Everton Banter

21 Jan 2026 19:41:28
Day 21 at Finch Farm and the recruitment team are still tucked up in bed!

21 Jan 2026 14:49:01
Roman Dixon finally back playing now his injury issues have cleared up.

21 Jan 2026 15:42:56
Been out a long time, let's hope that he can get back to full fitness soon.

21 Jan 2026 13:51:52
Annoying news regarding JG. Just when we are getting some players back we get shafted again.

We may as well plan for the future of that position with him not being a spring chicken even if we were to get him in permanently.

Some options that wouldn't break the bank due to coming from lesser leagues.

Aral Şimşir - Midtjylland > 23 right-footed LW but can play all across the attacking midfield positions. Similar to Jack in that he doesn't possess frightening pace but has great balance and ball control. He may be a better dribbler than Jack though and his passing range and vision is more adventurous. 6 goals and 15 assists in 17 games this year. Likely to be available for around 12m.

Mikel Gogorza - Midtjylland > Same attributes as Şimşir but completely different profile. Great ball-carrier. Decent turn of foot and puts defenders to the sword. Only just turned 19 but will move to one of the top European leagues very soon. Would be available for well below 10m.

Kristian Arnstad - Aarhus > 22 right-footed LW but has a decent left peg on him. Probably the hungriest for goals out of the 3. Diminutive but uses his frame incredibly well to retain possession. Loves the scrappy side of the game as well which would be useful playing for Moyes. Comfortable going either side of the defender which always causes problems. Has just started being included in the Norway team, albeit only 1 app and a few on the bench.

Would love us to push the boat out a little bit and go after Diego Moreira. I have wanted us to go after this lad for a couple of windows now. I know a lot of people don't like players that can cover multiple positions but he is such a complete footballer that he can cover the entire left flank in defence and attack and the right side too. Great ability with the ball at his feet, comfortable going either side. Pacey, composed, retains possession with ease. Started out as a LB so has the defensive nous but has been playing in the attacking flank positions more recently on both sides for Strasbourg. Wouldn't be shocked if Chelsea used their connections to get him back at Stamford Bridge after letting him go. Would be a quality signing and could easily start him as a LB or LW. Probably 20/25m to get it done.

21 Jan 2026 14:38:29
Or give Aznou a go?

21 Jan 2026 15:40:18
Great post Bluenose. You looking for a job, we need new scouts!

{Ed025's Note - yeah Mike BN does know his onions mate, i wish half our scouts were as clued up as him mate..

21 Jan 2026 16:25:02
If it goes down to 5 days and we haven't signed anyone I think we can safely say we will wait till the summer. The length of our negotiations and medical seems longer than anyone else's.

21 Jan 2026 17:25:45
Although I've never heard of him I hope we sign Simsir given you've described him as being better than Jack Grealish and available for 12m.

21 Jan 2026 17:26:41
Great info that, it shows their is definitely talent out their, I just think our scouts are still in the brownies or girl guides.

21 Jan 2026 17:39:45
Cant understand why other clubs with better scouting systems than us haven't snapped up these wonder players especially the one better than Grealish for 12M.

21 Jan 2026 17:44:38
Wouldn't be against that at all BMD but the likelihood is that Moyes won't play him. Grealish is only on loan so getting in a replacement that is relatively cheap in todays market may be an option.

Wouldn't say he was better than Grealish Davey, just in terms of his dribbling ability. Grealish doesn't really take players on but he is top drawer at keeping the ball or winning fouls. Can't compare Şimşir to him though, as he has only played in a farmers league.

All of them would be gambles of sorts but I think a few gems are sitting in some of the lesser leagues and we don't really seem to ever look for players there. Leipzig, Dortmund and Benfica seem to target these leauges well.

