Honest appraisal

[Hibbert&Ernie]

The squad we have.
GK
Howard - the good - Good on penalties, decent distribution, and sometimes a telepathic ability to get a part of himself in the way of a certain goal. Also only too happy to lay into his defence.
- the bad - not confident on crosses/corners and has had an issue with long range shots, though long range free kicks seem immune. Decision making not always fantastic, sometimes the punt up front is favoured instead of a more cultured slower approach by allowing the defence the ball.

Better alternative in the Prem, Jaaskalinen

Def
Hibbert - the good - Best sliding tackles in the league, 99% of the time fair and ball winning and always hard as nails. prepared to play wherever and give his all.
the bad - distribution is woeful, and is a bit small so other sides target him especially on corners for headers.

Better alternative - Ivanovich

Neville - the good - positional play and organisation are great, consistent fit for his age, brought a winning attitude with him from Lord Al. Utility player, LB, RB, CB, def mid.
the bad - passing not sharp or accurate enough, and also not the fastest. Getting on in terms of top flight pro's.

Honestly can't name a better prem alternative utility in the prem at this time.

More to follow.

 

[Kay20]

The squad we have.
GK
Howard - the good - Good on penalties, decent distribution, and sometimes a telepathic ability to get a part of himself in the way of a certain goal. Also only too happy to lay into his defence.
- the bad - not confident on crosses/corners and has had an issue with long range shots, though long range free kicks seem immune. Decision making not always fantastic, sometimes the punt up front is favoured instead of a more cultured slower approach by allowing the defence the ball.

Better alternative in the Prem, Jaaskalinen

I don't know much about Jaaskalinen, but I will say your assessment of Howard I think is indeed spot on, and also very much how he plays for the USMNT (where you can see him having even more coronaries than he has for Everton). We have always picked on him for his punts and crosses/corners as well.

One other good of his I would note is that he has an *excellent* throwing arm. He can toss the ball upfield with some fantastic precision and man can he throw it LONG.

 

[Brennan]

One other good of his I would note is that he has an *excellent* throwing arm. He can toss the ball upfield with some fantastic precision and man can he throw it LONG.

That's probably thanks in part to his obsession with Basketball, he only plays football because he's not good enough to be a Basketball pro i believe.

 

[Hibbert&Ernie]

Nothing wrong with the state of the NBA forcing the super athletic and the massive in stature to seek sporting pursuits in other fields that wont kill them in under 2 seasons (NFL!)
Once the USA cottons on to the fact that our Football is the true Football and aligns its financial streams accordingly then and finally then will a long term footballing power house rise that could face down the European stranglehold.

 

[Kay20]

That's probably thanks in part to his obsession with Basketball, he only plays football because he's not good enough to be a Basketball pro i believe.

He does/did play basketball, you're right. And I think he had a stint with the Harlem Globetrotters at some point too? Probably does help. You know it's kinda curious that he doesn't do this more often with Everton (the thrown pass that is - not the placed pass). Wonder if it's because we suffer on pace...

 

[teppic]

Nothing wrong with the state of the NBA forcing the super athletic and the massive in stature to seek sporting pursuits in other fields that wont kill them in under 2 seasons (NFL!)
Once the USA cottons on to the fact that our Football is the true Football and aligns its financial streams accordingly then and finally then will a long term footballing power house rise that could face down the European stranglehold.

Yup, if America took football seriously, and I mean it was the number one obsession sport in the country, it would be interesting to see what style of football would define the team. Players would hemorrhage out of Europe to play in the US too.

Back on topic Jaaskelainen is pushing 40 so as good as he is this could be one of his last seasons.

You also say Hibberts distribution is woeful, I would say it was more erratic. He is very good I believe at overlapping runs and some of his crossing has been much improved. If Tony Hibbert was a full back who scored 8 goals a season we would struggle to keep hold of him. It is a shame goal scoring has been such a struggle for him over his career.

I agree about Phil Neville. It is hard to think of another player who can play in so many different positions without any discomfort. Like him or loath him (I like him tbh) he is a very important member of the squad, especially during an injury crisis.

 

[toffeestillidie]

good assessment of howard, but jussi??? behave, he had a great season and he's a solid keeper, but for the last 3-4 years howard has been miles better. he's prone to just as many big errors, and has nowhere near the reaction time or positional sense that howard has. i also don't know why people say his performances for the usmnt are so much better, having watched both everton and the US extensively, i would say he's performed equally well for us. there are games where he's kept out shots i never would expect a keeper to stop, and thats earned us points. i think because of the mistakes he's made, people lose sight of that.

for hibbert, I would add for the bad that his pace isn't great and he has a tendency to lose his mark after a couple of phases of box play.

neville, add comical stepovers to the good, add pointing to the bad.

jagielka: the good: pinpoint tackling, excellent at blocking shots, rarely loses his man in open play. the bad: has trouble marking after set plays, goes missing sometimes. better alternative: none we can afford

distin: the good: wins every header, rarely loses his man. the bad: horrendous errors from time to time, limited pace

baines: the good: best left back going forward in the league, decent tackling, works out of his skin. the bad: sometimes gets muscled off the ball. alternative: you ****ing kidding?

coleman: the good: incredible pace, can take on most defenders effectively, good tackling and he works hard all game. the bad: makes poor decisions after getting in good positions sometimes, doesn't get his head up when he's crossing so his final ball isn't as good as it could be.

