The Case for Koeman, M'Lord

And I think you nailed it with the PR crap of bringing Rooney in when we sold Lukaku for far below market value. From what I'm seeing, it doesn't matter who we put in charge if the ownership isn't actually committed to winning. No, not winning some games and finishing 7th. I mean going for trophies and making it known that the types of performances we've seen are completely unacceptable.

But, they don't seem to care. It was only when the third season completely unraveled on Martinez that they took action. But I look at his results with Belgium and how he has a team of talented players performing, and I wonder. I wonder what would have happened if he was given the money Koeman was given. Granted, some of his purchases were awful.

But he is the one that insisted on the youth set-up committing to playing total football, and we saw Unsworth turn those players into Under-23s Champions last year. Players like Davies and Holgate came through that youth system. Since then, perhaps it's not a surprise that those players have seen a decline in their performances. And don't confuse Davies running hard and putting in effort with his performances. His game has gone backward this season, and I'd say Holgate's has as well.

But I'm getting off topic. Koeman has made so many idiotic mistakes over and over again, like persisting with the negative formation of Schneiderlin and Gana in the middle. But I believe the real issue continues to be with the ownership. The fact should not be lost on anyone that, had we completed the agreed sales of Barkley and Niasse on deadline day the Board would have made money this Summer. Lukaku's warning about the lack of ambition, seemingly backed up by Barkley's refusal to sign an extension, should probably be listened to by us.

Regarding Lukaku, it was Koeman who set the ball rolling by saying that "Lukaku should leave Everton to realise his true potential", or words to that effect! You can't blame the board for not keeping Lukaku, it was down to Koeman himself.

Regarding your Point 2, I don't know what point you are trying to make, except excuses for Koeman. Everyone knew the Europa qualifying matches that needed to be played and the PL draw was also well known. No one realistically expected to get anything much out of playing the Top 4 of last season, but the way we were absolutely hammered in each and every one of these fixtures (except, admittedly against 10-man Man City), showed a criminal lack of planning and preparation.

Regarding the departure of Barry, again it was Koeman responsible for his departure because he clearly rated his own buys – Schneiderlin, Gueye, the incoming Klaassen and Sigurdsson – higher than Barry, and he was not really bothered when Barry wanted to leave.

No, the present situation is his own making and only he can rectify the situation or be prepared for the chop. He could start by being more respectful to the club, its fans and its culture. Then, start respecting the players – Niasse, Barkley, Mirallas, McCarthy, Robles, Lennon, Lookman – they are all good players, but have been sidelined by Koeman to satisfy his own personal ego. I hope Koeman comes good – because I don't believe it is good for a club like Everton to be frequently changing their Managers. But the ball is now firmly in Koeman's court.

In his tenure, the team has played well in streaks and played badly in streaks but I see no progress. He got a reaction when he first came – the players were fitter, arrived at Goodison earlier and his iron fist approach worked.

That seems to be wearing off and some players don't seem to like his methods. Players are scared to play – that's his fault – and if we play like we did on Thursday I think Burnley will turn us over. I reckon he'll be gone by December.

If he picks the right team and tactics 80-90% of the time I'm sure people would back him whatever his personality. But we're lucky if he does so 10%. That is my simple issue with him.

He has lots of very good players in my view and lack of left sided cover is not an issue. A lack of striker is a load of codswollop too. Admittedly, one single player can be the icing on the cake but if that is the reason for all our downfall then that's simply bad management from the coach. No excuses.

Assumptions made bare Barkley would go, that Rooney would be playing up front with a striker but, even if Koeman only got half of what he wanted, it is his complete lack of both tactical management to best utilise what he has and the appalling lack of man management to motivate those to bring out the very best in them. Basic requirements for any manager and criminally negligent in one touted as a supposedly top class one.

I know Dutch people very well, having lived and worked in Amsterdam for a number of years, yes they can be straight talking, blunt and critical but it is a fine line between that and arrogance that Koeman walks. "My way or the highway" is fine and dandy if you are in the top 4, not if you are in the bottom 4.

But above all else, and I believe it is a lengthening list, it is the appalling inability to play to a style that suits what we have with the players we have. The lack of a game management and by his own hand, the lack of choice in team selection.

The rest is mitigation but not of significance.

I felt and still feel very strongly after the last window that the ambition that Moshiri spoke about on his arrival has not yet been seen. No team with genuine top 4 ambitions sells their best player and 25 goal striker for up to 䀆M and then fails to replace him.

This new era is still to deliver properly on the promises that it has made and though there have been positive signs such as the clearing of debt my expectation have been severely limited by what I see as three unspectacular and frankly unprogressive transfer windows.

But taken individually?

Pickford. Yes

Keane. Yes

Sigurdsson. Yes

Vlasic. Yes

Sandro. Yes

Rooney. Jury out.

Martina. Jury out.

Klaassen. Doubtful

My opinion only.

The recruitment structure at the club is all wrong. How did we end up buying 3 Number 10s? I can only assume that a list of targets is worked out. Presumably Koeman helps to identify targets on this list, but then he seems to have no input after that. That's why we have ended up with Klaassen, Rooney and Sigurdsson.

Why was the manager away for the weekend in Portugal on deadline day? It can't be right that he is so detached in the process of buying players. You can't tell me that Lookman was a Koeman buy, or the young lad we have bought from Newcastle, or even Calvert-Lewin for that matter.

