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Though they played a part, I don't think individual errors played the biggest role yesterday
People said that a lot for the past two seasons as well to excuse Martinez's tactical mistakes and I didn't agree with it then either
Koeman got it wrong. He hasn't done it often, but yesterday he did. Now, anyone can get the tactics wrong, what worried me though was how it took him over an hour to make changes. I said a couple of days back in this very thread that I felt Koeman was tactically flexible and wouldn't be afraid to switch game plans if the current one wasn't working
Sadly that wasn't the case yesterday and I hope that next time we're in that sort of situation he makes the changes sooner
That all being said, bad results sometimes happen and there is a gulf between us and the top clubs. I think Koeman is gradually making us better, but I think yesterday highlighted more than anything that we still have a long way to go before we're on par with those sides. We're going to need to be patient
People said that a lot for the past two seasons as well to excuse Martinez's tactical mistakes and I didn't agree with it then either
Koeman got it wrong. He hasn't done it often, but yesterday he did. Now, anyone can get the tactics wrong, what worried me though was how it took him over an hour to make changes. I said a couple of days back in this very thread that I felt Koeman was tactically flexible and wouldn't be afraid to switch game plans if the current one wasn't working
Sadly that wasn't the case yesterday and I hope that next time we're in that sort of situation he makes the changes sooner
That all being said, bad results sometimes happen and there is a gulf between us and the top clubs. I think Koeman is gradually making us better, but I think yesterday highlighted more than anything that we still have a long way to go before we're on par with those sides. We're going to need to be patient
Saint Domingo
Player Valuation: £90m
If we'd gone at them with our best but just been outclassed I could accept that no problem. Instead we restored a slow ageing player to the line up for no obvious reason, our keeper who had kept 7 clean sheets in 10 is beaten by a 30 yarder and rolls another one to our players in trouble, our tough tackling midfield was nowhere to be seen. We just malfunctioned as usual, knife to a gun fight written all over it. There wasn't any point in the 90 where it looked like we had a chance of winning. We predictably played a bit when we were 2 down and the pressure was off. This group of players can't function under the slightest ounce of pressure or expectation. They'll be back to beating Hull at home soon telling everyone how they've turned a corner.
a bell maul
Player Valuation: £30m
I was only taking the mickey mateOh, so we now have "divisions" of "best of the rest", do we?
FFS we are as close to United as Baggies are to us and we are are closer to the RS in 4th place than Saints in 10th are to us
If you really want to have divisions of best of the rest then at least put us in a league of our own
But whatever way you want to cut it.....5th place is best of the rest and will remain so until that position is granted CL entry.
I trust you picked up on that
Mountfield1985
Player Valuation: £8m
I think the plan was always to keep it tight, then change Barry for an attacking player for the last 30.
If he'd have switched to a more attacking formation after the 1st goal when Spurs were rampant, they could have killed the game in the first half and been 3-0 up by half time.
We looked like we'd steadied the ship and got a foothold, which is what we had to do, and then the 2nd goal is an absolute killer. A shocking goal to give away.
Koemans biggest mistake was starting Barry. It's easy to pick holes in a gameplan after you've lost, but I don't think there was that much wrong with how we set up.
At the end of the day the decision making on and off the pitch was poor yesterday.
Look at the position we were in at the time. We were well under the cosh and the defence was looking to press up the pitch.
Having watched it again I'm in no way closer to changing my opinion.
Schneiderlin had a poor game and he should have got rid, but he shouldn't have been put in that position in the first place IMO.
Sums it up nicely
Why be so negative?
It's our first defeat of 2017 fgs.
Just goes to show that we have a lot of work still to do to bridge the gap.
They could yes, or we could have pulled it back to 1-1 and changed the whole dynamic. Truth be told, it could have been 3-0 at half time anyway. That it wasn't was more luck than judgement.
I think the gameplan was wrong, and I think it has been for a couple of weeks to be honest. A few weeks ago I think we had the balance of the side just right, but in recent weeks we've tweaked it and it hasn't looked quite as good. Davies is much better deeper in my opinion, I don't think he has the flair to play further forward, he's better seeing passes from deep and putting people away. Gana Barry and Schneiderlin was clearly a case of too many cooks in my opinion, they got in eachothers way and nobody really seemed to take responsibility, seemingly believing one of the others would.
The defeat yesterday was neither unexpected nor the end of the world, but i'll be very disappointed if we turn up like that at Anfield or Old Trafford.
Steve Wigan
Player Valuation: £35m
That's probably right. I think it just highlights that we are still 2 or three decent signings away from competing at the top. For example, stick a big, fast centre back in the middle of our team yesterday, and have a genuine second striker, instead of utilising a young midfielder with talent and enthusiasm but little experience, and we would have gone close to winning. Spurs became more vulnerable as the game went on, and we were attacking in numbers towards the end. Koeman is not yet able to trust the players to play a cagier game, and at present we are better going forward. This is not always possible against top sides, and Spurs, apart from Chelsea, are the best side in the league by an increasing distance. Next season, with a reasonable summer window, and without the departure of any major cogs(Lukaku, Koeman,Gueye) we will be a lot better.
I think the progress under Koeman has been good...it was never going to be spectacular. The seeds have been sown, the hard part is still to come......
Saint Domingo
Player Valuation: £90m
It probably is an overreaction but it sometimes feels like Groundhog Day with Everton, regardless of the manager regardless of the players we see the same traits continuing over decades. If we'd have come off second best in a end to end shoot out where we gave s good account of ourselves I wouldn't complain that much, but come on this was straight out of the Moyes playbook. Bizarre team selection, square pegs in round holes, super defensive set up, players looking like deer in headlights unable to even get a foothold in the game, good players doing stuff wildly out of character. We berated Moyes for doing this with far lesser players but even with better players and a better manager it persists. Complete non performances at Stamford Bridge and v Liverpool at Goodison, smash and grab at the Etihad clinging on for life, same at WHL (could have been far worse but for Joel). Do you really think it will be any different at Anfield?
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