Everton’s stars ‘still in good spirits’
DAVID UNSWORTH has downplayed talk of unsettled players at Everton.
He says they are “enjoying” themselves despite their slump.
Rumours have circulated that certain players – particularly those brought in by previous boss Ronald Koeman – are unhappy, leading to a series of sub-par performances.
Caretaker manager Unsworth has come in and overseen three defeats since Koeman’s departure, leaving the Toffees in the relegation zone.
But Unsworth says there remains harmony within his squad amid a turbulent period of results that also saw Everton crash out of the Europa League on Thursday. “The players are still in good spirits. There have not been as many training sessions as I’d have liked but they’ve been high tempo and the spirit has been great,” he said. “That’s a good feeling to have when you’re working on the training field and you know that your players are enjoying themselves.
“I see it in their eyes. I know they’re giving everything. There are no issues that I can see. Obviously all players want to play – I was no different – but there has been nothing untoward.
“We just want that tide to turn on Sunday. The sooner we can win a game in the league, the sooner we can all relax and gain a bit of confidence.”
Unsworth is set to learn over the international break whether he will get the manager’s job full-time.
Sam Allardyce and Sean Dyche – as well as Unsworth’s opposite number on Sunday, Marco Silva – have been linked with the job, with the club’s hierarchy desperately attempting to find a manager who can bring the best out of a squad that had £140million invested into it over the summer.
Fans are already calling for a similar spending spree in January but Unsworth believes the players to turn around the club’s fortunes are in situ.
“Every manager will have a way of playing, a style of playing, a type of player that they’d like and I’d be no different,” he said. “Any manager coming in, myself included, would want to tweak and maybe look at bringing other players into the club.
“This group individually are quality players. They have shown that at previous clubs and they’ve shown that here. We need to come together as a team.
“The money side is not down to the players. They can’t control that, but players have to step up and perform.”
Watford boss Silva believes Troy Deeney has learnt from his mistake.
The striker was retrospectively banned for three games after getting his claws into Joe Allen last Saturday.
Deeney thus misses the Everton game and Silva said: “It’s not the best for us but we need to accept the decision.
“I’ve already talked with him and he knows as well my opinion about the situation – but we accept the situation.”