Soft penalty but Everton were second best

Coleman Right Midfield then?

So much for bold fearless attacking football, that to me is just waiting to be lambs to the slaughter. ItÂ’s all well and good having loads of defenders out there but the way we lose the ball on the edge of our own box so much, itÂ’s not going to matter.

I fear we could lose 5- or 6-0 today, depends what mood Man City are in and if we start that usual self-destruct bollox again, like last week at Spurs. (I see Palace held them with simplicity easily today eh?)

I applaud any Evertonians willing to watch this next two hours, happy suffering lads!

They or at least one could have made the bench no?

I know they will probably play on Thursday against the Russians but tonightÂ’s team pretty much says to me weÂ’d be happy with a narrow loss.

The mentality has changed a lot.

For ChristÂ’s sake, Everton, show some fucking attacking threat PLEASE!!!!

Man City have no Aguero and no Kompany so please at least look like a team!!!

A midfield that includes Barry and Besic for me is a complete recipe for non-event attacking football.

Barry had a great season last term but the fact is he looks way way too slow these days, the amount of times he loses the ball is embarrassing to be honest now.

Man City starting to dominate now, itÂ’s almost like we are just here to admire City and accept defeat. IÂ’m seriously starting to doubt whether Martinez can motivate this team anymore.

So much for fearless attacking football, we donÂ’t even look as good as fucking Stoke as an attacking force.

Where was Martinez when Bojan went to Stoke?

This is a bad Everton team, forget injuries or what, we are poor, we have been poor all season in the league and IÂ’d be amazed if we are not looking over our shoulder at the bottom four or five come the end of January or February.

There is quite simply nothing there.

Pass, pass, pass... lose the ball... pass, pass going nowhere.

This is as bad as the worst seasonÂ’s under Moyes and I challenge anyone who even is ignorant or clouded enough to argue with that.

Punchless dire crap.

I am looking forward to a Besic - McCarthy partnership in front of back four. Barry off, Barkley on, playing deep after another 10-15 minutes .

EtoÂ’o. Lukaku and Mirallas should take turns in making Mangala face his own goal. Red card waiting...

I get tired of "big clubs" getting calls.

This by far is one of the worst displays by a referee this season, and that is being generous.

It looks the same canÂ’t be arsed running attitude from us again.

We are not closing City down with any aggression or vigour.
We are moving the ball so slowly again.
Nobody is willing to run with the ball just walk, pass it sideways and backwards.

We are a poor pointless team to watch this term.
City havenÂ’t got Aguero or Kompany and basically havenÂ’t even had to get out of first gear, if they do then your looking at 3-0..

At least Moyes could fucking motivate them at times, whatÂ’s the point of Duncan Ferguson as coach?

And how big is that QPR home game going to be next Monday?

Lose that (even draw it) and the vast majority of the natives will not be happy.

Martinez is becoming Moyes. Dour and predictable.

The problem is what we know, the centre of midfield has no variety, itÂ’s all much of a muchness.

We must be one of the most boring sluggish sides along with Sunderland to watch, itÂ’s woefully slow, we hardly put a good noteworthy move together.

For fucks sake these havenÂ’t even got Kompay in defence.

Have a real go Everton, play like your lives depend on it, play it like itÂ’s a cup final.

He shouldnÂ’t be allowed anywhere near another corner until he spends hours on the training ground.

It’s boring crap – really very slow.

No-one seriously expected victory here but we remain toothless and the managerÂ’s responses are increasingly baffling.

I am becoming very concerned indeed about our Premier League form, this is starting to look like a dangerous rut weÂ’re in.

First the penalty. It never was and Jagielka, you are never a captain! Your reaction shouldÂ’ve been one of Terry or Gerrard to jump in the refÂ’s face and protest; however, you reacted like "Oh well..."!

The team in general: no fight, no passion, no pace, imagination or flair. Fucked off if I will pay to watch that whilst you all live like kings. Tonight, I am ashamed to be an Everton fan.

And what was that all about playing Hibbo up front? This was almost like watching a ginger team – oblong pegs in diamond shaped holes.

