ajax_andy

Not been on a PC much the last few days but now I am just thought I'd say well done to the Toon on their win. Once we gave you a 2 goal headstart it was always going to be a massive challenge to get anything out of the game. I really hope you start losing soon or Pardew might end up England manager!

If there's ten ways of judging the size of a club, then trophies won is one of them. They have four more than us. The other nine ways you could judge club size, it's one of the worlds biggest delusions for them to believe in their hearts that they are. It doesn't bug me, it just massively amuses me, the same as when Leeds fans think they're as big as us. How can you call yourself a big club when you're struggling to get 30000 in the Premier League it and they are pathetic. See my post above

like most forums there's plenty of people who can only see their own clubs positives and can't see another clubs... think their team is the greatest and anyone who says otherwise is a fool

I don't think he'll be an Everton player neither, he'll end up in jail or at Tranmere imo. Sorry dunno why i said Baxter in that last paragraphy I meant Barkley lol! yeah Baxter wont ever make it and I reckon your assessment is spot on

Just in response to the youth team thing I posted we've had a lot of young lads come through out ranks... some have moved on, some stayed, some dropped out of football. successes are: Hibbert Osman Rooney - best english player of his generation Baines Jagielka - yes both Baines and Jags were part of our youth team before Walter Smith cut it completely (Why I do not know!!!) Dunne Jeffers - Epic career fail but class when we had him and fetched a good price Rodwell Coleman Ruddy (Norwich Keeper) So that's 9 premiership quality players and one world class one in recent times. We do have a fantastic youth set up, and yes Baxter hasn't lived up to the hype, not every player will, but our record in developing youth is very good and I do believe we'll continue to see some really bright talents come through the ranks over the next few years due to our setup now being light years ahead of when we developed most of the players above. Baxter is apparently the best player since Rooney and is supposed to be the next real big thing... no kidding anyone in the know speaks about this kid in the same way as Rooney... sadly he'll not be an Everton player in a few years but i have no doubt by the time he's 20 he'll be one of the 1st names on the England team sheet.

Who's returning from injury? Cahill is unlikely to play, Fellaini suspended etc.. The ITK BD's see them lining up like this.... ------------------------------howard--------------------------------------- hibbert----------jags-------------------heitinga---------------baines -------------------Rodwell-----------Osman-------------------------- Coleman-------------------Barkley----------------------------Drenthe -------------------------------Saha---------------------------------- I have to say I'll be shocked if we don't beat this side like, but am trying not to get cocky and a 1-0 win would certainly do. From their side, I think Baines is too thick to ever leave Merseyside, he seems like David Unsworth who thought Birmingham was in Bolton, but I definitely think Jagielka and Drenthe would improve our squad. The rest outwith Cahill who is cracking on, I don't see anyone that would massive improve the squad. I worry for Everton's Premiership future to be honest, their turnover is the same as the mackems give or take 5 or 10m, and their core players Howard, Distin, Osman, Saha, Cahill, Hibbert and Neville are all in their thirties. They'll be finished in a few years, and can Everton really afford and attract the same level of player to replace them in their current predicament? I'm not sure. It would be the equivalent of Tottenham coming in the top four you stupid cockney twat. He's such a prick, people like him because he's good looking, talks loudly, and his fatha will be the new England manager, but when you analyse his words, he's the most clueless pundit on British television, he's a fucking divvy. you're forgetting we have one of the best youth set ups in the country though, so whilst we might not be able to replace like for like when some of these retire we do have a fantastic pool of youth to pick from. Top picks would be: Rodwell - DM Barkley - AM Coleman - RM / RB Vellios - ST Gueye - ST / LW Duffy - CB on loan at Scunthorpe Mustafi - CB Hammar - CB Lundstum - DM Hope - ST Dier - CB only on loan to us but a deal should be sorted in the summer hopefully McAleny - CF Green - AM only 15 but tipped to have a huge future Garbutt - LB /LM Forrester - CF All tipped to make it in the game. Now obviously some will fall by the way side, but some of these are really tipped to have a very bright future! So although we don't have the cash at least we have a great production line of talented youngsters to fall back on. Now i know you can't depend on kids alone, but someone like Barkley will fetch £20m+ at some point to fund the purchase of more established players to mix in with the youngsters. Much like when we sold Rooney and Lescott. We'd all love billions to spend but the model we are following isn't a bad one all things considered.

