01 Feb 2014 18:01:12
Ratings:

Howard-6-didn't have much to do really, shouldn't of been beat for bacunas goal

Stones-6-gave the ball away a lot and didn't see mcgeady's very good runs, not too bad defensively

Jagielka-5.5-as soon as gibbo is back he should be captain, he didn't command the back properly and put stones in some awkward situations with poor touches

Distin-6-benteke didn't cause any problems so he didn't have much to do

Baines-6.5-okay today, no support in the first half, no alternate options either so it was up to him on his own

Barry-8.5-pulled the strings in the last 30 mins, well played today, few good interceptions and a stunning 60 yard pass to baines late on

Mccarthy-7-some good tackles but did 3 very poor passes

Mcgeady-7-felt sorry for him today, stones didn't see his good runs but overall he did quite well today

Barkley-4-grrr again being too greedy cost us, all about him, does he know there are 9 other outfield players with him? His fault for the goal, very poor and no surprise no one cheered him when he went off

Osman-6.5-went backwards a bit too much but neat and tidy throughout

Mirallas-7-great free kick, not a striker but worked hard and showed glimpses of magic today

Pienaar-6.5-came on did well, too slow imo to carry on starting games but again did well

Naismith-7-great finish, great positional sense, how anyone can say he is the worst player to ever play for everton is beyond me

Hibbo-6-do I have to give a rating?

First half was absolutely dreadful, a certain number 20's fault yet again, great comeback second half, thought our fans were awful first half, so quiet, needed to get behind the team today and we didn't, thank god the players didn't pay too much attention or their heads would of dropped, move on for the next game

Mike-Ox Long

1.) 01 Feb 2014
As someone else posted. we have watched Naismith on the wing too much. He is out of position there. I agree that now he is getting a go up front he looks a much better player. I would like to see him up front with Lukaku playing a 442.
Degsypulford

2.) 01 Feb 2014
4 for Barkley? He was playing against effectively 7 defenders without a single player making a run. He only went alone because he had no options. He wasn't good, but that wasn't his fault.

7 for McCarthy? He was excellent. Yes, 3 bad passes but he won it back countless times and dropped into right back excellently.

6.5 for Pienaar? He transformed the game.

Mirallas is a striker. It was Moyes who turned him into a winger, but up front is his natural position.

Naismith was good, but he's still terrible.

3.) 01 Feb 2014
Agree with most mike stones is not a right back Coleman will b a massive boost when back with duelofeu pie aat however great player to have in team works so hard and really gets the best out of Blaine's really good today I thought happy for Naismith gets a lot of stick on here but always works hard for the team when he plays bit unfair on jagielka

4.) 01 Feb 2014
01 Feb 2014 19:10:36
He could of passed it to barry, mccarthy, bbaines, distin, jags or howard bur noooooopppee, more interested in showing off, pienaar did okay, he didn't transform the game, naismith got the goal which gave us a lift, he transformed the game

{Ed025's Note - you really do have it in for ross, dont you swan, he was not at his best today but hes a great talent, cut the guy some slack!, hes still young, and has come back from a broken leg, not to mention all these experts piling pressure on him to become the next big thing!...look hes one of ours so try laying off him a bit mate..

5.) 01 Feb 2014
I actually thought McCarthy was really poor today - he just doesn't do anything a lot of the time - there were lots of times when defenders or wingers had no outlet and had to keep going backwards going nowhere - and that usually points to centre mids going AWOL - I thought McCarthy didn't go and occupy the space available to provide an outlet - I've thought he was really good so far this season but I'm going to be watching him now even off the ball to see if he's actually doing that much

{Ed025's Note - i await you verdict with baited breath latch, i think he does a great job..

