All posts by h79snht.top

Everyone will agree that Everton have had a poor season, but while some chalk their particularly bad showing in the Premier League down to the distraction of competing in Europe, perhaps the answer is actually much, much simpler.

Maybe Roberto Martinez just isn’t that good of a manager? The Spaniard joined from Wigan in 2013 when David Moyes ended 11 years of loyalty to the Toffees after securing the Manchester United job. Martinez strangely received the Everton gig after failing to save Wigan from relegation. He admitted to their chairman Dave Whelan that he didn’t feel he was the right man to bring the side back into the Premier League and yet Everton were happy to trust him with their climb up the table. Is it any wonder now that they sit in 11th?

Following their 3-0 destruction of Manchester United, the Toffees have failed to use that momentum to improve their end to the season as they have now lost their last two matches. Games against West Ham and then Tottenham will see out a disappointing campaign where they have recorded 14 defeats, the majority of which have come on their travels.

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At the start of March Everton were preciously close to the drop zone with only six points between them and the dreaded drop zone. While they don’t have to worry about being drawn into that fight now, the fact that they were only three defeats away from the drop surely can’t sit well with supporters who were expecting Everton to be right in the mix for Europa League qualification.

But perhaps they have been put off of playing in Europe’s second competition, as supposedly their participation this season has negatively affected their domestic campaign. Funnily enough, teams like Tottenham, Liverpool and Chelsea didn’t find themselves struggling to stay up when they added the Thursday fixtures to their timetable.

Actually, Chelsea not only won the competition in 2013 but also finished third, three points off of second and with Champions League qualification secured for the following campaign.

Everton supporters need to accept that Martinez is not the right manager to guide their club into Europa League contention season after season, and will definitely not help them crack the top four any time soon.

The current holders of those coveted Champions League places have the money and experience to maintain their choke-hold on those positions and the teams just below them have more convincing squads than the Toffees.

Just in case last season’s fifth place finish wasn’t just a fluke, Martinez deserves one more season to prove he is capable of helping a team thrive and not just stay afloat. But if he fails then the club need to replace him.

Everton don’t want to chop and change their manager like some other clubs do but if they want to realise their aim of consistently climbing the table, then they need to accept that Martinez is probably not and has never been the man to make that happen.

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A change this summer might turn out to be the best choice to make before their best players completely lose faith in the club and flee like they should have done last summer.

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Will he go? Will he stay? David de Gea’s future is about as clear as mud right now, with the Spaniard’s situation altering on a daily basis. The latest suggestions are that Real Madrid are willing to wait it out and sign him for free next summer, but this could just be a scare tactic to force Manchester United into doing a late deal.

Typically, Real get their own way in the transfer market, so there’s every chance that De Gea will be plying is trade at the Bernabeu in just under a month’s time, so Louis van Gaal’s Red Devils need a contingency plan… and they appear to have one in the shape of Spurs’ Hugo Lloris.

Interestingly, United face Tottenham this weekend in the opening game of the Premier League season – albeit Lloris may be on the bench due to fitness concerns – which adds another interesting narrative to an already enthralling clash.

Is Lloris the perfect replacement? We at FFC Towers think so, and here are FIVE reasons why…

Prem experience

Manchester United cannot afford a sluggish opening few months to the campaign. A start akin to that of last term could see the title race fade away, with sides such as Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal all looking strong. Although goalkeepers are not the most vital of cogs, their importance is still significant, and in Lloris, United could land a replacement ready to slot straight into the action.

With three years of Premier League experience, the Frenchman is well-versed in the style of the English game, thus reducing the threat of the ‘adjustment period’. As United know all too well from De Gea’s first season, it can take time for foreign imports to transfer their form.

Proven quality

Building from the last point, Lloris is a proven stopper at the very highest level. Although Spurs have not finished in the top four during his spell at White Hart Lane, the classy stopper has been among the best goalies in English football, with his reflexes, reading of the game and all-round ability between the sticks impressive to say the least.

