Pre-season Highlights against Sydney FC and Melbourne Heart

Here are some highlights on Everton's pre-season tour of Australia. Everton has won both matches that they have played so far. The Blues next play the Brisbane Roar in Brisbane on Saturday.

Everton beat Sydney FC 1-0. Victor Anichebe scored the lone goal

Highlights:

Everton beat the Melbourne Heart 2-0, with goals from Jack Rodwell and Louis Saha. Saha also missed an early penalty shot from Seamus Coleman. I didn't get to see the match, but from the looks of it, looks like Coleman had a great match. Everton seemed to dominate the pace of the game much more compared to their last match against Sydney.

Here are the Highlights:

Everton defeat Sydney FC in pre-season clash.

Victor Anichebe scored in the 46th minute to defeat Sydney FC. I didn't get to catch the game, but it seems that while Sydney played quite well, there were more chances for the Toffees. Players like Arteta, Osman, and Anichebe all looked to continue their great form coming back from injury last season.

The Toffees were wearing their pink away kits that, I have to admit, are not as bad in action as I though they would be. They are still quite a downgrade from last season's away kit.

More news on Everton's pre-season Australia trip to come as news breaks.

Random Thoughts, Tears, and World Cup Update

Guest Blog entry #2 at Royal Blue Mersey:

http://www.royalbluemersey.com/2010/7/8/1558392/random-thoughts-tears-and-world

What the World Cup Means for Everton

I am going to be guest blogging at Royal Blue Mersey every so often so some of my posts will have links to their site.

What the World Cup Means for Everton:

http://www.royalbluemersey.com/2010/6/14/1516879/what-the-world-cup-means-for#storyjump

João Pedro Pereira Silva officially signs with Everton

Though I reported earlier that Everton have gotten Portuguese striker Joao Silva, he had not officially signed with the team. Well, today he officially signed a 3-year contract with Everton. The transfer fee is undisclosed, though I believe it to be around 500,000 Pounds. Joao Silva is a 6 ft. 2 in. striker from the Portuguese second division side Desportivo Aves. He scored 14 goals in 32 appearances.

Senderos Signs With Fulham

Fulham have signed Arsenal defender Philippe Senderos on a 3-year contract. Senderos has been on Arsenal since 2003 but didn't really find much first team action recently. He has been on loan to A.C. Milan and most recently Everton. He made only three appearances for The Toffees. His injury problems and lack of form contributed to his lack of appearances for the club.

Everton News Roundup

Since I've been lazy and haven't posted in a while, I've missed a couple of stories over the last week. Nothing life changing, but nonetheless important.

1) Jermaine Beckford has officially signed a 4-year contract with the club. We knew it was going to happen, we were just waiting for the "official" news.

2) Manchester City is interested in John Heitinga. The reported bid will reportedly be around 9 million pounds even though he is on a 4-year contract with Everton. Heitinga's response to City's interest is a little disconcerting.

"Manchester City have ambition, and I am open to the idea of joining a big club. I hear things said here, there, and everywhere about a move for me, although there is nothing definite yet."

"But I still have a four year contract, without a fixed-buyout clause, so I'm trying to establish myself at Everton. "

It seems that he is always open to joining a bigger club, but he will honor his contract and will only go if the two parties reach an agreement (unlike Lescott and many others). Source: Goal.com

3) Striker Victor Anichebe did not make Nigeria's World Cup roster after they trimmed players to their final 23-man squad. The reasoning behind Nigeria dropping Anichebe seems due to "serious injury", even though Everton is disputing this as misinformation. Everton claim that Anichebe only suffered a minor shin bruise.

I don't know what to believe, this whole situation seems a little bizzare. It makes it even weirder because Anichebe had been performing very well in the tune-ups right before the final squad was named.

Will Everton Sell Yakubu for £7 Million?

Looks like West Ham is getting ready to bid for Yakubu. According to Goal.com, "It is understood that a deal has already been agreed in principle with Yakubu's representatives". West Ham seems to be looking for a replacement to Carlton Cole, who is being sought by a plethora of clubs.

Yakubu has been quite a disappointment this season, though we could probably attribute his lack of form to his long-term injury. Everton needs a consistent striker, but also needs the cash. I think this would be a decent move if Everton will be able to secure a striker like Bellamy. If not, I would rather keep him. We know how Yakubu can play when he is in-form. It would be better to hope he can reattain that form, than sell him and hope others can pick up the slack. Striker is still the position where we need new blood and maybe selling Yakubu can bring on that change.

Rodwell Signing Official

Well, its official. Jack Rodwell has signed a five-year contract to stay at Everton. This is big relief, and the club can now turn it's attention to signing Mikel Arteta and Steven Pienaar!

Jack Rodwell Snubs Manchester United

I almost cried when I heard the news, but I didn't. Why? Because it isn't official yet. Oh how I hope this comes into fruition.

Mail Online and Goal.com are reporting that Jack Rodwell has turned down an offer by Man U. He is instead set to sign a five-year contract with Everton worth around 30,000 pounds per week.

