From My Seat: QPR (H)

They must be under orders not to play it forward long as sometimes that seemed to be the better option.

How on earth he wasn't replaced around the 60 minute mark is a mystery that only the manager can answer. I can only assume it would be because it would not do his confidence any good but whilst he knows where the goal is the rest of his contribution does not amount to too much.

In yet another forgettable performance, there was some good news in the performance of Besic. Apart from a couple of misplaced passes he was far and away the stand out performer.

Naismith's energy is also a welcome return as is his eye for goal.

IÂ’ve got to say, the service to Lukaku was abysmal, he must look at Jags and Distin knocking it about at the back and think, "Just get it up here to me so I can have a shot!"

If we were down to 12 fit men and there were 2 places left to fill, between Bernie Wright, Straq and Big Vic, I know who would be on the bench.

Lukaku; with all due respect to him, he isn't being used as he should, but with Royle, Sharp and Ferguson involved in the Club he must be able to pick up a few hints... can't or won't??

It's hard for those outside to say if the Coach has lost the dressing room and I'm not saying he has. But He will be soon know if he loses the crowd.

I know they say you shouldn't have joined if you can't take a joke. It will soon be fuck this for a game of soldiers, this is not what we signed up for.

It may be that Roberto will and should be given a full 3 season, but at the end of year 2 we should be able to see a little light at the end of the tunnel.

Warsaw or Wembley would be an ideal place to pull the rabbit out of the hat, if not well the clock is ticking.

MotM and new favourite player is Besic. First player to bring some genuine nastiness to the side for quite some time.

Barkley MotM for me but Besic was superb, gave all he had, great energy, great tackles, especially a couple on Barton, and used the ball well and, when possible, positively. Lucky not be booked though for a needless foul on the edge of their box in the last minute – cut that out and he can be great. Naismith not far behind those two; for me, whatever he lacks in skill he makes up for with his energy and intelligence.

I will agree that we need to move the ball out from the back faster and John Stones (when he shortly returns) does that quite well.

Let's give the team a present and support them. At no point in the game last night did I hear the roar of the Old Lady. I was shouting from Canada but you probably couldn't hear me!

COYB

I share your views on the passing game - I like to see the team keep it on the ground but the defence seem to have missed the point which is surely to move it through midfield - not keep it until you are in trouble.

Sure, the team is not playing anywhere near what they are capable of, but we got to be patient – plus there have been mitigating circumstances – injuries, players under performing, extra games due to Europa,etc.

I for one will try to enjoy the season as it unfolds – there will be ups and downs, but I believe in this manager and this team of players. A lot to play for still!

For 30 mins I wanted to gouge my eyes out at the complete lack of intensity and tempo. It took a moment of individual skill to put us in front and that seems to be what we need to get going. This is not a team but a collection of individuals at the moment.

The other thing which annoys me is his body language. I would not enjoy playing with him because he constantly blames others when things don't go his way: his arms go up in frustration and he berates teammates. Then he sulks and trudges slowly back into the game. If he is as driven to be the best as the media would have us believe, then he could start with these two aspects of his game.

Barkley and Besic were great in central midfield together, and Naismith was very influential. Playing Barkley deeper, especially in home games, is something we should do more often.

Still, issues remain over the back-line. Especially the quartet of Howard, Jagielka and Distin. There seems a mistake in them each game, which lately has been leading to a goal. Not good enough.

One noticeable stat I read after the Spurs game was; 38% of Everton's goals conceded in the PL already have came from an individual error. Only 15% came from individual errors in 13/14 season. And further to that, Everton lead the way with 8 individual mistakes leading directly to a goal. We had only 6 in 38 games last season. A huge difference.

The sooner we can get Stones fit, the better for me.

Seamus and Leighton haven't been hitting the heights of last season either. I think a large part is down to the fact that teams have sussed them out, and double up on them both to stop the threat.

And Lukaku appears to be getting a lot of stick. The way I see it is, give him chances and he'll score. He's getting very little service. He has to come deep to get the ball, and what can a striker do with his back turned to goal? We need to start playing more towards Lukaku's strengths. Playing balls in front of him, and getting him in positions were he's running at players.

One positive though was Kone and Eto'o towards the end. They looked really good together. Hopefully Kone can stay fit now and become a real player for us.

I would be very willing to give Garbutt a go, maybe in a left attacking midfield role. He would really supply Lukaku.

