What really demoralised me about today's game

[sperlz]

The attitude.

The bigger picture is that in the last few seasons, we have notoriously made slow starts and dropped points in games like the match today. It is our first game and can be the difference between a good start and a bad one and a huge morale boost or a crushing morale loss.

What I don't want to be seeing is our players sharing jokes with the other team after we go one goal down. I understand that may sound a bit grouchy, but these are professional footballers, they are paid ridiculous amounts of money to get results to please us (the fans). When fans like us have spent all summer looking forward to a good start to the season and paid good money to go and watch matches... we want to see total focus on the goal of victory.

I see Cahill laughing about with the other team and Beckford making jokes, but for me it was no joking matter. I was fuming that we were behind and I thought the effort and attitude to get back in the game was nowhere near good enough. Fair enough they can have a joke with the other team after the game, but it should be a battle out there and all focus should be to get the points. I really did have to question the attitude today and that is something I havn't had to do much before with Everton.

There were also some trends in our play which were just awful. Beckford's touches and some flicks he tried were totally unprofessional. Also Heitinga's awful cross field passes and his left foot shot which nearly hit the corner flag, he shouldn't be attempting risky things like that, they cost time and time is goals.

I really dont know where this season is going to go now, I feel we needed a good start this year because the second half of season turnarounds wont happen forever, particularly with players growing discontent with our lack of achievement.

 

[Arteta2391]

we are ****e mate, its a part of Everton

 

[BigDunc'sFod]

Lad, Barkley had more shots (and more off-target) than anyone. If you don't shoot, you can't score. I'd rather see Heitinga blast a ball trying to score than see another Arteta crab move, fail to beat the first man on a set piece, or flicked ball down a blind alley.

 

[Dushku]

Did we not see this coming ? After a luke warm pre-season and that final wretched performance versus Werder Bremen, the writing was already on the wall for today. The formation, the players out of position and the substitutions, the game felt more like an experiment than a final game plan.

The God's couldn't of smiled on us more today. An extra seven days rest, A Home game against a team who could barely call themselves 'Premier stock' already demoralised by a home ground thumping by one of the leagues less glamorous clubs on the opening day of the season, who were then thrust into media spot light for the wrong reasons. Now, had the unceremonious task of travelling to one of the Premier Leagues most famous clubs and one of the counties most passionate grounds. We couldn't of planned it better, if we'd tried.

The new hoardings running along the Upper Glwadys Street scream out slogans such as " In Moyes We Trust", NIL SATIS NISI OPTIMUM.. after 90 minutes, those boards already looked sarcastically down upon the fans. We now have a huge game coming up on Wednesday, a cup game against 'lower' opposition, once more. Today would of been the ideal spring board for Everton to regain some of the guile and composure they so lacked during the Pre-Season games and prove once for all, that we don't need to spend millions on mercenaries. But when it seems once more , that the legacy of this once great club, appears to rest on the shoulders of a 17 year old boy - You have to question the people around him. We've been here before and the lad didn't manage a full season with us, we cannot allow this to happen again. To sell our prized asset- to the Man down the road.

Some one once joked on here that our motto should read " No Status, No Optimism" - I just hope to God that we can look back at those words and laugh and not start to slowly agree with them

 

[toffee-bhoy]

was lets try the same thing over and over again in our play be it open play or dead ball

some things didnt work and personally just looked awful as in
the neville - rodwell axis or the baines - arteta one or we can go wider and say the midfield - forward link ????????

i know at times we can be hyper critical and punch above our weight consistently but wasnt the crap we were spoon fed over the summer that though no one came in we have tied down the players we dont wanna leave.....so where s the benefits ?????