WHY????

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SaffaBlue

Player Valuation: £750k
Saturday’s defeat at St James Park raised so many questions for me, so I thought I would list them.
Feel free to add more, or indeed feel free to have a constructive go at me. Don’t just spout the ‘kopite’ drivel as that serves no purpose whatsoever:

WHY: Does David Moyes persist in picking a defensive “keep it tight, and see if we can nick one” side? Losing 6 out of the last 7 matches should provide him with a clue that it is NOT working.

WHY: Does Tim Howard, an established international goalkeeper, not command his penalty area at all?

WHY: Is Tony Hibbert seemingly incapable of throwing a ball to a team-mate’s feet? Standard procedure sees the ball bounce around halfway to the man, and they often battle to get it under control.

WHY: Are our throw-ins ONLY taken by the two full-backs? Never ever taking a quick throw allows the opposition all the time in the world to re-group.

WHY: Does Phil Jagielka persist in wellying the ball aimlessly upfield? 99,99% of the time the ball is coming straight back. It is purely and simply gifting possession.

WHY: Was Sylvain Distin, by a country mile our best defender this season, not in the starting 11 on Saturday?

WHY: Leon Osman? Pace, strength, poise, drive, presence, guile, quick feet, etc. Top class central midfielders should have at least 3 of those attributes. Ossie has only one of them. When he’s on form he can be useful – but ONLY in the middle, never never never ever ever out wide!!!!!!! He has been awful lately and yet still starts every match, and invariably ends up playing wide at some stage due to baffling substitutions. So he has “quick feet”. Fair enough, but so did Fred Astaire.

WHY: Swap flanks with Drenthe & Coleman for any length of time against the skunks? Coleman was struggling on the right – his natural side – the result was that neither looked in the least bit comfortable.

WHY: Do we hardly ever get a man to the by-line before crossing?

WHY: Does John Heitinga always give the impression that he’s playing in roller skates?

WHY: Does our self-proclaimed “secret weapon” only get the occasional 10 minutes on the pitch, every 4 or 5 matches?

WHY: Does Phil Neville consistently under-hit passes? These more often than not end up as hospital passes.

WHY: Do we never catch the opposition on the break?

WHY: Are certain players guaranteed a game, irrespective of form?

WHY: All 10 outfield players back to defend corners? This absolutely does my bloody head in!!! This means the opposition can send just about everyone up, as they know there will not be a break on. It also gifts the ball back to the opposition. On Saturday, the skunks won a corner in injury time and we STILL had everyone back to defend! It would surely make sense to leave Drenthe on the halfway line? He’s 5’5” so not much use in our box, but fast as hell, and therefore ideal for a counter-attack.

WHY: Are the vast bulk of our substitutions left too late? They are ALWAYS reactive instead of proactive. I will never forget the match in which Mourinho substituted Boulharouz (spelling?) after 15 minutes of a match against Spurs, when Robbie Keane was having a field day. Could you ever envisage David Moyes doing that?

WHY: Is there always a 15 minute committee meeting between Moyes, Round, Woods & Co, before making a substitution?

WHY: Is Louis Saha always so isolated up front? It seems to me that regardless of whomever our attacking midfielder is, Louis cuts a forlorn and lonely figure. The fact that ‘King Louis’ gets a strop on and sulks when things don’t go his way is another issue, and one that has me screaming with frustration!!!!

WHY: Are the majority of our passes either directly to feet or slightly behind the man? Pass in front of the guy for crying out loud!!!

WHY: Do we persist with what – for want of a better word – can only be called ‘Plan A’. There is not much point in the ‘A’ actually, because there is no ‘Plan B’ or any other plan. If ‘Plan A’ fails, we lose.

WHY: Did we buy Diniyar Bilyaletdinov?

WHY: Was Ross Barkley summarily substituted and dropped from the squad after giving away a penalty against Blackburn? Howard, Jagielka, Hibbert, Neville, Osman, etc……. Make mistake after mistake without suffering similar treatment.

WHY: Does Jack Rodwell look half the player he did not so long ago? Has all of the exuberance and spontaneity been ‘coached’ out of him?

WHY: Does Fellaini keep committing stupid fouls? After 3 years, you would have thought he’d learned by now. Last week against United was a classic example. We all saw the ref warn him, yet he still puts in a daft challenge and gets his 5th yellow. We missed him so much on Saturday.

