Match Thread Everton v Brighton - Preview, Match Report & MotM Poll

[efcfanwirral]

Brighton are a very good side but they are still a mid table team.

The kind of play we are seeing now is effective and decent enough when you are in a relegation fight and needing anything you can but is not even a third of the way through the season. It’s eye-bleeding stuff, made worse when don’t even seem to try to counter attack or offer an out ball.

I feel like if we tried to keep playing as we did before we scored, we might have done something, hoping to hang on for almost the whole match is not likely to be that successful very often.

Every game is a cup final til we hit 40 points. We're deep in a relegation battle til we're not

If he was off by the VAR metric, then so be it. That barge in the back, however, was a clear penalty...

Was so inconclusive from the picture they showed us. Personal opinion of a former referee seems to be the metric

Completely ruining the game regardless of who benefitted

 

[Sheedy's right knee.]

They are averaging over 20 shots a game, it wasn’t pretty but they didn’t really get near our penalty box. We limited them to very little. This time last season whenever our team broke our 1st press, ( If we can call it a press they had a clear run to the penalty box. I think with a more influential Onana we would have had more quality going the other way. Considering where we have been and where we are at. It was a decent point. I fancy us to beat Palace next week.

 

[ClausThomsen]

Think Pickford should have done better for the goal watching the replay. He could have just stood up and reached it rather than diving.

He absolutely couldn't. It was way over him, looped at absolutely the worst angle possible and wasn't reachable at any time. He sets his feet anticipating where the initial strike of the ball is likely going.

To then react again, reposition and save would have required something extraordinary. And quite possibly for him to grow 2 inches in the moment.

If he was off by the VAR metric, then so be it. That barge in the back, however, was a clear penalty...

Is that the one just before half-time on McNeill?

As the Brighton defender behind McNeill starts reacting DCL gives him a little shove while he's balanced on one foot. Not much but enough to put him off balance in the moment. He falls into the back of McNeill as a result of a push rather than fouls him. It looks like nothing in the close up but you can see it better in the wider angle shot.

And regardless, at the point of contact McNeill is very clearly not in the box. I thought it was a clear penalty at the time but a few looks at the replay it seems the correct decision.

 

[jj-son]

We know his limitations. He won’t change. We are picking up points now and it’s not going to be pretty to watch. The possession stats are horrific.

If possession != points, is there a reason for us to complain at this stage, though?

 

[Rob17896]

If he was off by the VAR metric, then so be it. That barge in the back, however, was a clear penalty...

I agree it was a penalty but am unsure that VAR can judge that fine an offside at the very moment the ball leaves the boot. It would have to see the first enth of a millimetre to to that so I cant see how the ref has made an obvious error. If it takes VAR more than a minute or so it cannot be obvious.

 

[Toffeelover]

Key word in your statement is 'Or'. Who knows how changes would have affected the result.

I had a poor stream but I did see two breakaway moves in the last 20 minutes when the players messed up through poor decision making. One involved Gana carrying the ball. I can't remember who led the other. Both gave us opportunities to get to 2-0. I'd put the blame on the players first.

There is that but the point here is breakaway moves. That is the way Dyche has his teams playing pack the defence and hoofball or breakaway.

He operated that way in all the years he was at Burnley. How about attacking football taking the game to the opposition putting them on the back foot ?

 

[davek]

we had a plan and it almost worked, an awful lot of their 80% possession was passing it around their back 4 looking for an opening and our structure was tight and disciplined, there weren't many openings. Their possession was passive and ineffective. Their main outlet was Mitoma and, controversially, Young defended against him really well and restricted him to very little. Their goal came from when Harrison was versus Mitoma and Mitoma got more space and got his cross in, Young and Pickford were unlucky. Brighton are a decent side, not a shabby point.

Perfect summary of it for me that.

 

[ChesterBlue]

We’re still unbeated since I’ve been in Japan. Make of that what you will

 

[Toffeelover]

Perfect summary of it for me that.

It is a good summary Dave. But what about the way we play ?

 

[Southern Evertonian]

We are playing a lot better and proving more difficult to beat did well yesterday I am still not sure about Sean Dyvhe though and that's because of going foward need to score more goals and attack better from now on Some of his selections I would not play Ashley Young. We really missed Amadou yesterday but it's a lot better we're unbeaten long may that continue try to always pick up points away from home regularly to and should do our best and try to win home games to.

 

[Kevsleftpeg]

He absolutely couldn't. It was way over him, looped at absolutely the worst angle possible and wasn't reachable at any time. He sets his feet anticipating where the initial strike of the ball is likely going.

To then react again, reposition and save would have required something extraordinary. And quite possibly for him to grow 2 inches in the moment.

I disagree with you mate. You're wrong. He was virtually on his goal line and he got lobbed by a ball that clipped the cross bar in the middle of his goal. It would have been a good save but it's one I have expect a decent keeper to make. There was a fair bit of distant between Pickford and the deflection.

 

[Kevsleftpeg]

It is a good summary Dave. But what about the way we play ?

The priority is to stay in the league until we can improve the team and squad. Results are all that matters in the short term.

 

[davek]

It is a good summary Dave. But what about the way we play ?

We play how we have to play. No frills and maximise the number of shots we get off at goal.

 

[peteblue]

we had a plan and it almost worked, an awful lot of their 80% possession was passing it around their back 4 looking for an opening and our structure was tight and disciplined, there weren't many openings. Their possession was passive and ineffective. Their main outlet was Mitoma and, controversially, Young defended against him really well and restricted him to very little. Their goal came from when Harrison was versus Mitoma and Mitoma got more space and got his cross in, Young and Pickford were unlucky. Brighton are a decent side, not a shabby point.

Indeed, no blame for Young nor Pickford……

 

[ClausThomsen]

I disagree with you mate. You're wrong. He was virtually on his goal line and he got lobbed by a ball that clipped the cross bar in the middle of his goal. It would have been a good save but it's one I have expect a decent keeper to make. There was a fair bit of distant between Pickford and the deflection.

Personally I'd give him the benefit of the doubt. He's quite correctly close to the near post and he's anticipating and positioning for the cutback from Mitoma. To tip that the angle it's coming at him with a split second massive change in direction would have been an extraordinary save. The path the ball takes is absolutely the worst it could for the position he is in.