If this story is true, it will be a huge sigh of relief for the club and the fans. We will now be able to turn our attention to keeping Arteta and Pienaar.

Life-Threatening Injury for Shane Duffy

Shane Duffy, the 18 year old Everton defender, lacerated his liver during a training match with the Ireland national team. The injury occurred after Duffy collided with a goalkeeper on Friday.

USA Today reports:

Team surgeon John O'Byrne and team doctor Alan Byrne treated Duffy on the field before he had surgery at a nearby hospital.

O'Byrne says "it was a freak injury that in another 100 years of medicine we may never see again."

O'Byrne said Saturday that Duffy's life was no longer in danger.

Duffy is not in Everton's first team but had been scheduled to train with the Ireland squad ahead of next week's friendlies against Paraguay and Algeria."

More information as the news develops.

Seamus Coleman Locked up for 4 Years

Everton has just signed defender Seamus Coleman for a 4 year contract following some impressive showings by the youngster. He was first signed by the Toffees in 2008 from Sligo Rovers (Ireland) for a fee of 60,000 pounds.

Sources: ESPN ; Click Liverpool

Everton's Offer for Jan Vertonghen Rejected

I'm seeing conflicting stories on this story. Daily Mail is reporting that an 8.5 million pound (10 million Euros) offer was rejected. It also says that Ajax was looking for upwards of 10 million pounds (11.6 milion Euros) for the defender. Goal.com is reporting that Everton offered 11 million Euros but was rejected by Ajax, who is looking for at least 15 million.

I don't know which one is more accurate, but I do know that increasing our offer would be too much for the 23 year old Vertonghen. He is a very good player, but spending that much would be a waste unless we lose Jagielka.

It's Official: Cahill Signs Extension

This really isn't really news because we knew it was going to happen, but I have to post this because it is official now. Tim Cahill has signed a long-term contract that will keep him with Everton until 2014.

Lescott Deja Vu

Everton has sent a strong message to both Arsenal and Manchester United that Phil Jagielka is not for sale. This seems eerily familiar to how the Joleon Lescott affair started out. Not to say this will play out exactly the same, because Lescott wanted to leave and was vocal about it. Just saying that this was how it started last year too.

Here's some other transfer rumors and news:

-Since there are a number of clubs keen on securing West Ham's Carlton Cole, West Ham is looking at Yakubu as a possible replacement. There is definitely a possibility that Moyes is willing to sell Yakubu as long as a decent price is offered. Yakubu has struggled to find form since returning from a ruptured Achilles tendon. Sources: ESPN and Goal.com.

- I don't know how good this source is so you are going to have to bear with me, but tribalfootball.com says that we may be in the race (with Aston Villa) to sign Tottenham winger David Bentley. A fee 10 million pounds seems like a bargain.

- This news is a little late but Dan Gosling is ahead of schedule in his recovery from knee surgery. He was projected to be out for 9 months, but is expected to recover sooner than that according to BBC Sport.

- Marseille's Hatem Ben Arfa is on David Moyes' radar yet again. He has had a great season with the Ligue 1 winners and has voiced his interest for playing in England. "To have a chance to play in England would be wonderful but the sporting project is more interesting to me than any sums of money." Source: Goal.com
Seems like David Moyes is getting ready to replace Steven Pienaar in case he leaves. David Bentley and Hatem Ben Arfa are both wingers like Pienaar and would be good, cheap replacements.

Rumor Mill Update

These are some updates to previous rumors heard:

- Daily Post has a great article that talks about Moyes' interest in Jermaine Beckford. It pretty much says that Moyes is still considering Beckford and that he is one of a couple of strikers that he is "mulling over". The Toffees are also facing competition from Parma as well as a bunch of other clubs.

- One of the other strikers that Moyes seems to be considering is Bobby Zamora of Fulham. The sun reports that Aston Villa and Birmingham City are also vying for Zamora's services. I don't think Zamora will be a good signing. The 8 million pound price tag seems high for someone who historically has had trouble finding the back of the net. I would rather have Bellamy or even take a shot with Beckford.

- Goal.com is reporting that Chelsea and Manchester United are "ready to go toe-to-toe" for Jack Rodwell. The article then precedes to explain that even though Everton would like to keep him, we may lose him just like we failed to keep Wayne Rooney. One thing they forget is that Everton had to sell Rooney in order to stay afloat as the club was going through some financial difficulties in 2004.

Everton Season Review

The only way to describe this season is one big free fall followed by one incredible run. Either consistently bad or consistently good.

I can't call this year a success or a failure. Before the beginning of the season, everyone had expectations to best last year's 5th place finish. But after a horrific start, multiple injuries, and that whole Jolean Lescott fiasco, an 8th place finish does not sound nearly that bad.

So how did we get of to such a terrible start? Injuries and Joleon Lescott. Lescott leaving to Manchester City and the injuries to Jagielka and Neville threw the back four into disarray. Distin and later Heitinga came in, but lack of chemistry and depth destroyed the first four months.

Did it work out in the end? Yes.