Fucking hell talk about easy pleased.

City were without their two most influential players, had one eye on Roma away and didnÂ’t get out of first gear.

Everton??
Well we centered through the majority of the match at walking pace until Barkley came on and we realised City were actually there for the taking, we managed to force one save out of Joe Hart...wow.
Oh a take a succession of bollox corners (whatÂ’s new there) summed up by EtoÂ’o with the last kick.

Its another loss.
Four wins in 15 now, and no doubt against QPR next week weÂ’ll turn up thinking like our usual cocky selves only to come up against a side that will play defensively for the point and stifle us easily.

What a shite shite season.

Still, City defended as a team throughout, mixed it up and control us in the areas it mattered.

I love Distin but his pace has gone and increasingly will struggle, Barkley looked great but unfortunately wasnÂ’t when it came to the final boil / making a tangible difference.

Need McCarthy back and a result or two to get us on the up, still not firing. And Baines corners - JESUS!!!

I really cannot get what people see in Besic, he was terrible again today and Osman would have offered more.

Barry too had yet another very poor game, Coleman and Baines need a kick in the arse cant remember the last time either played well.

Plus points - Distin had a very good game and EtoÂ’o showed more fight than any other player on the pitch.

Barkley made a difference when he came on but he is paying now for that dive against West Ham, harshly booked today but refs have him marked.

Lukaku got one chance and would have scored but for a brilliant save, imagine how many goals he could get if he got decent service.

I fear if the manager does not change the friendly match style of football then staying in the league will become our main aim.

The passing at the back is causing goals to be conceded as the defence is to slow to get out and press. The penalty came about today due to our players pissing about at the back. Sadly we have been caught out again and that must change.

The manager did not change his beliefs at wigan and we know how that ended up!

IÂ’m sure Baines does actually practice set pieces for what itÂ’s worth.

RossÂ’ reputation now cemented it would seem. ThatÂ’s a free kick for a player without a history of diving.

Gabe of narrow margins decided by a Â’home penalty decisionÂ’.

I donÂ’t know what has happened to Martinez this season, but we are bad. We donÂ’t seem to have any drive, look at Stoke today. IÂ’m concerned with most of the dross he has brought from Wigan, and the future doesnÂ’t look good. We are just plain awful to watch.

If our stadium and Chairman werenÂ’t embarrassing enough, our football is shocking, utterly shocking. This takes me back to the worst of MoyesÂ’s tactics and Smith before him. We are about as quick out of defense as a constipated sloth.

Lukaku was unlucky with his chance, world class save from Hart, but other than that one shot I cannot remember anything else that we did that came close to threatening a goal, never mind being a decent chance.

Spurs away, Hull at home and City away and weÂ’ve got one point to show from it.

Hmmm...

Not a totally bad performance but not a very good one either. IÂ’m not arsed about the Europa League at the moment and RM keeps mentioning that we top our group. We need bread and butter points in the PL otherwise we will be in a dog-fight at the wrong end of the table.

So many players performing badly. Coleman and Baines both awful the last 2 games. Barry so ponderous. Distin looking knackered. Mirallas starts OK then disappears.

Too many donÂ’t seem bothered. At least EtoÂ’o got angry and looked like he wanted to win. Lukaku didnÂ’t do much but why donÂ’t we get the ball in front of him more? One time it happened and it was our one chance.

Are you watching the game in the boozer?

EtoÂ’o had a great second half especially.

Other than Stones and maybe McCarthy, heÂ’ll have everyone back and rested.

Europa aside (both Wolfsburg games and an element of luck), weÂ’ve been shit since April, lets be honest.

We ainÂ’t going to have a great season so I suppose itÂ’s a question of getting to safety and start planning for next season.

Firstly, the ref has had a shocker – not a penalty, at least one Man City red, Barkley yellow etc come to mind. Bar his performance, we would have got a point which we probably deserved but Man City really were there for the taking...