On top of this, Lloris is the captain of the French national side, illustrating his quality and skills as a leader.

Eager to move

Lloris has talked up his desire to play in the Champions League in the past, and with Spurs’ summer having been quiet on the transfer front, the Londoners look further away from doing so than they have entering campaigns over the course of the past few years. Although there are no suggestions that he desperate to move on, surely the chance to perform in top-level European competition could sway him before the window closes, and United appear on course to be able to offer him just that… so long as the can make it through a potentially tricky qualification play-off tie with Club Brugge.

‘Sweeper keeper’

The modern game demands more from goalkeepers. Gone are the days of a goalie of questionable athletic prowess, with stoppers now called upon to help with building attacks from the back and cutting off opposition threats early.

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Manuel Neuer is the high-profile example of the ‘sweeper keeper’ phenomenon, but Lloris is not dissimilar in his approach to the game. Such an approach comes with inherent risks, but the Frenchman’s speed across the turf and impressive technical skills make him a useful component in a more progressive system.

Spurs are a selling club…

Spurs fans may not be happy to hear this, but the Londoners are a selling club. Dimitar Berbatov, Luka Modric and Gareth Bale are three prime examples of the willingness to offload key players for profit, so the right offer for Lloris will surely be entertained by chairman Daniel Levy.

With United possessing spending power on a par with any club side on the planet, there’s every chance Van Gaal could pay whatever is needed for Lloris – especially if a sizable sum is received for De Gea.

The Sun reports that Arsene Wenger believes that Jack Wilshere has avoided the worst of his injury issues and he’s prepared to hand the 25-year-old a new contract.

Following an injury-free season on loan at Bournemouth last season, the English midfielder has successfully established his place in Wenger’s Arsenal squad this season, with the former Cherry amassing 16 first-team appearances for the North London team.

What’s the story?

Arsene Wenger is prepared to offer Jack Wilshere a contract extension having impressed with his performances this season. Even though Wilshere completed an entire season with Bournemouth, mostly devoid of injury, it is believed that Wenger is unimpressed with his performances and was prepared to sell the England international in the summer.

Nonetheless, the Arsenal academy graduate – valued at £13.5m by transfermarkt.com – has displayed great commitment and willingness this season that has ensured he has regained his place in the squad. Over the entirety of his career, Wilshere has missed more than three years of action, yet it is reported that the midfielder is keen to stay with the FA Cup winners.

He is facing a similar predicament to team-mates, Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil, whose contracts at Arsenal expire at the end of the season. From January the 1st Wilshere will be free to discuss terms with overseas clubs, yet Wenger is allegedly eager for him to extend his contract.

Should he stay, or should he go?

The 25-year-old is currently experiencing a period of his career that isn’t blighted by injury, and thus he should look to capitalise on the opportunities he’s been given at Arsenal. If he opts to depart the Gunners, it is unlikely that he’ll be able to sign for a club of similar pedigree.

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To prolong his progression, he should stay at Arsenal.

It’s hard to pick out any individuals from Liverpool’s stunning victory over Manchester City on Sunday, such was the nature of the performance from Jurgen Klopp’s side. Although individual quality was a factor, especially when it came to finishing chances, the manner in which the Reds pressed, harried and broke forward as a cohesive unit was the defining element behind them becoming the first side to beat City in the Premier League this season.

Accordingly, choosing a Man of the Match is a rather difficult task. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was at his robust and offensive best in midfield, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah netted superb strikes, Roberto Firmino was his ever-industrious self between them and Andrew Robertson gave much-maligned former Red Raheem Sterling a torrid afternoon from left-back.

So, Liverpool fans, who do you see as the crucial influences behind that huge win? Here’s the perfect chance to have your say by giving each Reds player a rating out of ten for their performance vs City…

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Delve into West Brom’s history and there is a lot to love and a lot to admire. A roll call of alumni ranging from Jeff Astle to the incomparable Laurie Cunningham evoke a warm smile while the more seasoned supporter will recall Vic Buckingham’s magnificent, free-flowing side that illuminated the nineteen-fifties. Then there was that yellow and green kit. You know the one, the one that rightfully still makes grown men swoon decades on.

