Barkley omission can be a 'wake-up call'

His career seems to be reflecting his midfield forays – running into a blind alley.

I don't wish bad on him; I hope he get's his game figured out.

Ross stands at a crossroads in his career. In his favour he has several important factors: natural ability, physique, age and the sure knowledge that as a "Toffee through and through" fellow Evertonians will treat him like a God if he fulfills the promise.

Ross also faces really important factors: his growing reputation for "not listening" to his managers, his low work rate, he isn't a bright eyed kid anymore and Evertonians have no time for false prophets.

I want Ross to become the player that I look back upon and say "Bloody Hell! Barkley had it all!". But unless he get's his shit together, I can see me saying "Barkley? That lad needed a solid kick in the arse. What a waste."

Koeman is making the message bloody clear to them all.

Time for Ross to shape up or buy a season ticket.

He has to start hunting the ball, pressing and chasing, and putting in a few tackles. Now he has all this in his locker its just a case of the manager telling him to leave most of it there for special occasions and concentrate on the bread and butter day to day stuff.

He is such a talent that the magic will come without him having to think about it. He is wearing too many hats.

Whatever happened to them? Pampered by managers or the media, or money????

You can't just blame Martinez and say that he has stunted the player. There are other coaches on the training pitch apart from the manager who can help a player to develop and become better. Ross should also be able to develop an understanding with players through training and playing with them so that on a match day he can play better with them and through them.

Either Ross doesn't have the confidence or he doesn't have the footballing brain. Confidence can be very mercurial and sometimes you either just have it or you don't. You can have very limited ability but learn a good footballing brain. Both confidence and developing a footballing brain through coaching and application has given many limited players a good career. With Ross, you have to wonder if he will ever have enough of either.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if he is moved on in the summer to someone like Palace and we will file under another unfulfilled youngster!! I hope I'm proved wrong but currently I can't see it.

There should be no sentiment in football. Most fans wanted Ross to be are Gerrard but better.

Ross is not a leader... too nice and still a boy mentally.

The manager has a conundrum: he sees a very talented footballer but lacks that ingredient of desire and passion to develop into the hype that was unfairly heaped upon him... NEXT!

Despite seemingly being mired in a crisis of confidence and form, Barkley has still been streets ahead of any other Everton player when it comes to creating chances for his teammates this season.

He's created 20 goalscoring chances so far, compared to Deulofeu's 4, Mirallas's 8 and Bolasie's 13. 

If I was a manager without a win in the last four games and whose team had recently found goals rather hard to come by, Barkley would be one of the first names on the team sheet when about to face Burnley. 

As much as we want him to succeed, we can't wait forever for Ross to develop into the player we hoped. Koeman means business and if he wants to coach at Barcelona one day he knows he needs to turn Everton into genuine Champions League contenders. If Ross isn't cutting in the next few months, I'm sure a top class midfielder or two will be the focus of next season's recruitment.

For some supporters he walked on water, but now he is walking on thin ice, along with a couple of other dudes who think that you have to have a dazzling hair-do to put in a dazzling display!

Barkley has been pulled from pillar to post under 3 different managers. Koeman needs to sort out his best position and play him.

There are other values, too. Amidst all the conflicting hype and disappointments, he has kept his counsel. No whinging to the press. No using his agent or member of his family to put pressure on the club. A nice antidote to the way the likes of Rooney, Fellaini, Lukaku and Mirallas have gone about their Everton business.

This nonsense about potential is also wrong; as you state, he produces the goods even this season – goals and assists are excellent compared to his colleagues and across the Premier League.

Ron wanted a tactical strategy that put Cleverley in there last week; this week, Barkley will be back and motoring.

From time to time, it is good to take him out of the line up and give him some thinking and re-fuelling time – good move by Ron.

Last week, there was a comparison with Gerrard and Lampard at this stage of all their careers he was ahead of both in terms of assists and two behind Lamps in goals. They also compared him with the likes of Mata and other so called top midfielders and he was streets ahead at this age.

Barkley is magic already – get behind our Diamond!!