bily: the good: best shooter on our team, brilliant when he's at the top of his game. the bad: inconsistent, muscled off the ball too easily, played out of position.

fellaini: the good: absolutely controls midfield when he's on top of his game, wins headers and disrupts play incredibly effectively. the bad: fouls too much and draws too many cards

arteta: the good: when he's on, excellent passing and creativity, we know the rest. the bad: some games he goes missing, doesn't work hard enough to get open, has a tendency to sit back to far and let the players play in front of him when he should be getting involved.

cahill: the good: best header in the league, near impossible to mark, embodies the everton spirit. also has gotten better with the ball at his feet, and his tackling makes him an all around hassle to defenders. the bad: sometimes poor in games where he's not scoring, lack of passing creativity

osman: okay pace, excellent passing creativity, terrific workrate. the bad: muscled off the ball wayy too easily, he would honestly be better for barcelona then he is for us. goes missing when he's played on the wing, but excels when he's allowed to roam freely across midfield

beckford: gets into great scoring positions, occasionally pulls off class finishes. he doesn't finish enough of his chances, and on days where our midfield isn't performing, he is not the type of striker who can create something out of nowhere

 

[Summerskin]

Did someone just say Distin had limited pace??

He'd out-do a Veyron ffs.

 

[Dushku]

Distin..my one and only criticism of the man is penchant to play the ball left footed at ALL times, and with the turning circle of an oil tanker, he will always try and turn and play it with his left - when a simple short pass / clearance with the right would suffice. I would say it's down to confidence, but when your circling 30 years of age and have clocked in as many hours as he has on the pitch - confidence should not be a factor by now!

 

[SweetJesus849]

Nothing wrong with the state of the NBA forcing the super athletic and the massive in stature to seek sporting pursuits in other fields that wont kill them in under 2 seasons (NFL!)
Once the USA cottons on to the fact that our Football is the true Football and aligns its financial streams accordingly then and finally then will a long term footballing power house rise that could face down the European stranglehold.

No way it'll happen though. The NFL is just too profitable, too sustainable to take such a backdoor to Football. Plus you're more likely to get parity than you are here.

 

[RFUS]

Did someone just say Distin had limited pace??

He'd out-do a Veyron ffs.

Oh lordy.

Do people on here actually watch Everton play?

 

[SweetJesus849]

Oh lordy.

Do people on here actually watch Everton play?

I wouldn't say he'd outdo a Veyron but I wouldn't say Sylvain Distin is slow. He's lost a yard of pace by now since he's in his 30s but he's still probably quicker than Jagielka. Plus he's one of the strongest players in the league.

 

[heatmeiser]

Did someone just say Distin had limited pace??
.

 

[Gwladys Nights]

Distin's clean as a whistle, sharp as a thistle, best in all Westminster. Yeah!

 

[blue61]

good assessment of howard, but jussi??? behave, he had a great season and he's a solid keeper, but for the last 3-4 years howard has been miles better. he's prone to just as many big errors, and has nowhere near the reaction time or positional sense that howard has. i also don't know why people say his performances for the usmnt are so much better, having watched both everton and the US extensively, i would say he's performed equally well for us. there are games where he's kept out shots i never would expect a keeper to stop, and thats earned us points. i think because of the mistakes he's made, people lose sight of that.

for hibbert, I would add for the bad that his pace isn't great and he has a tendency to lose his mark after a couple of phases of box play.

neville, add comical stepovers to the good, add pointing to the bad.

jagielka: the good: pinpoint tackling, excellent at blocking shots, rarely loses his man in open play. the bad: has trouble marking after set plays, goes missing sometimes. better alternative: none we can afford

distin: the good: wins every header, rarely loses his man. the bad: horrendous errors from time to time, limited pace

baines: the good: best left back going forward in the league, decent tackling, works out of his skin. the bad: sometimes gets muscled off the ball. alternative: you ****ing kidding?

coleman: the good: incredible pace, can take on most defenders effectively, good tackling and he works hard all game. the bad: makes poor decisions after getting in good positions sometimes, doesn't get his head up when he's crossing so his final ball isn't as good as it could be.

bily: the good: best shooter on our team, brilliant when he's at the top of his game. the bad: inconsistent, muscled off the ball too easily, played out of position.

fellaini: the good: absolutely controls midfield when he's on top of his game, wins headers and disrupts play incredibly effectively. the bad: fouls too much and draws too many cards

arteta: the good: when he's on, excellent passing and creativity, we know the rest. the bad: some games he goes missing, doesn't work hard enough to get open, has a tendency to sit back to far and let the players play in front of him when he should be getting involved.

cahill: the good: best header in the league, near impossible to mark, embodies the everton spirit. also has gotten better with the ball at his feet, and his tackling makes him an all around hassle to defenders. the bad: sometimes poor in games where he's not scoring, lack of passing creativity

osman: okay pace, excellent passing creativity, terrific workrate. the bad: muscled off the ball wayy too easily, he would honestly be better for barcelona then he is for us. goes missing when he's played on the wing, but excels when he's allowed to roam freely across midfield

beckford: gets into great scoring positions, occasionally pulls off class finishes. he doesn't finish enough of his chances, and on days where our midfield isn't performing, he is not the type of striker who can create something out of nowhere

The goal against Chelsea was just a tap in then?