6.) 01 Feb 2014
01 Feb 2014 19:40:13
It's not just the 'experts' ed its our fans every little thing such as a simple five yard pass they go 'woah!, like rooney that', well why? What's so special?, he is being hyped up with the likes of mario gotze and thiago, the difference? They know when to pass the ball, or should I say, how to pass the ball, ross is that typical ball hog we all had to put up with at school, people will say 'he will learn' well he only seems to be getting worse at it, cut him some slack? Like people are doing with alcaraz and stones? One bad game and each of them are 'poor' and 'not good enough for the premier league', every english talent has pressure on them, zaha, sterling, warde prowse (but he's just crap), shaw and oxlade chamberlain all have huge hype, same as ross, he has a great mentality according to martinez, so the pressure should have no effect on him whatsoever, I will lay off him when he starts thinking about the club he plays for and not taking all the glory, he will be lucky to be an england regular, I can see nick powell overlapping him easily, I don't get why people are building him up to be the next rooney, he is nowhere near as good as rooney, I don't have it in for him mate I just don't have time for gloryhogging youngsters who think they are better than the rest of the team simply because they have a bit more publicity due to their age

MIke-Ox Long

{Ed025's Note - i think he will prove you wrong mate, and you must realise that you are the same as the stones and alcaraz detractors, all im saying is support the players and the team, sometimes they will have poor games, they are not robots!..

7.) 01 Feb 2014
01 Feb 2014 19:55:53
But its not just one bad game for ross is it? Cannot think of one standout game, arsenal away maybe? Norwich away? (even then he was overshadowed by nathan redmond), other than that he's been quite infuriating in every game, I do support the team, I want everyone to do well, I want everyone to try and win as a team and do it for the club, ross just seems interested in himself, evertonian or not, he's the type that if we lost the game 3-2 and he scored 2 goals he would go home happy, not bothered we lost, just happy he scored and looked good on the tele

{Ed025's Note - i think you have him all wrong mate, but your entitled to you opinion..

8.) 01 Feb 2014
Naismith was good but still terrible? He scored a decent equaliser and has been professional enough to play in a variety of positions except his preferred one until recently. What's the guy got to do to catch a break on this site? Martinez has started to get the best out of most of our players, with some, the effects have been quicker, but Naismith has had hardly any time to prove his worth. Today, as our only fit striker, he put a shift in, got a goal and was an integral part of a crucial win. What more do you want?Can we not just get behind the team, whatever the line up?

{Ed025's Note - thats very fair comment mate..

9.) 01 Feb 2014
McCarthy - 3 very poor passes? Oh no, that's bad. What should we do get our money back or call the police on him? Naughty James, you can't be losing the ball 3 (THREE) times!

10.) 01 Feb 2014
I've been meaning to ask - Is it a scouse thing when people say/type could 'of', should 'of', would 'of' as opposed to the word 'have'. It's not just this site it's others too. Genuine question?

{Ed025's Note - yeah laa...that means yes mate.. :)

11.) 01 Feb 2014
I know that one Ed but the other one had always puzzled me lid :)

{Ed025's Note - its purely down to laziness mate...typing 2 letters instead of 4..

12.) 01 Feb 2014
01 Feb 2014 20:40:19
3 times in dangerous positions, granted he chased back but its unlike him to do it so close to our goal

13.) 01 Feb 2014
I`m all in favour for a platform to voice an opinion whether it be in praise or critique. What I cannot understand is the necessity for so called supporters to crucify our team, either individually or enmasse.
I cannot believe some of the posts, I`m an Everton supporter and so are all of you, so FFS support them and leave the slagging to Brenda`s boys.

14.) 01 Feb 2014
Mike I respect a lot of what you say. You speak from the heart and don't suffer fools gladly. It's also clear that you attend matches on a regular basis and that you are a passionate Evertonian. However your current obsession with Ross Barkley is IMO over the top. This is a young, raw talent whom we've seen emerge into EFC's first team this season (and England's) and I believe you're being way too harsh. He came back from a horrific double leg break as a 16 year old displaying a mental strength that would have finished lesser players. He then had to contend with a manager who regularly ignored him when he made his come back from that injury. He was clearly good enough to have started in many games last season yet the chosen one chose not to choose him.
This year under a more honest and progressive young manager, Ross has started to flourish. OK so he's not the finished article yet. He's still young and is still learning. Yes he'll make mistakes but that is part of his current learning curve. He was clearly unfit last Tuesday night and was brought back too soon. Maybe the effects of that toe injury affected him in the first half against Villa. But to constantly slag him off is unfair and to be honest unhelpful. Last week you suggested selling him to UTD or Chelsea in the summer, but why? Ross Barkley is like you and I : an Evertonian through and through. The difference between the three of us is that he's an incredibly talented footballer. We need to build a team around him not sell to rival clubs as we have been forced to under Moyes- Rooney, Arteta, Lescott, Rodwell all departed so we could balance the books. The present financial situation is far rosier.
Ross will go to the World Cup this summer with his country and will be given game time. This should not be a shop window for other clubs to come sniffing after him however.
So lay off the lad please. I want to see him at Goodison for many years to come like many others I'm sure!

