Everton Youth Teams Thread

[Nymzee]

Right mate, your going to have to justify that . Ive seen just about the whole range of opinions on tinternet re last night from "non will make it" to " all will make it somewhere" , reality is somewhere in between so it would be good to get a different view from my own on Charsley.
I can't make up my mind about him. He scores good goals, but not as sublime as Dowell's. He's energetic but not as much as Walsh. He's versatile ( right back , DFM , attacking mid) but not as versatile as Connolly, he tackles but not as well as Williams. He's got a wee bit of most things , but for me not enough of anything to push him towards the first team squad. I said in a post the other week that on games played and contribution made then overall I'd have him as our player of the season for the U23s. He's a superb squad member to have at this level.. But ..... I put him in the Conor Grant/ Connor Mc Aleny category, a tidy player when going forward, well coached , disciplined for the team, scores some good goals , rarely has a bad game , but doesn't do enough to make me think "This is a PL player in the making",yet I like him and his attitude.

So a half jokey comment, but would be genuinely interested in hearing why you have him as your favourite.
Edit: More for the "Wtf do I know" column, McAleny just scored for Oxford !!

Charsley is a League 1 player at max for me.

 

[Nymzee]

I wouldn't say that's a correct assumption unless there's a source elsewhere. He definitely went back to his parent club for scans because that's what happens every time a player on loan gets injured but Unsworth said yesterday he hasn't had any results back yet.

 

[catcherintherye]

Right mate, your going to have to justify that . Ive seen just about the whole range of opinions on tinternet re last night from "non will make it" to " all will make it somewhere" , reality is somewhere in between so it would be good to get a different view from my own on Charsley.
I can't make up my mind about him. He scores good goals, but not as sublime as Dowell's. He's energetic but not as much as Walsh. He's versatile ( right back , DFM , attacking mid) but not as versatile as Connolly, he tackles but not as well as Williams. He's got a wee bit of most things , but for me not enough of anything to push him towards the first team squad. I said in a post the other week that on games played and contribution made then overall I'd have him as our player of the season for the U23s. He's a superb squad member to have at this level.. But ..... I put him in the Conor Grant/ Connor Mc Aleny category, a tidy player when going forward, well coached , disciplined for the team, scores some good goals , rarely has a bad game , but doesn't do enough to make me think "This is a PL player in the making",yet I like him and his attitude.

So a half jokey comment, but would be genuinely interested in hearing why you have him as your favourite.
Edit: More for the "Wtf do I know" column, McAleny just scored for Oxford !!

The Charley question is a really interesting one. You are always looking at Everton for lads who have played above their age grop. Charley did this, he was in the under 18's at 15 and the reserves not shortly after. However since about 16-17 he had stalled for the next 3 years or so and remained a peripheral figure for the reserves.

In many ways that wasn't his fault. He was one of the oldest and first of our trailblazer of two age groups that were very strong. He caught up jose who were older than him but was overtaken by those who were younger than him. The same process has occurred, perhaps more dramatically with Ledson and even Joe Williams. The point to make on Charsley though was outside of Rooney, Barkley, Rowel (and probably Kissock & Baxter) he was as promising at the age of 15/16 as we have seen in the last 15-20 years. IN any of our past youth teams after 2000 he would have been the second best player, and in a lot of the them he'd have been the standout player. He is unfortunate he is in a very strong age group and an even stronger one below.

However this season you can see he has kicked on. He looks a central figure. The Echo has written a column on him and I always think when the press do that it is partly down to insiders passing information on. As has been written his greatest strengths are his versatility and ability to score goals. I don't think either should be under estimated. The comparison with Dowell is a good one as they are so different. With Charley though, you get the feeling he will easily be able to blend into a team. This is not a small attribute, as often that is the role young players fulfil. He could fill in and wouldn't look massively out of place.

I also think his engine and ability to press make him a more natural fit than someone like Dowell. If I were to put my head on the block I'd honestly say if an opening on the left hand side of midfield came up, currently Charley ticks more boxes than Dowell because of his workrate. I don't expect him to get the nod over Dowell but it is an interesting way of looking at it.

For Charsley I think what will hold him back is that his growth and surge forward has probably just come a bit late. He is now 20 and he is talking about spending time on loan which will be a season away. I don't think he's had a lot of minutes with the first team training either. You just get the sense that time may run out for him and he will look to move on. We'll see. It's a shame as he looks like and plays very like Steven Naismith and I don't think we've ever really replaced that player.