Haha well it looks like I might just have to do that after all now Might? Might? I just saved your life here, let's not hear anyone more "Mights". Haha you do have a point there!

Haha litterally lol'd at my desk there!

If those 2 pics are owt to go by then I think they'll be delighted mate

Haha well it looks like I might just have to do that after all now

Love these images mate! I always think if using a white backdrop B&W works so much better than colour and these images are top drawer! Very high contrast... are these "High key"? Not sure of the lingo with this kind of thing but have heard that used before for high contrast images I think

Cheers again btw mate!

Bad news Im afraid, Andy just couldnt resist one more tab Haha quality!!! The dude turned up about quater past midnight and check the gas flow or something from the gas metre and indeed we had a leak... was coming from the cooker (which is what i thought) so we pulled it out from the wall and he disconnected it and sealed the pipe off. Gotta get someone out to install a new hose and re-connect it. Took him about an hour to sort it all out so didn't get to bed until half 1 and up at 6am to walk the dog... gonna be on the coffee's today I think!

Very good lol!

Cheers mate! Just rang them and they are coming out within the next hour. Not sure they need to as it's only a faint smell but you can't fault their efficiency

Been noticing a faint smell of gas in thr kitchen recently and think I need to get it looked at... Who do I need to call? I'm the homeowner so not sure if it's the gas board or a gas engineer / plumber I need to ring?

You suggesting Ba is on 70k a week here and turned you down purely for is like an alternative dimension within an alternative dimension in all fairness. haha fair point!

Haha forgot all about that mate sorry! I'm struggling with an ankle injury at the moment so limiting myself to one game a week so think we'll have to knock the idea on the head... my body just can't handle footy like it used to

Aye Liverpool supporters will wake up soon and realise the King Kenny revolution isn't all it was cracked up to be... classic mistake of bringing back a messiah figure thinking it'll somehow work when usually it doesn't. I think Arsenal will surprise a few people personally... They aren't the team they were admitedly but I still think they'll finish top 3 or 4. Haha Everton get taken over?! Will never happen... I know there's lots of rumours at the moment, but even if we did I'd imagine it'd be a Venkys rather than a Sheik Monsour knowing our luck!!! I do like the idea of a Newcastle fan accusing a player of joining Everton for the money... that's some serious alternative dimension shit right there

Cahill probably out, tbh i hope he is as we are much more effective when he's not playing. Drenthe back... will Moyes start him though after being clearly disgusted with him getting sent off against Chelsea... also we played well without him Vs Man U so might keep the same team Fellaini is suspended

