Dyche on Everton takeover, City form and pressure on results not performances
23/12/2024
Finch Farm, Liverpool, UK
23/12/2024
Finch Farm, Liverpool, UK
Category
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SportsTranscript
00:00Good, thank you.
00:17Good afternoon, everyone, welcome to our pre-match press conference
00:20to preview our game against Manchester City.
00:22We'll start off with Vinny from tonight.
00:24Obviously it's only a few days after the takeover was complete,
00:27but do you notice a difference around the place?
00:29What do you notice?
00:31I thought there was a good atmosphere yesterday before the game even started,
00:35that feeling around the stadium,
00:37you can't quite always put your finger on it,
00:39but you know what I mean.
00:41I think just the idea of when no-one quite knows what's going on,
00:49everyone's uncertain and people don't like that,
00:51and I think when there's some certainty,
00:53and I certainly think the freeking group have given that certainty,
00:56when there's the word stability,
00:58and I think because it's been an unstable situation,
01:00I think that's a word that all the Evertonians want to hear,
01:04as a start point, obviously there's more to come,
01:06but that's a start point, so I think it just brings a bit of calmness,
01:09kills the story off and hopefully gives a more positive feel about the club at large,
01:13and obviously it's our job to continue on the pitch,
01:15giving that positive feel.
01:17What further certainty have they been able to give you,
01:19because I believe you went out for dinner with them?
01:21Yeah, it was a very casual dinner, a very nice dinner in the city,
01:24and they were good people to sit and have a chat with,
01:27and like I say, it was a casual sort of situation.
01:30There was some about Everton, some about me, about my past,
01:32about what I found here, but a lot of just casual stuff,
01:35and some about themselves, of course, as individuals and as a group,
01:38but yeah, it was nice to have a more informal chat with the guys who were here,
01:45so yeah, it was good.
01:47Really, off the back of that just comes more of an assurance of what I am,
01:51and what I am here, and as I said last week,
01:54the thing that goes with the territory is you've got to win games,
01:56of course I know that, but from the work that I've done and we've collectively done,
02:01then it's fair to say they've been happy with that,
02:04and hopefully it will continue in the right vein.
02:06I think you kind of hinted at it the other day as well,
02:08but are you feeling that you have to prove yourself at this point?
02:11I think you're always proving yourself as a manager,
02:13there's always a question over something, whether it's internal or external,
02:16you have to answer to a lot of people, so I think that's just the norm.
02:20I don't think this is specific to them,
02:22and I don't think their reason behind it is either.
02:25The fact is we all know you've got to win games as a manager,
02:27or you've got to win enough games to be deemed successful in whatever situation there is,
02:32and I think I've done that so far here with all the different things that have been thrown at us,
02:37and want to win more, of course.
02:39I think they've made it clear that they're going to support you,
02:41at the same time you also said about the PSR situation,
02:45so when are you thinking you're going to know exactly what you can do?
02:47Yeah, I didn't want that to be misconstrued actually,
02:49what I mean is there's still guidelines,
02:51it doesn't mean there's any trouble there, by the way,
02:53or certainly not that I know of that's come in or anything like that,
02:56I was just suggesting there are rules, all clubs have got to stay inside of,
03:00so that's still, there are some parameters that we'll have to look at,
03:03the club are doing of course, to make sure we're on the right side of that,
03:06but I need to make that clear, it's not specific, there's no trouble necessarily,
03:10I mean all clubs are now looking at having to make sure they're in the guidelines,
03:15but the guidelines would suggest we haven't got a situation
03:17where it's just going to be endless money at every situation,
03:19that's definitely not going to be the situation,
03:22but there's no problem at the moment, so just to make that clear.
03:25So that means that maybe you're confident of getting something in, in January?