WHY: Does it look as if all the fire and spirit have been drained from David Moyes? You get paid a bloody fortune, so the least you can do is motivate YOUR players! Bigging up the opposition & phrases like “bringing a knife to a gunfight” do no good whatsoever! We look beaten before we start.

WHY: Do we, after almost 10 years of David Moyes, still have little or no natural width in the side?

WHY: Bring on James McFadden? The guy has hardly played in 18 months, and was ****ing useless when he was first here. OK, so Vellios was injured in the warm-up, but McFadden? By all accounts, Stracqualursi is reputed to be the “new Brett Angell”, but we’ve hardly seen him yet, so are unable to give a proper assessment, whereas we all KNOW that McFadden is utter ****e.

WHY: Do people still cheer when Kenwright’s mug appears on the big screen? So he “Saved us from Johnson”, well thanks for that Bill, but that doesn’t qualify you for unlimited goodwill. Are people really so blinkered and naïve that they cannot see the catastrophic damage that has been done to our once-great club?

WHY: Is David Moyes and his coaching staff unable to get the best out of strikers? Don’t give me the old “…well they were all defenders when they played” bollocks! So were both SAF & Arsene Wenger, and neither of those seem to struggle with attacking football.

WHY: Is a large sector of our support quite prepared to accept an abysmal start to every season? The stock phrases quote are “We will be alright after Christmas” or “David Moyes will turn it around, he always does”. Maybe he has done in the past, but if you carry on playing Russian Roulette year after year, you will eventually blow your own brains out, metaphorically speaking.

WHY: Is anyone that dares speak out immediately labeled a ‘kopite’ or ‘not a True Blue’? I approached this season with a positive attitude for once, but this has disappeared due to the garbage that we witness every single week.

WHY: Are people still under the impression that we are doomed to relegation if David Moyes should leave? This is of course absolute bollocks of the highest order. Have you noticed the direction we have been heading for the last 6 weeks?

WHY: Am I castigated for demanding that we at least TRY and live up to “Nil Satis Nisi Optimum”?

WHY: Have we still not won away at any of the so-called “Big Four”, after 40 (yes, forty!) attempts under David Moyes? Does that not give insight into the mindset of the squad? Did anyone see how Swansea had a damn good go at the ****e on Saturday?

WHY: Is it that people seem to blame the dissenters, and accuse them of "not getting behind the team" and say stuff like" the team will play better if everyone gets behind them and suppirts them". I am of the opinion that iit's a 'chicken and egg' scenario. Give us something to shout about!!!!!

So many questions…….. So few answers.

Yours sincerely

Depressed, Benoni, South Africa.
 
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Great post lad - dont know all the answers - but sums up what most supporters are now thinking and saying. Its very depressing supporting Everton at the moment.
 
WHY has my sandwich got far too much mayo on it? Do people not understand that I don't want my sandwich to be wet ffs
 
Alex Ferguson was a striker.

It is a horrible time to be an evertonian at the moment, the thing that bugs me most is the lack of ambition shown by not only the board - they have to protect the club financially - but by DM and the players
 
*Applauds*

And these two things you highlighted are my pet hates too:

WHY: Are our throw-ins ONLY taken by the two full-backs? Never ever taking a quick throw allows the opposition all the time in the world to re-group.

WHY: Are the majority of our passes either directly to feet or slightly behind the man? Pass in front of the guy for crying out loud!!!


It's often the small things that mean so much in a game and get on people's tits most of all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 

Saturday’s defeat at St James Park raised so many questions for me, so I thought I would list them.
Feel free to add more, or indeed feel free to have a constructive go at me. Don’t just spout the ‘kopite’ drivel as that serves no purpose whatsoever:

WHY: Does David Moyes persist in picking a defensive “keep it tight, and see if we can nick one” side? Losing 6 out of the last 7 matches should provide him with a clue that it is NOT working.

Unsure on this. The extra man in midfield was something useful for us a few years ago, but one has to question the logic of it now. Osman, unfortunately considering he was being played in his "best position", had a very quiet game. Rodwell still seems a little reluctant to demand the ball, and Neville is shot and completely ineffective these days. So the extra man didn't count whatsoever, and we were left with an isolated striker who was actually winning a few flick-ons from the pointless long balls he was being served.

WHY: Does Tim Howard, an established international goalkeeper, not command his penalty area at all?