I agree in part with what you are saying about Drenthe... From the moment he 1st set foot on the pitch for us I could see his ability (even though most of our fans didn't agree). The thing with him is though that he's the kind of player who will give the ball away a lot trying daft things... but then one of them will come off and you'll score a great goal. However there will be times when he gifts the opposition a goal so he's got a lot of growing to do as a player I think before he can be seen as a class act. He needs to know when to keep it simple and when to try the fancy stuff. he also doesn't track back at all and could be viewed as a luxury player. For this reason I worry Moyes wont use him every game and will worry about having a bit of a live wire out there who might mess up his carefully crafted dour tactics of hoping to knick a 1-0 win... I hope I'm wrong as he's exactly the kind of player we need out there... VERY quick, very skillful, creative and scores goals. My hope is that after not settling at Real Madrid and going on loan to a club which failed to pay his wages for a year that he'll settle at Everton and feel "at home" as many others have before (Arteta, Howard, Cahill etc). He'll be a free transfer and so if he plays well the vultures will really be circling for him so I wouldn't be surprised to see him at another club next season. If he is it wont be Newcastle, it'll be someone like Chelsea or Arsenal. Not offence to the Toon, thats just the way it is. Rodwell - Jenas comparison has been made a lot by our fans... tbh he's had a bad 2 seasons due to injuries, not getting a run in the team and also lacking in confidence. Now Arteta has left he's really stepped up to the plate and has performed really well. I still think he's a season of playing every game away from being seen as anything other than just "promising" but I do think he'll be a much better player than Jenas. He's definately not ready for England but in a few years I really do think he'll be in the team. He's not really a Chelsea type player, and if and it's the biggest if ever, if we come above Arsenal he may well choose to play for us. We have a good few players who would get in Arsenal's team make no mistake about it, I think Santon would and he can't even get a game. The gap between us and Arsenal is as close as it's been for about 8 years. He's clearly moved to Everton to put himself in the shop window, and I would love it if we could get him here next summer, maybe get Krul to have a word. Chelsea signed Matta and are crying out for youth and pace... I'd say he was exactly the type of player Chelsea need, and he is a AVB type of player judging by his attacking philosophy. Make no mistake that if AVB can make a go of the job at Chelsea we'll see a much different team to that of Mourinho and Ancelotti. The gap between you and Arsenal is as close as it ever was but I find it hard to believe many players would choose you over Arsenal and I dont think you'll finish above them. I'm not being arsey saying that, I dont think any player would choose Everton over Arsenal either. If Drenthe has a great season he'll be courted by much bigger fish than either the Toon or Everton. If not I think he;d be more likely to stay where he's settled until a big fish comes knocking for him. Obviously if you finish in the top 4 things might be different, so I'd conceed then that he might look at a move to you favourably... but the chances of that are less than they are more, and 6th - 7th would be more likely. If we do our usual trick of having a strong 2nd half to the season and finish roughly 10th I'm not sure you'd be a big enough pull for him. Hardly seeing as though we were above them in both 2002 and 2003 with eight games to go, and were well above them from 93 to about 97. I believe if we were in Europe and Arsenal weren't people would choose us over them, or in a dream scenario CL and they aren't. In the past people have chosen us over Arsenal, but they are a bigger club than we are without a doubt, I always put them second behind Man Utd, but on the pitch it's not a good time for them right now. As for Drenthe being courted by bigger fish than the toon if he has a good season? Well Arsenal possibly, I can't see it from Chelsea or Man Utd, and who else is there then? He'll be too cheap for money bags Man City, then who else is there? No one in this country, and he's always wanted a career in English football. Arsenal may not have won much recently but their stature and reputation is way above Newcastle's since the birth of the premier league... Bergkamp, Henry, Van Persie, Arsene Wenger, The Emirates... It's all added to their profile and reputation. It doesn't matter if you finished above them 93-97 and 2002 their profile is massive. I'd expect that and the fact they are based in London as 2 reasons why they would choose them over you, even if you were in europe and they weren't. I'd also expect the same with Everton, so I'm not being rude about Newcastle here, just seeing things more / less black and white than you Anyway Arsenal WILL finish in Europe this season and despite a crap start they are on an excellent run just now so its a mute point. Why not Chelsea or Man U, or even Man City? Just because he'd be free? Seriously mate if he has a blinder of a season then teams WILL be queing up to buy him... all teams want world class players, and if he proves to be this and sets the league alight then everyone will want him. Man City signed Hargreaves so if they think they're good enough they'll sign them regardless of being free or £100m... if they want the player they'll get him. Then there's teams from abroad, so as you can see many options potentially for him. If you finish 4th would he consider you? Quite possibly... will you finish 4th? It's not likely, it's possible but more likely the usual suspects will take the top 5 or 6 places.

