criticism. That's not to say you don't give positive and negative criticism of each player, it's just that you give more negative criticism to one and then when the other does exactly the same thing, they're either excused or the whole point is ignored. Then if someone you've suggested as a game changer does something well, you wax lyrical whilst if Rom does it, it's part of his job. Not every time, like I said, but I'd say its 80% of the time like that. It also doesn't do any harm to hold your hands up every now and again and admit you're wrong, if anything it gives you more credibility and to be honest it's very rare that you would have to do it.

Edited December 10, 2015 by Matt

[Hafnia]

Ok, I'm in. I am amazed that you are so defensive/insecure that you have to go back and quote yourself so you're "right". I was genuinely flabbergasted when I saw you quoting yourself.... It just comes across as "look at me! I was right! Ner ner ne-ner neeeeeeeeer", serious playground behaviour. Intended or not, that's how it's perceived. I'm 99% sure that's not what you intended, and I know that's going to come across as rude, so apologies there. Also, I got to use the word flabbergasted which is a word I hardly ever get to use, because of that post, so thank you for that Oh, I'm also going to come across quite hypocritical now, but I at least won't quote myself.

 

Back to the topic in hand. You've got Koné half right. And I'm not referring to the fact he's only been fit to play half his contract, that's not fair on him. I mean, despite being injured for the first half of his 3 yr deal, the first 6 months (12 games last season) after coming back, he was shit. Like, really shit. Nothing worked for him. Nada, nichts, rien, zilch. A large part of that could be put down to him coming back from a horrible injury and taking an age to get fit again, considering his age. Coincidentally though, the whole team was shit too, had no morale when he came back in and playing a completely different strategy to the first season, which will undoubtedly have had an impact on his performances too. Don't know if that's been mentioned by everyone anywhere else...

 

This season, he has been playing well for most of the 15 games he's played for us this season, not great, not shit - he's done well. I'm made up because 1) its good for the club, 2) I supported him from the beginning too, and it's nice to see faith repaid. I know I gave up on him around March, like I was starting to give up on just about everyone but he's come back well. Funnily enough, that seems to have happened to everyone and the whole team is playing well.... Hmmm... But it would be very unfair to put it on the rest of the team, right? It's only himself who is responsible for his performances.

 

Before I go any further, I want to point out the good he has done himself and Everton. That smile when he scored was priceless, he really does love it here and you can see it in most of his performances. He sometimes gets accused (by myself included here), of being lazy. Now, that's usually true in terms of tracking back, but a large part is not laziness, it's exhaustion. He's busting a gut trying to keep up with the likes of Barkley, Rom, Geri, Mirallas, McCarthy who are a lot younger and a hell of a lot faster, and he nearly kills himself keeping up. That's incredibly admirable and it's infectious. But, he can't do 90mins at that pace, and that's down to the manager to, well, manage him correctly. Oh, and he is very good at defending corners, which is fantastic because most of the team can't.

 

The big plus? As you, me and nearly everyone else has maintained, he has also brought the best out of Rom. Not by "giving him a kick up the backside", but by the manager actually getting him to support. I don't just mean the obvious stuff like the assists (that cross for the Southampton goal was sheer class), but I mean in terms of actually supporting our main striker, meaning Rom doesn't have to be main striker and link up man, meaning Rom wasn't spent after 60mins trying to do 2 jobs. Arouna has done that job, incidently the job Ross is supposed to do in that #10 role. He has been selfless and always made himself available to either take defenders away, link up with or feed off Rom and keeping the pace going. Rom, having this support, has in turn flourished. It's amazing, Rom gets some support in attack and suddenly he plays a lot better. Why don't people point these out damn it!

 

However... there are still some terrible moments of control, passing, not using his strength properly, effort/fatigue and especially his shooting. Half the time it's not an issue but the other half, it's nearly a 50/50 tossup when the ball goes near him as to whether he is going to control it perfectly then pass to the opposition or completely fuck up the control. I find it hilarious to be honest - he makes all the mistakes that Rom made last season, without the excuse of time to improve. Everything you used to seemingly pounce on with glee when Rom made any of those mistakes. Trouble is, Koné is a lot older and not really going to improve anymore. But, he's seemingly immune to the same level of unadulterated berating you aimed at the young striker with glee, who is some fantastically proving you wrong.

 

Now, in your defense, 2 of the things you maintained about Rom were right.