Now though, what are they? Who have they become? After finally shedding their yo-yo status and enjoying seven consecutive years in the most lucrative league on the planet what adventures have they delighted in? What model of entertaining excellence have they aspired towards?

Well, they exist; that’s one thing we can definitely say about them. They exist and they breathe and they show up each weekend on the dot dulling whatever passes for the Premier League’s soul that little bit more with every fulfilled fixture.

Aside from that I’m done bar the occasional splendidly taken goal thrice a season and that 5-5 draw with Manchester United a few years back. In comparison to the swashbuckling sides of their past they are Fun Bobby from Friends and where once they were the party now they only deign to poop it.

Year after year the TV bonanza continues to pour in and their top flight credentials grow ever stronger yet there is scant evidence of the Baggies loosening their firm grip on caution, a strategy that amounts to safety first, second, third and so on with little consideration to contributing anything meaningful beyond survival.

The campaign that saw them promoted in 2010 also brought Blackpool up and though the Tangerines plummeted thereafter they could be said to have made more positive impact on the Premier League in that one rollercoaster season than West Brom have in seven. If you believe that to be a deeply flawed correlation, in effect counter-intuitive praise for Albion’s pragmatism given that the Seasiders are now residing in the third tier while Alan Pardew’s men have gone to-to-toe with Arsenal and Manchester United in recent weeks, then consider too other clubs who have hauled themselves into the elite in that time period.

There was Swansea six years ago, Southampton and West Ham five years ago, Crystal Palace four, Leicester three, Bournemouth two and Burnley in 2016. If I was writing about their stints in the highest echelon within a much shorter time-frame – how they have developed and progressed and took flight with ambitious verve – then even discounting the Foxes’ incredible title triumph I would be spoilt for choice, picking out exciting individual talent and memorable moments.

With West Brom nothing comes to mind unless I Google, and that would be cheating. Nothing but banal mental images of James McClean and Chris Brunt mouth-breathing like Sunday League cloggers and an endless sequence of set pieces.

Seven years is an eternity in top class football yet in that whole time West Brom’s brand has never deviated from being muscular and industrious and this perhaps isn’t very surprising when it’s factored in that former chairman Jeremy Peace loves nothing more than to employ stolid fare in the dug-out. From Roy Hodgson to Steve Clark, from Alan Irvine to Tony Pulis it is a litany of uninspiring choices that lays down a template for competency and little more. And now there is Alan Pardew, which is just perfect.

Imagine being in a pub with all of them. They’d probably line up at the bar in a 4-4-2 formation, each ordering the craft ale and paying just for their own, before indulging in a twenty minute conversation about spark plugs.

Presently rooted to the bottom of the table it’s starting to look ominous for the Baggies this term. Relegation looms and should they indeed ensure the drop will there be any regret at eking out their tenure in the Premier League without ever daring to explore what might have been possible had they rolled the dice?

Probably not, after all this is a club who have had fifteen attempts at domestic cup competitions since becoming one of the ‘big boys’ – each an opportunity to discard the suffocating pressure of league commitments and chase a dream – and with the exception of a singular quarter final appearance all have resulted in early exits, usually as a result of fielding severely weakened line-ups.

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Whoever is in charge this is a club happy to get by, do enough, and all the while take up a spot in the top flight rota over a club who might have admirable ambitions to expand and enthral.

In their third most successful era, West Brom have only succeeded in devaluing their past becoming the team that deflates enthusiasm when they’re scheduled for Super Sundays or paired with your club. They’re the ad break in the greatest show on earth.

There’s no accompanying pleasure in saying this, but perhaps it’s time that West Brom boinged again.

