JOHN TARAS
GEORGE LAKIN
Sobering display. Long and short of it is Vitor simply has to get us defending better than that. Scoring two goals at home should see you picking up points.
The hope is Larsen, Tolu and Krejci improve us dramatically. Even so, wingback area could prove really problematic all season.
We can survive, but be under no illusions, this season will not be like the last – Burnley are a solid side, Sunderland are spirited, Leeds will win games at Elland Road, Brentford are too well run to drop, and West Ham have Jared Bowen.
Not even feeling the need to clamour for new signings after that, the players we already have can and should be putting in a better defensive display than that.
If Pereira doesn’t sharpen them up quickly this league will absolutely skin us alive.
PAM WELLS
A game of two halves yet again.
KARL WHITEHOUSE
I went to the game expecting us to carry on from the League Cup, where we won after coming from behind.
The team looked nervous from the start. We allowed Everton more possession early after a slow start from us.
Everton targeted our right side, which caused problems and, at times, left our players wondering what had happened.
We had good moments, but we were also sloppy. We overhit passes and gave possession away to Everton, which led to the goals we conceded. Why didn’t we clear the ball away from danger? It’s an issue Vitor has to address.
We scored two good goals, with quality crosses, which was a positive. But I’m worried about the form of Agbadou and Toti. They made mistakes, and it wasn’t pleasant to see. This needs sorting out, as our defence is leaking too many goals.
We’re playing a game of two halves. One thing we must improve when chasing a game: keep attacking. Don’t keep playing the ball back to the goalkeeper. It’s not ideal, as it can lead to the opposition scoring from our mistakes. Our crossing also needs to be more clinical. The identity is there in parts, and as Vitor said, it will take time. We hope he is right. With only three games played, we believe it can be sorted after the international break if we cut out the mistakes. There will be ups and downs, but we can still have a good season as long as we back Vitor and the players he brings in to solve the issues.
Player of the match: Joao Gomes. He worked tirelessly all over the pitch. Match rating: 5.

1 Comment
by Gurbux Singh
Poor performance- defending abject- little creativity. Team playing as disjointed strangers. Our investment in player recruitment poor – currently investment must be in the 30/40m minimum to get quality