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Confirmed Signing Abdoulaye Doucouré

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The Idrissa Gueyes of this world are very much the exception to the rule.

There's no point having this as a serious criterion in signing players unless you want a squad of 4 players.
The point being, things go wrong at Everton ALL the time. How are they going to react when Goodison is booing them for an abject performance? Those are the players that are really likely to go all Schneiderlein and not even give half an effort.

If that is a serious criteria than so be it, it's a serious problem.
 
It's more than Iceland and Tommy D combined (for the last 4 seasons) tho - Amma right?
It kind of isn't. Like last year both Davies and Sigurdsson had more tackles and interceptions per 90 minutes.

Doucoure presses better than them, but under Carlo we aren't really a pressing team so does that even matter?
 
The issue I have with Doucoure is the issue I had with Sissoko and the issue I have with Zaha. You are getting paid an absolute FORTUNE to do your job, if you are going to sit and sulk and have that affect how you perform at your work I want no part of you. Oh NO, Zaha didn't get his "DREAM" move to Everton? Sit there, take your £150k/w from a club that really can't afford to give it out and perform to your best, not this sulking half-arsed results this season.

I get this to a point, if they are unprofessional about how they go about. Not trying, refusing to play or show up to training, etc. But I don't think you can honestly say that about Doucoure or Zaha. No more than you can about say, Sigurdsson, who wasn't angling for a move. Football is obviously a physical game, but the mental side of it is often overlooked. It's why a player can transform with the right manager, or disappear under another. It's why a group of top players can fail as a unit, while an over achieving group of journeymen can come together and succeed as a team.

I wasn't aware of any issues with Doucoure, but certainly in the case of Zaha, you have to imagine that certain promises were made, and he felt betrayed that he held up his end and then had the rug pulled from underneath him. In same situation, we sold Gueye and we sold Lukaku, and Stones, and whoever else. Palace promised and then reneged, using the fact that a valuation wasn't met as their reason, even though the valuation was extortionate and beyond reason. Even when we supposedly met the release, they refused. But he got on with it and played.

I'm not even advocating we sign him, but I think it's a little unfair to assume he is any less professional than Gueye with the small amount of info we actually know.
 

It kind of isn't. Like last year both Davies and Sigurdsson had more tackles and interceptions per 90 minutes.

Doucoure presses better than them, but under Carlo we aren't really a pressing team so does that even matter?

Were all those tackles and interceptions after they had given the ball away - also, Iceland would have pointed at who needed tackling, not so sure he's done the tackling himself.
 
The point being, things go wrong at Everton ALL the time. How are they going to react when Goodison is booing them for an abject performance? Those are the players that are really likely to go all Schneiderlein and not even give half an effort.

If that is a serious criteria than so be it, it's a serious problem.

I refer you again to my original point. Most players fume when they're not allowed to make a dream move. Things also "go wrong" at all clubs.
 
Thanks mate, certainly looks as if one is being used as a smokescreen for the other. It may lead some weight to the Davies bid, maybe with Davies going? Or possibly money allocated to Gabriel, can now be added to having a 2nd central midfield player (which to me seems a very sensible approach).

If we can get Doucoure done, it really strengthens our hand with Napoli and allows us to weight it out for longer as well. I too can see both coming in, and they would be both smart signings. If (and it's a bit if) Gomes and Gbamin can get themselves right, a midfield 4 of those 2, plus Doucoure & Allan looks vastly different to what we had to make do with for big portions of last season.
Reads like a GOT Lukaku post from 2016/17, that.

I like Doucoure, personally. I think he's very good on his day and if he's driven/"hungry", he'll become one of our best players very quickly. At 27, he's probably not just rocking up for a final pay-cheque and it's good we're getting someone who knows the league and will probably "hit the ground running", so to speak.

There are two other main important factors for me in the midfielder, besides general footballing ability that I value in that i) he contributes a fair number of goals for a midfielder (he got 7 in the league in 17-18, when Watford were actually an ok side) and ii) he seems to have an excellent record with injuries, being a near ever-present for Watford for the last 3 years. Obviously that means little when it comes to Everton (see Gbamin, JP), but it's something that'd be near the top of my list of priorities in signing players these days.