It's his only significant flaw as a keeper for me.

WHY: Is Tony Hibbert seemingly incapable of throwing a ball to a team-mate’s feet? Standard procedure sees the ball bounce around halfway to the man, and they often battle to get it under control.

Most of our players are a bit thick, which is telling.

WHY: Are our throw-ins ONLY taken by the two full-backs? Never ever taking a quick throw allows the opposition all the time in the world to re-group.

Meh

WHY: Does Phil Jagielka persist in wellying the ball aimlessly upfield? 99,99% of the time the ball is coming straight back. It is purely and simply gifting possession.

It's annoying, I agree. He defended quite well on Saturday, though, and I think the lack of movement from our midfielders, coupled with the fact he's aware he's not particularly good with the ball at his feet, mean he thinks the least risky option is the aimless punt.

WHY: Was Sylvain Distin, by a country mile our best defender this season, not in the starting 11 on Saturday?

He wasn't fully fit was he? Plus Heitinga's ability to pass a ball played a part.


WHY: Leon Osman? Pace, strength, poise, drive, presence, guile, quick feet, etc. Top class central midfielders should have at least 3 of those attributes. Ossie has only one of them. When he’s on form he can be useful – but ONLY in the middle, never never never ever ever out wide!!!!!!! He has been awful lately and yet still starts every match, and invariably ends up playing wide at some stage due to baffling substitutions. So he has “quick feet”. Fair enough, but so did Fred Astaire.

He played in the middle on Sat and failed to deliver. He's yet to rekindle the form he showed in the second half of last season.

WHY: Swap flanks with Drenthe & Coleman for any length of time against the skunks? Coleman was struggling on the right – his natural side – the result was that neither looked in the least bit comfortable.

I thought Drenthe looked much more effective on the right. He did nothing on the left.

WHY: Do we hardly ever get a man to the by-line before crossing?

Because Baines is the only player capable of it (perhaps Drenthe will be but he hasn't shown it yet) and he also has to remember to defend.

WHY: Does John Heitinga always give the impression that he’s playing in roller skates?

Because he's a ****.

WHY: Does our self-proclaimed “secret weapon” only get the occasional 10 minutes on the pitch, every 4 or 5 matches?

Who's that? Vellios?

WHY: Does Phil Neville consistently under-hit passes? These more often than not end up as hospital passes.

Because he's not a very good footballer.


WHY: Do we never catch the opposition on the break?

It used to be because we had no pace. Now it's because we have no good passers to exploit our pace.

WHY: Are certain players guaranteed a game, irrespective of form?

Same for most clubs.

WHY: All 10 outfield players back to defend corners? This absolutely does my bloody head in!!! This means the opposition can send just about everyone up, as they know there will not be a break on. It also gifts the ball back to the opposition. On Saturday, the skunks won a corner in injury time and we STILL had everyone back to defend! It would surely make sense to leave Drenthe on the halfway line? He’s 5’5” so not much use in our box, but fast as hell, and therefore ideal for a counter-attack.

Fair point.

WHY: Are the vast bulk of our substitutions left too late? They are ALWAYS reactive instead of proactive. I will never forget the match in which Mourinho substituted Boulharouz (spelling?) after 15 minutes of a match against Spurs, when Robbie Keane was having a field day. Could you ever envisage David Moyes doing that?

Moyes has been MUCH better at introducing subs earlier this season, albeit to little effect.


WHY: Is there always a 15 minute committee meeting between Moyes, Round, Woods & Co, before making a substitution?

It does seem like Moyes relies heavily on the opinion of Round.


WHY: Is Louis Saha always so isolated up front? It seems to me that regardless of whomever our attacking midfielder is, Louis cuts a forlorn and lonely figure. The fact that ‘King Louis’ gets a strop on and sulks when things don’t go his way is another issue, and one that has me screaming with frustration!!!!

Because we play him up front alone and none of our midfielders effectively support him.


WHY: Are the majority of our passes either directly to feet or slightly behind the man? Pass in front of the guy for crying out loud!!!

Infuriating. So many of our players seem quite thoughtless when it comes to how to pass a ball, and I do think it's a coaching problem. Nobody aside from Baines seems confident on the ball.

WHY: Do we persist with what – for want of a better word – can only be called ‘Plan A’. There is not much point in the ‘A’ actually, because there is no ‘Plan B’ or any other plan. If ‘Plan A’ fails, we lose.

