Everton U21s draw with Man Utd in PL2

It's on You Tube, just search for Everton

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VdSNjcXh4yo

Are Man Utd collecting opponents' shirts as they tried hard enough to pull Everton players' shirts off. Poor refereeing.

Is Tommy Canon potential first team material?

Now young Price I do like; another very good game. Could he..?

I reckon Cannon has improved more than I expected. Not long ago, I was suggesting he's not going to be on our books for long. I have to admit he might have turned a corner. Having said that, still a big step up to the first team.

Now young Isaac Price I do like; another very good game. Could he..?

Talk about deserting a sinking ship! These lads are kids (all under the age of 21) and deserve our support – not criticism. It's a learning curve for them and football is a “funny old game” as one famous TV pundit once said.

Did the 2nd half against Crystal Palace last season not teach you anything? I believe 2-0 to be the most vulnerable of scorelines. Once the losing team scores to make it 2-1, the match completely changes.
It's called various things: belief and confidence for the losing team and apprehension, nerves etc for the winning team.

Anyway, well done to the U21s and Tom Cannon in particular. Well done, young man, take a bow son, take a bow.

John, Welch, Anderson, Warrington and Cannon all looked in control of the ball and their positions. Price was good in patches but gives the ball away a lot. Needs to mature.

We had a complete stranglehold on the game with Okoronkwo and Kouyate wide of Cannon. These are big, fast and strong – albeit a bit wayward on the ball. They also need to mature but have talent and personality.

Overall I thought our passing, pressing and team structure were better than they've been for a while. Encouraging.

I wasn't so aware of Price giving the ball away that much but we sometimes miss things in games – don't I! Maybe giving the ball away sometimes is a function both of the speed with which he recycles the ball and of the penetrating passes he often tries for?? Things I really like about the lad.

Isaac Price is interesting as Frank obviously saw something in him though he looked a bit lost when he got a run-out. He didn't feature really in the summer either. But maybe his first dalliance will inspire him.

Whitaker is another one. Him and Warrington were highly praised about 18 months ago. I think Whitaker got injured but can he kick on?

I completely agree with you about Cannon, who could have scored four before we switched ends. I think he may have taken a while to adjust to the different demands of Under-21s football from the younger groups, especially as he has largely played up front on his own, and is not blessed with exceptional size or speed. But he managed to make clever runs tonight, and seems to have a lot more guile about his game.

But I disagree about Isaac Price's performance, and he continues to disappoint me I'm afraid. He played a couple of very good through-balls, and was relatively neat and tidy and industrious, but he continues to be outperformed by his team-mates as far as I am concerned; I just do not get the hype at all and I thought the first Man Utd goal came after powder-puff defensive work from Price (and McAllister too).

Warrington was very good, in and out of possession. Quirk was hit and miss but did a lot of very good things, while Whitaker (lovely assist for the first goal) and McAllister were a bit more miss than hit for me. Kouyate and Okoronkwo were both exciting, and caused United a lot of problems with their desire to take defenders on.

Both full-backs – Kyle John and Mackenzie Hunt – were strong and progressive. I thought Welch looked a bit shaky at times, and Joe Anderson was the better centre-half on the day.

Overall, it was a very good team performance, especially after conceding two early goals, and the manner in which the players moved the ball was sharper, quicker, and more cohesive than I've seen for a while. Good signs.

Tony (27) - I think perhaps you might be getting Dobbin and Cannon mixed up. Dobbin has gone on loan to Derby.

Presumably Cannon and Warrington will be out on loan before the loan window closes?

I imagine Warrington will with our growing plethora of midfielders. Hopefully to a decent Championship club. If he has a good season, he could come back and seriously compete if we clear the decks a bit.

Mills could probably do with a loan too but I suspect we may need him with Coleman getting on, Patterson new himself, and McNeil maybe slotting in different roles.

I think Cannon is best retained to get his confidence up until Xmas. Then maybe a loan would work.

Warrington probably is ready for another loan at a higher level too. Is Metcalfe ready to take his place?

I've noticed that Jenson Metcalfe hasn't been on the bench for a while. Another one who has gone backwards or at least not progressed?

Jenson Metcalfe was injured last season, missed the end of it and I'm guessing is still not fully fit or he'd be in the U18 squad. He's certainly one to watch when he returns.

Keep up, Brent!