Wait for first win goes on as Everton give up another precious lead

Leicester weren't up to much but we need to learn how to keep a lead.

The Palace game next week is massive.

Early days still and Ndiaye looks a player. Get Branthwaire back and the defence will shore up as well.

Bad subs again.

Their goal was poor defending again and I thought Harrison coming on for Lindstrom just gave them the advantage down that right side.

Garner, although not the best at right-back, offers good distribution and invention from there. Mangala I thought did well.

Attacking is definitely our best form of defence at the moment so the subs just gave up the initiative. Shore up the defence and points will come.

I thought Lindstrom played really well in terms of link up but his finishing seems questionable. That three behind Calvert-Lewin might be something to build around.

There was no need at all to make the Ndiaye sub, Si. So not being spoilt for choice does not get our self-proclaimed Odin off the hook.

We just need to finish our chances, so they don't come back to haunt us like!

There are six teams without a win. Of them, I think Palace and Wolves will come good. Let's hope we're in the same bracket. We're scoring and creating chances, so that's half the battle.

Palace next up is massive. Win that, and we can build from there.

I don't think anyone could really have too many arguments if the manager is removed from his duties within the next 3 weeks unless the results against Palace and Newcastle work out in our favour.

We have to somehow get standards back at this football club, Dyche for me is not the man to elevate those standards beyond mere dogfight survival every year.

Hopefully Branthwaite is close to returning. Soft goal and poor defensive play, Tarkowski and Keane, no talking.

Doucoure's poor passing… I recall recent games at Goodison v Leicester.

But Palace will be a very tough game and Everton can win and start to get away from the bottom pack.

UTFTs!

Likewise, Ndiaye was clearly out on his feet when he was replaced 7 minutes from time. With Mangala increasingly tired and less influential as the game progressed, we badly needed an extra pair of fresh legs to shore up the central midfield. Again Iroegbunam was the only option although he too struggled, losing possession on two occasions.

There was much attacking promise, especially in the first half. The team had a decent shape with very effective passing triangles on the flanks: Young, Mangala and Ndiaye on the left; Garner, Doucouré and Lindstrøm on the right.

The obvious missing link is Branthwaite. Neither Keane nor Tarkowski did much wrong today but we lack the dominant presence in critical moments which Branthwaite provides.

There really can be no excuses. In 3 games, we were comfortably leading… and only a single point at the end of the day.

It's not only down to Dyche but the players have to take equal responsibility. Pickford's command of his area has always been non-existent. Outfield players, unable to keep possession, make simple passes… and as for the chances we miss – groundhog day to last season!

Dyche is supposedly lauded for the stamina of his teams and his fitness-orientated training. Well if so, I think he left it at Turf Moor. 90 minutes is beyond this team.

I can see him opening the door on the way out if we don't pick up 3 points next week. The rot has to stop.

That is why he loses so much possession.

We need Branthwaite back.

Sometimes it's like reading the tabloids on here. Give the lad a break and stop loading pressure on him.

We learnt last season how bad he is and then loan him back for another year on silly wages.

He should have been sent back to Leeds who would have tried to loan him out again – I can't imagine anyone daft enough to take him.

I think he's a good footballer but lacks confidence in himself.

Teams know he won't come off his line… and they play on it.

I think 5 points would have been nearer a fairer reflection of what points we could be on, ie, 3 points today and draws at Villa and at home to Bournemouth.

We have one point on the board at last and hopefully we can knit a run together in the next few games, but it won't be at all easy and we'll have to be at our best at both ends of the pitch to get that points total moving in the right direction.

I understand people get hot under the collar about losing leads, but we are a whisker away from cantering up the table. Have a bit of patience!

It's clearly a tactical decision from Dyche for Pickford to stay on his line.

Why claim that critics want to see Everton sweep all before them? That's not what I see on here. I see people questioning certain aspects of performances by both the players and the manager, noting the good and bad things and arriving at a conclusion.

Some have fair points to make; others less so, but isn't that what these boards are for, a place to discuss Everton and how we as supporters perceive it?

I understand it can be tiresome to be reading a continued negative narrative, and some are hooked on providing that at the drop of a hat; they won't change their stance, that's just the way they are.

In general, I think the majority of posters are saying what they see, and, as we all see things very differently, there's bound to be a divergence of opinions.

I have always thought that it was ridiculous they were all asking you to at least try and command your 6-yard box, which definitely wasn't helping you to play to your strengths.🙈

Well, the complaints are all because we didn't win away. With that defence.

Anyone looking at things dispassionately can see we've got a temporary issue here that will right itself soon, and that then there is everything to play for.

With a full squad, we'd be on 5 or 7 points now. But hey, with 3 of 4 starting defenders missing we only got a point away today in a fucking monsoon. The sky is obviously falling.

Tarkowski was looking like his old self – although he did get caught under the ball for their goal – and people around him responded.

It won't go down well with those hurling abuse from the bandwagon but I thought Ashley Young was our best player. He didn't put a foot wrong in the first half.

The winger Thelwell brought in had the fans purring again too. How good to see a man in blue go past opponents.

Definitely something to build on…

(That half ended on a frustrating note, with a defensive clearance reaching Calvert-Lewin on his own in the centre circle with a potential one-on-one with the Leicester goalie, although Dominic's record in such situations is not the best.)