21 Jan 2026 07:39:06
{Ed's Note - MK Scouser has posted a new article entitled, Liverpool's Pre-Season Concerns Overblown Despite World Cup Disruption

21 Jan 2026 01:53:56
Is Mykolenko a free transfer this summer or do we have that extra year option.?

21 Jan 2026 12:29:59
Hopefully there is no option Ron.

21 Jan 2026 17:13:00
Im with you on that BN.

20 Jan 2026 19:17:10
Some of the posts have been critical and then you have posts that are critical of those who are critical.
Let me be clear about my opinion, under Moyes we have done very well. We are safe from relegation, we have some excellent players and we will have more available when the Africans return and the wounded become available. We still have the possibility of getting into an European Tournament next year. We at long last have a new stadium and our finances are in good shape and we have owners who seem to know what they are doing and appear have a plan looking into the future.
So what should we be critical of? Well while some of the football is exciting like against the Villa, a lot of it like the first 15 minutes against Sunderland when we hardly had the ball was dire. I want to be excited about our play. We see the same tactics week in week out from Moyes, no consideration about how the opposition play, not much change in how we line up nor much deviation from Moyes favorites being chosen often not in there best positions.


We have not won anything in over 30 years and this is not acceptable to me, out of both cups this year so we will win nothing again. Mid-table mediocrity is not what this team should be aspiring to do, year in year out.
Some say we have to be patient, well I have had 30 years of false promises so I am out of patience. We need to recruit good players for the positions that we all know has been needed for years and we need to start using technology to asses the capabilities and vulnerability of opponents, not just use the same tactics week in week out. I hope Moyes and his team is capable of leading us forward, if not then we need a Manager who can.

{Ed025's Note - i agree with a lot of that Mike, but i would like to see if Moyes could change things up with better players mate..

20 Jan 2026 20:06:32
Defo a few new faces wanted mate.

20 Jan 2026 20:49:37
Well I want to see Moyes succeed and yes better players will help enormously, but he also has to improve. If we do get into Europe the use of fringe players is going to be more important, using players in their best positions and changing tactics when required depending on the opposition.

{Ed025's Note - fair point Mike..

20 Jan 2026 21:30:23
Moyes has us about where I expected. To have us there is not because he has no consideration of how the opposition play or because coaching staff do not use technology. Players that make it this far have been monitored since they were 8. Pep saying he would weigh his players wasn't a throw away line.

There are lots and lots of things I don't agree with about DM but also reckon of everyone out there he gets this Club. Next game we lose I will be on here bleating about this or that player, manager is crap etc! then next game we are the gnats!

20 Jan 2026 22:14:52
Well I know that he gets this club, I talked to him in Chicago during his first spell with us and he is as true a Blue as you and me.

Just tell me when he has deviated from his formation? When has he started with two strikers for example? Who do you think will start on the left wing against Leeds? I would just like him to think outside the box but that's just my opinion and what the heck do I know!

{Ed025's Note - as much as the rest of us Mike..

20 Jan 2026 22:56:51
I think he will play McNeil (a mistake in my view) . I would play Ndiaye there. Same setup as Villa with perhaps Gueye for Ruhl. Chicago eh! All my chats have been in Lytham 🤣🤣🤣.

20 Jan 2026 23:16:00
I thought Aznou played well when he played. Fast, direct and young legs. Better bet than McNeil but you are right he will play McNeil, I hope that he has a blinder.

20 Jan 2026 23:22:56
Couldn't agree more, Mike. If anything, I think it's kind of refreshing how split everyone is over him. After years of it being 50% of us thinking whoever is in charge HAS to go, and 50% hoping they turn it round in time, until they eventually lose faith and we all unite on wanting rid, for once, I actually think there is strong arguments both ways.

I see things in the way we play which worries me, and makes me think that DM simply hasn't kept up with the game, and is going to get left further behind as times (and tactics) progress - but I also see a team who are pragmatic, some signing which have his identity written all over them (including, unfortunately, terrible strikers; but this is mostly a compliment) and, despite questionable performances, are actually in a strong league position.

Either way, I fall in the MoyesOut camp, but he's clearly not going anywhere anytime soon, so I guess I just have to get over it and try and enjoy what we're getting - after all, it's much better than it has been in the last 10 years.

20 Jan 2026 23:51:40
BlueMike, I have been watching the Blues for a lot longer than you, but I understand your frustrations.

I think, though, we have to be realistic. As a club, we had reached rock bottom and if I was an investor, like the Freidkin Group, I would want want a safe pair of hands, like Moyes, to get me the stability needed to plan for the future.

In my view, he's probably here for another season after this and then we'll move on to a younger, more progressive manager.

