CHOULO19

Oh no, how ever will I sleep at night knowing that you don't 'rate' my opinion

Yeah I agree. The system under Beniyez had a different 'dynamic' and it would probably have worked better yesterday because it utilized better runners on the far side of the pitch and had more width especially on the right side with Azpi who was crucial in Rafa's system. Tbf, it took Benitez 20+ games before his system started working as he wanted while this is still Jose's 5th game.

Off topic, but I just noticed that there was a cat in your avatar even though I must have seen it a dozen times before

He did look a bit tired and unfit, but he was triple-marked throughout the game; not sure how people expected him to dribble past all three of them.

I think that could be a good option against weaker teams at home or when we're chasing a game (certainly better than Torres for Cole ) but I doubt it would be something we play regularly simply because the central midfield would just be too light-weight.

A lot of people here and in the match thread saying and implying that he was the worst player today. That's what I meant by singling him out.

Well I didn't say he had a brilliant game. Read my post again if you want. I said he did brilliantly well to shut down Baines, but that is just one aspect of his game. His defensive side was good, but going forward he was below average today and I would have liked to see him provide more width. His finishing was clearly off. Overall I'd say he had a decent game but was unlucky in the final third.

Jose already said in an interview on CTV that he will rotate players for the CL. But then again he said he would for the first 4 games of the season but didn't.

Honestly, Martinez just out-smarted Jose in the tactics. Everton always had a man more near the ball, especially while defending and we did not manage to take advantage of this by moving the ball quickly enough to the far side and they did very well to recover quickly.

I was talking about an incident in the first half when it was still 0-0 At around 30 mins IIRC. But like I said in my first post, I do admire his desire to do do something when we're behind

He was by the corner flag three times in open play We didn't have a set piece or anything, he just made a run and continued his run all the way down the flank to the corner flag. I love Luiz, but when he over-does it in games like today, he's really not helping his case.

He is capable of clinical finishes, but we knew they are rare and far apart. Last season, despite scoring some excellent goals, had the lowest conversion rate of any player to score in the Bundes Liga last season.

Paying the price of Jose not rotating players in the first four matches. Same could go for hazard who looked tired and not 100% fit.

Can be said about anyone of the front four today. I think we should give Everton more credit. They defended extremely well and are the main reason why our attackers could not play their game.

Mostly since 2002. I know that not everyone appreciates what Scholes does, I just think it is the most important job on the pitch. And Scholes was the best at this particular job, imo.

Would have liked to see him start today but, tbf, Iva didn't do too badly. Hopefully he'll start against Basel in midweek.

Not by any means our worst player today. Why is he being singled out?

His tackling was his only weakness. His technical ability is second to none. His passing was phenomenal, especially his long passing when coupled with excellent vision. But most of all he was a very intelligent. He literally ran the midfield and controlled the whole game by himself. He could also get forward and score when needed. I'd personally take Scholes over the likes of Xavi and Pirlo anytime. But anyway that is just my opinion. Game of opinions..

Bad game? Tell me how did Baines do today? Once you answer that you realize that Andre did exactly what was asked of him and did brilliantly at shutting down Everton's most dangerous source of chances. One miss doesn't imply that he had a bad game.

He did have his moments, but just made too many mistakes. I do admire his desire to do something when we are losing, but that ends up costing us. You just can't leave your position so often against a team like Everton.

He's only saying that because he's a scouser and Scholes played for united. Not to take anything from Lamps who had an incredible remark and his scoring record from midfield will never be matched, but Scholes is the complete midfielder. By far the best English player in a long long time, imho.

His movement off the ball was excellent and he linked up very well with the players considering he just arrived at the club. But he is obviously lacking a lot of fitness as I would have expected. Hopefully when he's 100% fit he can regain that yard of pace he seems to have lost atm.

He's not what he used to be, but how can you called him finished when he just put in an incredible performance the last time out against Bayern?

Excellent performance today; he worked his butt off. Dunno about the second half but he had 97% passing accuracy in the first half which just crazy. Was very much involved and did some excellent defensive work. So I was exaggerating when I said that people scapegoat Mikel, right?

Did you just call Jose Mourinho, the best manager in the world, "stupid"?!