Is it time to sell another big name?

[bluebastardo]

With some of our A list players returning, or about to return to the squad, are we now in a position that it may be advantageous to sell someone in order to find and fund the missing jigsaw pieces.

It's important to make the move soon, while the team is starting to look strong on paper, yet top heavy in both midfield and defense.

Add a bit more quality to our back four?
Add a true winger?
Bring in another striker?
Another keeper to push Howard?

I know in the ideal world, we should keep what we have, and add these positions via cash injection, but this is Everton and it might not be easy.

Besides, we have some real quality in our midfield for example, but it still isn't right, and would the players be happy being benched or rotated?

The likes of Osman, Cahill, Gosling, and possibly even Hibbert may find it hard to get off the bench soon, as might Neill, Neville, Yobo and Distin.

Why do I ask this?
I've been trying to figure out how we will be able to utilize each player and keep them all happy, whilst looking at other places that need enforcing.

What do you reckon? Is it wise to carry passengers?

 

[marekb]

If there is one thing we can learn from this horrific injury list we have had it is that strength in depth is where it is at, If we have intentions of being a team in the top 3rd of the division then we need strength in depth. Some of the guys will naturally move on or play less and less due to age or niggling injuries, or we'll decide we no longer require their services and cash in on them whilst we can.

Sure, the problem with this is the wage bill, keeping players happy is a no brainer, the top players are now realising that they cannot play in every game and still compete at their best. Realistically though I would love us to put up a fight against the 'better teams' in the league, contest the two cups as well as have a go in a european competition.

Now if your talking about weeding out the deadwood then thats a different matter. Going forwards with longterm plans I think we might already have replacements in the squad for Cahill/Osman/Hibbert.

 

[Whitebootman]

Difficult at this time. I don't like the idea of carrying passengers at any time, but I'm not sure this squad has anyone I'd call a passenger. Having said that I'd take anyone that would strengthen our team even if it were to mean one of my favourites being sold to finance the deal. My loyalty is to the club even when it hurts to see a good man go. We have had a torrid time with injuries recently so if we have to sell we will need an instant impact from whoever comes in, on and off the pitch. No matter what happens I still trust David Moyes in the transfer/loan market.

 

[Sharpys top lip]

If there is one thing we can learn from this horrific injury list we have had it is that strength in depth is where it is at, If we have intentions of being a team in the top 3rd of the division then we need strength in depth. .

BINGO.....



bb its a bit of a daft question. Why sell our best players?.

It's about squads nowadays not starting 11's. Iv said it a million times!!!

 

[Bruce Wayne]

The thing to consider is just how much players will sell for, and subsequently what kind of player you can buy with those funds. Lescott is one thing but I don't suppose the likes of Osman, Gosling or Hibbert would fetch much on the market and it would be very hard for Moyes to buy better replacements with the funds they do fetch.

Cahill might be different although even with him I think his peak market value has passed so we wouldn't gain a huge fee for him. If Saha had a longer contract then that might have been an option, but he doesn't so it isn't. Yak may attract a good fee but his value to us is being undermined by his current poor form. I doubt if he was banging them in pre-injury anyone would want to sell him.

 

[faddy the blue]

I think we should have a look at spurs how they have managed to hold on to their players with such a big squad. look at hutton,bale,naughton,bentley,pavlyuchenko,keane,jenas,dawson...now these are well capable players and yet they are in and around the squad and are good enough to come in and do a job

Osman,Hibbert,Neill,Distin,Yobo,Gosling are decent players when needed to be called upon. Anyways with so many games these days and i can't us having a full squad fully fit al;ways..its like one goes out and the other comes in so in anyway we'll be able to give nearly everyone a run. Its not a big problem and we shouldn't sell them cuz when fully fit we've got a squad that's good enough to be in the top 5

 

[bluebastardo]

BINGO.....



bb its a bit of a daft question. Why sell our best players?.

It's about squads nowadays not starting 11's. Iv said it a million times!!!

Answer me this, and if you still think it's a daft question, then cool.

We are skint.
We need more players to put the icing on the cake, but don't have the funds to do so, unless we get loans, or buy potential.
We are in a position where our team lacks only a little strength in key positions to be able to compete.

Those key positions are :

left back
Right wing
Striker
Goalkeeper

Baines currently has to play every match, as does Howard.
We haven't found a solution to our wings yet, despite having lots of midfielders, and our strike force is thread bare.

We have the following midfielders:

Neville
Gosling
Cahill
Osman
Heitinga ( debateable )
Rodwell
Fellaini
Arteta
Pienaar
Bilyaletdinov
Wallace

That's 11 players for 4 / 5 places.

Of those players, only the following have a long term future at Everton.

Heitinga
Rodwell
Fellaini
Arteta
Pienaar
Bilyaletdinov
Gosling (just about)

The following are surplus to requirements:

Neville
Cahill
Osman
Wallace

We can argue that Neville has leadership qualities, and that is true, but he is at the end of his career, and isn't the future of the club bless him.

Cahill is slowly being overtaken in the pecking order, and has been dreadful this season by his own standards.

Osman is good cover at best, but it is 'his' position that craves a new signing.

Wallace is unlikely to claim a regular first team place.

Combined, Cahill, Neville, and Osman are on a pretty penny, and as much as we love these guys, if we are to compete, then we might consider selling one of them while they are worth a few quid.

Yes, we need a big squad, but with a new winger, that would leave us with 7 midfielders of high quality, and Gosling learning his trade.

Or we can keep everyone, pay their wages, and wonder how we can get the missing pieces NOW.