{Ed025's Note - I think you speak for the majority davey, I myself will be very proud for him to represent our club at the World Cup and hopefully Spotlight our talent, which may encourage other players and maybe even investors to look at our club in a favorable light..

15.) 01 Feb 2014
Hello Ed - I will keep you posted on McCarthy - I know he has been a good buy and I like him but I started watching him today when we often didn't seem to have a midfield outlet so stuttered here and there going slowly nowhere - and I thought "who's missing from that centre mid space?" And then I started watching McCarthy - and if you keep an eye on him instead of following the ball I noticed that today he didn't seem to put in a shift and was often wandering around well away from the play and it just surprised me a bit - a centre mid in his position should be getting around the place and making himself available - not being a bit of a passenger - I was bit surprised

{Ed025's Note - I think your splitting hairs there mate, CMs often get dragged out of position, it's part of the job, but I will take your word for it latch.

16.) 01 Feb 2014
To the Swan you are been very unfair on young Ross Barkley, just before he got injured he was playing really really well. The last two games Villa & the RS, he has been poor but is playing with pain killing injection in his toe and to me is not fully fit. Think Martinez should spring him from the bench for the next couple of games till his confidence is restored. In time Swan he will certainly prove you wrong he has all the attributes to be world class. So give the kid a break so many people can see his potential maybe we are all wrong, and your right, seriously doubt it.

17.) 01 Feb 2014
McCarthy is a super purchase by Martinez, he has to be 1 of the hardest working centre mids in the prem, he has to cover a lot of ground because let's face it Barry and Osman good footballers but both their legs are shot. So if he has a slack day maybe its due to exhausting of covering more ground than most. If he can add goals to his game he would be a top class player.

18.) 02 Feb 2014
01 Feb 2014 23:54:44
Youre right mate, maybe i'm just being overly negative on him, he's 20, comparing him with gotze and thiago is too much, gotze has far more experience and thiago was brought up to keep the ball, maybe i'm just thinking 'well the english media jump on youngsters as soon as they show any talent when in reallity they are not that good' is it really hard to believe maybe england have produced a talent that is worth raving about, here is my thing, look at germany and spain, so many spectacular prospects and they don't rave about them, they let their youngsters develop, i'm a big fan of spanish and german football, i'm not claiming to be an expert, I do watch a lot of football and I admire the way they let their youngsters grow and don't put too much pressure on them, well, i'm not letting barkley grow, i'm not putting huge tags on him, instead i'm heaping a load of negativity on him which he doesn't need, I just with this country could be like spain and germany, if we have talented lads, let them grow instead of labelling them the next rooney, the next gerrard, the next cleverley (lol), I don't think its his lack of talent, hell, he is as telanted a footballer as you will ever see, its just these stupid things he does, keeping hold of it too long, he hasn't been brought up like thiago since he was a toddler to know when to pass it, he has everything else, the passing and reliability will come with experience, I will lay off him and let him learn, look I don't want to keep saying I grew up with him as people will say 'why the hate', he was a nice lad and I remember him nutmegging me in the carpark in wavetree, I grew up with him, so I should support him just as much if not more than everyone else on this site, I want him to become world class, I suppose its just the anger of his mistake today taking over how talented I know he is, let's see him grow, I should be happy we have our own special talent and he supports this very club, I want to see him become a legend here and a world class player, and acheive success with this team, all together now, COYB!

19.) 02 Feb 2014
I don't want to go on too much as lots of people have commented. As regards to the ratings the Barkley one was a bit silly, but I would suggest that if you are watching for a players mistakes you will find them. I'd say a bog standard 6. I also think Mirallas would have been a low rating for me had he not scored that goal. Obviously not a striker, a web site way too many times for my liking. I would have given the highest rating to McCarthy today, I thought his tacking was excellent and he looked good going forward, which we haven't seen much of this season. Otherwise good comments as always.

20.) 02 Feb 2014
Naismith is striker, never been a winger ever! But he is a grafter that why he is played out of position.