The biggest negative for me was Gareth Barry. He once again gave the ball away for the goal, like he did at Spurs last week. In the past, he has also given away a penalty in the FA Cup at Arsenal and two free kicks that led to two goal in two of the previous three derbies. Not to mention injuring Barkely and Lukaku... I think he is one of the clumsiest players I have ever seen as well as the slowest and I think itÂ’s time to play Barkley in central midfield. There isnÂ’t much to lose from trying this out and it means we can have EtoÂ’o in the #10 position.

People on here criticising EtoÂ’o but I thought he played well today. He beat men, tried things and while it didnÂ’t always come off, at least he looked like he cared, unlike some.

Lukaku is also turning the corner now too. His one chance would have beaten most goalies and he will score many a goal if given the chances.

Overall, an indifferent performance with some positives. My biggest gripe though again involves Garreth Barry. Moments after the final whistle goes, the cameras catch him laughing away with Milner. Not at all what I expect from an Everton player who has just lost and arguable was our worst player on the day.

The ref was a dog. It could easily be argued he cost us a point.

We loose to QPR next week the fans will tear down the mural.

Totally agree with you Colin on EtoÂ’oÂ’s performance. MotM for City had to be Barry.

We go to the so-called big clubs just looking for a draw, with the manager giving post match interviews talking about how we were "close" after losing 1-0, with one shot on goal. A piss poor Summer preseason. And now we sit closer to relegation than anywhere European places.

And IÂ’m sorry, if people donÂ’t think that relegation is even a possibility, youÂ’re deluded. The team shows no cohesion, the manager sticks to his favorite old timers regardless of form, we struggle to even get a shot on goal, regardless of whether weÂ’re playing Hull or City or Spurs.

Everton are a poor side, period.

Bias to the big teams was in full effect today. An intentional studs up needless challenge is a yellow card not a red if youÂ’re Man City. Jags goes in strong on a ball that isnÂ’t going anywhere near goal is a penalty. Lampard pushes Barkley with TWO hands in the back and itÂ’s a yellow card for Barkley. Yes Barkley went down easily, but he was pushed.

For Christmas IÂ’m wishing for an Everton player that can take corners.

City looked like Everton for most of the game. A team that values possession, but canÂ’t create much. I wasnÂ’t impressed with City today.

At some point in the season Everton will catch a break or 2, but it looks like it will be to little to late to amount to much.

It proved that he is more than capable of playing central midfield against the top teams. His booking was ludicrous and the cherry on top of the seasonÂ’s most embarrassing refereeing display.

Our League campaign already looks finished in December. IÂ’m just hoping for a good run in the Europa League and FA Cup... perhaps even win one of the them.

Marriner needs a hit with two Kung Fu kicks to the face with studs showing to get him up to speed with the "dangerous play" rule.

Whatever about the penalty which should never have been given, our players should have thrown a few handbags when Malanga did his kung foo kick on EtoÂ’o and there should have been the same OTT reaction to BarryÂ’s kick in the head.

Can you imagine how Chelsea or Arsenal would have reacted to two incidents like we saw today.

Our own players non reaction gave the ref an easy way out just showing yellow cards.

We need to toughen up, to be honest I think our softness comes from our captain who, while he is a decent defender, quite simply never shows any leadership qualities you need in a captain.

Footballers are supposed to remain strong, and thatÂ’s really what Milner does on a limp shoulder-to-shoulder challenge?

Fuck, shit, balls, cock and fuck again.

You may get quite a few surprises for Christmas but I very much doubt an Everton player that can take a corner will be one of them...

YouÂ’re talking more about a fucking miracle there, John.

I think we will be okay, just, this season but this type of form will not be a flash in the pan. The way the team is playing, Martinez and his staff are not doing their jobs on the training pitch. Our set piece plays are embarrassing and it is a very narrow-minded manager who doesnÂ’t try and get the most out of them.

And that was the oldest team RM has ever put out. There were 6 guys over 30 and the average age was over 30. So much for the excitement of a youth policy.

Hurtling through the air at speed, with their whole weight and force behind some blades, into flesh and bone – bloody disgrace.

Ref saw them both in order to book them. He gives a 50/50 penalty that was impossible for him to see. I canÂ’t post what Id like to do to that man.

