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Everton Youth Teams Thread

Please, please bring in a tactical coach to replace Jeffers. The way Chelsea, Man City and Man Utd youth teams play is starkly different to Everton. They all seek to dominate possession being comfortable under pressure, giving a player in possession options and press as units rather than individually. These attributes are needed for Premiership players. The football Unsworth plays is outdated (so fed up of seeing his 451 formation) and my worry is for the talented young players like Whittaker being wasted. All Unsworth talks about at the moment is his obsession about getting them in the preseason training camp, giving them 2 training sessions a day, getting them in the gym. Nothing about training the players tactically, improving their skill set. He's great at producing lower league players but we are a Premier League club and the focus should be on producing players who can make it at that level. The truth is that he was a player who had great physicality and that physical side of the game seems to be his focus. So with Jeffers going there's an opportunity to bring in a new coach with a new focus. Please don't waste this opportunity Mr Brands.
 
Lanolin said:
That's just football though isn't it. I'm not saying it's right but it's certainly not an issue confined to Everton. Pretty much every club is littered with coaches who are either former players or mates with the manager, it's just how it works.
Click to expand...
Yeah I'd say that's fair. I'd just rather we treated it a bit more 'professionally' in that we actually try and get the best coaches around to help develop players rather than that approach. And to be honest I think Paul Tait is one of the best around so I can't say the approach doesn't have it's merits as well. Just think that because of it being Jeffers with his history it rubs the wrong way a bit more.
 
8th placed Everton u18s play their and the league's very last game of the season tomorrow knowing a win or draw away to Newcastle which is a 1pm ko, will put them in 5th, Everton have won 4 and lost 4 of the last 8 u18s league games
 

Ring master said:
8th placed Everton u18s play their and the league's very last game of the season tomorrow knowing a win or draw away to Newcastle which is a 1pm ko, will put them in 5th, Everton have won 4 and lost 4 of the last 8 u18s league games
Click to expand...

Wonder if they'll go full strength, try youngsters or play some of the players being released to put them in the shop window? I noticed Higgins was on the bench in the last game and Dylan Thompson started and neither of them have been offered contracts.
 
messymascot said:
Wonder if they'll go full strength, try youngsters or play some of the players being released to put them in the shop window? I noticed Higgins was on the bench in the last game and Dylan Thompson started and neither of them have been offered contracts.
Click to expand...
I suspect we’ll be looking towards the future by playing more of the u16s , but who knows. Liam Higgins looked like he’d stepped up 15 months ago when he made his debut for the U23s at 17, but since then no real impact, but you’re never sure if he’s been impacted by injury.
 
Bluelladevil said:
Please, please bring in a tactical coach to replace Jeffers. The way Chelsea, Man City and Man Utd youth teams play is starkly different to Everton. They all seek to dominate possession being comfortable under pressure, giving a player in possession options and press as units rather than individually. These attributes are needed for Premiership players. The football Unsworth plays is outdated (so fed up of seeing his 451 formation) and my worry is for the talented young players like Whittaker being wasted. All Unsworth talks about at the moment is his obsession about getting them in the preseason training camp, giving them 2 training sessions a day, getting them in the gym. Nothing about training the players tactically, improving their skill set. He's great at producing lower league players but we are a Premier League club and the focus should be on producing players who can make it at that level. The truth is that he was a player who had great physicality and that physical side of the game seems to be his focus. So with Jeffers going there's an opportunity to bring in a new coach with a new focus. Please don't waste this opportunity Mr Brands.
Click to expand...

....I’m not defending Unsworth, but i’d have thought the DoF sets the playing strategy throughout the club. I remember Craig Short saying Everton U23 provide the ultimate PL2 test because they play most like a PL team.

i assume the teams you quote (Chelsea, Man Utd & City) have the largest element of expensive young foreign recruits that play in a more technical manner. This is my assumption, I’m no longer close enough to the set up to know.

I think there’s a fine line between coaching and recruitment. The finger is often pointed at Unsworth & Academy coaches for the lack of talent coming through, but perhaps that’s as much do do with recruitment & local youngster not playing to the extent we did growing up. It seems most of our success is acquiring promising youngsters (Stones, Holgate, Lookman, Nkounkou, Branthwaite etc) than bringing them through the ranks.

I actually think we have too many ex-players on our Academy coaching staff, so I’m not against bringing others in with a proven record at that level.

Just an observation rather than an informed opinion.
 
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Lanolin said:
That's just football though isn't it. I'm not saying it's right but it's certainly not an issue confined to Everton. Pretty much every club is littered with coaches who are either former players or mates with the manager, it's just how it works.
Click to expand...

Ive always found something dislikeable about Jeffers, and his conviction for DV would have been the end if the line for me.

However I have no idea of his coaching ability.

What I'd say though is that you are essentially right on who fills up youth coaching. And I'd rather have guys who have played for and understand the club, especially those that have come through the ranks coaching people than those coming and going with managers, without any real commitment or care for the club.

I also think the antagonism towards former players is selective. Unsworth and Jeffers bear the brunt, but Cahill everyone seems on board with. So it seems quite selective.
 
Ring master said:
Everton u18s 1-0 on 15mins - cannon

---------------
Cannon shoots over on 6mins for Everton's 1st chance
Welch header saved on 9mins
Butterfield shoots over on 10mins
Mills shot blocked on the edge of the area on 12mins
Baker shoots wide on 14mins
Click to expand...

Everton u18s 1-0 at HT

McAllister shoots wide on 26mins
Mils shot blocked on 37mins
Canon shot saved on 40mins
Cannon shot saved on 43mins
Warrington shoots over on 45mins
 

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