James Rodríguez

[AlbanyNYToffee]

5 hours ago, RuffRob said:

It would be nice to at least see him at his majestic best over a season - I am sure the crowd would make him feel so loved - which I think he would feed off. I would be great if he made a good go of it this season.

Benitez might have no other option other than to get a system that will accommodate him. there where plenty of world class player at Madrid he could use instead of James - no so here. 

Been thinking about that last point a lot. Well said. Rafa may not have liked him when he was surrounded by class at Madrid but he’d have to be a blind squirrel to not see the gulf in class between him and any of other midfield options. Here’s to hoping he stays so Goodison can give him the love he deserves. 

[StevO]

Played in the middle last night, in a 4231.  Wasn’t much of a game to be fair, but it’s still nice seeing him in an Everton shirt. 

[Btay]

16 hours ago, StevO said:

Played in the middle last night, in a 4231.  Wasn’t much of a game to be fair, but it’s still nice seeing him in an Everton shirt. 

Think that’s his best position for us. Liverpool away point in case - he is on another level for vision/ability when on the ball and we need him on it in those areas as much as possible. Allan & Doucoure behind him ( possible Gbamin ) provide the steel. Pace either side of him in Richy & Townsend.

[MC11]

I’d like to think we will keep him at least for the final year of his contract. Purely based on the glimpses of quality he brings. It’s that one through ball or bit of magic that can unlock the top teams. 
 

Having watched his most recent performances though,you can see he’s clearly not fit. I don’t think it’s match fitness either he’s just not very mobile. Clearly his body is coming to the end of performing at elite level. 

[chicagoblue]

21 hours ago, MC11 said:

I’d like to think we will keep him at least for the final year of his contract. Purely based on the glimpses of quality he brings. It’s that one through ball or bit of magic that can unlock the top teams. 
 

Having watched his most recent performances though,you can see he’s clearly not fit. I don’t think it’s match fitness either he’s just not very mobile. Clearly his body is coming to the end of performing at elite level. 

Other way around for me.  We can't afford to carry him against the good teams.  But against teams who are sitting in a low block where we have the possession he might be able to pick the pass.

[Palfy]

21 minutes ago, chicagoblue said:

Other way around for me.  We can't afford to carry him against the good teams.  But against teams who are sitting in a low block where we have the possession he might be able to pick the pass.

Last season our worst games where against the team’s in the lower block, not all his fault that’s for sure but against the lesser team’s he struggled to raise his game. I see him as someone who has a personal fortune of 86 million dropped by his country and little heart to put the work in, just hope he doesn’t stay here for another season fleecing us for 140k a week. 

[Gwlad]

Unfortunately now he's proved he is a luxury which we probably can't afford. We got a buzz out of having him here as we did with Ancelotti but I think the bubble has burst. Move on.

[StevO]

After some of the shit players we’ve seen for Everton over the last three decades, the young stars who never made it (or did make it and leave), the strikers who ran the channels not scoring goals, the big names who were on the last legs, the players who kept us in the league by the skin of their teeth, and people want rid of James. 
We have literally one of the biggest names in world football, bringing the club to the attention of people that wouldn’t have given two shits who Everton were before he arrived. And he's still at his peak, he's only just turned 30 (before anyone starts with his injuries he’s always had these issues they won’t change), he’s never been a player with pace so won’t be losing it. 
Did anyone who wants rid of him actually watch him play for us last season? He did played some unbelievable football. The only issue is he didn’t play more, so why have him play even less by letting him leave. We can’t buy another player who has that level of ability right now. We got him in a perfect storm, so make the most of it. He is the most talented player we have had in our team since Rooney was a teenager. 
If he leaves before I get to see him in the flesh at Goodison Park I’ll be absolutely gutted. 
We should be enjoying seeing such a talent in a blue shirt and enjoy it while we can.  

[StevO]

On 28/07/2021 at 22:26, MC11 said:

I’d like to think we will keep him at least for the final year of his contract. Purely based on the glimpses of quality he brings. It’s that one through ball or bit of magic that can unlock the top teams. 
 

Having watched his most recent performances though,you can see he’s clearly not fit. I don’t think it’s match fitness either he’s just not very mobile. Clearly his body is coming to the end of performing at elite level. 

I agree with the first paragraph, disagree with the second. 

