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Happy Friday!!
There is a BOATLOAD of stuff to cover in today’s mailbag!
However, before we get to that let’s remember what life is really about...
| As Bally once said, “Once Everton has touched you, nothing will be the same.”
— Everton (@Everton) January 18, 2018
An incredible story. #EFChome pic.twitter.com/lxlFCslgJU
... and in awesome non-Everton related news.....
John's Crazy Socks Goes International: The BBC released a video about John and his sock business. Check out the video. https://t.co/K5fg7N4i0H
— John's Crazy Socks (@JohnsCrazySocks) January 11, 2018
Is it a little dusty in here?
Or is that just me?
With our spirits high, let’s test our resolve by charging first into everything Everton!
To your questions!!
What’s the point of signing another attacking player when Sam says we need to be more boring
— jon hein (@jdhein13) January 16, 2018
Of course my good friend Jon is talking about none other than the one and only.....
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THEO!!!!
Now Jon, I am COMPLETELY in your corner when it comes to being disgusted with Toffees management for their handling of the back line over the past three windows, which is exactly why I rant about it later.
The fan reaction has been mixed with some fans wary over Theo Walcott’s injury history, while other fans see the Englishman’s 19 goals last season and get excited at the prospect of a goal-scoring winger.
How do I feel??
Look, you can be an snarky as you want about Theo’s lack of playing time this season on a less than stellar (though still faaaaaaaaaaar better than Everton) Arsenal side.
The fact is, Everton has about 2 players grand total who can currently score a goal:
Wayne Rooney and Gylfi Sigurdssson.
Unfortunately Wayne needs two shots from 12 yards to get his and Gylfi has to produce goals while also being platooned wide left and forced to cover for the joke that is the Toffees left back position, pictured below.
Cenk Tosun is going to start scoring goals, but unless Big Dunc is ready to suit back up the Toffees are in dire need of goal scoring and Theo has provided that as recently as last year.
He even threw in some defense to boot.
Look, I get it.
He’s been hurt and for some reason he can’t get ahead of a half-in-the-bag Alex Iwobi.
These are valid points, but so is the fact that he would have more than doubled the total of our second leading scorer last year. Ross Barkley contributed 8 from the right wing while Theo chipped in 19.
If Ross wasn’t a snake we would be upgrading him into Theo and still have change left over, which would be a steal.
(Of course Ross IS a punk and left us out to dry so we have to pay the extra change, but that’s business. So we move on...)
Walcott is a proven player in the league, can score goals, and plays with a genuinely positive attitude.
Sure, he has been the easy target of jokes by England fans, but then again they themselves are an easy target.
Says the U.S. supporter.
:(
Anyways........
Walcott can bring genuine excitement to a team that has been genuinely lacking it.
In fact, he has already got new signing Cenk Tosun buzzing!
Cenk Tosun tells press conference of his soon to be new team-mate Theo Walcott: "Theo is a great player, proven player. He's done really well for Arsenal.
— James Benge (@jamesbenge) January 17, 2018
"He's really fast, he's a great crosser. I would say it's a massive signing for us." pic.twitter.com/q4A7SB9sgu
While the Toffees have more work to do, and this move is not without it’s faults, I believe Theo Walcott is going to be a positive influence for the Toffees and can get Goodison rocking.
It sounds like he’s up for it too.
THIS IS MY WORST NIGHTMARE:
— Sam Sanders (@samsanders) January 17, 2018
"In other words, by trying to suppress the full force of his sneeze the man literally ruptured his throat. The air that sneeze would have blasted forth instead made its way into his soft tissue as tiny bubbles." https://t.co/Xe3OHO7Wmt
NEVER hold it in.
This Argentinian soccer team has the craziest goalkeeper training (via @canaldeportv) pic.twitter.com/B0Q2gF6ETd
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 17, 2018
Old? Or Experienced?
Walcott 29 in March
— Captain Anhedonia (@keswickbro) January 16, 2018
Rooney 33 this year
Jagielka 36 this year
Williams 34 this year
Sigurðsson 29 this year
Bolasie 29 this year
Schneiderlin 29 this year
Baines 34 this year
Coleman 30 this year
Gueye 29 this year
Martina 29 this year
Nil Satis Nisi OAP
However, there is this too -
Lookman 21 this year
— Tom Parry (@tparry2712) January 16, 2018
Calvert-Lewin 21 this year
Kenny 21 this year
Holgate 22 this year
Davies 20 this year
Dowell 21 this year
Baningime 20 this year
Vlasic 21 this year
Onyekuru 21 this year
Everton’s season in a nutshell:
Not sure what to make of this but you can safely say that this race had it all! #scenes @Racing pic.twitter.com/xVls82YREC
— Shane Anderson (@Globalgallop) January 16, 2018
Am I wrong to be optimistic about Everton adding two forwards to the squad this month? It feels like a positive.