Yes, we were poor – just like last year at Etihad. And we were robbed of a point or three by ref, just like last year. He was awful in 2nd half as well, just no massive decisions. Yaya shoulda been booked for trip outside area and then sent off.

IÂ’m sick of getting beat by shit teams, but thatÂ’s another matter.

Since beating the first man on corner kicks isnÂ’t rocket science I may get my wish.

My mate has just give me a good laugh, according to him we should sack Martinez and give Joe Royle the job.

Today the Manager did try something different with Coleman moved up and Hibbert supporting but mainly defending. Did it work? To me it did for about 20 min after that City stepped up the pressure and Coleman was forced back. This move proved to me Coleman is no midfielder.

Martinez is still believing that the slow build up from the goalkeeper to the defenders 4 more passes and then to the midfield 4-5 more passes to get to the forwards is the way to go having worked last year.

These last three games have proved that other teams are well aware of this style and either press hard in EvertonÂ’s half or simply retreat and get 90% of their team behind the ball win it back and move quickly towards EvertonÂ’s goal.

One of my last comments was:- The time for you Mr Martinez is to show if all the hype you received from last year is fully deserved and get this club back on track. So letÂ’s see what you have to offer.

Yes, it was a soft penalty and I fully agree that Man City should have had one or two red cards but they did not, but this still did not change the fact we continue with a style of play that is now too late to change.

Like the Man Utd game, we were denied a point by superb Â’keeping even though we were largely outplayed, but one shot on target is far from good enough, when a so-called Premier League ref doesnÂ’t give reds for the horrendous high kicks that could cripple players, the game stinks.

I felt sorry for Mirallas, you could see the contempt he had for Barry every time he gave him the ball and Barry proceeded to give it back to Shiteh!

I need to lower my expectations; itÂ’s easier.

What stood out to me was the fact that only 3 Everton players attempted shots (Mirrales, EtoÂ’o and Lukaku). City had 8 different players attempt shots. My point is Everton are way too easy to defend (and this is not likely to change).

Somehow Everton have failed to score in only 2 out of 15 Premier League games. Scoring today would have produced an away point at the 2nd-place team, but it wasnÂ’t to be.

Today was a poor display, but even against the Citteh billionaires, we didn’t get a tonking – something I was expecting after the lacklustre display midweek.

It will come good, thereÂ’s a good team in there dying to get out.

Add to that the fact that City players were skinning him all game. The bloke has had some good games for us while heÂ’s had this reserve player role, but today was a hark back to the bad old days of Hibbo being absolutely diabolical in nearly every aspect of the game.

Over to the other fullback, and I think it has now been about three years since Baines delivered a decent corner, and now his crosses are equally as shit. I lost count of how many didnÂ’t even clear the first man. With his only just adequate defensive ability, you take away his crossing and set pieces, and youÂ’re carrying another player. Hurry Oviedo back to full fitness and move on with our lives.

Eto’o could be seen in the warm up barking at the players, really giving it to them, and then he was probably the only player on the field (until Barkley came on) who looked like he gave a shit. He needs to start every match – his age isn’t an issue yet, he’s a professional footballer so could still play two matches a week.

Jags needs a kick up the arse and to actually re-learn the game as what he did for that penalty was pointless. As has been said already, he doesnÂ’t do the job like Terry or Gerrard, and in football, nice guys finish last.

On Martinez, I will be hoping Kone has a world beating game on Thursday, as heÂ’s is always mentioned in the managerÂ’s interviews. For a player we paid quite a lot of money for, he has so far been a real dud for our new manager.

The experiment of Coleman back in midfield was not what I expected but at least they didn’t have Silva.

Everton are not scoring goals and it is proving costly. The Sunderland, Spurs, Hull and Man City games have yielded very little offensively so consequently they have paid the penalty (excuse the pun). Surely to God they will score some goals soon?

I also think that Roberto would do the team a favour if he told them that we have to ensure enough points to retain our PL status then and only when we achieve that tally can he start to make noises about other things.

It isn’t only our fans and players who hear his positivity. The English League being what it is, sometimes it is better to keep your ambitions in the dressing room, rather than in public view. He doesn’t have to sweet talk Evertonians – they are capable of assessing situations on their own – so why give opposition managers and players added incentives to make it more difficult for Everton?