[duncanmckenzieismagic]

http://sportwitness.co.uk/claim-rafa-benitez-pushing-player-everton-hed-love-toffees-manager-ideas/

[Bill]

11 hours ago, StevO said:

Did anyone who wants rid of him actually watch him play for us last season? He did played some unbelievable football. The only issue is he didn’t play more, so why have him play even less by letting him leave. We can’t buy another player who has that level of ability right now. We got him in a perfect storm, so make the most of it. He is the most talented player we have had in our team since Rooney was a teenager. 
If he leaves before I get to see him in the flesh at Goodison Park I’ll be absolutely gutted. 
We should be enjoying seeing such a talent in a blue shirt and enjoy it while we can.  

 

I know you are an ardent follower of him Steve and admire him quite a lot but I think you exaggerate just how good he is.  He looked good last season because he was surrounded by some less than average players, yeah he played a few good passes and scored a couple of goa!s, but tends to lose possession on a regular basis.

So nothing to go overboard about.  A decent player and I would like to see him stay, but he's nothing exceptional.

[StevO]

33 minutes ago, Bill said:

I know you are an ardent follower of him Steve and admire him quite a lot but I think you exaggerate just how good he is.  He looked good last season because he was surrounded by some less than average players, yeah he played a few good passes and scored a couple of goa!s, but tends to lose possession on a regular basis.

So nothing to go overboard about.  A decent player and I would like to see him stay, but he's nothing exceptional.

I’m an admirer of him because he is that exceptional a talent. If you saw him play last season and didn’t see someone with a level of creativity that we’ve not had for a long time then maybe your eye test is due

To hear anyone think he isn’t an exceptional footballer is mind blowing to me. We must like different things. 
 

He looked good last season when he had Digne, Richarlison and DCL on form. When we started to miss these players his impact decreased. A player who can pick a pass like he can will shine when he has runners. 
Im hoping Benitez has seen this and that’s why he went straight in for wingers to give him those runners. 

[Bill]

Don't think Benitez thinks a lot of him, i think he might be on his way, shame really but lack of fight and effort will not do it for Benitez. 

[StevO]

1 hour ago, Bill said:

Don't think Benitez thinks a lot of him, i think he might be on his way, shame really but lack of fight and effort will not do it for Benitez. 

Keeps picking him. Not sure where this idea of lack of fight or effort comes from. He isn’t going to be tracking back all the time, we don’t need to be playing with ten men behind the ball. 

[SpartyBlue]

9 minutes ago, StevO said:

Keeps picking him. Not sure where this idea of lack of fight or effort comes from. He isn’t going to be tracking back all the time, we don’t need to be playing with ten men behind the ball. 

Keeps picking him? In preseason? All of our first team players get a run-out to work on their fitness etc.. 

You can call it a lack of effort or just focusing on one end of the pitch but it has the same effect. Offensively he’s our most creative player by a wide margin and distributes the ball well. On the other side of the coin, he does give the ball away too easily at times (and in our own half) and he provides almost no effort defensively. His normal procedure is to wave a leg and hope it disrupts you. If it doesn’t then he’s over it. It’s a tough puzzle for Rafa if he stays as his ability with the ball when we are in attack is much needed given our struggles to break teams down but he’s an absolute liability defensively and fragile to boot. 

[pete0]

Surely they would have questioned Benetiz on James and what he wants to do with him. No way he gets the job if he hasn't sold them how he's gonna get the best out of our best player. 

Fuck off that James, and get me Townsend and Gray. Agent Rafa

[StevO]

42 minutes ago, pete0 said:

Surely they would have questioned Benetiz on James and what he wants to do with him. No way he gets the job if he hasn't sold them how he's gonna get the best out of our best player. 

Fuck off that James, and get me Townsend and Gray. Agent Rafa

We’ll be seeing the same people who want rid of James moaning about our lack of creativity a few months after he’s sold. At least the new lads work hard though. 

[Haiku]

He might not be sold, but his contract ends next summer and he'll leave on a free.

[MikeO]

23 minutes ago, Haiku said:

He might not be sold, but his contract ends next summer and he'll leave on a free.

We have an option for 22/23.

[Palfy]

Whether this is true one can only speculate, but the story circulating is that Benitez has already told him to go he’s not in his plans, and Seville are looking likely to go for him Madrid said they had no interest to take him back.  

[msloan78]

I'd be very disappointed if he was binbagged. Our best and most high profile player.  If he was, my feeling would be that Benitez would probably have made the decision really early doors, given their history.

[Aidan]

Overall he's our best player, hands down.

