Martinez looks ahead to first warm-up match

We still need players in, everyone seems to be strengthening except us, I don't think two in and two out is enough.

No need to panic just yet Paul... I donÂ’t think weÂ’ll have to wait till the end of August before we see more new faces.

We have to get a CB in quickly because other possible targets are all getting moves like Ogbonna and Astori. Instead of getting bogged down and screwed over by Palace for Dann, just make a move for Vlaar on a free and go from there.

The teams around us are making good signings, we need to do the same.

However, as I live locally, I am really looking forward to taking my two young grandsons to their very first match. Both play regularly at school but don't follow any team but I was over the moon when this fixture was announced as it gives me my first opportunity to see the Blues live since an end-of-season game in the Moyes era at Fulham where we lost 2-0 having just qualified for Europe the next season.

I have followed Everton since 1962; first game was the Charity Shield at Goodison where we walloped Manchester United 4-0, Alex Young, Roy Vernon and all that, so I'll be a very proud Granddad on Saturday. COYB

I don't think any manager would say they want to start the season slow now... would they?

I am going too on Saturday, taking my son 7 Deny-Ray for his first game with his friend William. They are talking up Everton at school and have not seen their team for real yet. They of course love Ross and Rom... some of the goals they have scored have captured their imagination.

They are anoraks already and if your grandchildren need persuading then come and see our two for a chat while we grab a beer, coffee or tea.

I will dig out our seat numbers and come back on that...

BTW I am just so excited to see Deulofeu close up...

In terms of transfers, I think that it has been so good, so far. We do need a couple of more players (CB & No 10 ideally) but that patience can be a virtue (especially if you want to get value for money). LetÂ’s wait til the end of the transfer window (personally I think that should be changed to coincide with the start of the season) until we pass judgement.

Hope the new boys in the stand have a day to remember Ian.

"The teams around us are making good signings, we need to do the same."
"We don't seem to be moving very fast in terms of player recruitment. Other clubs are making signings but all we have are two good players."

I am perpetually confused by this sort of sideways-glancing. The fact of the matter is, Everton wildly underperformed last season – this is a sad, bitter reality – but the players in EFC's squad are so much better, both player-for-player and on the whole, than the players at Palace, Swansea, West Ham, Stoke, and frankly any other club outside of the perennial Top 5-6. (That is not to say that EFC's players always perform better, of course. See last season, for example, obviously.)

And yet, despite this, sentiments like those expressed above fail to acknowledge 1) the difficulty of identifying and 2) the cost of acquiring, players that actually improve the squad. "BUT WEST HAM HAS SIGNED 4 PLAYERS!" Well, no shit, Sherlock – West Ham's existing players suck and finding/purchasing incrementally better ones ain't very difficult!

If you want to understand why Everton seems to behave differently – frustratingly slow – in the transfer market, it is worth considering that Everton occupies a very rare position in the Premier League that no other clubs have to deal with: Relatively little money, Above Average Players.

I don't care one lick "the speed" with which garbage clubs around us are adding to their garbage crop of existing players. They don't have our needs, they don't have our players, and they don't have our budget.

Personally, I'm still waiting for last season to start!

COYB, get it right this time around.... a bit more determination. I don't want to lose, I don't care if it's a friendly against lower league opposition, play with pride and guts at all times....

The biggest problem facing us this summer is attracting players to join a team that finished in the bottom half; we haven't had to deal with that task for nearly a decade or so.

The two guys he's brought in so far have both worked with Martinez before and, in Deulofeu's case, if he'd had a really successful loan spell at Seville, then we wouldn't have been able to sign him quite so easily. You have to ask whether he or Cleverley will even be first choice at the start of the season! Knowing Martinez it will still be the same dross that we suffered last season... We know for sure it's going to be Barry plus one!

He needs at least three more quality players to come in and inject some class and probably more importantly some steel and character into the side.

I'm not a fan of RM and his transfers as he seems a bit hit and miss; we need a class CD now and if that cost £10/15 millions and we have a good season then we will all be happy. If we spend £2-3M and buy someone just to say we have one and finish down the bottom again, we won't be happy.