Limited quality.


WHY: Did we buy Diniyar Bilyaletdinov?

Because Moyes didn't appreciate the dry sarcasm of Hiddink.

WHY: Was Ross Barkley summarily substituted and dropped from the squad after giving away a penalty against Blackburn? Howard, Jagielka, Hibbert, Neville, Osman, etc……. Make mistake after mistake without suffering similar treatment.

To be fair, Barkley got a start against WBA in the cup and was a half-time sub against Man Utd. He didn't play particularly well in either game.

WHY: Does Jack Rodwell look half the player he did not so long ago? Has all of the exuberance and spontaneity been ‘coached’ out of him?

Rodwell's best early performances were in games where, for different reasons, he had a lot more space in midfield. He's always really hinted at his full potential, rather than showing it in, say, successive starts. I don't think anything has been coached out of him, but confidence certainly hasn't been coached in.

WHY: Does Fellaini keep committing stupid fouls? After 3 years, you would have thought he’d learned by now. Last week against United was a classic example. We all saw the ref warn him, yet he still puts in a daft challenge and gets his 5th yellow. We missed him so much on Saturday.

Agreed. Five yellows in eight games is ridiculous. He's still our best player this season.


WHY: Does it look as if all the fire and spirit have been drained from David Moyes? You get paid a bloody fortune, so the least you can do is motivate YOUR players! Bigging up the opposition & phrases like “bringing a knife to a gunfight” do no good whatsoever! We look beaten before we start.

Not the first time. He's looked similarly dejected at roughly the same stage of the last 3 seasons. Honestly, I think he suffers a bit with some form of depression.

WHY: Do we, after almost 10 years of David Moyes, still have little or no natural width in the side?

He's tried a couple of times, but he's generally a more conservative coach.

WHY: Bring on James McFadden? The guy has hardly played in 18 months, and was ****ing useless when he was first here. OK, so Vellios was injured in the warm-up, but McFadden? By all accounts, Stracqualursi is reputed to be the “new Brett Angell”, but we’ve hardly seen him yet, so are unable to give a proper assessment, whereas we all KNOW that McFadden is utter ****e.

But despite all that, McFadden actually looked quite bright when he came on, and did more in his few minutes than Osman or Coleman did all game. Saying that, we had a big guy on the bench who we could've pumped long balls up to. We probably should've utilised that option.

WHY: Do people still cheer when Kenwright’s mug appears on the big screen? So he “Saved us from Johnson”, well thanks for that Bill, but that doesn’t qualify you for unlimited goodwill. Are people really so blinkered and naïve that they cannot see the catastrophic damage that has been done to our once-great club?

Meh

WHY: Is David Moyes and his coaching staff unable to get the best out of strikers? Don’t give me the old “…well they were all defenders when they played” bollocks! So were both SAF & Arsene Wenger, and neither of those seem to struggle with attacking football.

SAF was a striker. Anyway, I'm never sure about this comment. Saha has played well in patches, but injuries have hampered him - just the same as when he was at Fulham and Man Utd. Yakubu had a good first season then got a very bad injury. Moyes didn;t like his attitude, but Yak had a track record of becoming uninterested at both Middlesborough and Portsmouth. Johnson was a limited player who had a decent first season. Beattie was already fat. Beckford did alright. I don't think Moyes and the staff fail to get anything less than what anyone else would from the strikers we've had recently.

WHY: Is a large sector of our support quite prepared to accept an abysmal start to every season? The stock phrases quote are “We will be alright after Christmas” or “David Moyes will turn it around, he always does”. Maybe he has done in the past, but if you carry on playing Russian Roulette year after year, you will eventually blow your own brains out, metaphorically speaking.

People are different.

WHY: Is anyone that dares speak out immediately labeled a ‘kopite’ or ‘not a True Blue’? I approached this season with a positive attitude for once, but this has disappeared due to the garbage that we witness every single week.

People are stupid.


WHY: Are people still under the impression that we are doomed to relegation if David Moyes should leave? This is of course absolute bollocks of the highest order. Have you noticed the direction we have been heading for the last 6 weeks?

Because Moyes has overperformed and our squad looks much weaker now than it has over the last four years. Granted, there are a few promising young players, but Arteta and Pienaar were never properly replaced and we don't have a senior striker capable of playing an entire season. A new manager would find the job difficult, and we aren't in a position to bring in a top class boss anyway.