What we have ended up with is a mish-mash of a squad, which any manager would struggle with. Time for Koeman to change something though, as we can't keep on picking 3 Number 10s. He needs to try something different, or the pressure will ramp up even more on him...

I am writing this prior to the Burnley game and I am expecting nothing but a team of 10's, no pace, turgid performance until he brings on Niasse hoping somebody can grab an equaliser.

I thought he would have been the saviour of the club, experienced, former top quality player, who seemed to have made a good transition into management. Result, nothing, we don't even look particularly good anymore.

The qualifiers for the Europa League, weren't, despite all the pre-match hype, a statement of intent in any way shape or form. We are so many players down, it's untrue. The replacements have not been good. No fire in their bellies. The only bright spots have been the youngsters. Koeman is not Everton, we are going to end up being fodder for the top teams, an easy three points.

Verdict: show him the door, while we can, and before it's too late.

Koeman must have had a plan, spread the goals around rather than relying on one man; very few have chipped in over the past couple of seasons.

So we have Koeman and his coaching staff laying the plans for the forthcoming season he may well have pin pointed certain players who for whatever reason didn't arrive but he must have had a fair idea by the time the season started of how he was going to set the team up.

Well no; he appears to look clueless. the players he has brought in don't look up to the task and the players that where already here have gone backwards. The only player that seems to have improved is Niasse and he's been under Unsworth's wing.

And now the blame game starts 8 players missing through injury plus another 8 that he has pissed off no confidence who is that down to?

Love it he could turn it round and we are competitive for the next five years or so but alas I don't think so, Whatever happens to Koeman he is responsible for the poor uncompetitive sides he has put out this season .

Claims that Rooney's return was foisted upon Koeman just don't stack up when you consider either his character, his words or his keenness to cram him into his starting line up at every conceivable opportunity. Why would any manager... let alone one who you claim is a stubborn, take no shit, straight-shooter, who shuns covering things up....countenance the recruitment of any player if his heightened coaching instincts were telling him he should really run a fucking mile?

I refuse to buy into the narrative that Koeman is nothing but "the fall guy" receiving flak that would be better aimed elsewhere, but even if I were so inclined, any sympathy would surely have scarpered along with his arse when he decided to go sun it while the search for a striker was still ongoing. If his response to looming disappointment on deadline day is to lob his golf clubs in his boot and say "bollocks to this for a game of soldiers" then he deserves to be lambasted as strongly as anyone else for the failure to snare an adequate replacement for Lukaku. If a target man was always that vital to his plans for this season, then he should have been hanging on the shoulders of those tasked with making it happen, like that really trepiditous restaurant twat trying to get Joe Pesci to settle his tab in 'Goodfellas', until the very last.

Wherever Steve Walsh looked on deadline day he should have caught sight of Koeman doing this out the corner of his eye:

Link

He should have been putting the pressure on instead of putting balls about with his golf...err.. bat.

As for Lukaku and his supposed 'gentleman's agreement' with somebody at the club, how do you know that somebody wasn't Ronald Koeman? Last summer, Lukaku stated he had finally agreed to stay after speaking to the new manager. Nothing about Kenwright or Moshiri making him an offer he couldn't refuse (or, at least, an offer where refusal would be a pretty hollow fucking gesture on his part, given no prospective buyer was waving a fist full of cash in the club's face back then). "Giz a year" is as likely to have come from his gob as anyone else's.

I also fail to see how the loss of Gareth Barry can possibly form part of any defence of Koeman, given the player's recent statement that he left because Ron made it clear he would receive minimal game time if he remained. Not that I'm saying Koeman actively pushed him out the door or anything. He's already proved he's pretty useless at that ("if you don't want to play for the Blues, on yer bike!"? Worked wonders so far that approach hasn't it? What did he do? Forget to unchain the bastards first before he gave them a push?).

At Man City Calvin Lewin held the ball up well and has given good displays in most games he has played.It's the tactics and formation that has let the team down and Koeman alone is responsible for that.

If he changes (fuckin' fed up hearing myself say that), then we have a chance of coming out and giving most teams a game, stay the way Koeman stubbornly chooses then we go to the game expecting little and that is what we will get.

I need some of my anti depressive tablets every time I think of Everton now, and that is down mostly to our present manager.

The only thing I'd say in mitigation of Koeman is that he's been unlucky that Barkley was injured, but he probably wouldn't have picked him anyhow.

Klaassen looks a good Championship player, Martina as well, Williams is well past his sell by date. He buys Lookman and doesn't seem to want him, Davies is a fringe player.

This manager makes Moyes look adventurous and Martinez look shrewd.

With the tools that have been available, Koeman is probably the worst in my 53 years a blue.

Since then, I have been surprised at the appointments of Martinez and Koeman. Martinez because he had just been relegated with Wigan and Koeman because . well, unless I had I missed something really basic, I failed to see what all the fuss was about when we prised him away from Southampton.

If my facts are correct, since '97 when he first coached in the Netherlands, he has had ELEVEN coaching roles. So, he has stayed on average, less that two years in each job. I appreciate that some of these moves may have been outside his control but when we were doing quite well for a while last season and there were whispers about Barcelona's interest, it genuinely puzzled me.

I think we can fall into the trap of assuming someone will be a great coach because they were a great player and their playing career can buy them time and kudos not necessarily afforded to other coaches.

Mancini, Ancelotti or is Unsworth and Dyche too low profile. Me personally would give it to Unsworth to restore a bit of local pride and fighting spirit. We can't carry on like this.