I would add, though, that Moyes is highly regarded amongst his peer group and his players, both past and present. His tactical approach to the Villa game last Sunday has been praised by loads of commentators, and his away record over the past 12 months is unsurpassed. So, we probably need a bit more patience, which is hard, but I believe we're on the right track.

21 Jan 2026 03:57:19
We have gone from last game nerves to looking upwards to European football, all within 12 months.
We have genuinely exciting talent under contract and it takes a few windows to pick up the players we need and some decent squad players.
I think Moyes deserves at least another year to see what he can do when better players are available week in week out.
Like a lot of you, I remember the glory years under Howard and years for my kids to have the joy I did back then.

NSNO UTFT IMWT.

21 Jan 2026 08:49:30
Spot on BlueMike. I've been watching the blues since 1960. I remember when we we're viewed in the same way that the "top" teams are now. When you went to Goodison and always expected to win. It pains me now when fans think mid table is a good season. I'm not ignoring what's gone on in the recent past and the good job Moyes has done in both spells with the club, but I just think he is limited and if we truly want to climb to the top again we need Vision, imagination and a better, in game, tactical awareness.

Unfortunately, and regrettably, I don't think DM has that.

21 Jan 2026 10:47:48
Fortunately it isn't up to us old tards (standing on sandbags to swat that light) to choose the Manager. It is our right to come on here and swoon about the old days and moan. Long may it last.

21 Jan 2026 12:41:28
Think we as supporters need to realise that Rome wasn't built in a day, last few seasons have been terrible, this season we are looking up, not sure what we expect with the little we have done in the windows, we half a decent squad, the other half are made up of crap who need moving on and young guns trying to make a pathway into the team. If you had said moyes in and we finish in the top 10 i'd of ripped your hand off, football is playing against another team, you have to set up to stop there best players, which in the prem even the bottom teams are hard to get any thing from.

Moyes has been solid and we need to give him a break, you cannot play like city, arsenal if you have players who should be playing for Cardiff which we stil have, places in the team still being filled with square pegs in round holes, so until we have a group of players moyes is happy with how can he be judged, see what he did last time he was here, on our day we can beat anyone, but with a better team we will be more consistent which we're haven't or aren't at the moment, is that moyes fault or previous managers.

{Ed025's Note - previous owners more than anything Pasty..

21 Jan 2026 13:15:21
Pojo, I went to my first game at 6 and I am 86 in 3 weeks so if you can beat that you really are an old fart. Seen us parade the first division title around Goodison and been to two Wembley wins in 1966 and 1995. I want more before I go to the happy place.

20 Jan 2026 16:11:08
Is it me or are we just slow getting in some players, lots of links none solid. Hopefully something' is happening behind the scenes!

20 Jan 2026 17:28:32
Hope Tomtom.

{Ed025's Note - we seem to be the same in every window to be honest Dev, why i dont know mate maybe waiting for other clubs cast offs at bargain prices mate?..

20 Jan 2026 18:52:34
We seem to have an order. Women's team get players, we give some contracts to the youngsters, loan some players out then the last couple of days we panic and try and find some players for the mens first team.

{Ed025's Note - you have got that just about right Dev..

20 Jan 2026 19:31:37
It does always seem slow. We’ve been desperate for weeks. Does make you wonder what the team in charge of transfers are up to. Why only enquire about players now? With Jack out now too, we have to move on a couple surely.

20 Jan 2026 20:43:15
Maybe they like to save on wages🤷‍♂️.

20 Jan 2026 23:26:32
I've said this on here before; it's like our scouts forget they're paid year round and not just once the window opens, then panic and look at who's available on the last day.

I would think it was a money saving tactic, but teams like Brighton, Bournemouth, Brentford, Villa, even Sunderland, are constantly picking up cheap players from abroad who immediately come in and look quality, so I think our scouting set up might genuinely just be absolutely rubbish.

20 Jan 2026 14:56:01
Seems a lot of talk in the press about discussions with John Stones.
Don't think he will bring anything to the club.
Will be expensive, has horrendous injury record, and we are covered in central defensive area.
If it is decided we need a further CD will be younger, cheaper, fitter ones out there.

