Fabregas row continues

Whilst the transfer window has been grabbing the headlines the controversy surrounding Cesc Fabregas’ behaviour on Tuesday night has been rolling on. The Everton manager David Moyes accused Cesc of questioning the integrity of the referee at half-time during the game at the Emirates. His manager Arsene Wenger has been quick to defend his captain and also state that there is an unwritten rule that players do not discuss what is said during battle.

Unfortunately for Fabregas he certainly has previous; spitting at players, exchanging words with opposition managers and aggressive behaviour towards referees. Of course this is not what he is synonymous with; he is one of the truly outstanding players in the Premier League and is Arsenal’s talisman. It is often the case in these situations that the sheer will to win results in the player boiling over but it is also brought about by frustration.

It has been a stop start season for Fabregas and in recent weeks he has continually had to make substitute appearances when his colleagues have not delivered against lower league opposition. He is currently producing his best form of the season and with Arsenal still chasing four trophies it is essential he maintains his composure.

We have seen a more ruthless side to Arsenal this year and it has certainly helped this season. Whatever was said on Tuesday night it clearly should not have happened but this saga has dragged on long enough. Quite what Moyes is expecting to happen by letting this role on is beyond me; Everton have enough on their plate as it is without further distraction. It is a real shame that someone so talented should have a nasty streak but he is not the first and will not be the last. Lets just get on with the game.

Everton need a striker

When Louis Saha smashed the ball into the bottom left corner last night against Spurs David Moyes must have wondered why his strikers cannot deliver that kind of finishing every game. The toffees currently positioned 11th in the league have only scored 23 goals this season with their strikers contributing 4 of those; indeed without the prolific Tim Cahill they could find themselves in real trouble.

David Moyes has been in charge since 2002 and has made continual efforts to strengthen his front line. He has bought James Beattie, Andy Johnson, Louis Saha and Yakubu in an attempt to find someone to score the goals needed to take them onto the next level. He even added Jermaine Beckford in the summer in an attempt to provide this threat. All have failed to varying degrees, although many of these failures have been due to continued injury rather than lack of ability.

Moyes has been terrific at Everton and is rightly considered one of the best up and coming managers in the country. It will be interesting to see how long he remains in Merseyside with many suitors interested in his services. He has managed to build a very strong side with a strong defence, a combative yet creative midfield and has guided Everton to a top 4 finish in 2004/5. If he could add a top class striker we could see Everton becoming the main team on Merseyside.