03:29No, I think it's still going to be tough,
03:30I don't think the guidelines and what the club are suggesting
03:34are still going to be quite, we've got to be quite guarded with the situation,
03:38like I say it's not going to be a case you can just throw money everywhere,
03:40that's definitely not the case,
03:42and I don't think this group are going to do that anyway,
03:44I think they're going to try and build something,
03:45their words of stability then added in the fact to rightly put the club
03:49where it belongs in their eyes, but also the time needed,
03:52so certainly that was what they expressed to me.
03:55Three clean sheets on the bounce after the defeat to United,
03:58how did you re-instill that belief?
04:01I don't think we've lacked belief over the season,
04:03I think confidence goes up and down with results of course,
04:06but I don't think it's been a situation of belief,
04:08I think the finer details, the margins that are tight,
04:12the way you get on top of them margins and make them favourable
04:15is the work for all the staff, the players, the training ground work,
04:18but inevitably it comes out on a pitch, that's when you need it,
04:21and we've certainly corrected the defensive side of things,
04:24I think that's quite obvious from early season,
04:26finding that balance to go and attack with more clinical nature is the next step,
04:32and it sounds easy, it's not easy,
04:35but that's certainly what we're looking to do,
04:37because the defensive side has been very good for the last number of games
04:40and seven clean sheets in ten.
04:42No, come on, goals in a minute,
04:43but Taki said after the game that earlier in the season,
04:46well the start of the season, he felt a little undercooked,
04:49did you sense that, did you see that?
04:51We had a lot of injuries during pre-season,
04:53I never think that's ideal,
04:54a lot of players have become very important over their time there,
04:57missed quite big chunks of pre-season,
04:59and I think it's hard to catch that up,
05:02people presuppose you get fit in a few days,
05:04not Premier League fit, you don't, and that real sharpness,
05:07so I did express that at the beginning of the season,
05:10not as any kind of excuse,
05:11I've got all the stats and facts,
05:12I've been doing it a long time,
05:13and I've been here long enough to know what these guys need,
05:16and where they're at when they're physically right,
05:18and I knew there were a number of players who weren't physically right,
05:20and we were having to play them to catch up,
05:22and I've always been a believer that you get fit for the task,
05:24not use the task to get fit,
05:26so we had to start using the task to get fit,
05:28therefore playing games when people weren't quite fit,
05:31and I did think it affected our performance,
05:33there were some obvious details and mistakes of course,
05:36in them early performances,
05:37but a lot of it was down to just basic fitness I felt,
05:40and now as the team's got stronger,
05:41and the group have got stronger and fitter,
05:43I think it's beginning to show up in our performances.
05:46You mentioned about goals,
05:47but failing to score in six of the last seven at the same time now,
05:51for the first time this season,
05:52you've got all four strikers available to you,
05:54so do you anticipate that that's going to make a big difference?
05:57We hope it to,
05:58scoring goals in the Premier League is not an easy task,
06:00everyone knows that,
06:01but I think we've got four different options,
06:04four players of different types,
06:06and we're hoping to use them wisely.
06:09Again though,
06:10the fact that you've got those options,
06:12what does it do within the group when you've got that competition?
06:16It's only just coming together,
06:18but we want that in-house competitive element,
06:22we want people who are desperate to play,
06:24and I think strikers,
06:26well all players should be,
06:27but strikers,
06:28especially when the noise is that we're not scoring as many goals,
06:30well that hopefully is gold to a striker,
06:33thinking well I want to be the one who makes a difference,
06:35so strikers have that edge about them,
06:36or they should have,
06:37where they want that glory,
06:39they want to be the next person who makes a difference,
06:41so we've got four volume for one shirt,
06:43usually at the moment,
06:44because we've used three in midfield a lot more often,
06:46then that's got to be good as a competitive motivator.
06:50Clearly you're in better form at the moment than Manchester City,
06:53what are you seeing when you analyse them,
06:55that accounts for the fact that they've lost three on the bounce,
06:57lost nine of the last 12?
