Paddy: So, first things first: loads of negativity surrounding Everton at the moment, for one reason or another, yet I for one am baffled by the criticism heading Ross Barkley’s way. I know he didn’t have the best of first halves against Watford, but he was still a key factor in us getting back into the match. Is there a danger that a small group of fans are taking their frustrations out on him? And is it justified?
Rhodri: There is a bleak outlook around Goodison Park at the moment, fans are unhappy with the board, the fact we’ve been lackadaisical in the transfer market etc. but it shouldn’t be taken on out on Ross Barkley. There is a small minority of fans that have been booing him and have done so for a while.
Is it justified? No. Every player makes mistakes, misplaces passes, makes the wrong decision, and with Ross Barkley, a 21-year-old but in footballing terms a 19/20-year-old given that he suffered a bad broken leg, causing him to miss out a year of learning the game, you’re going to get errors.
Barkley was one of Everton’s better players, he misplaced simple passes but in the main he was creative, had a couple of chances and scored a great goal, which gave him an immediate confidence boost.
Booing Barkley, idiotic, as was booing the image of Kone when he was about to come on. The crowd pay their money and can have whatever opinion they like, but if you’re not trying to lift the team and not enjoying what you’re seeing to the point that you actually boo your own players, then stay at home.
Paddy: Totally agree there. I’m of the belief that he’s very much a confidence player, and last season’s stagnation clearly hit him hard. He was, in my opinion, played out of position for much of the campaign and is still fighting to return to the level he found during his breakthrough year of 2013/14.
Is the booing at all helpful? Not in the slightest. If anything, it’s counterproductive for players like Barkley and Kone. Goodison Park isn’t an easy play to play at the moment if you’re one of the Everton lads, and Jamie Carragher’s comments on last night’s Monday Night Football really hit a chord with me, if i’m honest.
There’s much discussion at the moment over Barkley’s best position. Is he a Number 10 or someone who should slot alongside a McCarthy type in central midfield? How would you like to see him used?
Rhodri: Over the two full seasons that Barkley has played for Everton, he’s registered one assist, which isn’t good enough if you’re playing behind the striker. In my opinion Ross is very effective when he picks the ball up from deep and drives down the pitch, so I would like to see him in the centre of midfield, along with McCarthy and perhaps even Cleverley in a energetic, athletic three.
Sometimes Ross runs himself into blind alleys when playing behind the striker, if he played in a deeper role, he’d have a little more time on the ball and he’d also have more options ahead of him, in which he could distribute to. He’ll see more of the game from the middle of the park, which will help his reading of the game and decision-making.
I personally he’s got the engine and the attributes to be a very influential number 8 for Everton.
Paddy: 4-3-3 would definitely be worth a go, particularly given how stale the current 4-2-3-1 is looking and how much better Ross played in that deeper position. I do wonder if that’s how Martinez will play at Southampton on Saturday, though- he seems very set in his ways and I’m sure he won’t want to lose the midfield battle. He’s got a dilemma on his hands, has the Catalan: is Koné worth a start after his heroics against Watford?
Rhodri: We’re all aware of how stubborn Martinez is, but he tried out 4-3-3 in pre-season and something needs changing, so you never know.
I don’t think Kone should start at the weekend. Southampton have a very good midfield in Clasie, Wanyama and Ward-Prowse so to have them go up against Barry and McCarthy would spell trouble. He was man-of-the-match on the weekend, as an impact sub. I think he should remain on the bench for another couple of weeks and given 25/30 minutes against tiring defences to see what he can do. His performance against Watford was the first encouraging sign we’ve seen from Kone for a while, there seems to be at least remnants of a player there, but he has to keep producing and improving.
Paddy: True- reckon we could see Koné coming on as another impact sub at St Mary’s. We all know that Gareth Barry’s going to start if he’s fit, and I imagine Cleverley- who has been quietly impressive up to now- will once again play in that wide left role, so could be more of the same from Martinez.
We’ve just covered the latest team news ahead of the fixture and it looks like Deulofeu and Besic could return to the squad for the game on the South coast. Massive boost for the injury-ravaged Blues, isn’t it? What sort of role do you think those two will play on Saturday, and then, indeed, for the rest of the season?
Rhodri: Deulofeu in particular is a huge, huge boost for Everton. I can see him coming off the bench, like Kone, in the second half, as he won’t be fully fit to play 90 minutes. But again, his presence on the pitch will be a bonus, he can mess up 9 times and produce 1 moment and win the game. He’s a match-winner, like Mirallas. He’s got pace to burn and has bulked up a bit as well, he’s not some skinny Barca boy, he’s a man with a point to prove. Besic will probably make the bench but not figure. It’s a huge season for the Bosnian, he showed glimpses of talent with spurts of naivety. Positionally he needs work, as does his temperament. With a lot of central midfielders at Everton, he’ll have to fight hard to gain a foothold in the team. There have been a few rumours of him leaving on loan, with clubs in Turkey interested.
Paddy: Deulofeu’s definitely one to get excited about, that’s for sure. Still think his decision-making needs work- in that respect he’s pretty much at a similar stage in his development to Barkley, but he’ll provide width, creativity and pace- three things sorely lacking in this Everton side. Imagine that we’ll see them both feature on a stronger Everton bench this time around, as they’re unlikely to be ready to play from the start.