— Sean Lunt (@Sean_Lunt) January 16, 2018
Nope.....
Seriously, how GREAT would it be if more refs and (especially) 4th officials gave it right back to players & coaches. 4th official: "Why are you so worried about one minor call? YOU started Danny Welbeck! Can we talk about that? Oh, and this 3-4-3 ... WHAT were you thinking?!"
— Steve Davis (@SteveDavis90) January 16, 2018
@bccsports_david says that Everton's medical checks are lengthier than other clubs. Why is that?
— Ankur Mandhania (@amandhania) January 16, 2018
I am going to be honest, the specifics of Everton’s medicals still escape me.
However, based on the clubs incompetence in identifying talent, closing deals, announcing deals and overall on field performance, it shouldn’t shock anyone that Everton can’t seem to get people in and out of Finch Farm for what’s supposed to be the ‘easy’ part of the deal without some problem always popping up.
So what do I think is holding up Everton’s transfers come time for the medical?
If I HAD to guess, I would imagine Everton follow some sort of old routine that’s ‘been around forever’ but in reality is a waste of time and energy.
However, now that Sam Allardyce and his fancy pants analytics team are around, I am hoping to see the backroom staff expedite their processes.
I am not going to blame the medical team entirely, but having to announce Cenk Tosun at halftime of a derby match as opposed to having him play in it is a direct reflection on the inability of the club to sort out the finer details.
Of course compounding that issue was the fact Liverpool won on a goal by a player (Van Dijk) who was signed in the same window as Tosun, but thanks to Liverpool not haggling over pennies and taking days to complete a medical, was actually eligible to compete.
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Whatever the continuing reasons for Everton’s ability to function with expedience in the market, even AFTER agreeing with a deal with their club, is one that must be addressed before it kills MORE deals the squad desperately needs to get over the line.
An accurate representation of Everton moving from Koeman to Allardyce. pic.twitter.com/KlTAIaMDnE
— Everton Simpsons (@EvertonSimpsons) January 15, 2018
Happier times.....
#OnThisDay in 1984, a massive moment in Howard Kendall's reign as Everton manager. 1-0 down to Oxford United, Kevin Brock's attempted back pass is intercepted by Adrian Heath, who rounds the 'keeper to net the equaliser. A sliding doors moment#efc pic.twitter.com/YpsoHyqBXj
— Everton Musings (@EvertonMusings) January 18, 2018
Barcelona fullback, Aleix Vidal's agent is said to be in England negotiating a permanent deal for the player with Everton the possible club. [Estadio Deportivo] #EFC pic.twitter.com/xNu0yfpb4U
— Toffee Targets (@ToffeeTargets) January 17, 2018
Hmmm.....I think we have enough options at RB???
Speaking of defense.....
How come we do not hear about defensive reinforcements. It is a dereliction of duty that we do not have a replacement left back for Baines.
— Jonathan Quirk (@jonathan_quirk) January 16, 2018
You are absolutely right in that the club’s inability to sign ANY kind of legitimate replacement, either long-term OR short-term, for Leighton Baines, or the left-side of the center back pairing is worst than criminal......
It’s not as if a string of unfortunate injuries have put Everton in some type of bind.
In fact, it’s quite the opposite.
Leighton Baines continued steady performances have actually bought the board two of three more windows than should have been allowed.
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Sure LB isn’t the marauding fullback he was in his younger years, but the Toffees legend has continued to be a more than serviceable outside back
Had Everton addressed this GLARING need during one of the previous three windows, the board would have been off the hook for having a direct crippling impact on the squad.
Unfortunately the curtain was pulled back on this, as you put it, ‘dereliction of duty’, when LB went down with a calf injury a few weeks ago.
THEN was the time to panic.
While Cuco Martina has done a more than admirable job in the defensive third of the field in preventing teams exploiting such an obvious area of weakness, the fact that he is right-footed means he basically has to pull back every time he has the ball in order to give service.
The result has been a season of imbalance, displayed by their tendency to attack down the right:
While JonJoe Kenny has shown a desire to get forward, he also needs to become a bit more consistent in his crossing, and he just ISN’T Seamus Coleman.
Getting back to the left-side, there have been murmurs of interest in Bayern Munich’s Juan Bernat, whose immense talent is only matched by his immense injury history.
While Bernat comes with tons of red flags, at this point he is a left-footed professional soccer player who could be willing to line up in the back four.
That being said, while Bernat is only 24, his injury history means the Toffees need to kick it into high gear in identifying and signing a long-term replacement at the position.
If not, there have to be serious questions asked about the sanity of those making decisions for the Toffees because the problem has been going on so long....
TOFFEE TUNES
Sure Sure
Sure Sure
I have been anticipating this album ever since I heard the first single last year, and I am happy to say.....it did not disappoint.
Starting off with Giants the album is a great mix of rock with some pop elements. There are a ton of great songs and it’s a perfect album to pick you up out of your Toffees-related blues.