Another issue I have with the club at the moment is this necessity to involve the players and staff in all of the community activities and PR events. It is time to batten down the hatches and re-group and ask the players to concentrate on what they are paid for – giving of their best out on the football pitch in an attempt to win points.

IÂ’m not against public spirited activity per se but there have been many family oriented, public spirited clubs who have fallen out of the PL in the past. Ipswich, Charlton, Norwich all spring to mind, it might just be coincidence but IÂ’m a believer that a business should concentrate on its core activity and at a football club that is winning football matches.

We didnÂ’t play THAT poorly (TY Helen you level-headed woman for shinning the light).

That was THE WORST PERFORMANCE BY A REF IÂ’ve ever, ever seen. Total shit pen robs us of a point at a very difficult venue. Studs to the kidney COMPLETELY INTENTIONAL results in a yellow (red!!). A kick to the face gets nothing (red!!). Should have been 11 men v 9 men but we are on the short end of the Marriner stick.

Andre Marriner is the worst ref at this level IÂ’ve ever seen. Clattenburg is a fucking genius in comparison! Marriner has always been against us and it bordered a fix today.

Martinez simply must look at what heÂ’s doing. I do love the man but taking Mirallas and Besic off is inexcusable. And leaving Barry on when heÂ’s having the proverbial "mare" is just baffliing!

I’ll scream this to the rooftops – our CBs can’t play the ball out from the back. It reminds me of the shite last season – their weakness was not being able to play the Brenda way and play it out from the back. Same fucking thing with Bobby.

We got fucked by the ref, but Bobby has a lot of retrospective analysis to do. We canÂ’t play his style with Distin and Jags. And if heÂ’s gonna persist he MUST make changes in the back line.

Frustrated. Disappointed. But overall we defo deserved a point against a very, very good side.

The average age of this team is now beyond a joke. What was Marinez thinking playing Hibbert and Coleman? Why did EtoÂ’o start again? We all know he is more effective as an impact player in the last 25 minutes.

Why wasnÂ’t Barry dragged off? BarryÂ’s age has caught up with him overnight. Absolute dreadful, he is.

We all know football is a young manÂ’s game that needs a touch of experience within the side but putting out a DadÂ’s Army eleven every week is starting to cost us badly There are zero energy levels after 30 minutes. We cannot compete with the amount of OAPs in our squad.

I am losing the will to live watching us. ItÂ’s all very Moyes-esque and very worrying. I thought Martinez had something special but it appears he has started to doubt himself. The Hibbo - Coleman right wing axis being a clue to his inability to fix things... Very disappointed and very confused.

Having said that, Everton were average in the first half before improving considerably in the 2nd. Very frustrating since Citeh never really got into gear and were there for the taking if only the team had a little more conviction and confidence in possession.

I thought EtoÂ’o had a really good game as did Besic. Barkley also played well when he arrived and created space through the middle and we looked dangerous when he was on the ball. Barry looked laboured and for me I would like to see Besic and McCarthy paired or McCarthy and Barkley in the middle.

ThatÂ’s the reality of our options in central midfield. One too old, one just learning, two injured.

We might look slow and ponderous, and we are by our own standards of last season, but to some extent thatÂ’s the league we play in. For all the abysmal performances (apparently) only one team has given us a bit of a tonking. Watch the rest of the league... ItÂ’s par for the course.

Anyone who thinks weÂ’ll be battling relegation is deluding themselves. WeÂ’re a far better team than most. Playing a bit shit right now but weÂ’ll finish comfortably in the top half.

We have plenty of choices other than leaving on a ineffectual, dross Barry on the day.

HereÂ’s one: We make a substitution in Osman, we leave Besic on who was having a good game, and we pull Barry off the pitch because he was cack today.

We play our best football when Coleman and Baines are bombing forward and creating (Baines in the top five for assists) but when this is nullified we donÂ’t look as near as potent.

