Although Irwin played the majority of his career at left-back, Cascarino believes the Goodison Park star, who starred for England against Bulgaria on Friday night, is similar in his no-nonsense style and his modest profile to the Old Trafford hero.

Cascarino also praised Bolton’s Gary Cahill, suggesting the assured performance in place of injured Michael Dawson suggested the defender is ready to cut his teeth in the Champions League.

Praising Jagielka, Cascarino told the Times: “He’s the new Denis Irwin: reliable, solid, underrated because he’s not flashy. But he is a great option for England.

“He looks comfortable, he’s mobile, he reads the game well and rarely makes mistakes.

On the aforementioned Bolton Wanderers stalwart, Cascarino added: “Gary Cahill’s a great option, too. Aggressive, reads the game well, tall.

“He could play for a Champions League club.”

SOURCE: Sport.co.uk

The Everton ace started alongside Michael Dawson in the centre of defence in England’s 4-0 win over Bulgaria on Friday night, with first choice pairing John Terry and Rio Ferdinand ruled out through injury.

Jagielka’s performance drew praise from OPR manager Neil Warnock, who has now tipped the 28-year-old to become a mainstay of Fabio Capello’s side, and he will keep his place for the second European Championship qualifier against Switzerland on Tuesday.

But Robson is adamant Jagielka does not have what it takes to thrive at international level and is also unconvinced by Dawson, who was carried off during the second half of the Wembley win with a knee injury.

Robson told Hawksbee and Jacobs: “If people believe that the two centre-halves that played the other night, Dawson and Jagielka, are going to be international quality they’re going to be wrong.

“I’ve been reading lots of reports about Jagielka being a really good player but I watched him all night and he made some really poor decisions defensively, in terms of where he should be, trying to step up at the wrong time.

“Dawson, before he got injured, was coming up when he should have been going back in and he was going back in when he should have been coming up.

“They didn’t have a good understanding and they didn’t have a good understanding in the second half against Hungary so I still think England need their experienced centre-halves.

“I’ve given John Terry criticism but he’s still better than the two that are in there at the moment.”

SOURCE: TalkSport

Scholes, 35, has rolled back the years to be the club’s star performer in the opening weeks of the campaign. He collected the man of the match honours in the opening clash against Newcastle United and then scored a thunderbolt in the trip to Fulham.

Manager Sir Alex Ferguson had been understood to be ready to test the Toffees’ resolve to keep hold of the England under-21 captain with a £10 million plus Michael Carrick offer. After watching Scholes’ tremendous performances, however, a potential move has been filed away until at least the opening of the January transfer window.

Source: Goal.com

On the 23rd of September last year, Nick Roberts’ world was turned upside down when he was involved in a serious road traffic accident en-route to work that left him fighting for his life.

Now, back on the road to full fitness, the lifelong Evertonian is embarking on a challenge that will push his still recovering body to the limit as he, his wife Reyhana, and two good friends head to China to embark on the punishing “Great Wall Challenge”….in aid of North West Air Ambulance.

As you will see from Nick’s story – which is included below and can also be read in detail on the “Just Giving” site – there can be no doubt that North West Air Ambulance played a crucial part in saving his life. Without them, quite simply, he wouldn’t be here today.

North West Air Ambulance covers the regions of Merseyside, Cheshire, Greater Manchester,Cumbria and Lancashire and costs £4m per year to stay operational. The staggering thing about this, as Nick is keen to promote to aid their cause, is that they survive on donations alone to keep them in the air.

In the early days following the accident, when Nick was understandably still extremely groggy in his hospital bed following several life-saving surgeries to repair injuries to his heart, liver and lungs, the closeness of the Everton family was to offer some cheer as Nick picked up a telephone at his bedside to hear the voice of Tim Cahill on the line, calling long-distance from Australia as he was on international duty with the socceroos.

For Tim to take the time to do that for an Evertonian, whilst away on international duty, speaks volumes for the man, and indeed for the quality of human being that David Moyes has filled our great football club full of.

We at SOS hope that the fans can now play their part too, in helping Nick & Reyhana reach (and hopefully exceed) their goal of raising £10,000 for North West Air Ambulance.

Their quest is entirely self-funded and EVERY single penny raised will go directly to North West Air Ambulance.

Anything we can give, no matter how small, would mean a great deal personally to Nick and of course,ultimately, is going to directly enable the NWAA to continue their wonderful work and help save lives.

SOS1878.co.uk is proud to support Nick in his challenge and we sincerely hope that by promoting this cause, the Everton family can help them in reaching their ambitious target for what is undoubtedly a very worthy organisation….

http://www.justgiving.com/Nick-Roberts0

http://www.justgiving.com/nwaa

They managed to stabilise me, while the fire brigade cut me out of the car and got me safely to Blackburn Royal Hospital.On arrival at Blackburn Royal it soon became obvious that I needed specialist attention. I had a torn aorta which is one of the hearts main arteries and this was bleeding into the cavity where my lung should have been.  Unfortunately I had a collapsed lung so this filled up with blood being pumped from my heart. I needed transferring to Wythenshaw hospital on the outskirts of Manchester, fast.Luckily the air ambulance again came to my aid, they managed to get me to Wythenshaw hospital in under ten minutes and into a prep room for theatre in less than 18min in total.I was in surgery until 10pm that night with surgeons performing life saving operations on my heart, liver and lungs.  I also had a lot of other non life threatening injuries that needed sorting.  I had a full set of broken ribs down my right hand side, I had a fractured skull, eye socket and neck.

