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Craig Fletcher
1 Posted 21/09/2016 at 00:34:53
Agree with your comment on Naismith Paul.

However, he was always going to struggle to get minutes with us which he of course realized, with Lukaku ahead of him.

Personally I applaud the lad. He'd rather get playing time with Norwich (and as of January when he moved, risk going into the Championship which is of course precisely what happened) rather than be a perennial bench-warmer for us in the premier league.

Good luck to him, though he of course had to score against us today didn't he!!

Gordon White
2 Posted 21/09/2016 at 00:38:13
Can't argue with your assessment, Paul. Not one of Barkley's better performances. Very frustrating. Gueye and Coleman stood out for me. Valencia needs to play off someone like Lukaku in my view. Not a lone striker.

Talking of performance, didn't think the officials handled the game very well. Overall, I think this demonstrates what an impact Romelu can have on a game, even without scoring.

John Raftery
3 Posted 21/09/2016 at 01:15:46
From a very early stage in this game it was obvious Valencia was isolated. He is certainly no Lukaku and needs someone alongside him so yes, I was also surprised not to see Kone introduced at the hour mark or earlier.

For me Coleman was our best player. Gana was also decent but was sat too deep in the first half. That wasn't his fault; it was the way the team was set up. Given how deep Norwich were sitting we needed someone like Gana close to Barkley to keep attacks moving from advanced positions. Cleverley was a huge disappointment. He started slowly and became more anonymous as the game progressed. It is hard to see a role for him in a Koeman team.

James Watts
4 Posted 21/09/2016 at 01:42:37
We know we won't see Funes Mori, Cleverley, Lennon or possibly Kone again in first team action until the FA Cup! Barring an injury crisis of course.

Wasn't convinced by Valencia when we loaned him, tonight just backs that up. Panic loan who couldn't get in West Ham's team, so no surprise.

As for Barkley the lad is fast running out of excuses. At 22, he should be pushing on but is going backwards, and fast. He'll be on the bench before long, and wouldn't be surprised to see him in Sunderland colours by the time he's 25. Let's hope RK can sort him out before his career is flushed down the toilet.

Howard Bevan
5 Posted 21/09/2016 at 01:57:28
Why didn't Koeman change the attack earlier? Play 2 up front from the start. Will Geri score? Can Ross put a first-time ball in without a defender reading the pass?

Why do we water the pitch 10 mins before kickoff and drench the Toffee Lady and mascots? Can we have over-30s in my team? Best foot-long hot dog in the Premier League at half time. [I ramble but am frustrated.]

Gary Mortimer
6 Posted 21/09/2016 at 07:38:46
It appears that, if Barkley doesn't score or provide a couple of assists, a lot of people on ToffeeWeb will automatically give him a 4 (or say he was useless) – irrespective of his actual performance such is the expectation on his shoulders. Last night he dithered a couple of times when he should have just shot, but if he had shot and it hadn't gone in, we all know the reaction that he would have received.

Lennon contributed nothing. Cleverley did nothing apart from keep the ball moving in a neat and tidy manner – nothing incisive. Mirallas did nothing when he came on. Bolasie did nothing apart from lose it a few times. Poor old Geri missed a bag full of chances, misplaced crosses and lost possession a lot. Kone touched the ball about 4 times and yet still is rated higher than Barkley by Paul. Valencia looked a bit lightweight to me.

I assume Barkley is the new Osman. If in doubt – blame the local lad. It appears that some people cannot wait for him to mess up, so they can say "I told you that he would never make it". It was annoying, frustrating and disappointing, but no reason to turn on a young lad who needs our support not our vitriol.

We dominated possession and chances last night, but we snatched at them and didn't work their keeper anywhere near enough. You get games like them every season.

Bob Parrington
7 Posted 21/09/2016 at 11:13:57
Thanks, Paul. In your postings, you bring to life the times of my life back in England and the many trips to Goodison during my youth and beyond. Living in Adelaide for the past 30 years, I have still been fortunate enough to go to The Old Lady maybe 12 times and occasionally other EPL venues or others (notably Wimbledon, where they treated my Mrs and I like long lost friends – great club that, too!)

I couldn't watch the Norwich game on TV but your report helps to understand the game. Frankly, the result was predictable – as the French say, C'est la Vie! So let's get on with it and continue to gather EPL points and go for the serious FA Cup.

Koeman is doing just fine!

Colin Williams
8 Posted 21/09/2016 at 11:52:05
Gary (#6)

Top comments! Excellent assessment and view on the game.

I agree 100%!!!

Ste Traverse
9 Posted 21/09/2016 at 13:35:21
I think it just about sums up our record in this competition that even when we had a boss team and won the league by 13 points in 84-85, we STILL managed to get knocked out by Grimsby that season, and at home too.

I think we all read the script once we went a goal down last night. We are jinxed and won't win this thing ever in my lifetime.

Geoff Williams
10 Posted 21/09/2016 at 16:20:17
I didn't think Barkley had the best of games but his contribution to the game and the effort he put in far exceeded Deloufeu's performance.

I am amazed that anyone who avoids physical contact and tackles as he does has made it so far in the game. Barkley was pulled off the other day for losing the ball 11 times; I would love to see Deloufeu's statistics.

John Mckay
11 Posted 22/09/2016 at 09:44:22
I know we haven't ever won the League Cup, but this season might be a blessing to go out early, less games and can focus on the league.

I know it's a big ask but if we can continue our league form until Christmas and be up in that top 4, give the players confidence and a reason to fight for the second half of the season.

We need to get into at least the Europa League so we can start spending some of that Moshiri cash, because people don't want to go to the northwest of England to play football without European football sadly, not these big signings anyway.


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