So look elsewhere... Midfield... Barkley has got to start every game and if it was my choice with McCarthy. HeÂ’s 21 now and has got to push on and prove his undoubted potential because for me he will top class. I just wish we had a No 10 of quality because this ageing team wouldnÂ’t be far off.

We take 7-8 passes just to reach the centre circle and then guess what......... pass back again.

No movement whatsoever no outlet ball nothing. Were just a static formation waiting to play, to me-to you-to-me-to you. My old subbuteo kit had more movement...

We are looking at going into the second half of the season in the bottom half and fighting for mid-table mediocrity at best.

We did seem incredibly lethargic though, as if everyone’s drinks had been spiked with a sedative. Only in the last 10 minutes did it look like anyone cared about the result and we wasted most of the first half.

We have no hard, nasty players and very few winners. We need some size and aggression in the middle, and pace throughout the team.

The last few days have been an embarrassment to Hibbert, Osman and Barry, and the squad compilation suddenly seems a bit shambolic... almost as shambolic as the pre-season.

We need a quick run to remove any talk of lower half battles; we need to accept that we’ve no chance of top 4 this season, hope that we can hit form and do something special in the cups, and hope that Roberto is learning some big lessons and has the balls to sort it in the next few windows.

Why no striker on the bench? Kone could surely have done 20 minutes, what about Long or McAleny? We need some youthful energy supported by a few experienced players not a dads army side which has echoes of Walter Smith fielding Gazza, Ginola etc.

Very disappointing and as someone above said the sight of Barry having a laugh with Milner at the end speaks volumes. Alan Ball and Peter Reid never smiled after a defeat but would hold an inquest to find out why teammates did not perform. There is a worrying lack of pride in this team(a few exceptions)and complacency too. Baines has been ordinary and I would give Lukaku a run in the side now. Barry is way too slow and clumsy and has aged quickly.

Roberto needs to get his act together as he has been poor since the debacle of pre-season. A combination of Duncan and Joe Royle is waiting in the wings – at least they would field a team which would fight.

And it was nice to see SharpyÂ’s goal. I was on the Kop that day, but then so were loads of Blues.

You are now starting to sound like you did under the Moyes reign.

Martinez is no different to Moyes in that he is a limited manager with limited understanding of the game, like OFM he will not bend and adapt his tactics.

He is playing his favourites and like OFM I don’t think I would trust him with a decent transfer kitty either.

I’m depressed.

We have 4 holding players, if you count Gibbo, we badly need to get an attacking mid or two in who can play all across. The kind of player who can knit it together and feed Mirallas and Lukaku, a Santi Carzorla type. Its the reason the sides heÂ’s picking are frequently unbalanced.

We are supposed to be taking Europe seriously and attempting to re-qualify through our league position and the ball playing attacking mid options are Pienaar and Ossie, who are are 32. We have nothing else apart from Ross who is up and down, as is to be expected at his age.

Long term this needs addressing as both Ossie & Pienaar have had their best days. We miss Pienaar massively.

Going at teams may result in more chances to score, but against teams like Citeh it also increases the opportunities for them to rip you apart on the counter. The manager has to try to set up the team to both offer a threat and negate that posed by the opposition. He has not been helped by the fact that a fairly large percentage of our players aren’t producing their best during games.

Barry was terrible in the first half but I thought he improved in the second and wasn’t an obvious choice for the hook by the time the substitutions were made, and we didn’t really lose any impetus by keeping him on.

I’ve seen refs pressured into changing their minds when a decision has been made based on input from one of their assistants, but I have never seen one any decide that what they think is a foul suddenly isn’t one when ranted at by a player. Why do people think Jags needed to be more rabid when Mariner gave a penalty for his challenge on Milner? Just what do people think would have been achieved? The referee’s mind-set comes from any bias he has before the game has kicked off. If you are not already favoured then getting in his face is only likely to get you additional punishment and actively turn him against your team. Terry and Gerrard get away with their antics because of the perceived pre-eminence of their teams.

I don’t believe it is the case when the referee has a choice to make regarding whether or not it was a dangerous tackle and worthy of a yellow or red card. I can guarantee that if Barry and Besic would have made the challenges that Mangala and Fernando made, the City players (Captain and all) would have been all over the ref and they would have been off.