WHY: Am I castigated for demanding that we at least TRY and live up to “Nil Satis Nisi Optimum”?

Dunno. At least you're not castrated.

WHY: Have we still not won away at any of the so-called “Big Four”, after 40 (yes, forty!) attempts under David Moyes? Does that not give insight into the mindset of the squad? Did anyone see how Swansea had a damn good go at the ****e on Saturday?

Well, the big four are all much better than us. So, probably that.

WHY: Is it that people seem to blame the dissenters, and accuse them of "not getting behind the team" and say stuff like" the team will play better if everyone gets behind them and suppirts them". I am of the opinion that iit's a 'chicken and egg' scenario. Give us something to shout about!!!!!

Well, it's certainly the case that when the crowd are really up for it the team plays better. That's probably what people mean. I SUPPOSE, if players read message boards, they might be a little down-hearted to read things like "Rodwell's a crab-[Poor language removed]" or "I hope fizzer gets AIDS", but I think it's more a case of the first thing I said.

So many questions…….. So few answers.

Yours sincerely

Depressed, Benoni, South Africa.

Some responses.
 
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Can't disagree with any of those questions. Good post, my worry is that the frustration we feel will soon turn into fear, especially if we lose to Wolves. Presumably if we do lose, the BU will be blamed.

For what it's worth my favourite three are:


WHY: Does David Moyes persist in picking a defensive “keep it tight, and see if we can nick one” side? Losing 6 out of the last 7 matches should provide him with a clue that it is NOT working.
WHY: All 10 outfield players back to defend corners?
WHY: Are the majority of our passes either directly to feet or slightly behind the man? Pass in front of the guy for crying out loud!!!

But I could agree with almost all the points
 
Why .... are we expected to pay to watch this shyte ? If they fail to deliver then the games should be 'credited.'

We fork out our money to see a team win or at least try to win, I don't think I've ever gone to a game where 'not losing' was my reason for attending, yet so far this season that is exactly what has been dished up, and failed on too many occasions, what they are serving up is not what was on the menu when I renewed.
 
Agree with most of the points, but...

WHY? Does Saha get such an easy ride from you?

Along with Neville, easily our worst, least effective player.

He has flattered to decieve since he signed, yet somehow managed to see off Yak. The man is a fraud, and the 1 on 1 he missed on Saturday was criminal.

He should never play for Everton again.
 

Saturday’s defeat at St James Park raised so many questions for me, so I thought I would list them.
Feel free to add more, or indeed feel free to have a constructive go at me. Don’t just spout the ‘kopite’ drivel as that serves no purpose whatsoever:

WHY: Does David Moyes persist in picking a defensive “keep it tight, and see if we can nick one” side? Losing 6 out of the last 7 matches should provide him with a clue that it is NOT working.

WHY: Does Tim Howard, an established international goalkeeper, not command his penalty area at all?

WHY: Is Tony Hibbert seemingly incapable of throwing a ball to a team-mate’s feet? Standard procedure sees the ball bounce around halfway to the man, and they often battle to get it under control.

WHY: Are our throw-ins ONLY taken by the two full-backs? Never ever taking a quick throw allows the opposition all the time in the world to re-group.

WHY: Does Phil Jagielka persist in wellying the ball aimlessly upfield? 99,99% of the time the ball is coming straight back. It is purely and simply gifting possession.

WHY: Was Sylvain Distin, by a country mile our best defender this season, not in the starting 11 on Saturday?

WHY: Leon Osman? Pace, strength, poise, drive, presence, guile, quick feet, etc. Top class central midfielders should have at least 3 of those attributes. Ossie has only one of them. When he’s on form he can be useful – but ONLY in the middle, never never never ever ever out wide!!!!!!! He has been awful lately and yet still starts every match, and invariably ends up playing wide at some stage due to baffling substitutions. So he has “quick feet”. Fair enough, but so did Fred Astaire.

WHY: Swap flanks with Drenthe & Coleman for any length of time against the skunks? Coleman was struggling on the right – his natural side – the result was that neither looked in the least bit comfortable.

WHY: Do we hardly ever get a man to the by-line before crossing?

WHY: Does John Heitinga always give the impression that he’s playing in roller skates?

WHY: Does our self-proclaimed “secret weapon” only get the occasional 10 minutes on the pitch, every 4 or 5 matches?

