Across certain sections of the Everton fanbase, there have been growing concerns over recent years that the club are just a bit too nice.
Of course it's all well and good being as charitable and decent as the Blues are off-the-pitch - and that has no bearing on anything that takes place when a referee first blows his whistle. But, during games, there have been criticisms that there hasn't been a real bite among this squad.
Someone to really get under the skin of their opponent, or even the match officials if the time is right. Players who aren't afraid to get into a real scrap and wind up the other side, perhaps lulling them into making a few mistakes in their frustrations in the process.
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It's not the be-all-and-end-all in football, and you never want to see it cross the line of course. But, Evertonians do like their players with a little bit of needle.
There have been a few of those in recent years, but perhaps James Tarkowski has already shown that he can fit straight into that mould for his new club.
Right at the end of his first appearance in royal blue, the centre-back was quick to rush over to Stanley Mills' defence as the youngster was involved in a disagreement with Nicolas Pepe. Standing in-between the pair, the summer signing pushed the Arsenal man in the chest and away from his new teammate, letting his opponent know to deal with him if he had a problem with the young talent.
Clearly the Gunners weren't happy with that, and they were even less so when Tarkowski flew into a challenge a few seconds later which ultimately saw him pick up a yellow card - and brought the match to an abrupt end. He'd got the ball, but he had gone through the back of the opposing man to get there in fairness.
It was a game which had a little bit of that edge to it from the start, with a tasty challenge from Dele on Cedric Soares particularly in the opening minutes catching the eye. But, the incidents with the centre-back at the end of the match was what had those who had stayed awake into the small hours of Sunday morning talking.
He'd put in a strong performance after being introduced in the second half. Playing on the right side of a central defensive three when brought on at the interval, the 29-year-old seemed ultimately comfortable from his first touches of the ball.
He was good in possession, he read the game very well to stop a number of Arsenal attacks and he provided a real presence alongside Michael Keane to stop their opponents really getting much of a sniff during their time on the pitch. It's only his first pre-season match of the summer so you can't read a whole lot into the performance as things stand, but the promising signs are there.
However, just as interesting a quality came in those last few minutes of the match. It showed a strong character to be able to jump into an argument for a new teammate at this early stage of his time with the club, making sure he was defending a youngster in the process.
Mills is someone who himself certainly isn't one to back down from a disagreement, but Tarkowski showed a certain amount of leadership to bring the focus onto him instead. Maybe his following challenge was a little reckless and a yellow card came his way for it, but it seems clear that he's not to be trifled with in that Everton back line.
Frank Lampard may well have been concealing a wry smile in those last minutes of the match. He talked at the end of last season about making his side more "robust", which could admittedly be interpreted in a multitude of differing ways.
Perhaps one was about these little scraps in a match. Showing not just some physical strength but also the strength of character in those moments.
Tarkowski impressed a lot of Evertonians in his debut not just through his performance, but also with that desire to show his commitment to his new side early doors.
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