What it will also come down to, is that I think developmentally they may find it easier to teach Dowell the bits of the game he is weaker at than teach Charsley the skill set of Dowell, much of which is inherent.

 

[catcherintherye]

The development of Unsworth and the under 23s is hugely impressive. He took a group of 16-17 year olds in his first season and was mainly focussed on development and being competitive. In his first season we just avoided the drop. The performances were better than the results but there was some naivety in games. I remember a mini derby leading 2-1 and losing two late goals to lose that game. He said on the game we won to stay up that he had never asked the players for a result, but he did on that game, and fortunately they delivered for him.

In the second season we went on a fantastic run pre season winning 6 or 7 on a run and Evans was flying. We performed a lot better results wise and finished 3rd though still a fair bit off the title. This season we've licked on again and touch wood should win the league but a reasonable distance. Not only that but we have had impressive performances and indeed wins at League sides like Bolton.

It was never a major worry for me when we didn't win games when he first came in. This was the norm, under Stubbs before him and Holden before that. Everton rarely made a big point of winning games at any youth level. The focus was on development and you could see we bring more through than anyone. You could also see, the Liverpool's, City's, United's, Chelsea's all took it more seriously as winning and would often spend 10's of million on players and teams who would be a lot older than our lads. We would expose younger players and at times even schoolboys to playing against this calibre of player so it suited us too.

Unsworth went along with that but there has been a real change in him as well of the last season. He now expects them not just to play well but to win. Part of this is because he has a very strong group of players. However he has also taken them on and improved them with now increasing investment to help aid him. The demand for excellence has really helped them come on too. IT was interesting that he again was talking about raising the bar, not just to compete with championship teams but to be ready to play in the Champions League. His reactions after defeats now are also very telling, he does not expect those lads to lose games anymore.

The work he has done and continues to do is fantastic. Stubbs went off and was a successful manager in his own right but Unsworth in many ways is on another level even to Stubbsy. While the lure of a Lucien Favre or even a Simeone would be very hard to turn down, I do hope Unsworth gets an opportunity to follow Koeman on. There's a lot of the Sean Dyche in Unsworth. He is calm, doesn't panic about situation he can't control (like losing players) measured, clear in what he expects and holds to a set of values Evertonians want. He has also shown he can develop players, not just in skill level but in mentality. This season has also shown he can put teams together to win games.

As for the younger players, without going into specifics on each one (in previous posts on this thread I've probably given a summation on each which I would still largely stick too) what is impressive is that you know exactly what you will get from an Everton reserve player. They will work hard. They will press and tackle. They will have good energy levels. They'll have decent technique and work for the team. It's a god base level to start from and are very much in the image of their manager. Some have a little extra, like Davies who has a bit more magic beyond those core values, but none of them will let us down.

The other night we trounced Southampton. Southampton are a very respectable outfit at youth level, yet it was a hammering. Great work from Unsworth and I can only hope more lads get the chance to step up over the next 6 months or so.

 

[Bagpuss]

The development of Unsworth and the under 23s is hugely impressive. He took a group of 16-17 year olds in his first season and was mainly focussed on development and being competitive. In his first season we just avoided the drop. The performances were better than the results but there was some naivety in games. I remember a mini derby leading 2-1 and losing two late goals to lose that game. He said on the game we won to stay up that he had never asked the players for a result, but he did on that game, and fortunately they delivered for him.

In the second season we went on a fantastic run pre season winning 6 or 7 on a run and Evans was flying. We performed a lot better results wise and finished 3rd though still a fair bit off the title. This season we've licked on again and touch wood should win the league but a reasonable distance. Not only that but we have had impressive performances and indeed wins at League sides like Bolton.

It was never a major worry for me when we didn't win games when he first came in. This was the norm, under Stubbs before him and Holden before that. Everton rarely made a big point of winning games at any youth level. The focus was on development and you could see we bring more through than anyone. You could also see, the Liverpool's, City's, United's, Chelsea's all took it more seriously as winning and would often spend 10's of million on players and teams who would be a lot older than our lads. We would expose younger players and at times even schoolboys to playing against this calibre of player so it suited us too.

Unsworth went along with that but there has been a real change in him as well of the last season. He now expects them not just to play well but to win. Part of this is because he has a very strong group of players. However he has also taken them on and improved them with now increasing investment to help aid him. The demand for excellence has really helped them come on too. IT was interesting that he again was talking about raising the bar, not just to compete with championship teams but to be ready to play in the Champions League. His reactions after defeats now are also very telling, he does not expect those lads to lose games anymore.