We should have had players surrounding the ref telling him what a ridiculous challenge it was and he has to go!! We’re far too soft.

If I remember right, the only player to have a go at the ref when Barry got kicked in the head was Eto’o. It’s as if they’re just going through the motions at the minute. There doesn’t seem to be any aggression or passion.

The other reason is that it may influence future decisions our way, and the other is, it shows a bit of passion and aggression which will hopefully transfer to the rest of the nice boys in our team FFS!

I don’t think referees are swayed by players complaining anywhere near as much as they are by the opinions they already hold before stepping onto the pitch. Ross Barkley’s yellow card is a case in point. Andre Marriner obviously already had him labelled as a diver because there was no way he would have booked him otherwise. Lampard’s positive reputation probably didn’t help either.

I think the reason some teams seem capable of swaying a ref’s decision by getting after him is simply due to the fact that the officials are already conditioned to view these teams / players as better and therefore more likely to be sinned against by weaker teams trying to balance things out. If you make a mistake that doesn’t really alter the course of a game then it is less likely to be remembered than one which delivers a shock result, so the clubs that are reckoned to be real title contenders will always get more than their fair share of dubious decisions.

The favoured teams get positive results from hounding the refs and so carry on doing it at every opportunity, safe in the knowledge that they will never really be punished for their disrespectful and aggressive antics. I don’t think ’also-ran’ teams like us (which is how most neutrals will view us) stand to gain anything but contempt from decent football fans if we ape this bad behaviour.

Is it always this maddening to support Everton? How can a side as talented as ours have only 4 wins in 15 matches?? 4????

I have been Mr Positive all season but now I am beginning to understand why others have less patience and optimism. I am banging myYankee head against the wall over here. We are too good for this!!

I can see it now, we’ll go on a nice run in the second half but it’ll only get us up to 7th because we threw away too many points in the first half. But you all told me that already in August, didn’t you? [SIGH!]

Your Loyal but Frustrated New American Blue.

Coleman is the only player I see with anything that resembles aggression – someone you can see actually giving out a rollicking.

Remember Phil Neville near cutting Ronaldo in half?? It set the tone not only for that game but the rest of the season. Two player types we have never replaced... Gravesen / Carsley and Arteta... we arenÂ’t getting top four until they are replaced.

I’ve totally lost faith in Martinez. He wasn’t my choice initially but I gave him the benefit of doubt. He looks way out of his depth.

Tactically, this was a train-wreck again with shocking subs. The age of that team is alarming. It looked more like Eto’o was managing things than RM. For three games in a row, we have been worst than we were under Moyes... Depressing.

Questions the wisdom of blowing 㿈 mill on one player when we need reinforcements all over the pitch.

The FIFA rules are some of the broadest of any sport and that’s why football is so behind other sports in bringing in video replay technology. In no other sport do players argue nearly as much, and that’s because it works to put doubt in the ref’s mind that he may have been unfair on a team. If so then you think twice about dishing out the next yellow or calling the next offside. Nothing to do with bias.

We’ve had a bad spell with injuries, no doubt. But doing the same things over and over and expecting a different result is, well ... madness!

Most worrying is that most on the squad don’t seem interested. There is a complete lack of intensity and grit. BBS and others have tried to pass this off as fatigue. I say BS. There is clearly something missing in the mental makeup of this team at the moment. Who and how that will be addressed is a complete mystery to me.

It’s interesting to see the huge difference of opinion between us fans about certain players. Here is my two shillings worth:

Coleman was our worst player - not his fault he was played out of position. McGeady should have started in front of Coleman at fullback. Hibbo on the bench.

Besic is made of steel - ask Aguero and Toure. He should be second on the team sheet after wait for it:

Samuel Eto’o. I don’t care if he’s 50. As Harold pointed out he showed that he really cared about what was happening out there.

He proved to me in this game beyond a shadow of doubt that he is at Everton to earn his chaff. He went the whole 90 minutes and was the player who found the pass that nearly brought us an equaliser which I think would have just about been deserved.