WHY: Does Phil Neville consistently under-hit passes? These more often than not end up as hospital passes.

WHY: Do we never catch the opposition on the break?

WHY: Are certain players guaranteed a game, irrespective of form?

WHY: All 10 outfield players back to defend corners? This absolutely does my bloody head in!!! This means the opposition can send just about everyone up, as they know there will not be a break on. It also gifts the ball back to the opposition. On Saturday, the skunks won a corner in injury time and we STILL had everyone back to defend! It would surely make sense to leave Drenthe on the halfway line? He’s 5’5” so not much use in our box, but fast as hell, and therefore ideal for a counter-attack.

WHY: Are the vast bulk of our substitutions left too late? They are ALWAYS reactive instead of proactive. I will never forget the match in which Mourinho substituted Boulharouz (spelling?) after 15 minutes of a match against Spurs, when Robbie Keane was having a field day. Could you ever envisage David Moyes doing that?

WHY: Is there always a 15 minute committee meeting between Moyes, Round, Woods & Co, before making a substitution?

WHY: Is Louis Saha always so isolated up front? It seems to me that regardless of whomever our attacking midfielder is, Louis cuts a forlorn and lonely figure. The fact that ‘King Louis’ gets a strop on and sulks when things don’t go his way is another issue, and one that has me screaming with frustration!!!!

WHY: Are the majority of our passes either directly to feet or slightly behind the man? Pass in front of the guy for crying out loud!!!

WHY: Do we persist with what – for want of a better word – can only be called ‘Plan A’. There is not much point in the ‘A’ actually, because there is no ‘Plan B’ or any other plan. If ‘Plan A’ fails, we lose.

WHY: Did we buy Diniyar Bilyaletdinov?

WHY: Was Ross Barkley summarily substituted and dropped from the squad after giving away a penalty against Blackburn? Howard, Jagielka, Hibbert, Neville, Osman, etc……. Make mistake after mistake without suffering similar treatment.

WHY: Does Jack Rodwell look half the player he did not so long ago? Has all of the exuberance and spontaneity been ‘coached’ out of him?

WHY: Does Fellaini keep committing stupid fouls? After 3 years, you would have thought he’d learned by now. Last week against United was a classic example. We all saw the ref warn him, yet he still puts in a daft challenge and gets his 5th yellow. We missed him so much on Saturday.

WHY: Does it look as if all the fire and spirit have been drained from David Moyes? You get paid a bloody fortune, so the least you can do is motivate YOUR players! Bigging up the opposition & phrases like “bringing a knife to a gunfight” do no good whatsoever! We look beaten before we start.

WHY: Do we, after almost 10 years of David Moyes, still have little or no natural width in the side?

WHY: Bring on James McFadden? The guy has hardly played in 18 months, and was ****ing useless when he was first here. OK, so Vellios was injured in the warm-up, but McFadden? By all accounts, Stracqualursi is reputed to be the “new Brett Angell”, but we’ve hardly seen him yet, so are unable to give a proper assessment, whereas we all KNOW that McFadden is utter ****e.

WHY: Do people still cheer when Kenwright’s mug appears on the big screen? So he “Saved us from Johnson”, well thanks for that Bill, but that doesn’t qualify you for unlimited goodwill. Are people really so blinkered and naïve that they cannot see the catastrophic damage that has been done to our once-great club?

WHY: Is David Moyes and his coaching staff unable to get the best out of strikers? Don’t give me the old “…well they were all defenders when they played” bollocks! So were both SAF & Arsene Wenger, and neither of those seem to struggle with attacking football.

WHY: Is a large sector of our support quite prepared to accept an abysmal start to every season? The stock phrases quote are “We will be alright after Christmas” or “David Moyes will turn it around, he always does”. Maybe he has done in the past, but if you carry on playing Russian Roulette year after year, you will eventually blow your own brains out, metaphorically speaking.

WHY: Is anyone that dares speak out immediately labeled a ‘kopite’ or ‘not a True Blue’? I approached this season with a positive attitude for once, but this has disappeared due to the garbage that we witness every single week.

WHY: Are people still under the impression that we are doomed to relegation if David Moyes should leave? This is of course absolute bollocks of the highest order. Have you noticed the direction we have been heading for the last 6 weeks?

WHY: Am I castigated for demanding that we at least TRY and live up to “Nil Satis Nisi Optimum”?