Southampton had a mixed afternoon as they secured their place in the next round of the FA Cup, but they also suffered an injury blow.Mauricio Pellegrino’s team have not won in the Premier League since November, but they managed to secure a victory at St Mary’s today.The coastal club sealed a 1-0 win over fellow top-flight outfit Watford thanks to a goal from Jack Stephens, who was celebrating his 24th birthday today.Just before the half-time break, though, the Saints suffered a setback as Ryan Bertrand was substituted with an injury.The extent of the problem is not yet known, but it has got some fans worried, especially considering that the club recently allowed Matt Targett to join Fulham on loan.If Bertrand is facing a significant spell on the sidelines, it leaves Pellegrino short of options in the full-back areas.After the former Chelsea star was withdrawn, Southampton fans began to worry about the ramifications.

As reported by The Sun, Arsenal are ready to sell defender Rob Holding this summer, as long as the buying club meet their £15m valuation of the player.

What’s the story?

Holding has struggled to win his place in Arsene Wenger’s starting eleven this season, making just seven appearances in the English Premier League, and it appears his time at the Emirates may be coming to an end.

The Sun report that the club are ready to let go of the Burnley target, but only if clubs like the Clarets pay up £15m.

The paper say the asking price comes after Sean Dyche already had an offer for the 6ft 2in defender rejected during the January transfer window.

What can he offer other teams?

Holding may be struggling at one of England’s elite clubs, but outside of the establish top six or so sides in the English Premier League can improve many defensive lines.

Of the 19 games he’s featured in this season for Arsenal in all competitions, he’s helped them to seven clean sheets, including a very solid 90 minutes against Chelsea in the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup.

With strong ball-playing abilities he suits the pace and requirements of modern English football well and at just 22 years of age of is learning all the time about the raw defensive side of the game.

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The reported £15m asking price isn’t a lot in the transfer market these days and any willing club would be securing a very promising young defender who can forge a successful career for himself if given regular football.

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According to the Evening Standard, both Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur are interested in the services of Malcom from Bordeaux.

What’s the story?

Bordeaux manager, Gus Poyet has revealed that the French club will sell the 20-year-old ‘sooner or later’, and the Evening Standard reports that Arsenal and Spurs are ready to pounce on his availability.

Both Arsenal and Tottenham signed attacking personnel during the January transfer window. However, it is believed that both clubs retain an interest in the Brazilian sensation.

Who is Malcolm?

Malcom is a 20-year-old striker who currently plays for Bordeaux in Ligue 1. He began his professional career with Brazilian side Corinthians, where he scored ten goals in 73 games before opting to move to France.

In 85 appearances for Bordeaux, the striker has amassed a respectable total of 19 goals, and he’s beginning to attract the attention of some of Europe’s most talented teams.

What are his qualities?

One of his primary strengths is his ability to contribute to goals, either by scoring them or creating them. In 25 first-team appearances for Bordeaux this season, the 20-year-old has scored eight goals while registering six assists.

Additionally, he is renowned for his versatility. The Brazilian forward can operate as a striker, an attacking midfielder or as a winger. This sense of adaptability is a crucial skill.

Furthermore, the Brazilian is accomplished in some areas, such as passing, dribbling, crossing and shooting from a distance.

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At the age of 20, it is rare to find a player who flaunts excellence in some vital areas.

Would he be a good signing?

Without a shadow of a doubt, Malcom would be an excellent addition to Spurs or Arsenal. It’s conceivable to suggest that Bordeaux will insist upon a hefty price tag, yet the Brazilian is one of the world’s brightest prospects.

Sam Allardyce provided a much-needed stabilising effect when he took over at Everton in November, steering the Toffees clear of relegation bother after a torrid start to the season under Ronald Koeman.

But results have taken a downturn in recent weeks, winning just two of their last eleven across all competitions, and the one-time England gaffer’s pragmatic mindset feels like a poor fit for a club that has ambitions to break into the Champions League spots.

