KOEMAN PUTS ON BRAVE FACE
But even a shave can’t hide the strain
THE morning after the grim night before, but Ronald Koeman was determined not to show signs of feeling the strain.
Over the past week, Everton’s embattled manager has looked increasingly stressed, sporting a heavy stubble that is not in keeping with his usual appearance. At Finch Farm yesterday, though, he was clean shaven and ready to lift the mood of his floundering team.
‘I’m 10 years younger this morning after a shave!’ said Koeman, doing his best to deflect the questions when asked if the unrelenting pressure and growing weight of public dissatisfaction was taking a personal toll.
As much as he wanted to engage gallows humour, however, there was realism. The actions of one moron at Goodison Park, who faces a life ban for his inexplicable actions against Lyon, took Koeman out of the spotlight momentarily but the situation that has engulfed him has not changed.
No manager in the Premier League is under as much pressure as Koeman and it will take a remarkable change to save his job, not least as he revealed majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri and chairman Bill Kenwright are ‘a little worried’ by results.
There was no desire to hide away, though. He might be stressed and aware his 14-month reign could end at any moment but he was back in work, as normal, at 9am yesterday and the predicament did not prompt him to pull up the shutters ahead of Arsenal’s visit tomorrow.
‘It is normal it has an impact if the team is not doing well and not getting wins,’ said Koeman. ‘ Pressure always ways comes in the direc-direction of the manager. But if you don’t liklike it? Th Then take another job.
‘I can’t complain about the attitude or work-rate of the players. I can complain about cleverness, about quality and about decisionmaking. But not about how they fight, how they try and what they give on the pitch. Frustration is part of life and football if you don’t win. I hate to lose. But I’m still the man. We fight for everything to turn it around. Of course the pressure is on the manager. I watch
TV, I am on social mediamedia, I know what’s going around.aro Let’s hope ffor ththree pointsi and after Sunday everybody will be happier than they are now.’
For that to happen, however, the solution has to come immediately. The confidence that has drained from the players needs to be restored and the basic errors that have left Koeman tearing his hair out need to be eradicated.
If that doesn’t happen, Goodison will unleash its fury. The atmosphere for Lyon’s visit was sour and, once again, boos rang outt attththe fifinall whistle.hitl ManyM feelf l Koeman has never made a connection with the club and want him gone. The Gwladys Street End, significantly, have never sung his name and another defeat will tip them over the edge.
Could there be an omen,
however, in the visit of Arsenal? Ahead of the corresponding fixture on Merseyside last season, Everton had won only one of their previous 11 matches but they bullied Arsene Wenger’s men that December evening to turn the tide. ‘It is funny with how that has worked out,’ said Ashley Williams, whose goal in the last minute settled that match and sent Goodison into a frenzy.
‘It felt a little bit similar when we played Arsenal at home last year and that was kind of a turning point. It would be nice if that could happen again.’
The one thing that has not happened, however, is the dressing-room turning on Koeman.
‘ We all like him,’ Williams insisted. ‘I know we really want to try for him. When it gets like this, the manager is the one who puts his head out there. He is one under pressure, as we all are as players, and we want to deliver good performances and results.
‘It is difficult for him at the minute. He is sticking to what he knows and he keeps trying to do the right thing.
‘He is on to us every day and he is pushing us as a team. We will keep working as hard as we can for him. It goes without saying that the players are fully behind him.’
Whether he can get the fans behind him is another matter entirely. JACK WILSHERE is in line to see his first Premier League action of the season tomorrow after starring in Arsenal’s Europa League win against Red Star Belgrade. Alexis Sanchez and Aaron Ramsey will both be in the squad.