06:59Well I was reading some words from Pep,
07:01and it's a similar but different situation,
07:04I talk about the marginality,
07:06he's saying that,
07:07a lot of times they haven't done the correct things at the right times,
07:09I think he mentioned that when they were scoring goals,
07:11the reason why they score them,
07:12they're not,
07:13when they were conceding,
07:14or weren't conceding as the case may be,
07:16the details,
07:17if they're not right,
07:18even for the top,
07:19top teams,
07:20if you don't get them right,
07:21then things don't work out for you,
07:22they'll be trying to correct that,
07:23we're in the progress of correcting somewhat,
07:26what we were doing,
07:27we still need to win more games,
07:28obviously and score more goals,
07:29but it's a constant thing,
07:31I don't know all of Pep's history,
07:35but I think it's unlikely he's had too many spells like this,
07:37so you'd think at some point it happens,
07:39even to the best,
07:40and he is arguably one of the best ever,
07:42so for him to have a testing period,
07:44actually shows how tough the game is,
07:46and even for the top side,
07:48just at the very top,
07:49they were talking about these games coming up,
07:51as you know,
07:52and you rightly spoke to me about them,
07:53this tough run,
07:54well Pep's having a tough run,
07:55of different kinds,
07:56I did mention it weeks ago,
07:57I said even he'll be looking at it,
07:59he's going,
08:00they suddenly look a bit tougher,
08:01than when they're rolling over teams,
08:03left, right and centre,
08:04which they have done many times,
08:05and that's just the psychology of what it is,
08:07to be a manager,
08:08but he's still a top manager,
08:09they've still got some fantastic players,
08:11it's not,
08:12you go there and expect,
08:13oh well we're going to win just because,
08:15we've got to go and deliver a performance,
08:17we've got to play hard,
08:18we've got to play strong,
08:19we've got to have all the tactical discipline,
08:21we've been showing,
08:22and forge as many chances as we can to win it.
08:25It's a cliche obviously,
08:26if you go back to beware the wounded animal.
08:29Yes I understand the cliche,
08:31it's like I said,
08:33they haven't all become terrible players,
08:35I trust me on that,
08:36he certainly is not a terrible manager,
08:38I know that,
08:39so you've got to be guarded,
08:40but we've got to equally believe in what we're doing,
08:43and the strength of our performances,
08:45defensively of course,
08:46and then how different ways,
08:48we can hopefully open the opposition up,
08:51it's still not an easy task that's for sure,
08:53but it's a situation where we're in,
08:56I would say at least strong form,
08:58as regards our defensive side,
08:59now we've got to see how many ways,
09:01we can open up the opposition,
09:02and hopefully win more games of course.
09:05Thanks for the interview,
09:06over to Richard at Premier League,
09:07Productions.
09:08Sean, we're only 24 hours removed from the Chelsea game,
09:10obviously,
09:11but in terms of team news,
09:12how are you shaping up for the next week,
09:14with the games coming up,
09:15and obviously you're going to have to use the squad...
09:17Yes, Young is out anyway,
09:19and he ripped his neck,
09:20I remember saying he ripped his neck,
09:21I didn't mean that,
09:22I know I couldn't wear that one out,
09:23I was like, no he didn't rip his neck,
09:25he ricked his neck,
09:26I was trying to express it,
09:28it's headlines,
09:29he's ripped his neck,
09:30I was like, no, no.
09:31Anyways, he should be fine,
09:34that should settle down quite quickly,
09:36but he can't play anyway,
09:37he's suspended.
09:38Dwight's still touch and go,
09:41we're not sure on that,
09:42we're hopeful it'll settle down,
09:43probably not for this one,
09:45but sooner rather than later,
09:47and Tim and Jimmy are still a bit away,
09:51they are just getting back on the grass,
09:52so hopefully it's getting closer.