As for the left-back role, in the absence of Leighton Baines, would you go with Galloway or Oviedo? Personally reckon Oviedo fits into the current system better, in light of his ability on the ball (Galloway’s a centre-back, after all), but with the Costa Rican still a few games away from full match fitness, Galloway will probably get the nod on Saturday.
Rhodri: True, but that’s the same of most young players, the only way they will learn is through playing football. Gerard’s single-minded intent to run with the ball and do something with it will be priceless, especially given the team’s largely turgid play.
It’s Oviedo for me. Galloway didn’t let anyone down against Watford, but he was a big reason as to why we were so unbalanced on Saturday, going forward he was a blunt force. Oviedo is a left-back, and he is good going forward. Again, some of the stick the Costa Rican gets is unwarranted, he was fantastic until he got his bad injury, when he came back to the side, he was a little rusty, but still did a job. He’s no Leighton Baines, but he’s no bad player in the same breath.
Paddy: Speaking of Baines, that’s a massive blow losing him for such a long period of time. My main concern is that he’s far and away our most creative player, if you look at the stats. We’re short on creativity as it is, so surely Roberto needs to go back into the transfer market now for an attacking midfielder?
Rhodri: It’s worrying how reliant Everton still are on their left-back for creativity. Martinez has been in the market for a creative midfielder since May, but has come no closer to bringing one in as targets like Payet and Shaqiri are snapped up by rivals. Everton are crying for someone who can link play between the lines, who can thread passes between the opposing full-back and centre-half, who can link the midfield together with Lukaku, who becomes isolated more often than not. It’s time for Martinez to stop talking nonsense and bring in a quality no.10, with help from the much-maligned board.
Paddy: With you on that one. I’d say moves for a new centre-back, creative midfielder and striker are essential if we’re to improve on last season’s poor showing. Other clubs around us have done great business so far- I tweeted over the weekend that any one of Payet, Shaqiri, Wijnaldum and Ayew would have improved us immensely. Got to be a worry that we’re losing out to the likes of Stoke and West Ham for those guys. Where do we go from here then? Have heard strong rumours of moves for Evans, Austin and Lennon. Would this do the trick? I’m skeptical. Who would you like to see brought in?
Rhodri: You’re right it is worrying, in my piece earlier today I said the reasons for the targets not coming almost doesn’t matter, the bottom line is; they’re not coming.
The trouble with finding a centre-half is that they know they’re going to be playing second fiddle to Jagielka and Stones, but I’d like to see Virgil Van Dijk, or an ideal world, Daniele Rugani. Both are intelligent footballers, are solid, youthful and can play with the ball at their feet. Matija Nastasic is another one who I thought would be very good, but he ended up at Schalke for £7million. Micah Richards would’ve been low-budget cover for centre-half and right-back, but there are questions over his fitness and if he’s actually any good at centre-half.
An attacking midfielder for me would be Yarmolenko from Kyiv. Great ability, great technique and an end-product to boot. Apparently Everton were offered Yarmolenko for €10million, but said no as they weren’t interested. Probably because he’s more of a winger, but at that price, he’s a snip. Up front, I wouldn’t mind seeing Gerard Moreno back at Goodison. The Villarreal striker scored in Duncan Ferguson’s testimonial, has his best years ahead of him and has got a bit of everything.
Paddy: Yarmolenko would be an excellent buy- tore us apart in Ukraine- yet he unfortunately doesn’t seem to be on the club’s radar.
Elsewhere, the other big issue, of course, is John Stones‘ future. Fact remains that we need a new CB regardless of whether we sell Stones. Virgil van Dijk would be perfect, but reckon he’s out of our price range and will end up at Southampton.
Looks like we’ve turned down an improved £30 million bid from Chelsea. Goes without saying that we can’t afford to lose him now, doesn’t it? How do you see it playing out between now and the end of the window? Has the speculation affected him as much as Martinez suggests?
I’ve been impressed by how he’s coped on the pitch, to be honest. Was sold a bit for Watford’s second, in a moment of naivety on his part, but you could equally lay the blame at the defensive midfielders, who left the defenders far too exposed for my liking.
Rhodri: Stones played well at the weekend, he’s a baby in terms of centre-half so he was naive in diving in before Ighalo scored, but as you say, there was no cover from the midfield, Howard was so far off his line it was untrue and Coleman wasn’t doing anything useful.
Stones is an intelligent guy, he’s happy at Everton and he likes playing for the club. His temperament is first-class and if Everton or any club want any sort of success, then you have to keep your best players. If he does go to Chelsea, it won’t be because he’s pushed for a move, if you catch my drift.
Paddy: Yeah, only way he’s leaving is if the club receive an offer they can’t refuse. He won’t push for a move, by the looks of it. Fingers crossed on that one, as we’re short at the back as it is.
Anyway, let’s wind up with score predictions for Saints. I’ll go 2-1 to them- just can’t see Everton ending their bad run at St Mary’s on Saturday, and imagine Pelle will cause us all sorts of trouble in the air. Defending crosses still a big achilles heal, as we know.
Rhodri: I’ll stick by what I said in my piece from today and go with 2-0. Pelle will cause problems and I can’t see us scoring, unfortunately.