Hopefully now we can build on this and win on Saturday. It's been a disappointing season so far, but we've got to start looking forward now. Players are coming back from injury, and are finding form. We have a decent run of games before the EL kicks in again, and we really want to find ourselves in that race for 4th come February.

We, the fans, really need to find our voice. Goodison sounded like a county cricket match last night, and has done for far too long. The boo-ing was ridiculous and embarrassing from those fans who thought necessary. It will not help the players one bit. I think it's a real big issue which fan groups and local media outlets should discuss openly.

But onto Saturday. Southampton are there for the taking. Need to get at them early. COYB.

I'm all for possession football but it has to have a purpose. Only the great Barcelona at their peak, with a unique combination of world class players, managed to perfect the style that we're trying to mimic with far less gifted individuals. Senor Martinez has to realise that we're too slow, deliberate and predictable. We need to "mix it" more!

Lukaku never once got the ball facing goal and it is patently obvious he is not a target man. Kone is a more fully rounded striker and would have messed Dunne about more. I would like to see Kone up front with Lukaku in the absence of Mirallas if he injury costs him a few games. Kone could be the perfect foil for Lukaku as he can pick a pass and is clever in his movement off the ball. He could well create the space for Barkley, Naismith and Lukaku.

Glad to see Besic getting some praise; unlike some on here, I always thought he was a great purchase.

Baines is suffering as a result of Pienaar not playing, unfortunately Pienaar doesn't have long left me thinks. We need to find a player capable of bringing the best out of Baines. Maybe Oviedo can be the man.

I would start Kone next game, hopefully it will give Lukaku a kick up the arse.

Also, Mirallas needs giving the ball a lot more, he works so hard defending and is our best attacking option but needs someone who can supply him. How hard can it be to knock a ball 10 yards along the deck?

I don't believe Roberto peddles his effusive remarks to the players - I'm sure they would laugh at him - but I do wish he would give us mere speccies a little credit for recognising crap when we are subjected to it.

I'm quite sure a continuance of this level of performance will see little improvement in our league position although it will do nothing to make the manager's own position any less tenable. He's here for the long haul so, perhaps, we should all get used to mediocrity and learn to cope with it.

In his particular DM position there is no substitute for experience as Michael Carrick is presently demonstrating at United.

More generally whilst I agree with a lot of the sentiment on here about the mucking about at the back (and the stats Tom gives about goals this has cost us are indeed shocking but also re-assuring as it should be something easy to fix) I do not think you need to be Barca or Spain to play this style well - many lesser teams play like this with some success. I think our core problem is that Distin and Jags are not comfortable enough on the ball, they have done better than I expected in this new style but they are not made for it. Distin will presumably be done at the end of the season and will be replaced by Stones (if not before). Jags has many years left in him and although I think he is a great defender and seems a top lad (and I am proud that he plays for England) I just am unconvinced by his suitability for this role in the style we play. Maybe with Stones alongside him for both club and country they will cover up for each others weaknesses and become a legendary pairing???

The other thing that would help is to have a player like Barkley replace Barry in longer term in the central midfield holding role. This would allow us to move the ball quicker. I don't think he's ready for that yet but I hope this is the way forward.

ItÂ’s a strange season this season and the next 4 games are all winnable. if we do win these 4, weÂ’ll be competing for Champions League for the rest of the season as well as having our run in the Europa League (which could well go all the way). Yes, the games coming up are close together but the one thing we have which the teams we are facing donÂ’t is squad depth, as proven with our youngsters, and 4 top quality strikers (to be fair, Kone has had 2 good outings).

Heads up, still less dire than the shite despite having no American investors.

Lets get back to the oppositions midfielders looking over there shoulders expecting a rattling! I also think Stones has got a bit of the devil in him too. Nais,Coleman and Oviedo are up for it as well. Fuck it,teams do it to us and until you stand up to it ,it will continue.

Totally agree though that Carrick and Mr. David De Gea are the main reasons they have won 6 on the trot. More so than their 250k plus per week players.

I donÂ’t think we should forget though, that were bobbing along nicely in the Europa and stand a very good chance of progressing past our next opponents. The next Euro games in February so we can now totally focus on climbing up the Prem for a few weeks!

For us to be a serious top 4 side, the board will need to dip into their pockets and come up with some serious money, because to repeat myself again, were short on the quality at the back and in midfield. Then we will stand more chance of playing the attractive football most are calling for.

Trouble is, the class of players we need, donÂ’t grow on trees and wonÂ’t come cheap.