09:55Obviously you've just talked a little bit about
09:57the new owners coming in,
09:58the improved form,
09:59certainly defensively as well,
10:01how upbeat are you right now,
10:03when you look at your term here as Edmonton manager,
10:05is this as positive as you can remember feeling at any one point?
10:11Well, I think at the end of last season,
10:13we had a great run of wins and clean sheets,
10:16and beat Liverpool,
10:17so that was a very positive period.
10:19This has been an indifferent period for many different reasons,
10:22expectation went higher,
10:23spending went lower,
10:24which is always a challenge when that happens,
10:26the outcome on the pitch wasn't as good as we hoped for
10:28at the beginning of the season,
10:29we've found a bit more of a level playing field to build from,
10:33the ownership seems to have given a more balanced view of the club
10:36at the moment,
10:37can't really think of the word,
10:38not really balanced,
10:39but a more positive outlook,
10:41which is helpful of course,
10:43and then it's for us to keep building on the pitch,
10:45so if the off the pitch stuff is stable,
10:48then how can we keep going on the pitch,
10:50working with the players to develop a side that can win more,
10:53and that's really the process,
10:54and obviously there's a lot more detail than that,
10:56but in the simplest form,
10:58so yes,
10:59I think there just seems to be an air of changing the mood,
11:02of changing the media mood about Everton Football Club,
11:04it just seems to have lifted things,
11:07the new owner's words,
11:08it's just stability,
11:10and I think that seems to have brought calmness,
11:12but like I say,
11:13we've got to do it on the pitch,
11:15that doesn't last forever,
11:17there's still question marks,
11:18can we win more,
11:19can we score more goals,
11:20and all these things,
11:21so we've still got to deliver that,
11:23but yes,
11:24I would say there's a bit more of a positive energy about Everton Football Club at the moment in general.
11:28I think essentially that's what I'm getting at,
11:30with the ownership issue put to bed,
11:32that's a big chunk of noise that's always been around here since you took charge,
11:36has gone away,
11:37and presumably allows you to concentrate on your day job.
11:40Yes, I think more so,
11:41I've had to answer to a lot here,
11:43and that's fine,
11:44that's the way it is,
11:45and also mentioning,
11:46I got a question about it last week,
11:47and I was saying one of the biggest changes,
11:48we'll be doing this,
11:49there's a lot more talk about the football,
11:51than there is about everything else,
11:53and in my time here,
11:54I don't know what the stat would be,
11:56but I think it's probably 70% of the time I've been speaking about other things other than just football,
12:00so hopefully that will return to the pitch,
12:02and what I do,
12:03and what the team does,
12:04and what my staff do,
12:05rather than me having to answer questions about all and sundry,
12:07that's just been the nature of it,
12:09that's been the nature of the club since I got here,
12:11it's changed all of a sudden,
12:13or not all of a sudden,
12:14we've been waiting for it to change,
12:15and now it is,
12:16they have taken ownership,
12:18so we'll take it on,
12:19and see where we can take it as a collective.
12:21And just on sitting,
12:22they've enjoyed so much success under Pep over the years,
12:25that everybody sort of seems to be under this impression,
12:28it's when, not if,
12:29that it turns back,
12:30as a football man yourself,
12:31when you see their performances over the last two months or so,
12:34are you also one of those that's scratching your heads,
12:36or do you see subtle little differences?
12:40No, I think,
12:42I think to keep the prowess that they've shown year on year,
12:46winning things,
12:47the style they're winning,
12:48and it's difficult to carry that on and on and on,
12:50that's why everyone speaks so highly,
12:52including myself,
12:53I saw Alex Ferguson 24 years,
12:54I think it was,
12:55of constantly changing the team,
12:56changing the dynamic,
12:57bringing it up to what you'd call modern ways,
12:59and making it win,
13:01you know,
13:02and how long them journeys have had times when it wasn't to his liking,
13:05it wasn't going as well,
13:06I think this is Pep's first one,
13:08so, I mean,
13:09goodness me,
13:10they've been amazing,
13:11you know,
13:12it's,
13:13I hope they're not amazing,
13:14this week,
13:15but they have been,
13:16you know,
13:17so,
13:18there's nothing but respect from me,
13:19for the club,
13:20let alone the manager and the players,
13:21what they've done there,
13:22is an absolutely,
13:23truly amazing story,
13:24but that all goes out the window when the whistle blows,
13:26I don't care less about any of that when the whistle blows,
13:28because I'm Everton's manager,
13:29so I just want to win.