The work he has done and continues to do is fantastic. Stubbs went off and was a successful manager in his own right but Unsworth in many ways is on another level even to Stubbsy. While the lure of a Lucien Favre or even a Simeone would be very hard to turn down, I do hope Unsworth gets an opportunity to follow Koeman on. There's a lot of the Sean Dyche in Unsworth. He is calm, doesn't panic about situation he can't control (like losing players) measured, clear in what he expects and holds to a set of values Evertonians want. He has also shown he can develop players, not just in skill level but in mentality. This season has also shown he can put teams together to win games.

As for the younger players, without going into specifics on each one (in previous posts on this thread I've probably given a summation on each which I would still largely stick too) what is impressive is that you know exactly what you will get from an Everton reserve player. They will work hard. They will press and tackle. They will have good energy levels. They'll have decent technique and work for the team. It's a god base level to start from and are very much in the image of their manager. Some have a little extra, like Davies who has a bit more magic beyond those core values, but none of them will let us down.

The other night we trounced Southampton. Southampton are a very respectable outfit at youth level, yet it was a hammering. Great work from Unsworth and I can only hope more lads get the chance to step up over the next 6 months or so.

Totally agree with everything you say with regards to Unsworth and the job he has done. My only problem with Unsworth coming in as the next manager would be that he isn't a 'name' and while I don't think this is a bad thing from a fans point of view I don't see Unsworth as having the pull to attract top level players into the club in the way that a Simeone or even a Koeman could/can. Unsworth does deserve a chance but think he may have to go elsewhere first before he gets the big job at Everton in order to raise his profile. Im not trying to be disparaging towards Unsworth at all but think its telling that Moshiri went down the big name manager route and cant see that approach altering in the short/medium term at least.

 

[granter79]

The development of Unsworth and the under 23s is hugely impressive. He took a group of 16-17 year olds in his first season and was mainly focussed on development and being competitive. In his first season we just avoided the drop. The performances were better than the results but there was some naivety in games. I remember a mini derby leading 2-1 and losing two late goals to lose that game. He said on the game we won to stay up that he had never asked the players for a result, but he did on that game, and fortunately they delivered for him.

In the second season we went on a fantastic run pre season winning 6 or 7 on a run and Evans was flying. We performed a lot better results wise and finished 3rd though still a fair bit off the title. This season we've licked on again and touch wood should win the league but a reasonable distance. Not only that but we have had impressive performances and indeed wins at League sides like Bolton.

It was never a major worry for me when we didn't win games when he first came in. This was the norm, under Stubbs before him and Holden before that. Everton rarely made a big point of winning games at any youth level. The focus was on development and you could see we bring more through than anyone. You could also see, the Liverpool's, City's, United's, Chelsea's all took it more seriously as winning and would often spend 10's of million on players and teams who would be a lot older than our lads. We would expose younger players and at times even schoolboys to playing against this calibre of player so it suited us too.

Unsworth went along with that but there has been a real change in him as well of the last season. He now expects them not just to play well but to win. Part of this is because he has a very strong group of players. However he has also taken them on and improved them with now increasing investment to help aid him. The demand for excellence has really helped them come on too. IT was interesting that he again was talking about raising the bar, not just to compete with championship teams but to be ready to play in the Champions League. His reactions after defeats now are also very telling, he does not expect those lads to lose games anymore.

The work he has done and continues to do is fantastic. Stubbs went off and was a successful manager in his own right but Unsworth in many ways is on another level even to Stubbsy. While the lure of a Lucien Favre or even a Simeone would be very hard to turn down, I do hope Unsworth gets an opportunity to follow Koeman on. There's a lot of the Sean Dyche in Unsworth. He is calm, doesn't panic about situation he can't control (like losing players) measured, clear in what he expects and holds to a set of values Evertonians want. He has also shown he can develop players, not just in skill level but in mentality. This season has also shown he can put teams together to win games.

As for the younger players, without going into specifics on each one (in previous posts on this thread I've probably given a summation on each which I would still largely stick too) what is impressive is that you know exactly what you will get from an Everton reserve player. They will work hard. They will press and tackle. They will have good energy levels. They'll have decent technique and work for the team. It's a god base level to start from and are very much in the image of their manager. Some have a little extra, like Davies who has a bit more magic beyond those core values, but none of them will let us down.

The other night we trounced Southampton. Southampton are a very respectable outfit at youth level, yet it was a hammering. Great work from Unsworth and I can only hope more lads get the chance to step up over the next 6 months or so.

Excellent post. Really enjoy reading this thread when people who actually watch the youth teams give their opinions.