This is a make-or-break season for Ross, I feel; if he doesn't do it this season, then I fear he never will. Doing it once in a blue moon just doesn't count. As others have pointed out, he's been around the first team for 5 seasons now, he is not a kid anymore.

We all desperately want Ross to succeed regardless of what the idiots who come on here suggesting the fans boo him at every opportunity think. That's rubbish by the way, I sit in the main stand and have done for years, I don't hear any boos for Ross anytime he does anything wrong.

You do get to the stage though where you need to start realising your potential. You can show all the stats in the world but we all know they lie. To suggest that Ross is alongside exalted company like Lampard Scholes and Stevie Me is just nonsense. He has the ability to be but he needs to believe he can be. Hopefully he can finally come of age this season.

As Tony and others have remarked, Ross's stats are better than any other attacking midfielder on our books! Last season he was immense in many games, again the stats don't lie. The only reason he is the butt of media criticism is he is so good everyone expects him to turn it on every week. Great if he could. Perhaps he would with a positive atmosphere around him.

Contrast the media love fest around Dele Alli. A great young player no doubt, but playing in a far superior team, and with worse stats than Ross! Never mind, it's the good old neutral BBC so it must be true! Give us and Ross a break and let him enjoy his footy. and let's keep the faith with one of our own.

Koeman's management so far has been excellent. He left Ross out of the Man City game for sound tactical reasoning ans said as much. Logical. He has said he needs to up his game and that too is logical. I also believe that with the continuing right management he will move onward and upward. Different from the mis-management he and the rest of the players suffered with that nit-wit in charge for the last 3 seasons.

If ToffeeWebbers must vent their spleen at a player or players then fine, but do it at those who deserve it, such as Deulofeu, who is one of my favorites but who is as frustrating as hell at the moment!

Come on, Ross, and COYB!

Do not dismiss the facts especially when you are criticising one of our own.

No matter how many chances Ross has created, he has had a poor season up to now. IMO, he's got the talent; when is he going to use it consistently? He was dropped and substituted two or three times and still his game hasn't improved. He seems to be on the outside looking in, never gets a grip of the game.

In a nutshell for me, he isn't enjoying playing football at the moment. Until he can shake off what is holding him back and start wanting to play and enjoy getting out there, he will never improve. Like Dave Ganley says "It's in his own hands".

Come on, Ross, it's all down to you, you are the one who can help yourself.

I sincerely believe Barkley is a diamond, still a bit rough and still in need of polishing, there is no better man than Koeman to deliver in this respect.

Number 1. If Ronald was a doctor

Visitor: "Excuse me nurse, do you have any news of my father's operation?"

Nurse: "Er...oh..(ulp!)...I...erm...well.."

Dr Koeman: "He is dead. Completely dead. The operation did not go well. Also his death was painful for him, he suffered a lot of pain."

(Next time: 'If Ronald was a Samaritans volunteer')

Stats at 22 years of age for goals and assists may be similar between those players, but let's face it, that is all Ross does. The other 3 put in more tackles, covered more ground and were far better passers.

The problem Ross has got is not what he does with the ball, it is what he doesn't do without it. He unbalances the team because he hasn't got any discipline and never presses – he never gets out of 3rd gear. He never wins any tackles or headers, and this is a problem when you play in midfield. He simply doesn't affect the game enough.

My hope for Ross is that he changes position. I believe he could play as a striker with his back to goal in a Sheringham / Le Tissier role. He clearly has ability, he is tall and strong and capable of goals and assists. But this needs to be used in a role that suits the team. I just don't think he has got the mobility to play in an attacking midfield role.

Second in an occasional series.

Head Teacher Koeman informs a pupil his parents have been killed.

"OK children, line up here. All those with both parents still alive step forward one pace. Jones, where are you going?"

I'll get me coat..

Deulofeu and Barkley in particular have been overhyped and suffer from fans disappointment as a result. At the moment they don't seem any more efficacious than the likes of Jason Puncheon or Junior Stanislas to name two unheralded mid-table players. They need to work hard and find out how to bring more end product to their game.