We must have money — spend it on Dann who has Premier League experience and can come in with no pre-season for him to get used to the speed. I see our squad short in defensive cover; we can survive with all other positions.

Martinez can attract good players and the fact that the likes of Lukaku and Deulofeu returned to play under him (and let's face it, we know both of them could have got more money elsewhere) speaks volumes. Whether you rate him or not, Cleverley has many admirers within the game and he had plenty of options but preferred Everton under Martinez.

We will make more signings, not too many – maybe 2 or 3, but at least Martinez is determined to try and make the right ones. OK, Kone apart (who he signed as he knew him and could trust him from his Wigan days and sadly then got a bad injury), his judgement hasn't been too bad and when players have been a risk they've mainly been on loan hence a low risk.

Martinez has his targets and will wait until they are available, playing the long game (which may see Lennon join us late on for far less than Spurs are probably quoting right now). And regardless of your thoughts on the way he runs the Club, Bill Kenwright has a reputation for being a very shrewd negotiator when it comes to deals.

At the same time though you can hardly blame people for their scepticism regarding our transfer activities over recent years,

Regarding Martinez, I think he's done reasonably okay with his dealings despite a couple of poor choices; he likes his wingers which is always okay with me, he needs to get a far better pattern to his central midfield area, though... and he needs to use the players he's signed better than he has so far.

With regards to Deulofeu, I'd hope he gets more game time than when he was here two years ago and not just last 15-minute cameo performances when it's obvious we are struggling to break down stubborn opposition, especially at Goodison.

I still think we are crying out for a midfield "brain".

Robles
Coleman Stones Jagielka Garbutt
McCarthy Cleverley
Deulofeu Barkley Pienaar
Lukaku

Second X1 and second half
Howard
Browning Hibbert Pennington Galloway
Barry Besic
Mirallas Osman Naismith
Kone

WE ARE SKINT!!!!

We will always be skint under the old regime, even when the league is dripping with money, we are still skint.

It's not Football Manager 2015, where you can just magic money our of nowhere (and for those old fogeys, break into the worksheet and alter the Cash In column).

We will always try and work within our means and that means selling players first before we buy our next "star signing".

Last season, the defence was a shambles and if I had the manager's job, no-one would be safe. No-one. High balls, low balls, we flapped like schoolboys and were pulled out of position. Shooters were not closed down quick enough and, Jags apart, shots were blocked with the seat of the pants with eyes shut. Real sissy stuff.

I could go on all day but I won't. Let's hope we get things together and have a great season.

You're right about the defence too which is why it's good we're (hopefully) bringing in another CB to toughen it up and add competition. It would also be good if the coaches started working more with them as a unit again, like Moyes used too, to make it solid. I like Stones but I wonder if he lacks a bit of aggression in his game at the minute...

I say Jimmy Mac who's always ready to cuff the opposition when they cross the line. Heck, even 'Nisy would be better except that would mean more minutes than we can afford to give him. Unfortunately not a lot of choices.

It means nothing, other than bored lazy journalists are throwing names of players and clubs into a hat.

Nobody knows how much is going on behind the scenes to bring players in. None of this means anything until there's a photo of a player wearing the shirt.

The two probably bigger money signings, LCB and Number 10 will involve a list of 5 or so in each position and then going through the relationship and commercial dance.

Considered, positive insight – lovely read . Thank you!

I have for a long time considered the BK approach as right: keep things financially tight, build the brand, the core philosophy, buy well and sell every now and then, get a really clever manager for the phase of our development and keep it steady.

I really like where we are ...

I don't mean to be a negative nelly, Ste, but I just don't see it.

The Blues’ latest recruit is named in a strong midfield, which also includes James McCarthy, Ross Barkley, Steven Pienaar and Steven Naismith.

Tim Howard starts in goal for the Toffees, with captain Phil Jagielka and Tyias Browning named as the two starting centre-halves, while Brendan Galloway and Seamus Coleman occupy the full-back positions.

Arouna Kone is given the nod to start up front for the first pre-season game against the Robins.

Manager Roberto Martinez is likely to field an almost entirely different team for the second half.