13:30Thank you very much.
13:31Thanks,
13:36Head of the Christmas games then,
13:37it's 16 games,
13:3816 points,
13:39how do you rate that return?
13:43I think it's about,
13:45I would like more,
13:46and I would have expected more,
13:47not drastically more,
13:48but I think the early part of the season,
13:50when we were commanding in games,
13:51and should have seen them through,
13:52and should have won,
13:53that would have put us in an even better spot,
13:55that being said,
13:56when you add in the injuries,
13:57the upheaval of the group,
13:58the selling players,
14:00trying to spend less,
14:01and all these different factors,
14:03then,
14:04you know,
14:05I wasn't thinking delusions of grandeur,
14:06I wasn't thinking we'd be in the top four,
14:08but I thought we'd be slightly better off
14:09than we are points-wise.
14:12Given the goals have been a struggle
14:14in the last couple of months,
14:15apart from the Wolves game,
14:16Armando Brozier,
14:17I know he obviously couldn't play at the weekend,
14:19is this an opportunity for him now
14:21to start,
14:22maybe you mix it up up front,
14:23given it hasn't necessarily come off so far
14:26in the last couple of months?
14:28Yeah, I think we're trying to find
14:29the right way of working,
14:31to make sure we create more chances
14:33and score more goals.
14:34We've had to go back to the drawing board
14:36from the first four games defensively,
14:37I think that was quite obvious.
14:40We've found a better way of working
14:42as a group
14:44to keep clean sheets
14:45and stop goals going in one end,
14:46and now it's finding the balance in the other end.
14:47That's not just about the strikers,
14:49that's about all the players,
14:50you know,
14:51how we can find their moments,
14:52and I thought we so nearly did yesterday,
14:53particularly more so second half,
14:55you know,
14:56against the top side,
14:57so that's a positive sign,
14:58but we've got to keep doing it.
15:00Given those clean sheets
15:01against Arsenal and Chelsea,
15:03and the performances against,
15:05you know,
15:06the two sides that are in the title race,
15:09has that changed everyone's perspective in here?
15:11Is that what's helped some of the belief a little bit?
15:14I mean, the thing is,
15:15results change everyone's perspective,
15:17simple as that.
15:18You know,
15:19if them games and we get beat in them games
15:21and still get the same performance,
15:22everyone would have a completely different view.
15:24If we won them games,
15:25an even bigger positive view.
15:27So it's often the results,
15:28you know,
15:29tactical performances and team performances
15:31are massively swayed by results,
15:32for everyone.
15:33You know,
15:34that's the way it goes.
15:36And also the other way,
15:37by the way,
15:38you know,
15:39we've had great wins along my career,
15:40and we watched them back,
15:41and I thought,
15:42well,
15:43it wasn't as good as what we thought,
15:44you know,
15:45but at the time,
15:46it felt fantastic.
15:47And then you look back,
15:48and you go,
15:49God,
15:50they had a chance there,
15:51we should have done that better,
15:52we should have done this better,
15:53but that works both ways,
15:54you know,
15:55I've lost games,
15:56I've thought we've been excellent.
15:57At the beginning of the last season,
15:58I thought the first four or five games,
15:59we weren't winning,
16:00I thought we were excellent.
16:01The form was excellent,
16:02but no one was right and we were excellent,
16:03because that's the way it goes,
16:04that's the way all sporting industries are.
16:06But certainly football,
16:08goals completely change the outlook.