 

1. His touch needed to improve.

2. He needed to use his strength better.

 

It's a shame that those messages were so often lost in "he's shit, he's never going to learn, never going to be good enough, stop telling me he's 21, he's useless".

 

Now, not even I ever argued those 2 points. I argued that it was a lot better than you gave him credit for, and probably went OTT in defending him to counter your OTT 1 man smear campaign. Where you've been reeeeeeeally wrong, and I'm paraphrasing here, is the following:

 

1. His touch won't ever be good enough, you've either got it or not at this point, he's missed his development: Clearly not. Within the space of 6 months his control has improved dramatically and he is improving all the time.

2. He's can't jump, he'll never get there: Again, wrong. Last season, he had no one around him, he was constantly isolated. This season, he has actual people following him up, feeding off, giving him a target to knock it down to or flick it on to. Still a work in progress but again, this knee-jerk reaction from last season is being constantly debunked.

3. He's been sussed, he's coasting, can't be arsed, doesn't want to be here: Does that really need correcting?

4. He will never be a good enough footballer: Some of the media are starting to say he's nearly the complete forward; scores with his head, left and right boot, assists, holds up play, links up play. All the attributes of a world class striker in the making. Not there yet though, for me, but he's only 22

5. He'll never be worth the money: Not that the transfer fee had anything to do with him, but fuck me 24m looks cheap now, doesn't it?

 

The final thing I'll say.... If you applied half of your "balanced" criticism to any other players, specifically thoyou vouched for who under perform (McGeady, Kone, Barkley, Martinez, McCarthy) when they under perform like they all did last season, you'd actually be giving balanced criticism. That's not to say you don't give positive and negative criticism of each player, it's just that you give more negative criticism to one and then when the other does exactly the same thing, they're either excused or the whole point is ignored. Then if someone you've suggested as a game changer does something well, you wax lyrical whilst if Rom does it, it's part of his job. Not every time, like I said, but I'd say its 80% of the time like that. It also doesn't do any harm to hold your hands up every now and again and admit you're wrong, if anything it gives you more credibility and to be honest it's very rare that you would have to do it.

I'll be honest Matt, I haven't read that yet but when I seen "insecure" and scrolled down and down and down even my phone started chuckling.

 

 

OK, read it now.

 

I'll be honest, I didn't think kone his touch would improve to the point it has - my first admission.

 

Secondly I will aleays have concerns over his application - if he wants it he is very effective. .. if he doesn't he isn't. He's got lazydeco games in him but give credit he is earning his crust this season.

 

Lastly, no one is exempt from criticism. It's Everton I support - everyone else is an employee. My gripe is the premature know it alls. Decent "unspectacular" lads get slated before they've had a chance, but give them a marquee super signing and it's like Christmas day before they kick a ball.

Edited December 10, 2015 by Hafnia

[Matt]

I'll be honest Matt, I haven't read that yet but when I seen "insecure" and scrolled down and down and down even my phone started chuckling.

just trying to work out why you needed to quote yourself, I'm bemused.

[Hafnia]

just trying to work out why you needed to quote yourself, I'm bemused.

Because all that time I was referring to what I had seen him give to Wigan. .. not that it mattered. In less than 90 minutes football many of our fans had written him off. He was treated disgusting. Yet Rom was allowed low effort days... all our other players fault of course.

[MikeO]

Think we are over reacting on Kone here.

 

I think he's excellent, albeit for 60, if we swapped him out for a pacey winger at that stage we could really hurt teams. At the moment even Lennon and Kev straight swap for both wingers.

 

Bloody hell, I didn't realise he was that old! There's hope for me yet .

[Matt]

Because all that time I was referring to what I had seen him give to Wigan. .. not that it mattered. In less than 90 minutes football many of our fans had written him off. He was treated disgusting. Yet Rom was allowed low effort days... all our other players fault of course.

He was by some, the same way you've treated Rom last season despite what most of us saw him give us in his first season and, to a lesser extent at WBA.

 

Nice diversion tactics though, masterful

[pete0]

 

Can you honestly not see that we are now playing more to his strengths, particularly with Delefeou in the side?

As above. But I'd add Lukaku is more consistant bossing his weight now which had helped as well.

 

Kone is great for getting Lukaku psyched up. But like Naismith after his hatrick, Kone is getting carried and costing the team points. Merit from one game shouldn't last this long. I'd only make Kone a starter when Lukaku's form dips.