WHY: Have we still not won away at any of the so-called “Big Four”, after 40 (yes, forty!) attempts under David Moyes? Does that not give insight into the mindset of the squad? Did anyone see how Swansea had a damn good go at the ****e on Saturday?

WHY: Is it that people seem to blame the dissenters, and accuse them of "not getting behind the team" and say stuff like" the team will play better if everyone gets behind them and suppirts them". I am of the opinion that iit's a 'chicken and egg' scenario. Give us something to shout about!!!!!

So many questions…….. So few answers.

Yours sincerely

Depressed, Benoni, South Africa.
your spot on my man ,take a bow son
 
*Applauds*

And these two things you highlighted are my pet hates too:

WHY: Are our throw-ins ONLY taken by the two full-backs? Never ever taking a quick throw allows the opposition all the time in the world to re-group.

WHY: Are the majority of our passes either directly to feet or slightly behind the man? Pass in front of the guy for crying out loud!!!


It's often the small things that mean so much in a game and get on people's tits most of all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Exactly, our play is so mechanical. 99% of the time, we take at least 2 to 3 touches. If we are behind the halfway line, it's either a hoof forward or a slow paced pass sideways. When we are attacking, it's usually the 'straight' ball behind or right at a team-mate's feet. Our players not only lack direction with their passes, it's the inordinate amount of time they take to release the ball, the inability to pick the right pass, and the inability to change the pace on a pass that has us chugging along at the moment. I think this mainly comes down to coaching methods.
 
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Excellent post, only people wearing blinkers could be critical of the many questions you raise. The none pro-active subs really bug me. I got tutted at by several fans at the Utd game by imploring Moyes to do something other than stand on the touchline with his arms folded.
 
Saturday’s defeat at St James Park raised so many questions for me, so I thought I would list them.
Feel free to add more, or indeed feel free to have a constructive go at me. Don’t just spout the ‘kopite’ drivel as that serves no purpose whatsoever:

WHY: Does David Moyes persist in picking a defensive “keep it tight, and see if we can nick one” side? Losing 6 out of the last 7 matches should provide him with a clue that it is NOT working.

WHY: Does Tim Howard, an established international goalkeeper, not command his penalty area at all?

WHY: Is Tony Hibbert seemingly incapable of throwing a ball to a team-mate’s feet? Standard procedure sees the ball bounce around halfway to the man, and they often battle to get it under control.

WHY: Are our throw-ins ONLY taken by the two full-backs? Never ever taking a quick throw allows the opposition all the time in the world to re-group.

WHY: Does Phil Jagielka persist in wellying the ball aimlessly upfield? 99,99% of the time the ball is coming straight back. It is purely and simply gifting possession.

WHY: Was Sylvain Distin, by a country mile our best defender this season, not in the starting 11 on Saturday?

WHY: Leon Osman? Pace, strength, poise, drive, presence, guile, quick feet, etc. Top class central midfielders should have at least 3 of those attributes. Ossie has only one of them. When he’s on form he can be useful – but ONLY in the middle, never never never ever ever out wide!!!!!!! He has been awful lately and yet still starts every match, and invariably ends up playing wide at some stage due to baffling substitutions. So he has “quick feet”. Fair enough, but so did Fred Astaire.

WHY: Swap flanks with Drenthe & Coleman for any length of time against the skunks? Coleman was struggling on the right – his natural side – the result was that neither looked in the least bit comfortable.

WHY: Do we hardly ever get a man to the by-line before crossing?

WHY: Does John Heitinga always give the impression that he’s playing in roller skates?

WHY: Does our self-proclaimed “secret weapon” only get the occasional 10 minutes on the pitch, every 4 or 5 matches?

WHY: Does Phil Neville consistently under-hit passes? These more often than not end up as hospital passes.

WHY: Do we never catch the opposition on the break?

WHY: Are certain players guaranteed a game, irrespective of form?

WHY: All 10 outfield players back to defend corners? This absolutely does my bloody head in!!! This means the opposition can send just about everyone up, as they know there will not be a break on. It also gifts the ball back to the opposition. On Saturday, the skunks won a corner in injury time and we STILL had everyone back to defend! It would surely make sense to leave Drenthe on the halfway line? He’s 5’5” so not much use in our box, but fast as hell, and therefore ideal for a counter-attack.