So he's premier league "proven", experienced, has a great injury record, scrores goals and is in his "prime". For a side with an abysmal midfield that is desperately short of goals and needs results quickly, I could think of worse additions. Not that there aren't possibly better options, but I really wouldn't be against this signing at all.


Doucoure was interviewed a couple of years ago and said he prefers playing as a defensive midfielder.

Will be interesting to see how we play him and Allan if we get both. Theyre both very fit players who rarely miss games.

I would imagine they hunt the ball down in pairs like we used to do under Royle. That would get the fans on side i think and hopefully translate to the rest of the team every match to put a shift in.

Hopefully the fees arent too high.
 
No expert on either player but do hope we get Doucoure and Allan in. Would be a big lift to have someone not Davies and Sigurdsson in CM at the start of the season. That would be a good start with a bit more wheeling and dealing to come into October.
 

Doucoure was interviewed a couple of years ago and said he prefers playing as a defensive midfielder.

Will be interesting to see how we play him and Allan if we get both. Theyre both very fit players who rarely miss games.

I would imagine they hunt the ball down in pairs like we used to do under Royle. That would get the fans on side i think and hopefully translate to the rest of the team every match to put a shift in.

Hopefully the fees arent too high.

They both look like players who can play comfortably in a 2. I mean Doucoure is almost a throwback to that era when I've seen him in that he can do a bit of everything. Apparently he's quite good at ball recoveries, but also taking the ball in tough areas.

I can't say I've seen him every week, but when I've seen him I've always been impressed. He's dominated our midfield at times and also came out favourably against Liverpool on occasions.
 
It kind of isn't. Like last year both Davies and Sigurdsson had more tackles and interceptions per 90 minutes.

Doucoure presses better than them, but under Carlo we aren't really a pressing team so does that even matter?
I looked at the stats for Doucoure and Allan as well as Delph, Gomes, Davies, Sigurdsson and Schneiderlin and if you cumulate Tackles/Interceptions/Pressing wins/Blocks and Recoveries per 90 then Doucoure comes out on top as well as being dribbled past the least out of all of them.

Sigurdsson is dead last and Davies second last. Gomes is just narrowly ahead of Davies but is dribbled past 3.5 times per 90 which is one of the worst numbers for any player in the top 5 leagues.
 
Were all those tackles and interceptions after they had given the ball away - also, Iceland would have pointed at who needed tackling, not so sure he's done the tackling himself.
I just think people look at what Doucoure could be, he moves well, is pretty big and has good technique both passing and shooting, and see a player who is a dominant box to box type player and they miss that things like winning tackles are skills and skills that Doucoure doesn't actually have. There seems to be with him a propensity to miss what he actually is because of how good he can look on the occasion he does put it together.
 
I looked at the stats for Doucoure and Allan as well as Delph, Gomes, Davies, Sigurdsson and Schneiderlin and if you cumulate Tackles/Interceptions/Pressing wins/Blocks and Recoveries per 90 then Doucoure comes out on top as well as being dribbled past the least out of all of them.

Sigurdsson is dead last and Davies second last. Gomes is just narrowly ahead of Davies but is dribbled past 3.5 times per 90 which is one of the worst numbers for any player in the top 5 leagues.
Doucoure is very good at pressing and recoveries. I've not really been too bothered by that because we don't press and we still need a ball winner to take advantage of his pressing on the occasions we do which we currently are missing. If he's playing in our current system he needs to win tackles and crucially make interceptions to shield the backline properly and this area he isn't nearly as strong imo.
 
Doucoure is very good at pressing and recoveries. I've not really been too bothered by that because we don't press and we still need a ball winner to take advantage of his pressing on the occasions we do which we currently are missing. If he's playing in our current system he needs to win tackles and crucially make interceptions to shield the backline properly and this area he isn't nearly as strong imo.

Seeing you against this signing just makes me want it more.
 

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