Crystal Palace vs Everton

Lyndon, I guess you are right with your team selections yet I would like to see some of our 21s get a run. Man Utd, with much more to lose is giving its lots of its kids first team experience.

During the 60s we were going through a rough trot and though our reserve side was sweeping all before it in its division most of those players never got a look in.

Man Utd will benefit from its youth policy and good luck to them. The only advantage in our situation is being able to follow suit by giving our kids a chance.

I can see Palace getting a few goals and winning this one, what fight we use to have has gone. Shame for the travelling fans, the only thing Martinez got right in his pre-match interview, saying we have the best fans in the world.

Prove me wrong, Roberto, somehow I don't think you can.

Hope I'm wrong...

Robles;
Coleman, Stones, Funes Mori, Baines;
Deulofeu, McCarthy, Barry, Mirallas;
Lukaku, Niasse.

And for the record, I would give Barkley a rest and play Mirallas behind Lukaku with Lennon back on the right.

We need to start winning to lift everyone before the semi!

Robles;
Coleman, Stones, Funes Mori, Baines;br> Barry;
Lennon, Besic, Niasse;
Deulofeu, Lukaku.

So even the fans of Palace can pick apart what is wrong at Everton yet the chairman seems oblivious.

Imagine, if we get a point tonight, we will reach the magical figure of 40 points. And this half-way through April... I think that says it all.

Thanks for the link. A fair, detailed analysis. Good to read perceptive criticism without the usual added nonsense of "..and it doesn't matter if we win the Cup..."

Barkley, Stones, Deulofeu and Mirallas seem particularly deficient!

I would play Mirallas on the left and try and find a place somewhere for Besic as that back four without Jags will struggle. Maybe rest Barkley who at best has been poor in recent weeks and at worst has been a liability that shits out of every challenge... maybe trying to keep fit for the Euros?

It's hardly like Barkley is pulling up trees at the minute anyway. Throw Deulofeu in the centre behind Lukaku and tell him to quit those needless stupid step-overs (it only looks good when Cristiano Ronaldo pulls it off).

We need to find some flipping form because the chances of beating a really decent Southampton team at bogey ground Goodison Park is remote and then of course it's the place where we have registered about 5 shots on goal in 15 years.. Anfield.

Going to Wembley with such horrendous form would be worrying.

I see Liverpool, have put themseles forward, to host the Commonwealth games, ten years from now, citing the regeneration of the North side of the city. Maybe we could still get a ground on "the waterfront" after all?

Back to the game, a non-event really, unless we see the effort, that shows us that the players are prepared to roll up their sleeves and fight for themselves and the fans – even if they have no faith left in the manager.

Five Blue-noses going to the game from Kent so hoping for the right attitude to turn up for this one. But is Besic injured? I'd like to see him in for McCarthy.

So back to Palace then, god only knows how the manager will set the team up and with who playing where. Have to say I reckon we could get a result here as Palace are not setting the world alight are they?

But maybe it's just the sort of game we get turned over in, who knows? I do know that I'm totally confused with Roberto and his thinking, he just seems to have lost the plot with some of his comments. So come on, then – who thinks what about tonight's game?

Link

I still don't know how such a guy can be hired as a Premier League manager. The amount of nonsense he comes out with is incredible. Cannot imagine what the players think of him.

As to the game – I'm completely apathetic. Any sort of result would good just from a moral basis but I really cannot see us winning. Palace finally won on the weekend to pretty much leave them safe so will be more relaxed and up for it. A win would take them from 16th to 12th – and push us down to 15th! A win for us and we'd be back to the heady heights of 11th.

Just looking at our league finishes, you have to go back to the 2003-04 season for the last time we finished below 11th, our position last year. In fact, before Martinez took over we'd finished in the top half 7 years in a row, qualifying for Europe in 4 of them (that's not to say I want Moyes back). If Martinez doesn't manage a top half finish this season, surely his number will be up.

We're 5 points behind Chelsea in 10th and tonight is our game in hand – anything other than a win and we can pretty much say goodbye to top half this season. Southampton away and then the derby – I don't see to many wins for us over the next week.

