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laughingdevil

Listed below are comments made by laughingdevil between Sunday, 25th October 2009 and Monday, 30th November 2009.

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Moyes & Everton face testing times 10:49pm on 30 Nov 2009 Couple of points Phil.

First off - Everton buying on the last day of the window. That actually says more about the clubs finances to me than many seem to think, most see it as a botched transfer policy, like last day christmas shopping. However while this can be true, Christmas eve can also be the day you get the best bargins. And as they seem to need to sell before buying that means they are reliant on the buying clubs completing their deals for their players first. That doesn't mean that they have no direction, just that they have to play their cards close till the last moment to avoid an all to common bidding war. Once upon a time it was only the mention of the big 4 that hiked up the price, now (no disrespect intended) teams like Hull come in and the price goes up! The transfer market is nuts and a lot of clubs simply can't afford a bidding war, so leaving it till the last moment is the only way to play. Use Ebay, it's how the serious bidders do it!

Second - The Lescott saga. Did it have a bad effect? Obviously, he should never have been on the pitch against city for starters, but Everton were trying to prove they are not a selling club, in that they failed, after that failure I seriously doubt other clubs will think long about going in for their talent in the future, obviously this links back to your recent other blogs on Rodwell and their finances. While you say they should have let Lescott go sooner the fact is that to do so would have opened the doors to all commers, with the fight they put up some managers may decide they don't want the fuss, others will be happy to fight, ultimatly though I seriously doubt that their is any manager in the PL who doesn't think they can get an everton player if they want him, and that is at the heart of why I personally think Moyes won't be staying much longer, the more everton fall the more his reputation does, had he left in the summer he'd have been top of all the shortlists for vacances, now there will be some not that interested, if he stays around that pool of not interested chairmen will grow and grow, and that would be very sad.
Spurs show top four style 4:14pm on 29 Nov 2009 Just a quick point on this one Phil.

A few weeks ago one of your co-workers wrote an article on what the "pretenders" neede to do to get into the top 4 by the end of the season. Almost everyone believes that Spurs,City and Villa are fighting Liverpool for that final CL spot. The article (in brief) said they needed to take advantage of Liverpools poor run of form and results now and start building up a lead because sooner or later liverpool will start firing.

So ignoring the performance this weekend was actually bad for both Villa and Spurs, and with Liverpool winning today better for Liverpool. Liverpool are now only 3 behind Spurs, that could have been 5, and while the point was better for Spurs than Villa I have a feeling they may end up regretting that they didn't get another later in the season. Not only that but they also recently lost to Arsenal and, more importantly, Stoke.

Personally I feel that City could have blown their chance with their run of draws, Villa I don't feel have the legs now, nevermind for the full season, Spurs are, IMO, the favourites to break in, but I don't personally think they've done enough. Had they beaten stoke they'd be 6 points in front, had they won yesterday they'd be 8, that would be worrying for Liverpool, 3 isn't a worry at all.

And while there is a long way to go in the season yet, if liverpool do turn it around I can see them overhauling Spurs unless they start picking up the points in games where they play well enough to win, but ultimatly don't.

In short in the last month Spurs could have built a pretty decent cusion, they haven't, and for that reason I can't really see them nailing down 4th unless somthing changes. Over to you Harry!
Where now for Everton? 00:19am on 27 Nov 2009 Phil

Thanks for the response, personally I don't think Rodwell is yet good enough, but could be, a lot of the "big 4" now invest a lot in potential as its cheaper, wiltshire, ramsey and walcott at Arsenal being good examples.

Agree that letting him go would send out a bad message, but Kenwrite as allready practially admitted they have no cash in the summer so they may have no choice. Everton have always struck me as one of the better run clubs and I can't see them holding onto players when they can't afford them.

As for Moyes, personally I think he'll be gone in the summer if there is no new investment or forward movement on a stadium, how many years can we expect him to dig everton out of hole after whole? As for where he'd go? Wouldn't mind him at Utd when SAF retires to be honest, he's a top quality manager and can do well on a budget so I think any team in the PL with a vacancy would be interested if they thought they could get him. Personally I think he should go to either Spain or Italy at a mid-table club there, would bring back a world of expriance with him, of course they's always the Scotland job, that is currently becoming available with tottenham-esque regularity!
Where now for Everton? 6:54pm on 26 Nov 2009 First a few to Phil.