Kieran (#14) Drooling at the prospect

Interestingly Bolasie is the 9th highest player for number of crosses this year so far with 48, one behind Rooney & Milner.... Strangely, his replacements Puncheon and Townsend are No 1 and 2.

Crosses Stats

I still believe in Ross Barkley. I think we need to replace Mirallas and Deulofeu.

Subs: Robles, Holgate, McCarthy, Cleverley, Deulofeu, Mirallas, Valencia.

I wish it wasn't so and I don't want to upset him or anyone else but I just feel he's lacking some mongrel between his ears. Great midfielders have it but, given his age and what we've now not seen for years, we'll just have to reconcile ourselves, unfortunately, to the fact that Ross is a really nice lad who never wants to rile anyone, in an opposition shirt or not.

For me, last season, he consistently showed an ability to receive the ball, turn, shrug off and surge away from challenges and lay the ball off well which unbalanced the opposition's defensive formation as 2-3 players were drawn in to forlornly challenge – and fail – to close Ross down.

The set-up is different this season and Ross has upped his off-the-ball work-rate, but his decent pre-season form hasn't quite fired yet. Even so, as John @ 12 says, even given his relatively 'poor' form, he remains our most creative playmaker.

It's a big season for Ross, of that there is no doubt. Dropped by England, dropped by Everton, and regularly subbed out doesn't on the surface augur well for him.

However, I think our no-nonsense manager is a perfect fit for him. Koeman has sung his virtues, but also made it clear he now has to deliver on his potential and promise.

I'm in the camp firmly believing our Ross will come good on that potential and promise.

Bolassie, so far has not really set the world alight nor Deulofeu but the team hasn't fared badly and dare I say looks better than last season but they have to start winning games.

I would put Ross back in tomorrow and also replace Deulofeu with Lennon.

Fundamentally he needs to impose himself (he does seem to be getting better at this) and stop losing possession – he would have been a liability against Man City and in the Champions League – a joke. Koeman is building a side capable of stifling the top sides; he will not be tolerated past this season if we can get the players in we need.

Fair comments by Koeman but who have we got to replace him? Cleverley, god help us!

Mind if I have a go Eugene?

If Ronald Was A: Department Store Santa:

"Ho. Ho. Ho. 

Sit on my knee, not-so-little boy.

Oooff!! Jesus wept. You weigh a fucking tonne. You will not be getting any chocolate for Christmas this year, that is for certain. 

I was intending to ask you if you had been a good boy since last Christmas, but that is clearly irrelevant as of right now. You have obviously been a very, very lazy boy to blow up to such elephantine proportions at your barely pre-school age. 

I have no doubt your parents are thoroughly ashamed to be seen out in public with you, especially during the summer months when the weather is such that they have no choice but to dress you in a shorts and t-shirt combo barely capable of containing your blubbery arse, belly and wee man boobs. 

I have had the pleasure of telling lots and lots of little boys today that they will be waking on Christmas morning to find shiny new bicycles waiting under their tree. You will also awaken to find a very special present from Santa, but it will not be a bicycle. No. It will not.

Rather, your present will be a really long piece of knotted rope for you to tie around your waist and attach to the back of a normal sized kids bike, so you can run behind them everywhere you go, gasping buckets and sweating like a bitch, until you lose the excess beef. Fat boy.

Merry Christmas. Ho Ho Ho.

Now, move. Move! Move Monster Munch!!

Next!!

You must stand little girl. My legs are fucking killing me now"

Wish you hadn't made the kid a fatty, you'll just start loads of them off again..

"That kid sounds like Barkley, a fuckin' fat-arsed, useless, lazy..." etc

By the way, Christmas not far off now – let's hope Ronald doesn't decide on a Zwarte Piet themed club video.

I can just see the headlines..

"EVERTON IN VILE CHRISTMAS RACE ROW VIDEO – POSSIBLE BAN SAY UEFA"

Wants to get a compo of Niasse's goals for the Under-23s ready for the January sales, that's all.

Remember, Niasse already had a vid that made it look like his Dad was Pelé (and so was his mam).

