Saint Without a Halo

I hope our energy levels can keep up 2nd half as we have been playing at great pace for 45 mins

Yes good fast competitive game so far

Agreed but will he last more than 60 mins

are the Russians so short of fans we have to loan them one? This is complete rubbish it is always England why do we feel we have to chuck chairs bottles etc at the police and wreck the cafes of the local population we are supposed to be drinking in The coverage shows lots of fans clearly English taking on the police and anyone else around It is shameful and their really are no excuses

BEIn commentators saying Sterling and Lallana have been chosen on the wings for their electrifying pace! Has something happened to Lallana since he left here he was always technically gifted but electrifying pace? Not sure I saw much of that at Saints

No gardening leave to see out your contract is quite common for top executives and is in face written into most contracts we didn't dismiss him he chose to leave early

Good point the clubs with history in the earliest days were the Wanderers Royal Engineers and Corinthian Casuals that makes them massive in Everton terms more recently Preston, wolves Forest and Leeds had history doesn't make their teams better than Leicesters today does it? When has history given a team a 10 point start in the league Everton fans are using contradictory arguments in that on one hand they are big and massive based on history and yet on the other hand they argue they will be big and massive through as yet unproven mega bucks of investment from an as yet not proven source and they are rather worryingly reveling in the fact they are breaking the glass ceiling of their wage structure If they are so massive as they argue why do they need investment? And why are they paying more than any other club for a manager of a so called small club who have in their words won nothing? I would rather continue to follow our proven strategy of seven years of continuous growth on and off the field than gamble my clubs future on a roulette wheel and leave it with an unsustainable cost base at some point in the future when the money bags run out or disappear

Has he still not gone yet? This is becoming worse than the Rudi Sakel saga

Now that certainly would be interesting if he is with Everton as morals versus money would come to a quick head given the Sun is not bought there

Well at least we know he wouldn't leave for the Everton massive

Are Peru Italy Greece Egypt and Iraq greater than the USA now because they have thousands of years of successful history History is called history because it is in the past and finished all that counts is the now With the possible exception of course of that fine Everton invention "the dugout" without which humanity would be the poorer

My favourites bit of that long deluded rant was the pride with which it was stated that they are about to smash their wage structure! A a sure fire way to long term success

If we eventually get Frank De Boer do we get his assistant at Ajax Denis Bergcamp too? A good mix of defensive and offensive experience

Up and up the league we go

Just add "the" so it becomes The Virgin StMarys Stadium and it it could then double up as the City's Cathedral too and stop those Scousers going on about how many cathedrals they have compared to Soton

If there are release clauses and I think these are unlikely as they are usually inserted by an international player going to a club that he thinks is beneath his level or likely to get relegated the buying club puts them in as they want the player for at least a season As all the players extending here were already here and had more than one year left on their contracts we have agreed to pay them more to keep them settled I doubt we would have therefore allowed a release clause to be inserted Even if we did we would set it at above our current valuation for the player and if Everton were silly enough to pay it then so be it

I like Yoshi great attitude always gives his best and a real team player I hope he stays and sorts out the silly errors he has the potential to be a good CB

but Koeman wasn't much good at giving youth a chance, that is one of the reasons he is going to Everton. Maybe the new manager would have thought different? However appears to late now!

This is our conundrum and you have "hit the nail on the head" with the academy comment Our ambition is to grow slowly and steadily with a mix of good young buys and academy players, whilst most managers are focused on a fast growth short term stint which requires a mega transfer budget to succeed Until we have grown our commercial side and brand substantially we are never going to be able to compete on the transfer front But to do so we must continue to grow gradually and to grow gradually we need good management

Re current players Why would we? if they want to continue paying silly money well above our valuations they can have who they want Re future players no such clause would be legal

Not Everton? Has Koeman not got there yet!

Spot on the competition now is more about brand and commercial impact worldwide than league position. That is why we are now focusing on building up the brand and name overseas, we are a long way behind the big boys at present a far greater distance than a mere few points in the table. Although to your ordinary man on the Zhengzhou omnibus ( to misquote lord Denning) I would would hazard a guess that both Saints and big history Everton are equally unknowns to him currently.

Re the reoccurring theme of Evertons History Corinthian Casuals the Wanderers and the Royal Engineers have a similar history to Evertons list above. Other clubs with history are Preston Wolves and Leeds, history doesn't do any of them any favors today. The argument that history makes you bigger better more influential etc is akin to Greece, Egypt, Mesopotamia or Peru claiming they are currently bigger and better than the USA because they have thousands of years of history with a list of outstanding achievements such as first laws, first wheel , first zero etc Does Evertons history give them a 10 point start In the league? This world is about the survival of the fittest in the here and now and football is no different and however you measure it we are currently fitter than Everton

We have actually "marched on" for seven straight seasons in a row not sure anyone else has done that in Any of the four divisions over the same period ( although I would need to look up AFC Wimbledon and Bompey last seven finishes to be 100% sure of that fact) but however you look at it that is constant sustainable improvement year on year

As we have seen with Koeman the agents are already setting up the deals and will do so throughout the Euros leaving the signatures by the players till after Also many countries are not in the Euros