You wrote the other week about how you think Rodwell should stay, have recent developments changed your mind? Most people can't see Moyes staying if things stay as they are, so the main reason you gave for him to stay (ie moyes excellent teaching) would not be there. Should he really commit himself to a club based on a manager who soon may not be there? And even if he wants to stay can Everton afford to keep him? I can't see Kenwrite turning £20mil (being talked about) down when he can't even afford £78 mil for a stadium on his own!

The way I see it Everton have 3 main options
1 - ride out the recession as a selling club and hope to get a billionaire willing to splash some cash to buy a team in a few years
2 - Stick with Kenwright and swallow more humble pie than any team in PL history and groundshare with their bitter rivals
3 - Stick with Kenwright and try and find the money to upgrage Goodison (which kewnwright says he can't afford)

Now fans of any club in evertons position would probably take option 3 if do-able, I know that as a UTD fan I'd rather see us relagated than ground share with city, i know a chelsa fan who dreads romans departure because of thier ground problems, but would also perfer relagation than to share with Fulham. Yes groundsharing is the logical thing to do, but when was the last time football was logical? Not in my lifetime

That leaves an upgrade as the only option, Kenwright can't afford it, he needs investment, so why isn't he asking the Tesco owner? He is apparently blue through and through and was willing to use his companies money to fund a new ground/complex, well why doesn't kenwright convince him to put his OWN money where his heart is? He's not exactly poor now is he? and if he can't afford to pay for it all, well every little helps right?

Most rich fans in the same position would do somthing, so why hasn't he?
Man City will regret lack of ambition 11:56am on 22 Nov 2009 First off Phil, looks like both your 'pool and city predictions are proving misguided this season, can you remind us of your others so we can discount them too?

First off (and I say this as a utd fan) city will be far happier with a point than 'pool. The goal of any top 4 team is always to win at home, no matter the opposition, and liverpool failed to do that.

Next Hughes tactics, I'd have though his reasons were obvious, but as you don't seem to have noticed them I'll point them out, Liverpool v Utd. Do you think Hughes didn't watch? Not just this season, but the 2 last season, Utd attacked and liverpool took us apart, yes they didn't have Tores yesterday, but they were set up in the same way. Hughes plan seemed to be working fine when they went 2-1 up until his defenders went AWOL. City didn't actully do that much wrong, apart from play like a 5/6 placed team against one of the big four. Liverpool on the other hand did a lot wrong.

What was the point in yet another 90mins of bench warming for Alonso's replacement? Surely with the injuries they have he's got to be playing! Sure he needs match fitness, but he isn't going to get that on the bench! Benitez seems to be doing exactly what he did with Robbie Keane, which is a timely point, is there any manager in the PL who would rather have Ngog than Keane? Other than Benitez? I doubt it, liverpools striker problem is of his own making, as is his midfield problem, he tried to force Alonso out, failed, Alonso then proved how good he was and then left on his own teams, classic management failure if ever there was one, same with keane, and it appears to be going that way for aquilani, I ask again, what is the point of buying him to have him on the bench?

In short, Benitez seems to be loosing his grip, not just on the team, but tactics and reality, Hughes is simply struggling to convert a team with a mid-table mentality into a top team. Benitez is on the slide, Hughes on the rise, look at the table and compare to last season if you don't belive me!
Britain lands key EU foreign policy post 1:09pm on 20 Nov 2009 As the arguments over the Lisbon Treaty have been done to death I think the comments regarding it being a farce, are themselves a waste of time and a farce. We are where we are. The real question is will Baroness Ashton be any good at the job?

The accusations of lack of foreign policy experiance show politically naivety at its height. What is foreign policy if not an expansion of trade? Trade is at the very core of foreign policy, has been for hundreds of years, witness the accusations that the wars in Iraq and Afganistan are over oil, that the US will support dictators if they give them a reasonable oil price etc etc. The "Napoleonic wars" started over trade and went on for nearly 25 years! Almost all wars ever have been over trade or resources.