 

[catcherintherye]

Totally agree with everything you say with regards to Unsworth and the job he has done. My only problem with Unsworth coming in as the next manager would be that he isn't a 'name' and while I don't think this is a bad thing from a fans point of view I don't see Unsworth as having the pull to attract top level players into the club in the way that a Simeone or even a Koeman could/can. Unsworth does deserve a chance but think he may have to go elsewhere first before he gets the big job at Everton in order to raise his profile. Im not trying to be disparaging towards Unsworth at all but think its telling that Moshiri went down the big name manager route and cant see that approach altering in the short/medium term at least.

I think you are right mate. I can't see us going for Unsworth next but I'd be very happy if we did.

 

[johnnydawg68]

I really hope Unsy is our next manager. With the change in structure, bringing in Walsh as Technical Director and handling a lot of the transfer business, Unsworth is more than qualified to be our first team coach.

 

[Eggs]

...interesting article. Not Everton specific but only 1% of apprentices released go on to make a career in the game. This isn't the category of young professionals Unsworth works with;

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football..._the_day&ns_source=facebook&ns_linkname=sport

 

[toffeejack]

i think spurs are a decent model to look at, if you look at their backups, they have full backs like tripper and davies who would be 1st choice in about 3/4rs of the league, same goes to vorm, son, janssen etc. Their progression means they can now compete in 4 different competitions and players will fit right in. But this does cost money, i mean they spent £30m on sissoko knowing full well that he wasn't even a first choice player, but they continually build a big squad and they can keep them all happy because of the success.

If we can save having to spend that sort of money on backups and bring through a few youngsters, they can each save us about £5m or more on buying a replacement who possibly won't even be much better. But they have to see a way through to the first team, otherwise they won't stay on.

When you look at players who have left us after not seeing a path through to the first team, but have come back up to play in the prem at a later date like forshaw, maybe duffy next season etc. There's every chance we can now keep them on and have them as bit part players or maybe more, by keeping them around our club a little bit longer with european games, league cup games etc.

But we have to have more success on the pitch.

 

[Barnfred 55]

The development of Unsworth and the under 23s is hugely impressive. He took a group of 16-17 year olds in his first season and was mainly focussed on development and being competitive. In his first season we just avoided the drop. The performances were better than the results but there was some naivety in games. I remember a mini derby leading 2-1 and losing two late goals to lose that game. He said on the game we won to stay up that he had never asked the players for a result, but he did on that game, and fortunately they delivered for him.

In the second season we went on a fantastic run pre season winning 6 or 7 on a run and Evans was flying. We performed a lot better results wise and finished 3rd though still a fair bit off the title. This season we've licked on again and touch wood should win the league but a reasonable distance. Not only that but we have had impressive performances and indeed wins at League sides like Bolton.

It was never a major worry for me when we didn't win games when he first came in. This was the norm, under Stubbs before him and Holden before that. Everton rarely made a big point of winning games at any youth level. The focus was on development and you could see we bring more through than anyone. You could also see, the Liverpool's, City's, United's, Chelsea's all took it more seriously as winning and would often spend 10's of million on players and teams who would be a lot older than our lads. We would expose younger players and at times even schoolboys to playing against this calibre of player so it suited us too.

Unsworth went along with that but there has been a real change in him as well of the last season. He now expects them not just to play well but to win. Part of this is because he has a very strong group of players. However he has also taken them on and improved them with now increasing investment to help aid him. The demand for excellence has really helped them come on too. IT was interesting that he again was talking about raising the bar, not just to compete with championship teams but to be ready to play in the Champions League. His reactions after defeats now are also very telling, he does not expect those lads to lose games anymore.

The work he has done and continues to do is fantastic. Stubbs went off and was a successful manager in his own right but Unsworth in many ways is on another level even to Stubbsy. While the lure of a Lucien Favre or even a Simeone would be very hard to turn down, I do hope Unsworth gets an opportunity to follow Koeman on. There's a lot of the Sean Dyche in Unsworth. He is calm, doesn't panic about situation he can't control (like losing players) measured, clear in what he expects and holds to a set of values Evertonians want. He has also shown he can develop players, not just in skill level but in mentality. This season has also shown he can put teams together to win games.

As for the younger players, without going into specifics on each one (in previous posts on this thread I've probably given a summation on each which I would still largely stick too) what is impressive is that you know exactly what you will get from an Everton reserve player. They will work hard. They will press and tackle. They will have good energy levels. They'll have decent technique and work for the team. It's a god base level to start from and are very much in the image of their manager. Some have a little extra, like Davies who has a bit more magic beyond those core values, but none of them will let us down.