By the way that was after a player who will play in the next African Nations Cup tried to take him out of the game. I have no doubt in my mind that that is what Mangala intended when he buried his studs in Eto’s kidney’s in our penalty area in the first half.

Eto’o showed what he is made of by getting on with it.

Here we have a very special footballer - and former captain of a national side. We should be making the most of him while there is still time. The manager should start Eto’o in every game and pick his team and his tactics based on him being on the pitch for at least the first 70 minutes.

Why would so many players finishing their last contract in PL football before they retire or swan off to America or the middle/far east to get money for old rope knock themselves out for Everton where they are getting money for old rope already?

Howard, Barry, Pienaar, Osman, Hibbert, Distin, Kone, Eto and probably Gibson, McGeady are finished as players at Everton. It would also appear that Mirallas is beginning to look elsewhere. Come the summer this elephant in the room has to be seriously addressed.

We all have biases, it is part of how we deal with situations that we don’t have the time to dissect and make unhurried decisions for. These biases are the result of our direct experiences or information we have received. Confirmation bias refers to the tendency to view and assess situations in a way that matches our innate biases.

I am not expecting referees to be superhuman, but I think they need to be more objective than your average joe to deserve the money they get paid.

Barkley Diving?

Or any single dive by Stirling, Wilshere, etc.

Then I spotted who the player was coming in to tackle Ross, it was the same player who was sued, and settled out of court for a 6-figure sum, for near finishing the career of another Everton youngster, namely victor Anichebe, with a disgusting tackle.

I was in Bayeux last year and bought a long long copy of The Bayeux Tapestry for my wall... I will have a new and more detailed look at it tonight. (Oooh Eerr, Missus)

As the person coming in to tackle him that day against West Ham was Nolan, and it was a Nolan tackle while playing for Newcastle that put Anichebe out of the game for almost 1 year. For which he sued and received a 6 figure out-of-court settlement.

Anichebe said at the time that he thought Nolan had broken his leg, and would never be able to play again. Bearing in mind that Ross suffered a double broken leg while he was 17, and seeing what Nolan had done to Anichebe, it was no wonder he dived.

We don’t close teams down, don’t look fit, overpass the ball to satisfy his fixation with possession statistics that in the grand scheme of things mean less than nothing, play around with the ball at the back when the defence and Howard are clearly uncomfortable with it, we lack any form of cutting edge and spend so long passing the ball sideways that all the opposition have to do is remember their defensive training drills to set up against us and all this is overseen by a man that will blindly point to possession statistics and call our play phenominal !!

The sheer arrogance Of Roberto Martinez is the only phenominal thing about Everton at the moment, that and his total blindness to what is wrong. Is it phenominal to have only had 3 teams concede more goals than us this season, is it phenominal to have won just 4 games out of 15 this season, is it phenominal to have dropped 12 points from winning positions this season, is it phenominal to have a team like Aston Villa above us, is it phenominal to have won just 2 home games out of 8 at "fortress Goodison" this season, I could go on but I wont.

Martinez started to get found out for being out of his depth from about April last season and its got no better since despite him desperately clinging to UEFA cup results against poor to average sides. Our pre season was poor, he has been poor in the transfer market, poor with team selections and rotation, poor with substitutions and his tactics this season have been abysmal and arrogant. he is following all the same traits he did when he got Wigan relegated and whilst I don’t think he will quite manage that with us I fear for the club under his tenure.

He is an arrogant clown and out of his depth and I just hope BK finally shows he has a set and gets rid of him asap, sadly this will not happen until we hit rock bottom

There was absolutely no way the PL and refereeing alliance were going to allow Citeh to drop points after Chelski had lost earlier in the day. They have a product and a brand to sell all over the world and it would not be good for business if Citeh didn't close the gap and make it exciting for all those plastic fans the world over.

How dare the riff-raff of Everton have the audacity to challenge their plan. This game and the totally inept performance of the man in black reminds me very much of the derby game in October 2007 and a certain Mr Clattenberg. Remember that?

Guess who was the fourth official at the Etihad?

A certain Mr Clattenberg.