The same can be said of our defense:

Hibbert
Coleman
Neill
Jagielka
Yobo
Distin
Duffy
Baines
Heitinga

We could bring the young lad Bidwell in to cover Baines, and that would give us 10 first team players for 4 positions.

Somewhere amongst these 2 positions we will establish a first choice list, but surely if selling one or 2 senior players could raise enough money to buy one top class winger, or even a striker, then that has to be worth looking at.

It's harsh, but it's necessary to consider it.

 

[zimblue]

You're deluded if you think Cahill Neville and Osman are surplus to requirements. Be crazy to let any of them go. Only players we should be thinking of letting go are the fringe youngsters- Wallace Baxter Gosling etc. None of these will ever be half as good as the ones you reckon we should let go.

 

[kenada_blue]

Selling Pienaar and a releasing a few youth players will cover buying players to cover positions in the summer.

 

[marekb]

Selling Pienaar and a releasing a few youth players will cover buying players to cover positions in the summer.

Pienaar is currently the clock by which our team ticks, over time you would hope fellaini, arteta, bily, rodwell will pick up the mantle (mikel does, but wont really be his old self till the last legs of this season or beginning of next). I know pienaar maybe eyeing a move elsewhere, but he is worth far more than the measly few quid we would get for him.

 

[Lien]

Strength in depth? Look at our fully-fit squad: there's plenty of strength in depth. I think we can easily cope with a few injuries, but since it's been such an horrendous list, it's natural to think we don't have a big squad.

The fact we have versatile players also helps: Heitinga and Neville being 2 prime examples.

 

[bluebastardo]

You're deluded if you think Cahill Neville and Osman are surplus to requirements. Be crazy to let any of them go. Only players we should be thinking of letting go are the fringe youngsters- Wallace Baxter Gosling etc. None of these will ever be half as good as the ones you reckon we should let go.

Not sure there was any need for the deluded comment but still.
Cahill is 30.
Neville is 33 this month.
Out of the 3 I would consider keeping Osman simply for the only reason that Osman still has time on his side to find the right position and improve.
Neither Cahill nor Neville will get a 5 year deal from any club, and as midfielders, they both fall way behind the skills of Arteta, Pienaar, Fellaini, Rodwell etc.

I would gladly keep Neville as captain for the rest of his career even if he won't make the first 11 when all fit, especially if we get a winger, but Cahill I would gladly sell tomorrow should the right price come in.

He brings little to the game that the other players can't make up for, and as much as I love him, he isn't a necessary cog in the machine for the future.

Picture this:

Kenwright gives Moyes £10 million to spend and we buy player B.
Moyes sells Cahill, and combined with the ten mill we can buy player A.

Interested?

 

[faddy the blue]

Not sure there was any need for the deluded comment but still.
Cahill is 30.
Neville is 33 this month.
Out of the 3 I would consider keeping Osman simply for the only reason that Osman still has time on his side to find the right position and improve.
Neither Cahill nor Neville will get a 5 year deal from any club, and as midfielders, they both fall way behind the skills of Arteta, Pienaar, Fellaini, Rodwell etc.

I would gladly keep Neville as captain for the rest of his career even if he won't make the first 11 when all fit, especially if we get a winger, but Cahill I would gladly sell tomorrow should the right price come in.

He brings little to the game that the other players can't make up for, and as much as I love him, he isn't a necessary cog in the machine for the future.

Picture this:

Kenwright gives Moyes £10 million to spend and we buy player B.
Moyes sells Cahill, and combined with the ten mill we can buy player A.

Interested?

I never thought that one day i'll say this about Cahill but yes his game has gone down by far. Its not just headers he was good at but late runs in the box and he has scored very few goals with his feet in the last couple of years and that is a shame. Still i'll keep him for a year or two if its possible but he's gona back to Australia anyways as he intends to finish his career there

 

[Bruce Wayne]

I can't see Moyes getting £10m to spend as we weren't making that sort of money whilst doing well on the pitch so after this season we sure won't have any money to spend on new players. Hence selling to buy does seem inevitable unless we take on more debt or get a new Mr Moneybags. Lescott was a good sale because he went for so much we could strengthen several areas without weakening the team too much. No one of that standard really jumps out at me right now unless we cash in on Rodwell, as we havn't seen the best from him yet we don't really know what we're missing.

Anyone else is really chipping around the sides. I can't see Cahill going for more than say £5m and that kind of money doesn't go far these days.

 

[Neiler]

Well we're 10-15 points of our rivals for a Euro qualifying spot, with half the season still to play catching up with them winning 4-5 games isnt impossible - to earn the placement money that goes with it. We are also still in Europe and and the F.A. cup (which generated 10 mill last year) so lets wait untill the end of the season befores eeing how much we may have available. It was reported that the call in cost the club 12 mill while Bellefeild is still there to - so there may be funds knocking about.

Selling any of our players is a receipe for stagnation to be honest- its been a long road to get this far - i dint see the point in decimating the squad - when its probably at its strongest in beards.

Im not even sure the squad needs major surgery. All fit we have decent depth a blend of youth, potential and expierence. Not to mention we have some of the most talented youngsters in the country coming through to swell the ranks in Garbutt, Duffy, Coleman, Baxter will all have Prem carers with us in my opinion.

I would be tempted to blow all or the majority of any funds on a good centre half, my first choice would be Ryan Shawcross and my second Gary Cahill. I would also try for a few youngsters who i know will have top Prem careers in Clyne, Shelvey and Moses.

I would also for Eagles at Burnley this lad has bags of quality and huge potential to imporove into a top player. He has proven he can do it this year, add the youngsters and our obigatory couple of loan signings, keep what we have we will be gravey next season.