20 Jan 2026 16:12:35
Looks like we are waiting to the end of the window for a free, he is out injured at the moment.

20 Jan 2026 16:21:18
News fing Now really 🤣🤣🤣.

20 Jan 2026 16:25:47
He can play holding mid as well not as good as gana tho.

20 Jan 2026 12:43:13
Can’t believe a couple below are complaining at our present level, we outplayed Villa for most part of that last game and we’re mighty unlucky not to have had a couple more goals, our manager set up the Team perfectly even McNeil did ok, nothing but praise for Davey with so many of our top players out, on a footnote Rohl and Armstrong are going to be become very good footballers, breathe of fresh air Everton are in a good place thankyou Mr Moyes good times are back.

20 Jan 2026 13:28:00
10th in the table with injuries and players absent. A center back playing right back. Our young striker is improving, but not ready to carry a full load. Players missing on red cards. Our left back is average. We have not spent Manchester city or Liverpool money.

Oh, and by the way, we are in 10th position 22 games in and well clear allegation for the first time in forever.

Moyes may not be the entertaining choice as a manager, however, he is more than getting the job done with a thread bare roster.

20 Jan 2026 13:44:37
Armstrong is going to be some player GB. I never got onboard with the hype behind Rodwell or Davies tbh. Thought the comparisons to top players was ridiculous and unwarranted. This lad impresses everywhere though. I think what is most promising is his mentality. He is 18 years old and he is instructing and coaching senior players through games.

There was a phase of play where Myko played him the ball with 2 players on his arse. Harrison stayed composed and won a foul. When he got up he motioned to Myko with his hand to talk/tell him men were on him. Might not sound a lot but I think that shows what an intelligent footballer he is, doing the simple things to help himself along the way whilst dealing with the pressure of playing for Everton Football Club at the tender age of 18.

20 Jan 2026 14:09:42
We are definitely moving in the right direction, GB. It's a strange feeling not having to look over your shoulder at the bottom of the league for a change, something that we became accustomed to in the FM era. What is impressive about it, for me, is that we had to endure a lot of upheaval in the summer with 13 players out of contract, having to replace them with better quality, and the move to the new ground. It's a mission with only one of those happening, let alone both.

We all know that the squad is paper thin but we also know that this will be addressed in this and the summer window. We still have a few players that won't make it on this journey back to becoming a competitive club, simply because they aren't good enough. We just haven't had the time or money to do a proper squad overhaul.

I get some of the gripes from some sections of our fan base.
1) Style of play.

With better players, as an example both full backs, will change the way we play. We need full backs that will overlap the wingers and get the ball into the box. At the moment we are a little hampered by the limitations of those in these positions. I feel this will help us create more without having to rely on our wingers every attack.

2) New ground.

Most teams, historically, have struggled in the first season of moving ground and we are no different judging by some of our results. Other teams play on this perceived nervousness of the players and fans and it shows in some games. I expect patchy results this year as we become accustomed to BMD but we need to make it as much of a fortress as Goodison has been for us. I think that will come with games and better personel on the pitch.

As for Armstrong, BN, totally agree that he seems a special talent. I wouldn't send him back out on loan, he has done himself the world of good when playing for us these last few games. He has an eye for a pass, likes to get stuck in and seems he has no problem communicating with his team mates. I think he can be one of the best talents to come out of our academy system for a very long time.

The future is bright, it will take a bit of patience after so many false dawns, but we will get our club back up to where it deserves to be, challenging for the European places to start with and then who knows?

20 Jan 2026 15:36:01
That’s the point lads we are a Team in transition, best I have felt about our prospects in years, what a privilege it is to be an Blue.

21 Jan 2026 09:50:04
It just feels good to not be in the bottom 6 at this time of the season.

3 more wins and we can focus on phase 2 of the rebuild.

Moyes is the best chance we have of creating a stable platform to grow again. Would love a trophy on the way but we need to build a squad first.

20 Jan 2026 11:45:24
Lukaku up top anyone.

20 Jan 2026 12:59:25
That’s a yes from me mate.

20 Jan 2026 18:08:27
It’s a No from him though.

20 Jan 2026 10:09:48
Just been reading on the BBC Sport page that an unsigned contract between Everton and Don Revie has been found by George Watts ( former Director of EFC ) stepson. Full story on the BBC pages.
He was planned to replace Harry Catterick in 1973 at a salary of £15,500pa.

20 Jan 2026 16:24:03
2026 now.

21 Jan 2026 09:51:58
Thought it was an interesting read.