Would be like us agreeing a similar deal for Brereton though, which wouldn't happen.

Can you see the team 2nd in Ligue 2 loaning out their main striker who they play every game? Would seem unlikely from the outside, I think Healey is just a name that was mentioned loosely in the summer that has never gone away.

"Supporters passion" is "ignited" best by winning bloody football matches! Simple as that.

Dack does work hard to be fair and he would give us another dimension with the additional goal threat from that position.

I have no idea, I would scour Europe to which I can not claim to have a full picture and not remotely consider whether a candidate has a status from being an Everton player.

Sky Sports just speculate but that would be a very uninspiring list.

Neither do I but I said it would be a proper genuine sign of ambition from the owners. So it obviously wont happen. Solanke definitely WOULD be ideal but is obviously unattainable. We still do play 2 forwards and he has the pace and mobility to do that whilst offering a goal threat. We need this mystery loan to buy to score goals and someone who is an actual striker as we will have enough small, flighty winger types who are good but you wouldnt want 2 playing at once. I wouldnt be switching formations. My worry is if we dont sign a 5th centre back then we are a couple of injuries away from being forced to.

"Managers and the same style has a shelf life." Wonder if Pep Guardiola or Jurgen Klopp would agree?

I explained my thinking. A decent outlay yes, still less than both of the Armstrong and potential summer Brereton fees. If we go up, I imagine a quality new striker would have helped us get there, if we dont, then our main replacement for Brereton is already at the club and the risk of the initial fee (say 5m, perhaps a bit more) is offset financially against the fee in the summer for Brereton. You have asked me this before, but yes. A "number 9" is a very vague term, it doesnt have to be a big lump, and it doesnt have to lead to a change in formation. We have to ensure that any striker in our team has pace because we like to play on the counter attack. I think we always need at least 1 striker in the team, as the balance of say Dolan and Khadra wouldnt be right, too small and lightweight, plus not enough sustained goal threat. Brereton counts as 1, so does Gallagher although he isnt very good nor can he counter attack particularly well as shown yesterday. Because he has never played senior football before. We dont know how long it will take to adjust to mens football and what sort of impact he will have.

The most entertaining type of football is winning football. Rovers certainly didnt entertain yesterday, but did anyone care once we took 3 points?

I don't understand why it has to be put down to "scapegoating" when a player is criticised. Brereton has been criticised in the past because he didn't play very well. I thought that yesterday was a perfect example of probably Gallagher's biggest weaknesses, which led to our defence having to weather even more pressure. When Gallagher received the ball, he tended to struggle to hold it up and when a counter attacking chance came about, 3 or 4 times his choice and execution of pass was really poor and a chance to get a second was wasted, and Cardiff had the chance to attack with a couple of our players up the field.

Adebayo would be a brilliant signing, would be a huge showing of genuine intent and ambition from the owners. No doubt a decent fee, but you would have the collateral of a Brereton summer sale. He would give us a huge boost for our push and could just be Brereton's replacement if we don't go up. Perhaps pie in the sky. Individuals aside, we do really need a second out and out striker. We have such a reliance for goals on Brereton, as any team tends to on a prolific goalscorer, but if he goes a couple without a goal which will happen or is absent which again will happen, it isn't easy to see many other goals. Even if we sign Markanday, we don't know how quickly he will transition to mens football, and even if he does, if Brereton is unavailable then 2 from Markanday/Khadra/Dolan wouldn't be the best balance, and Gallagher is not very good.

Jarrod Bowen is in superb form, surely if based on form and quality an obvious pick for the next England squad ahead of the likes of Rashford, Sancho and Greenwood.

Once Dike settles in, I suspect that West Brom will become a different team. With Hugill often doing his best donkey impersonation so far this season, they have been fairly toothless.

I love this obsession with appointing managers for sentimental and/or for their playing careers, its nonsencial. Even if it is done to get a bounce, it won't be a long lasting one. You appoint the best possible manager and dismiss any notions of who a manager used to play for or support. It would be utterly ridiculous if Everton chose between Rooney and Ferguson, just a desperate attempt to appease the fans and that may work in the short term, but once results took a turn for the worse, that goodwill would soon wane. Maybe you could argue that Rooney would deserve consideration for the job that he has done at Derby. I am not so sure, as much as I do admire what he has done so far this season. And there is zero evidence that Ferguson is a competent full time manager. It is the same with us when Ainsworth is suggested, always with some sort of mention back to being a Rovers fan. Should be irrelevant.

Sky have had a shocker showing an advert with over 2 minutes to go. Not surprised. Shit results.

I think he was involved in the drunk driving incident the other year.

Regular Premier League finishes on a comparatively meagre budget, including a couple of top 10 finishes and a European adventure. Boring indeed.

I know. But im saying that they would have been forgotten if the results were good. Sentiment never should impact a managerial appointment.

The main reason consciously or otherwise is because their results this season have been dismal. Had they done really well they wouldnt care about the Liverpool connections.

The best spark is the best manager possible getting the best results possible because winning football matches provides the biggest and longest lasting "spark."

He is a weird one, ideally we could sign him for a couple of years and loan him out. He has suffered from injury problems and even since he could have done with a loan. He sometimes comes on and looks bright but any excitement is short lived and often lacking end product. Throw Dack, Dolan, Markanday if signed and perhaps a third extra attacker and he will struggle to get near squads, but if he doesn't sign then perhaps sell for a nominal fee with a sell on.

Appointments shouldn't be made for sentimental reasons. If Rooney was to be appointed, it should be purely on merit based on his management at Derby, which is impressive but perhaps not enough evidence, not because of who he is.

Today he was the poorest that he has been all season, obviously he has not been poor. The thing is, the win at home and draw away mantra is very much nothing more than a throwaway cliche. Today for example against a Cardiff side with horrid home form, a draw would have been frustrating, not pleasing. The cliche relies upon the assumption that it is realistic for any team to win every home game. Again, on Wednesday night, we should be going aiming to win. We are a pragmatic team anyway so it's not as if we throw caution to the wind at any point.

Not a good performance in many ways and so many individuals had shockers yet its all about results and a superb defensive shift put in, all about those 3 points. Edun looks really out of place, Brereton as poor as he has been all season, Buckley poor, Travis very off colour and Gallagher with as bad a cameo as you are likely to see. Lenihan, Wharton and Van Hecke all very good, and Kaminski faultless. Nyambe red card perhaps slightly harsh but still foolish from him, both the shove and the late foul.