WHY: Are the vast bulk of our substitutions left too late? They are ALWAYS reactive instead of proactive. I will never forget the match in which Mourinho substituted Boulharouz (spelling?) after 15 minutes of a match against Spurs, when Robbie Keane was having a field day. Could you ever envisage David Moyes doing that?

WHY: Is there always a 15 minute committee meeting between Moyes, Round, Woods & Co, before making a substitution?

WHY: Is Louis Saha always so isolated up front? It seems to me that regardless of whomever our attacking midfielder is, Louis cuts a forlorn and lonely figure. The fact that ‘King Louis’ gets a strop on and sulks when things don’t go his way is another issue, and one that has me screaming with frustration!!!!

WHY: Are the majority of our passes either directly to feet or slightly behind the man? Pass in front of the guy for crying out loud!!!

WHY: Do we persist with what – for want of a better word – can only be called ‘Plan A’. There is not much point in the ‘A’ actually, because there is no ‘Plan B’ or any other plan. If ‘Plan A’ fails, we lose.

WHY: Did we buy Diniyar Bilyaletdinov?

WHY: Was Ross Barkley summarily substituted and dropped from the squad after giving away a penalty against Blackburn? Howard, Jagielka, Hibbert, Neville, Osman, etc……. Make mistake after mistake without suffering similar treatment.

WHY: Does Jack Rodwell look half the player he did not so long ago? Has all of the exuberance and spontaneity been ‘coached’ out of him?

WHY: Does Fellaini keep committing stupid fouls? After 3 years, you would have thought he’d learned by now. Last week against United was a classic example. We all saw the ref warn him, yet he still puts in a daft challenge and gets his 5th yellow. We missed him so much on Saturday.

WHY: Does it look as if all the fire and spirit have been drained from David Moyes? You get paid a bloody fortune, so the least you can do is motivate YOUR players! Bigging up the opposition & phrases like “bringing a knife to a gunfight” do no good whatsoever! We look beaten before we start.

WHY: Do we, after almost 10 years of David Moyes, still have little or no natural width in the side?

WHY: Bring on James McFadden? The guy has hardly played in 18 months, and was ****ing useless when he was first here. OK, so Vellios was injured in the warm-up, but McFadden? By all accounts, Stracqualursi is reputed to be the “new Brett Angell”, but we’ve hardly seen him yet, so are unable to give a proper assessment, whereas we all KNOW that McFadden is utter ****e.

WHY: Do people still cheer when Kenwright’s mug appears on the big screen? So he “Saved us from Johnson”, well thanks for that Bill, but that doesn’t qualify you for unlimited goodwill. Are people really so blinkered and naïve that they cannot see the catastrophic damage that has been done to our once-great club?

WHY: Is David Moyes and his coaching staff unable to get the best out of strikers? Don’t give me the old “…well they were all defenders when they played” bollocks! So were both SAF & Arsene Wenger, and neither of those seem to struggle with attacking football.

WHY: Is a large sector of our support quite prepared to accept an abysmal start to every season? The stock phrases quote are “We will be alright after Christmas” or “David Moyes will turn it around, he always does”. Maybe he has done in the past, but if you carry on playing Russian Roulette year after year, you will eventually blow your own brains out, metaphorically speaking.

WHY: Is anyone that dares speak out immediately labeled a ‘kopite’ or ‘not a True Blue’? I approached this season with a positive attitude for once, but this has disappeared due to the garbage that we witness every single week.

WHY: Are people still under the impression that we are doomed to relegation if David Moyes should leave? This is of course absolute bollocks of the highest order. Have you noticed the direction we have been heading for the last 6 weeks?

WHY: Am I castigated for demanding that we at least TRY and live up to “Nil Satis Nisi Optimum”?

WHY: Have we still not won away at any of the so-called “Big Four”, after 40 (yes, forty!) attempts under David Moyes? Does that not give insight into the mindset of the squad? Did anyone see how Swansea had a damn good go at the ****e on Saturday?

WHY: Is it that people seem to blame the dissenters, and accuse them of "not getting behind the team" and say stuff like" the team will play better if everyone gets behind them and suppirts them". I am of the opinion that iit's a 'chicken and egg' scenario. Give us something to shout about!!!!!

So many questions…….. So few answers.

Yours sincerely

Depressed, Benoni, South Africa.

i wonder has he ever kept ball in control more than 2 seconds?
 

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