Distin ended up being great. Heitinga has been phenomenal. And we now have plenty of depth. The lesson with the Lescott affair is that there is a price for everyone. No matter how good Lescott was for us, selling him ended up being great for us. Lescott ended up having a mediocre campaign at Man. City while the Toffees ended up getting a plethora of players with talent.

2010 was when everything turned around for the club. The defense shook away its chemistry problems. Our midfield controlled the ball, and our team in general fought hard for the club.

As weird as it sounds, I think we are in a better position this off season than last off season. We have greater depth, confidence, and talent. I'll post on what and who we need to move forward, later this weekend.

Best Player: Steven Pienaar

I was tempted to say Cahill, but Pienaar was just a game changer. Saha would have been here if he hadn't tailed off towards the end of the year. Fellaini should also be mentioned because he was outstanding and would probably be in the discussion if not for his injury.

Best Signing: John Heitinga

This one was close too, between Heitinga and Distin. Heitinga ultimately shines because he minimized mistakes while Distin was seemed vulnerable a few times. Almost all of Moyes' signings were hits. I say almost because...

Worst Signing: Jo

Not even close. Huge disappointment. He didn't score a single goal, had character issues, and was just painful to watch on the pitch. The only bad signing by Moyes.

Best Young Player: Jack Rodwell

Should I even explain. Looked like he was born to be on the pitch. He changed games, scored goals, passed well and didn't show any glaring weaknesses. The scary thing is that he doesn't look like he is close to his potential. God I hope we don't lose him.

High Point of the Season: Beating Manchester United and Chelsea

I should really say all of 2010, but these two games meant a lot. They showed that we can beat the two best teams in the Prem League and built our confidence.

Low Point of the Season: First game against Arsenal

I want to say the whole first half of the season, but this match was just plain painful. All my hope for the season was pretty much shattered with this game. It's not good to start of the season losing 6-0 for our worst home loss in the Premier League.

Rumor Central

There are about 8 billion rumors surrounding a lot of our players. I am going to try and go through as many as possible. Just remember most of these are RUMORS, not reality.

- Many sources say that we are the likely destination of Jermaine Beckford from Leeds United via free transfer. Not official yet, but I love this move. If it happens, that is.

- Landon Donovan said he would love to come back to Everton. This obviously will not happen until the LA Galaxy have had their say. But it looks like we have the leg up on other clubs if they choose to transfer him.

- According to Goal.com and Mirror Football, contract talks to extend Mikel Arteta have stalled. Manchester United and Arsenal are both highly interested. This worries me a lot. I love Arteta and I think he is one of the most important players on our team. We need to keep him.

- We are being linked with Craig Bellamy of Manchester City, according to Goal.com and Dailymail.co.uk. This is a surprise. Supposedly, he is to cost 7 million pounds for the transfer and high weekly wages, so the only way we could sign him would be with a sale of players. I'm going to be honest, I have always hated Bellamy, but I can't deny that he's a pretty good striker. He would provide a spark whether its from the bench or starting, something Yakubu and Saha have failed to do consistently.

I'm going to go in depth in a future post, but I thought the only missing piece for Everton during the second half of the season was striker. Saha performed phenomenally, but was really streaky and disappeared near the end. Looks like we are really addressing that issue. I can't refrain from saying that I am scared, though. We were perfect at midfield and three major pieces can be taken away from us. As long as we keep at least two (preferably Arteta and Rodwell), I think we will be fine. As much as I love Pienaar, I think he is dispensable, especially if we get a good striker or two.

Pienaar to Decide Future After World Cup

Remember when I said Everton and Steven Pienaar are working out a deal before the World Cup starts so they can be at peace. Well that's not going to happen according to BBC Sports. Pienaar explained that he prefers to stay, "I've made it clear before that I want to stay at Everton".

" We will just have to wait and I made it clear to the manager also that we will talk after the World Cup."

This makes me nervous. If we want a shot at contending for the top four, we need Pienaar.

This also made me nervous:

"When asked if he believes he will be at Everton next season, Pienaar said: 'If God wants me to come back after the World Cup healthy and happy then I'll be there'."

Extensions, Rumors, and More!

- The Toffees are trying to wrap up Tim Cahill to a four-year extension before the World Cup. That's smart by Everton. If Cahill impresses even more at the World Cup, the Toffees would have more trouble in wrapping him up.

- Everton is linked with Peniel Mlapa, a 19-year old Togo born German striker from 1860 Munich. This is another great move by Moyes and the club to find cheap and young talent to fill the roster. I think this is a great move, but it will help us more in the future. We need to get a top notch striker that can come in and score goals immediately!

- A story from the Liverpool Daily Post caught my eye. A local "business consortium" from Liverpool unveiled a possible plan to get Liverpool and Everton new stadiums. It is called a "Siamese stadium" and is pretty much two stadiums combines by one common wall. While I think this is an innovative way to save money (180 - 220 million pounds according to the business group), I think the stadium would ruin the experience of supporters of both teams. I would actually rather have one stadium for both teams, even though that seems impossible in the Prem League. Just see the picture, you'll understand.

- I still can't get over that Bily goal in injury time yesterday. Just phenomenal.