"The match typified Everton's season. Go one up on the stroke of half time and yet find a way of going into the break level."

Only Everton. We could be four up heading into injury time and draw. I'm desperate for us to win the FA Cup. Tonight, not so arsed. A defeat and it might quicken his exit.

Just despair. Hate him.

Another piece of news which may or may not affect Everton FC is that Mayor Joe Anderson is exploring the possibility of the City of Liverpool hosting the 2026 Commonwealth games.

From an Evertonian point of view, even in today's world of mega millions, most of us would indeed move mountains and pay well over the odds to see us at least be there as I did in '66 and three more Finals later.

Why our present squad seemingly lacks that incentive,shown by our fantastic supporters in every game, is down to ONE man's inability to know when his tactics, obvious to everyone but himself, just don't work.

But come on please, these players, international players are definitely hiding behind Martinez, taking the flak on here – fact!!!

Remember he is a person, family man and respected man, who obviously wants to do well at least for his own self-respect. Come on, give up this name-calling, slating a man trying to do a job.

Anyway, back to tonight's game. Please play this team, Roberto:
Robles; Coleman, Stones, Funes Mori, Baines; Barry, McCarthy; Lennon, Deulofeu, Mirallas; Lukaku.

I pray we don't lose tonight because Crystal Palace will go above us and we will look pretty silly sitting in 15th place – or, to put it another way – 6th from bottom. I genuinely thought those days were behind us.

I do not think the "old lady" will last that long. We need a cunning plan and Bobby and Bill have been planning something spectacular!! I hope!!! :)

I fear you are probably right. I go back to the very late '50's and through some good and not so good managers and this guy is taking us below the standards set by Mike Walker and it is depressing in the extreme.

Tonight's game is going to say a lot because it is the first since the press have really upped the anti on questioning his stewardship of this club. A win is a must tonight if only to give the players a lift prior to Saturday and next week's two important games.

I hope we do lose tonight because I can't see us going any further in the cup with him at the helm. He's sapping the life out of the team.

He needs to be gone before the Derby and semi next week.

Expect to see him lead Everton out at Wembley at least once in the coming weeks!

Myself and my sister have a tradition of going the match together every year on our birthdays. She asked me, so which match we going to? I said none, don't want to ruin my day.

That's where I'm at with this shower. Well done Roberto, you dick!

I guess it's a measure of how low our standards have dropped but I wouldn't class a draw as a good result tonight against a team lower than us in the table, and there aren't many of those.

I'm personally sick of draws and taking crumbs of comfort from being hard to beat away from home, I don't know about anyone else but I feel as though I have hardly seen Everton win games this past year or two.

Or maybe this is all just wishful thinking on my part.

We need a little bit of confidence before the semi-final, and confidence was in short supply on Saturday, at least judging from my position near the touchline.

At least with a caretaker (or even better a proper manager) in place, they will have tried to change things. If it's still Bobby the board are basically closing their eyes crossing their fingers and wishing that it'll work in our favour.

Would you really trust any of the current staff with the job, even on an interim basis?

Did Someone called Gerry Queen play for them? Also would anyone be kind enough to tell how to put words in blue titled link, so that I can show stuff to other Evertonians. It seems like fucking witchcraft to me.

Having said that, Everton have been struggling too, so let's not take Palace lightly. We need to see a big game from Barkley and whoever plays between Lennon and Mirallas.

Regarding the faces we haven't seen for a while I think it's safe to say they should be moved out as they are neither use nor ornament – and aren't likely to be due to their age and injury problems.

Shocking!

Never thought I would say that about Everton! Thank you, Roberto!

If he plays Kone on the left instead of Niasse then the game really is up and Martinez knows he has bought a dud. A very expensive dud.

At least we allegedly recouped the majority of the money on kroldrup. Can't see anyone giving us £10M for Niasse.

We played far better when Mirallas came on. For all the grief he gets on here, I still think he is one of our best attacking threats! Both sendings off (while foolish) were because of his over eagerness to impress, get stuck in and win his spot back.

I've been there and understand that sometimes the harder you try the more you'll mess up.