The one thing he isn't though is a runner and the team are required to work harder to accommodate for that, which effects the overall balance of the team. I can see why Rafa might want to rid him, although I don't think the rumours are true.  I'd really like to see how he operates behind the striker in a 4231.

[markjazzbassist]

if benitez bins him, he might as well bin himself.  this team has 0 creativity without James or Gylfi (out for the forseeable future).  it will be back to fat sam days praying for a draw.

[SpartyBlue]

57 minutes ago, Aidan said:

Overall he's our best player, hands down.

The one thing he isn't though is a runner and the team are required to work harder to accommodate for that, which effects the overall balance of the team. I can see why Rafa might want to rid him, although I don't think the rumours are true.  I'd really like to see how he operates behind the striker in a 4231.

I’m not sure if I agree he’s our best player overall. We need the creativity for sure but he’s our worst defensive player every time he’s on the pitch, by a mile. Plus he’s fragile so the odds of getting 30+ games from him are minuscule. I think a guy like Richie is better once you consider his overall game and you can make a case for a couple others. Important for us for sure but his deficiencies, like his left foot , stand out 

[Romey 1878]

We don't deserve nice things when there are complaints that our creative outlet is our worst defensive player.

[Aidan]

8 minutes ago, SpartyBlue said:

I’m not sure if I agree he’s our best player overall. We need the creativity for sure but he’s our worst defensive player every time he’s on the pitch, by a mile. Plus he’s fragile so the odds of getting 30+ games from him are minuscule. I think a guy like Richie is better once you consider his overall game and you can make a case for a couple others. Important for us for sure but his deficiencies, like his left foot , stand out 

I feel he is the only player capable of having a good enough season to get us into Europe (capable as in if he stays fit) although I do understand your point on his fragility. If he could play 38 games a season he probably wouldn't be here would he?

[SpartyBlue]

12 minutes ago, Aidan said:

I feel he is the only player capable of having a good enough season to get us into Europe (capable as in if he stays fit) although I do understand your point on his fragility. If he could play 38 games a season he probably wouldn't be here would he?

True enough. Or if he had the energy to contribute defensively. He’s basically a Ferrari with mechanical issues. If you’re uber wealthy you might not be bothered but for most everyone else IT’S STILL A FERRARI!

[SpartyBlue]

25 minutes ago, Romey 1878 said:

We don't deserve nice things when there are complaints that our creative outlet is our worst defensive player.

I think you have to always take the full picture. Even for someone whose job is at the other end he does cost us some with the nonexistent defensive effort. If you like I’ll also include giving the ball away in our own half trying to be tricky when it’s not called for. This all sounds like I hate him as a player, I don’t and I’d take him again in a heartbeat, but I get why he couldn’t get on the field for Real Madrid. 

[Bill]

Last season Holgate was getting slaughtered for  ambling about and not looking bothered ....... Mention the same about James and there's uproar in defence of him.  Haven't seen him make one tackle all the time he's been here, he trots toward the attacker and waves his foot at him and that's it. He never chases back and if Richie was to do that he would get slaughtered as well.

You can't have a separate rule for James when he is as bad as others.

 

[Romey 1878]

3 minutes ago, SpartyBlue said:

I think you have to always take the full picture. Even for someone whose job is at the other end he does cost us some with the nonexistent defensive effort. If you like I’ll also include giving the ball away in our own half trying to be tricky when it’s not called for. This all sounds like I hate him as a player, I don’t and I’d take him again in a heartbeat, but I get why he couldn’t get on the field for Real Madrid. 

You're just ruining my Friday night now, Sparty, stop it .

1 minute ago, Bill said:

Last season Holgate was getting slaughtered for  ambling about and not looking bothered ....... Mention the same about James and there's uproar in defence of him.  Haven't seen him make one tackle all the time he's been here, he trots toward the attacker and waves his foot at him and that's it. Never chases back and if Richie was to do that  he would be slaughtered as well.

Can't have a separate rule for James when he is as bad as others.

 

This isn't a James thing, this is a let our attacking players attack thing. I was the same with Deulofeu when our fans complained that he didn't race back to the edge of his own penalty area to defend with the other 10 players we already had there. I didn't give a shiny shite because his job was at the other end of the pitch.

If we can't afford to have one player with his main job being to make things happen and let him off with doing as much defensively, then that speaks volumes about how shit our actual defensive players are or maybe how low opinions of them are.