The other night we trounced Southampton. Southampton are a very respectable outfit at youth level, yet it was a hammering. Great work from Unsworth and I can only hope more lads get the chance to step up over the next 6 months or so.

Excellent post as usual mate. Agree with everything you say. The form from December of last season has been exceptional. I saw the game away to runners up Sunderland. They beat us 3-2 but they had 2 full Swedish Internationals in their line up. We absolutely battered them and it was only an outstanding performance from Pickford (plus 2 goals from their overage Internationals) that kept them in it. And the best thing about it was they were scrapping/arguing with the Sunderland players as they were coming off at full time; they hated losing that much and, worse, knew they should have won comfortably. Fantastic attitude.

Would love Unsworth to be given a chance to manage Everton. However I think now is too early. Not because I don't trust him though. The next couple of transfer windows are going to be very important for us bringing in the right type and quality of player to enable us to challenge for the title, never mind top 4. I think, at the moment, we have more chance of attracting that type of player whilst Koeman is in charge. Hopefully we can keep RK for at least one more season, but preferably for the term of his contract. I would then like Unsworth to take over, and I think it's important that we are having these conversations with him now so we can get him to stay with the under 23s and bring continuity. Wouldn't want to lose him.

 

[catcherintherye]

Excellent post as usual mate. Agree with everything you say. The form from December of last season has been exceptional. I saw the game away to runners up Sunderland. They beat us 3-2 but they had 2 full Swedish Internationals in their line up. We absolutely battered them and it was only an outstanding performance from Pickford (plus 2 goals from their overage Internationals) that kept them in it. And the best thing about it was they were scrapping/arguing with the Sunderland players as they were coming off at full time; they hated losing that much and, worse, knew they should have won comfortably. Fantastic attitude.

Would love Unsworth to be given a chance to manage Everton. However I think now is too early. Not because I don't trust him though. The next couple of transfer windows are going to be very important for us bringing in the right type and quality of player to enable us to challenge for the title, never mind top 4. I think, at the moment, we have more chance of attracting that type of player whilst Koeman is in charge. Hopefully we can keep RK for at least one more season, but preferably for the term of his contract. I would then like Unsworth to take over, and I think it's important that we are having these conversations with him now so we can get him to stay with the under 23s and bring continuity. Wouldn't want to lose him.

Thanks buddy. Yes I saw that too. In many ways that game was symbolic of why we didn't win too many games over the years. We played well but showed naivity. I remember at least two goals from set plays, where Toivenen dominated us. That happens, I think we had a 17 year old Feeney marking him. I remember Dowell scored a wonderful goal in that game too.

You are right and thats the direction I think those at the top of the club are going for. We are not a long way back. I remember around 96 it felt this way, but money ran out and players got injured. That shouldn't be a problem this time.

I don't think Unsworth will come in in the summer. I hope we can keep Koeman for another 18 months at least. Whether we go with Unsworth though will slightly depend on what direction we want to go in. Do we want to sign big names? Will Usmanov either officially come on board or keep putting money in? Or are we going to be a bit more patient and smart, look to acquire the best talent between ages 18-21 to supplement a proven conveyor from our academy. And subsequently have a manager who is proven to be able to develop and improve players.

We will see. I'd love to see someone like a Favre next. But Unsworth knows this place inside out. His way of playing is inherently in line with what Evertonians look for. He could be "our Guardiola".

 

[steele]

Koeman has a 3 year contract. When he walks out from Everton, he takes with him his brother, that's for sure. Can't see why not Unsie can be his successsor if he keep in the good work with the young lads

 

[desertfox]

Koeman has a 3 year contract. When he walks out from Everton, he takes with him his brother, that's for sure. Can't see why not Unsie can be his successsor if he keep in the good work with the young lads

Nothing against Koeman at all, seems to be doing a fine job , but I honestly wish Unsworth and Royle had been given the chance this season. Said as much last season. I think they are a powerful duo, and understand work together very closely. I don't think its just the coincidence of a good cohort of lads that means the U23's are beating almost everyone at the moment.

 

[DanEFC92]

Nothing against Koeman at all, seems to be doing a fine job , but I honestly wish Unsworth and Royle had been given the chance this season. Said as much last season. I think they are a powerful duo, and understand work together very closely. I don't think its just the coincidence of a good cohort of lads that means the U23's are beating almost everyone at the moment.

What makes it doubly(?) impressive is that the team has been stripped slightly due to out-going loans, injuries, moving up into the first team, etc etc and the form has remained impressive.