16:10My job is to look through the goals,
16:11look at the performance,
16:12look at the good stuff,
16:13look at the things that aren't as good,
16:14try and correct it,
16:15and keep the performance levels high.
16:16And that way,
16:17you look after yourself over a longer period.
16:19As I said,
16:20it should be,
16:21in my view,
16:22it's always the season to work.
16:23Not too high with the highs,
16:24not too low with the lows.
16:25During it,
16:26at the end of the season,
16:27it's the time to reflect and go,
16:28right,
16:29that's where we are.
16:30You said before,
16:31something you have fixed is the defence.
16:32So it's seven clean sheets in total so far,
16:33I know it's one of the best in the Premier League,
16:35you're currently,
16:36since October,
16:37the best in Europe's top five leagues as well,
16:40for clean sheets.
16:41How much of a role does Jordan Pickford play in that?
16:44Do you think he doesn't necessarily get the credit that he deserves?
16:48No,
16:49I think he knows that it's a team performance.
16:50You know,
16:51he knows the work we do,
16:52don't forget,
16:53inside.
16:54So he knows the pressure we're putting on Dominic Calvert-Lewin,
16:55let's say,
16:56as a main striker currently.
16:57You know,
16:58of how he presses from the front,
16:59and the wide players,
17:00now they're working,
17:01and the midfield,
17:02three currently,
17:03you know,
17:04rather than the two and the one,
17:05more like a three.
17:06So where are they pressing?
17:07Where are they recovering to?
17:08How are the back four operating?
17:09Then it gets down back to him.
17:10So I'm sure he appreciates all that work going on in front of him.
17:12And then it's very helpful when he's making saves as well.
17:15So it's a good combination.
17:17The challenge now is to realise,
17:18how can we turn that around and go and attack teams better?
17:20How can we be open enough to go and create more chances to turn draws into wins?
17:25But he knows his part in that,
17:27he knows everyone else's part in that.
17:30Thanks,
17:31Thanks,
17:32Karl.
17:35Hi Sean,
17:36Ashley Young has been one of your more consistent performers all season.
17:39Obviously you're without him.
17:42Seamus hasn't had a lot of football,
17:44but he would obviously be the obvious replacement,
17:47I guess,
17:48but you obviously rely a lot on his experience.
17:50When he's not played a lot of football,
17:51you spoke earlier about not being fit,
17:54but not much fit,
17:55but you're going to have to probably rely on his experience.
17:57He's been very unlucky this season,
17:59because he's come in,
18:00he's certainly the fittest I've seen him since I've been here,
18:02and he's been incredibly unlucky with injuries.
18:05I mean, he came back pre-season super fit.
18:07He made it clear to me at the end of the season,
18:08he's going again this season,
18:09I was in playing,
18:10we spoke about his other options,
18:12and he said, no, no, I'm clear-minded,
18:13I'm going to continue playing.
18:16He signed another contract,
18:17and he held his end of the bargain without a shadow of a doubt.
18:20He came back absolutely super fit.
18:22He's been incredibly unlucky with injuries.
18:24Yes, he'd probably have liked to have played more this season,
18:28but with his depth of experience and his game knowledge,
18:30that's certainly favourable to be putting a player in,
18:33the strength of professionalism that he has.
18:35So, yes, Young, he's done great.
18:37He was heavily questioned, I forget, at the beginning of the season.
18:39I said how mentally tough he is, and he's shown that,
18:41because I think he's done great.
18:42As Shays, he's mentally tough as well.
18:45He's our club captain for a reason.
18:47So, yes, I've got no doubt in his ability to play
18:50and get back to true fitness.
18:52I guess, even though he's been out for a long time,
18:54his role behind the scenes has been important for you?
18:57Yes, he always is, and he knows that.
19:00We value his input, we value him as a person as well as a player.
19:05Thanks, Kyle. Any further questions in the open section?