Sadly it was only us who jumped in feet-first like a mug-punter in Oxford St.

Arsenal (whispers to Everton): "A bottle of Chanel No 5 for six nicker, that's a great deal Scouse"

Everton (clutching wad): "Really? ..Give us a bottle over here lad!"

(Arsenal shuffles off sniggering and muttering 'you mag')

When Ross first came through, I used to get out of my seat in excitement that something would happen. Now I don't, that's the difference in the player in the last 3 years

Oh, all this talk of Ross's lockers on this thread will drive Niasse to distraction, poor lad!

Let's hope he can do the business for the rest of the season.

Dele Alli has had drops in form, as did others without this kind of media assassination. One of the problems with society at the moment is that you have to be either for something, or completely against it. Barkley a world-beater, or Barkley a total waste of space, better off cleaning the bogs at Finch Farm.

Maybe he won't turn out as good as Rooney, but he is still young, and is still learning, as we all are. Koeman might yet improve him.

Did I really just read that, or have I finally had one San Miguel too many!!!!!!!!!!?

Unfortunately, Barkley is still in that mode, and finally he has a manager who is punishing his mistakes, and quite rightly so. Koeman highlighted that he isn't a 'young' player anymore and has the live up to his responsibility.

Ross has talent. So, on all the other matters, there is hope that Mr Koeman can bring out the player that lurks within Ross Barkley.

The obsession with closing down, pressing will soon be shown to be wrong. Guardiola, Pochetinno, Klopp, by the end of a full season in England their players will be on their knees. You can't rest players here like you can in Spain or Germany. What happened to the wonderful Harry Kane last season and to Sturridge under the German idiot is symptomatic of what will happen if this style persists. Koeman is of their ilk as a manager , he loves the cross-country runners, not the footballers.

How you can compare Ross to a truly great player like Bobby Charlton is bordering on madness. Not only have I been going to Goodison since 1956, I also used to go to Old Trafford a few times a season. Charlton was for me the best England player I ever saw, he could do everything. His goalscoring record for England has only just been surpassed by Rooney.

I am sure every club in world football would have tried to sign Charlton had Man Utd ever put him up for sale. But I would be amazed if any of the top eight clubs would put a bid in for Barkley if Everton put him up for sale. He can't get into the England squad and now he has been left out of the Everton team. I can't recall Charlton ever being left out of England or Man Utd teams; only if injured.

So Guardiola, Klopp & Pochettino are all playing the wrong style of football? I can only assume you have consumed large quantities of alcohol today, as I can't think any sane person would put Barkley in the same bracket as Charlton.

This is a kick up the arse. Ross must knuckle down and learn from what the manager expects. Ross perhaps has become complacent about his place in the team. Big six months coming up!!

You don't just influence games and results by scoring beautiful goals – you also do it by making sure you do the ugly things right. The players you dismiss as destroyers create a platform to build on that hopefully the more (so-called) eye-catching players can go on to exploit. There is room in any top side for both.

To help players Barkley to flourish, it's unfair to pile more pressures on them by comparing them to one of the all-time great world footballers like Bobby Charlton.

Every Evertonian wants Ross to flourish, but let's first get to the point where he becomes a consistent performer and a regular choice first and take it from there.

Crerand, was the "passer" in the Manchester United team and as for Bryan, I've been watching Everton since 53-4, so there, it doesn't make me more or less qualified to pass an opinion. For England, Alf Ramsey created a style built on the old Tottenham give-and-go, push-and-run, and Charlton rarely used long passes.

My point is that Barkley needs to be seen as a positive in the Everton team, not a negative. He must hear the sound every time he makes a mistake, something that is almost unique to him. Stones is now the centre of the England defence – at Goodison, we treated him as a liability; we aren't always kind to young players.

Brian, cast your mind back and Derek Temple was treated similarly in his early years when he was used as a centre or inside forward. Please, give the lad some encouragement. That's all.

Will Ronald learn him how to tackle and head the ball properly? As Ross has wonderful skills to add to this. Or is it that we have seen what he has and that's it?

This is a fascinating scenario which we all hope works out for Ross and the club.