So, is it time to give Allardyce his marching orders, should a change come in the summer or does the former West Ham and Bolton boss deserve more time to truly make his mark on an imbalanced squad? Football FanCast lay out three solutions to Allardyce’s future at Goodison Park…

Solution A – Sack Allardyce now

Seven points clear of relegation but miles away from the top six and also out of the cups, Everton’s season is essentially over at this point, so why not make the change now? Assuming the club’s preferred replacement is available, it will allow them an extra handful of games to truly imprint their methods amongst the squad and evaluate which players do and don’t fit into their philosophy.

That might inspire a higher level of performance out of the players for the rest of the season too, knowing they need to impress the new manager even if it won’t make much difference to the club’s final standing at the end of May.

And while it may create some instability in the short-term, it will allow Everton to head into the summer window knowing who will be in charge at the start of next season, which will inevitably have some impact on the club’s transfer policy.

Solution B – Sack Allardyce at the end of the season

Some Toffees fans would argue the last thing the club needs right now is more turmoil, especially when it’s self-imposed, and sacking Allardyce would certainly cause a fair amount of turbulence amongst the ranks at Goodison Park, with a new coaching team needed and an underperforming squad asked to undertake new ideas from a fourth manager this season (David Unsworth included).

Although Everton only need a few more points to get to the right side of the 40-point barrier, a disappointing final standing after hiring a new manager would create unnecessary negativity heading into next term; it makes far more sense to let Allardyce absorb the criticisms of this season and allow the next manager to start with a clean slate in the summer.

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Likewise, more managers will be available in the summer when clubs are more open to agreeing compensation packages because they have time to bring in a replacement. If Everton were to sack Allardyce right now, former Watford boss Marco Silva and Shakhtar’s Paulo Fonseca are essentially their only realistic options.

Solution C – Keep Allardyce on for next season

For all the concerns over recent results and style of play, there’s only so much Allardyce can do with the poorly-assembled squad at his disposal. It lacks quality and vital balance in key departments; the fact Cuco Martina is being relied upon on his less favoured defensive flanks speaks volumes about where this Everton team is at right now, while the Wayne Rooney and Gylfi Sigurdsson conundrum still lacks an obvious solution.

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Allardyce is one of English football’s shrewdest recruiters and after a full summer transfer window we could see Everton start to look like a real Allardyce team, balancing out style with efficiency, and results would naturally improve.

The lingering concern, however, is how little faith the fans appear to have in Allardyce; if Everton don’t start next season strongly, the pressure will be on right away and the club could soon find themselves in a similar mess to this season, where the campaign is effectively a write-off after an early sacking.

So, Everton fans, how would you address Allardyce’s future at the club? Let us know by voting below…

According to reports in The Mirror, Everton striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin, rated at €12m (£10.7m) by Transfermarkt, is being considered for a shock England call-up in the build-up to the World Cup in Russia this summer.

Three Lions manager Gareth Southgate is set to name his squad for the upcoming friendlies against the Netherlands and Italy next Thursday, and The Mirror says that the 47-year-old is mulling over giving Calvert-Lewin an opportunity, even though he hasn’t been a regular for his club side in recent weeks – he has only started one of the club’s last eight Premier League matches in 2018.

That said, the 20-year-old has proved to be an important first-team player and one of the few bright sparks in a disappointing campaign for the Merseyside outfit, scoring eight goals and providing a further six assists in 39 appearances in all competitions, and he is eyeing a consistent run in the XI after playing the full 90 minutes against Burnley last time out.

While Tottenham Hotspur’s Harry Kane, Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford and Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy seem to be certs to get the nod, there appears to be a chance for other attackers to stake their claim for a surprise spot on the plane to Russia.

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Getting the call would certainly be a huge boost for Calvert-Lewin in his bid to end the season on a high and continue to be a key first-team player for Everton, and that would only be good for the club if he is to get more experience on the international scene against top nations like the Netherlands and Italy.