I had a broken wrist on one side and broken arm on the other.  My pelvis had also cracked and I had chipped the socket in my pelvis where your leg meets.  All in all I was a bit of a mess.Many people played an important part in saving my life that day.  The amount of people I have to thank is unbelievable, paramedics, pilots, surgeons, fire fighters, nurses, porters, family and friends all played a part in giving me another chance.  I don’t think you actually realise what a fantastic and vital job these people do, until you have either been involved or seen it close up.  That is something that I will never be able to repay.By doing the Great wall of China Challenge, Reyhana who is now my wife, Brendan and Thomas my lifelong friends and I, aim to raise money for the NW Air Ambulance.  I know now that this trek is going to be a struggle for me, I have lost a lot of strength through everything that has happened. But I couldn’t think of a better way to build that strength up than training for a challenge like this for such a good charity.Charity Registration No. 1075641………………………………..http://www.justgiving.com/Nick-Roberts0

SOURCE: SOS1878.co.uk

Everton legend Graeme Sharp has not given up hope of Yakubu becoming Everton’s main striking force once again.

Yakubu, 27, was linked heavily with a move away from Goodison Park throughout the summer to Avram Grant’s West Ham and has been forced to watch on from the sidelines as his Everton teammates – including fellow forwards Louis Saha and new recruit Jermaine Beckford – have managed  just one goal from their first three Premier League outings.

But Sharp insists there is still hope for Yakubu, who he considers the most natural goalscorer at the club.

He told the Liverpool Echo: “All players are individuals and have differing levels of natural fitness but with Yak being out for a long time through injury, then returning and going to the World Cup, he probably didn’t do himself any good by not coming back early and getting more pre-season with Everton.

“That went against him. He was entitled to a break but Nigeria didn’t go beyond the group stages.

“It was a severe, career-threatening injury – make no mistake. It would be enough to finish some players off entirely and the frustrating thing is that Yak seemed to have bounced back. He even scored in his comeback game against Hull.

“But David Moyes was first to say that we wouldn’t see the best of the Yak for a while, maybe even 12 months after that injury. He has got plenty to offer and maybe it’s just a case of nursing him back into the fold.

“It’s plain to see from the start of the season, and how results have stuttered along, that Everton are lacking a cutting edge in the final third.

“Then you’ve got a natural goal scorer like the Yak who hasn’t played yet. He is a fantastic asset to have and you can’t afford to write him off yet.

“I would have been disappointed to see him leave Everton this summer. I can genuinely still see a place for him in this side and I can still see him having an impact on this season.

“He’s the type of player who can score scrappy goals. It’ll hit his backside and go in. He just knows where the right place is to score. With Louis Saha liking to drop deep and join up play, there’s room for someone who can be a real predator in the box.”

“It’s disappointing that he’s still not fully fit but you’ve got to think about how Everton would have gone about finding a replacement. It takes a lot of money to get a goal scorer in these days. Everyone wants one.

“When you’ve got one on your books maybe it’s better to sit tight and show some faith in him. Hopefully the boy has still got the hunger to get in great shape and get back in action.”

SOURCE: SOS1878.co.uk

The fixtures are out and the season tickets renewed – that first game – Blackburn away; scouring the list for the Merseyside derby and our trips to Eastlands and Old Trafford.

The pre-season friendlies are being lined up. Preston or Norwich? I’m away with the Mrs and kids for those, CD Everton and Wolfsburg it is then! You what, they want £625 for a piss up in Germany?!

The new shirt looks better than the pictures. Nah, it’s not retro enough. Why can’t they ever get it right?

Have we bought anyone yet? Jermaine Beckford, and a few unknown foreigners. Who else? Which of the players will be off?  Who’s staying? Who will create the elusive spark? Who will perform? The reanalysis of the season gone. The reappraisal of the players in and out. He’s very vocal, just what we need. He’s been garbage  everywhere he’s been. No way we’ve seen the best of him yet!

And what of the manager? He needs to deliver this season, he’s had 8 years of building. Shut it lad, in Moyes we trust!

And slowly the excitement builds.

Which of the youngsters will take their chances? Who might flatter to deceive? Wingers are what we need, with pace! The back four look organised, I hope they stay fit.

Questions, questions.

Eyes scanning the sports pages, the internet, desperate to glean any hint of news; of facts and half truths. Keep the noise down, some plum on the radio just said we’ve re-signed Marcus Bent. What a balloon. Arteta to Man City? Do one, he’s going nowhere.

Wolfsburg before it all kicks off again for real. One week to go.

The Anticipation.

The Anticipation.

And then the day arrives. The waiting nearly over. August 14th. Get to County Road for 11am sharp ready to board the coach. There’s a great beer garden outside Ewood, isn’t there? It’s a plan; keep an eye on the time though. Walk to the ground, some banter with the locals, not all of it friendly.

Turnstiles at last.

14.55.

Climbing the stand. Familiar faces. Voices raised, Evertonians in full flow.

The moment is perfect.

The referee raises his whistle to his lips, the moment before everything changes…

“COME ON EVERTON, THESE ARE SHITE!”

Pini Zahavi