I content that her trade experiance is actually her major asset and qualification for this job, she has far more experiance representing Europe than anyone other than Baroso, so question the treaty all you want, but her experiance of the fundementals of foreign policy are the best in europe!
No rush for Rodwell move 12:13pm on 19 Nov 2009 Phil your comments about it would be bad for everton if he were to leave seem a little off pitch with your previous blogs regarding everton. Namely that they aren't exactly rolling in cash and can't really afford to buy players, so if they could get say £20mil for Rodwell why wouldn't they take it? £20M for a kid who as mentioned wouldn't be playing anywhere near as much if it weren't for injuries. £20M for a kid who "has also looked anonymous at times this term" They could buy a player for that much who could keep them in the top 6, never mind one for the future, and talking about his anonymous performance you say it is "the inevitable consequence of Everton's inability to rest Rodwell" I say that he should be taking his chances. You say the comparison with Rooney is unfair, I agree, Rooney took his chance, Rodwell is proving a mixed bag, at Rooneys age, had he been in Rodwells situation, he'd be holding back the injured players as they got fit, don't see Rodwell doing that do you?

Moving on too if it is in the players interest to move? Depends where he goes (obviously) If he looks at Utd then he need look no further than players like Rooney and Ronaldo to see what Fergie can make of promising youngsters! Remember the screams of "no end product"? I do, you made some of them, he's now the best winger, and arguably player in the world!

In short while you can argue it is in the best interests of the player to stay, I don't think you can say it is in the clubs!
So, the Czech was not in the post 10:36pm on 03 Nov 2009 First off I don't remember Camerons promise being
"you have a cast iron gaurentee we'll have a referendum, unless it's ratified first, which it probably will be, in which case we won't"
Anyone else remember that?
Now if he is the next PM how will we know if a promise is conditional or not? His promises seem to become condidtional when he wants them to, or when political necessarty demands it.
And this is hardly the first one he's broke is it? Remember "we'll leave the euro party we're now in within 100 days" well that was quietly dumped and became about 700 days.

Cameron has spent the last few years saying what he won't do, and what he would like "a better britan" (hardly specific or measurable is it? and not somthing anyone can disagree with either) but when it's come to promises he's actually made, he hasn't kept one. So people had better start waking up to the fact that all the stuff he's said he'll do when in power, it'll all be dropped and his true tory face revealed the moment you vote him in, and the consequences to this country will be a lot worse than 10 years of mismanagement, the house may be delapidated, but it's still standing, by the time Daves done, they'll be nothing left!
Spurs learn silence is golden 10:07pm on 31 Oct 2009 First off Phil, every defence and team can have an off day. So why base your assement of Spurs progress on todays performance when you refuse to do the same for the performance of Liverpool week in week out?

Spurs may not yet be the equal of Arsenal, but Liverpool still trail in their wake in the league! And as both teams have had injuries to key players that can't be used as an excuse, as I say they may not have threatened Arsenal today, and I don't think they will over the season, but they are currently one of the many teams showing your Liverpool for the title prediction is looking more and more misguided by the week, they way they are playing they'll be lucky to make the CL next season!
Honest Wolves pay penalty 10:39am on 25 Oct 2009 Phil

You seemed to only make a 1/2 point about Wolves honesty, yes it should have been a penalty not matter if he didn't hit the deck, but you fail to take this to it's obvious conclusion, which is that because you are less likely to get a penalty if you don't hit the deck, that is why so many people do hit the deck, because they feel the have to to get a penalty, and that is not the fault of "foreign" players (as is often blamed), or a win-at all costs culture, it is because English refs don't know the rules of the game -witness last weeks beach-ball incident!

There is a world of difference between going down when fouled, and going down when no contact is made, yet the media say both are "diving", If there is contact and the player goes down and rolls around a bit to get attention, that doesn't mean it's not a foul! No more than if the player stays on his feet means it's not a foul. The media could actually go a long way towards fixing this problem by correctly spotting the difference between the two.

Many players are accused on a weekly basis of "hiting the deck" too easily on programs such as MOTD, but the moment someone stays on their feet they are "too honest for their own good"

A dive is where a player goes down when no contact was made
A foul is when contact (however slight is made) - Football is a non-contact sport.

The rest is just media hype and their usual tendancy to try and drag players down.

Maybe the media shoul stop moaning about our players, and start moaning about our refs, because the standards in England are poor, I don't expect them to get every decision right(they are only human), but on a weekly basis they demonstrate a lack of understanding of the rules of the game that is shocking, yet all the FA does is brings in rules to stop managers and players critising them, which is difficult with the pressure they are under from Fans and Media to perform when the ref just cost you the game!

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