Harry_SFC

You can see why his team's generally finish around mid table. This system is good enough to beat the lower sides who don't have as much quality in the final third but anyone with anything about them in midfield/up top will score goals for fun.

Without looking into it properly I think you're right.

We're not playing against Sheffield Wednesday though and we also had JWP in midfield that day who has much more presence than our current bunch. Ipswich are 2nd in the league for a reason.

No way can we go into this game with that midfield. Charles has to play.

Leeds have scored 3 goals on the counter attack today. God knows how many they will get against us.

Ipswich are on a bit of a roll and McKenna really has instilled a winning mentality up there. I'd take a draw (says it all) but expect them to beat us 2-1.

This is why I enjoyed the Adkins era so much. None of this bollocks about a style being set in stone, it was just decent football mixed with hard work. He created a winning atmosphere and the players enjoyed playing for him. Nothing seemed complicated.

Yep. As I said, you can do away with this inverted full back nonsense, leave a couple more men back from corners and and tone down the commitment to get everyone forward and still play decent possession based football. He's trying to come up with some wonder game plan that is clearly just pie in the sky stuff.

All their keeper had to do from goal kicks was ping it into Vardy along the floor. They were then 3 on 3!

He kinda got away with it at Swansea because the expectations were a bit lower. Realistically we have to go back up this season or next. History says after that teams struggle to get promoted again. There is a lot more pressure here.

This really. We've scraped past the worst teams in the division so far because we have better players than them. The 3 times we've come up against teams who will be up there this season we have been battered. (Including Norwich because they were better than us)

Don't rate this guy at all. Looked good Vs Sheff Weds because we had the ball all the time and they had no runners from midfield. As soon as a team attacks us he looks useless (Norwich, Sunderland and now Leicester).

His long range passing is incredible to be fair

I was actually in favour of appointing Martin - I didn't realise at the time that his defensive set up was this bad though. As others have alluded to,we made exactly the same mistakes as against Sunderland. Martin said himself that that type of display wouldn't happen again. I would give him until the international break. If nothing has changed in our structure then I'd bin him off. You can pass the ball and still be solid, just look at Leicester. We missed out on Maresca...

Smallbone worst player on the pitch by some distance here

Alcaraz seems to have energy until it comes to tracking back.

Tbh Martin's only options were to play Holgate or weaken the midfield somewhat. Neither ideal.

Bazunu; KWP, THB, Bednarek (Holgate), Manning; Charles, Downes, A.Armstrong; Fraser, Edozie, Adams. Sulemena as an impact sub.

The only times we've looked vaguely decent at defending this season has been with Charles infront of the back 4. THB is used to the style of play and has been playing, kinda the opposite to Holgate. Pretty sure he could slot straight in.

Bazunu; KWP; Bednarek, THB, Manning; Charles, Downes, A.Armstrong; Fraser, Sulemena, Adams. Subs: McCarthy, Holgate, Bree, Smallbone, S.Armstrong, Alcaraz, SAA, Edozie, Mara If Sulemena isn't ready for whatever reason then switch Armstrong out wide and bring in Alcaraz.

Well we know McCarthy is just as bad/worse than Bazunu, so I guess it's Lumley's turn..

It was a very odd decision to play Mara out wide, firstly because he is never a winger in a month of Sundays and secondly, A.Armstrong is terrible upfront on his own. In terms of the midfield, I've said it several times that Smallbone is overrated by our fan base. He's ok sitting infront of our back 4 passing the ball around but when the going gets tough he isn't a player you want on the pitch. Downes also had a poor game by his standards.

There were quite a few ironic cheers tbh

Generally I would give a player the benefit of the doubt, especially if he had proved at his prior club he can be decent. The issue for me is literally every Everton fan says he is absolutely shite.

And part of that 6% set up a couple of their goals