By the 75th minute, possibly because of the above-mentioned defensive covering, the whole team looked absolutely goosed. Leicester brought on young, athletic players, and in the end I was content to settle for a point. Once again, I have to wonder, approaching the end of September, whether our manager's pre-season training regime is suited to the needs of the Premier League in 2024.

Given that all our players looked very tired, should Ndiaye, the one most likely to create a goal, have been the one to be hooked? What an entertaining player he is, the likes of whom we have not seen for a long time.

I thought we played really well for 70 minutes but then ran out of steam, probably due to a combination of players not being fully fit or suffering the effects of the illness that has been through the camp at Finch Farm.

We should have been 2 or 3 up before they scored, but yet again failed to take our chances. That said, at least most of the play was positive, and we certainly were looking to win the game from the start.

I spoke to a Leicester season ticket holder afterwards in the pub (the excellent Blue Boar) who agreed that we were far the better team and he said we were actually the best team out of the 3 teams they have played at the King Power this season!

Today, we take off Ndiaye and Lindstrom and nearly make the same mistake, can Dyche not learn from that?

Also, Garner at right-back? Leicester targeted that all afternoon. Why not Dixon at right-back and move Garner or Iroegbunam into midfield?

I don't understand Dyche's team selection or subs, despite the limitations.

I really can't fathom why so many Evertonians are dead against Jack?

However, he brings very very little end product and watching him closely in the flesh, he's completely wasted as a wide player, because he can't beat a man, and when you have slow full-backs either side, it's made more glaring right in front of you.

I like the lad, but he's not ever going to bring any dynamism to the attack – much like McNeil, to be fair.

Lindstrom played well.
Ndiaye played well.
Mangala played very well.

Not sure what injury crisis we have but get Branthwaite back, get Mykolenko back and I'd be happy with that.

Get a keeper who can come off his line and challenge crosses. Get Tim Iroegbunam fit.

Keep the faith.

I know it's a results-orientated business and we haven't got points on the board, but we have played well, in fact, I would say better than last season.

Calvert-Lewin was excellent, Ndiaye was exciting, Lindstrom gets in good positions and generally the football was good. But we gave up another lead, Dyche stuck by his favorites and we paid the price.

Garner had a torrid time, again, especially when we had two outright defenders on the bench.The game itself lost its momentum after the prolonged half-time and we never really got back into the game.

Young had a decent game, but the whole backline is just not good enough, even Tarkowski is a pale shadow of the last couple of seasons, Keane is just not switched on enough positional or in any way dominating the opposition.

So it's an overall 6 for me, Full-backs are a concern, but we should strengthen up on Branthwaite's return. We did okay.

Why not start the first 20 minutes with the replacements and then bring on a fresh strong cavalry to see us thru to a win?

Make the changes in the first half. Can't do any worse!

However, what Dyche saw in Harrison last season to want him again this season, I just don't know. He is useless. Has he passed a ball to one of our men, rather than the opposition, yet? If he has, I must have missed it.

We have the makings of a decent side. We just need some luck as far as injuries go, decent tactics from Dino (which is too much to expect I know), and the points will soon start accumulating.

I think we will be okay. Not brilliant… but okay.

I agree that on balance we have played some better football during this season's opening games vs the same time last season.

The ‘but' is that we should really win at home next week vs Palace, and if we cannot put the chances away to secure the win, then I have little faith in Dyche to make the right calls from the bench.

So it's really on the players to step up and show some quality, bury the chances, and put us out of sight before the 75- to 95-minute panic sets in.

I don't think Palace will be shaking with fear at coming to Goodison, more likely they will have watched Dyche and learned.

Let's see next weekend. Up the Toffees!

Like Shaun said in post 35, I thought Mangala and Lindstrom played well, and what a treat to see Ndaiye play as he did yesterday. I think, seeing we weren't in the stadium to see James, the last player to go past opponents that easily was Deulofeou.

We controlled the game for large parts and were a tad unlucky to concede in the manner we did.

I hope that Lindstrom starts against Palace as he offers a lot more going forward than Harrison. I think when both Broja and Chermiti are fit, it will add even more firepower.

Calvert-Lewin has many attributes but for me he doesn't put away enough one-on-one chances. I thought Young had a decent game and laid on the ball for Ndaiye, although he still had lots to do before he scored.

Our brilliant scouts nowhere to be seen...

Other than the loan fees for Danjuma and Harrison, we only spent €2M as the initial payment for Chermiti last summer. The fee for Beto was deferred until this summer.

Yes, there's lots of injuries, so until there's a settled back 4, I'd be surprised if we didn't see more of the same.

That's why I'd say our best form of defence is attack.
The more we have the ball in the opposition, the better.
Seems obvious, but even yesterday we invited them on to us, so we could break.

With this front 4 of McNeil, Ndiaye, Lindstrom and alvert-Lewin, we can play that way but it is dependent on a solid back 4 to soak up the opposition threat.

So when you have Branthwaite, Tarkowski, Mykolenko and Coleman, there's a game plan that could work.

The positive thing was the purpose we played with on the break. Things weren't bouncing off Doucoure or Maupay. Ndiaye and Lindstrom had craft and ingenuity to affect the game, support and supply Calvert-Lewin.

Dyche has to do better with the players at his disposal now. It's clear they have ability. Use it!!!