I agree in part with what you are saying about Drenthe... From the moment he 1st set foot on the pitch for us I could see his ability (even though most of our fans didn't agree). The thing with him is though that he's the kind of player who will give the ball away a lot trying daft things... but then one of them will come off and you'll score a great goal. However there will be times when he gifts the opposition a goal so he's got a lot of growing to do as a player I think before he can be seen as a class act. He needs to know when to keep it simple and when to try the fancy stuff. he also doesn't track back at all and could be viewed as a luxury player. For this reason I worry Moyes wont use him every game and will worry about having a bit of a live wire out there who might mess up his carefully crafted dour tactics of hoping to knick a 1-0 win... I hope I'm wrong as he's exactly the kind of player we need out there... VERY quick, very skillful, creative and scores goals. My hope is that after not settling at Real Madrid and going on loan to a club which failed to pay his wages for a year that he'll settle at Everton and feel "at home" as many others have before (Arteta, Howard, Cahill etc). He'll be a free transfer and so if he plays well the vultures will really be circling for him so I wouldn't be surprised to see him at another club next season. If he is it wont be Newcastle, it'll be someone like Chelsea or Arsenal. Not offence to the Toon, thats just the way it is. Rodwell - Jenas comparison has been made a lot by our fans... tbh he's had a bad 2 seasons due to injuries, not getting a run in the team and also lacking in confidence. Now Arteta has left he's really stepped up to the plate and has performed really well. I still think he's a season of playing every game away from being seen as anything other than just "promising" but I do think he'll be a much better player than Jenas. He's definately not ready for England but in a few years I really do think he'll be in the team. He's not really a Chelsea type player, and if and it's the biggest if ever, if we come above Arsenal he may well choose to play for us. We have a good few players who would get in Arsenal's team make no mistake about it, I think Santon would and he can't even get a game. The gap between us and Arsenal is as close as it's been for about 8 years. He's clearly moved to Everton to put himself in the shop window, and I would love it if we could get him here next summer, maybe get Krul to have a word. Chelsea signed Matta and are crying out for youth and pace... I'd say he was exactly the type of player Chelsea need, and he is a AVB type of player judging by his attacking philosophy. Make no mistake that if AVB can make a go of the job at Chelsea we'll see a much different team to that of Mourinho and Ancelotti. The gap between you and Arsenal is as close as it ever was but I find it hard to believe many players would choose you over Arsenal and I dont think you'll finish above them. I'm not being arsey saying that, I dont think any player would choose Everton over Arsenal either. If Drenthe has a great season he'll be courted by much bigger fish than either the Toon or Everton. If not I think he;d be more likely to stay where he's settled until a big fish comes knocking for him. Obviously if you finish in the top 4 things might be different, so I'd conceed then that he might look at a move to you favourably... but the chances of that are less than they are more, and 6th - 7th would be more likely. If we do our usual trick of having a strong 2nd half to the season and finish roughly 10th I'm not sure you'd be a big enough pull for him.

I'd sign him on the basis he could play anywhere down the left. Great cover and would maybe start at LB. Perhaps he's better as a LW / LM but with the way Jonas helps out the full-back it wouldn't be a problem and they could interchange. Not sure if he's played wide right although playing 'wrong-footed' players on the wings is all the rage now. That was my way of thinking - like how Obertan was making runs on the left against Forest (and putting in that cross with the outside of his right foot). Arjen Robben has made a career out of cutting in on his stronger foot every single time he gets the ball and modelling his hairstyle on Shearer. Drenthe at LB and Jonas at LM sounds tasty. Dont mean this as an insult but its a classic example of someone making a comment without having seen a player play. Drenthe is no left back! Yeah he might have played there before but he's bloody useless at tracking back, tackling and general all round defensive play. LW, or RW are really the only places you could play him... especially in the premier league

I agree in part with what you are saying about Drenthe... From the moment he 1st set foot on the pitch for us I could see his ability (even though most of our fans didn't agree). The thing with him is though that he's the kind of player who will give the ball away a lot trying daft things... but then one of them will come off and you'll score a great goal. However there will be times when he gifts the opposition a goal so he's got a lot of growing to do as a player I think before he can be seen as a class act. He needs to know when to keep it simple and when to try the fancy stuff. he also doesn't track back at all and could be viewed as a luxury player. For this reason I worry Moyes wont use him every game and will worry about having a bit of a live wire out there who might mess up his carefully crafted dour tactics of hoping to knick a 1-0 win... I hope I'm wrong as he's exactly the kind of player we need out there... VERY quick, very skillful, creative and scores goals. My hope is that after not settling at Real Madrid and going on loan to a club which failed to pay his wages for a year that he'll settle at Everton and feel "at home" as many others have before (Arteta, Howard, Cahill etc). He'll be a free transfer and so if he plays well the vultures will really be circling for him so I wouldn't be surprised to see him at another club next season. If he is it wont be Newcastle, it'll be someone like Chelsea or Arsenal. Not offence to the Toon, thats just the way it is. Rodwell - Jenas comparison has been made a lot by our fans... tbh he's had a bad 2 seasons due to injuries, not getting a run in the team and also lacking in confidence. Now Arteta has left he's really stepped up to the plate and has performed really well. I still think he's a season of playing every game away from being seen as anything other than just "promising" but I do think he'll be a much better player than Jenas. He's definately not ready for England but in a few years I really do think he'll be in the team.

Haha just put that for a laugh mate... It was too complimentary without Yeah we're doing rubbish but played well against Man U so you never know what will happen. Ajax_Andy - ever the optimist, never the realist