Dyche on Everton crippling injury crisis ahead of FA Cup tie with Peterborough
07/01/2025
Finch Farm training centre, Liverpool, UK
07/01/2025
Finch Farm training centre, Liverpool, UK
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00:00Good afternoon everyone, welcome to our pre-match press conference to preview our FA Cup tie
00:05with Peterborough. We'll start off with Vinny Gunskai.
00:07Sean, we'll start with the injury news. Broya and Schimitti, how are they? What's the latest?
00:11Youssef's going to be out a while, longer than we'd hoped, but it's not going to be days, that one will be weeks.
00:16And Armando's got a chance, settled down a bit today, been on the grass, but we'll have to see how that reacts to being in training today.
00:24Not training with the team, training with the physios.
00:26Just wondered if you're beginning to think you're getting absolutely no luck on the injury front?
00:30It's not been ideal. It's lasted long than we hoped and then sort of got to that point of looking like everyone's back together
00:36and then we've lost a number again and today we had 16 training, so we're just going to have to work the best we can on that.
00:42What about Dwight?
00:43Dwight won't make it this week, so we're waiting on more news on that.
00:47It seems to be taking a long time to settle down.
00:50Dom's reported a near ankle problem today, so we're going to have to deal with that as well.
00:54How frustrating is that?
00:56I mean, I know, obviously, there's been a lot of focus on goals or lack of goals, particularly when it comes to Dominic as well.
01:03And now he's picked up another injury, along with the injuries to Broydon and Chimney.
01:07Of course, it's not helpful.
01:09I think the question mark on goals has been there for some time.
01:13I've spoken openly about it, still challenging ourselves to try and find better ways than we are doing to create more chances.
01:19But it isn't helpful when you've got very important players injured a lot of the time,
01:23which has been unfortunate this season, last season somewhat as well,
01:27but certainly from pre-season onwards.
01:29But we have to keep working with the group, as we do diligently, to find different ways of operating and create better chances and score more goals.
01:36How far away are Tim, Irubinam and James Graham?
01:40Jimmy might get a chance to join in with us properly, as in the main group next week.
01:44Tim is probably about a week behind that, but there's positive signs from the work they've done with not just the physio group, but the sports science group.
01:51So, we've got to sort of blend that into training.
01:53Obviously, there's still going to be a bit of that needed, as in football training, not just with the sports science team.
01:58What about the potential to add to the squad?
01:59Jadon Fillingen is a name that's been mentioned.
02:01Has there been an approach to us as early as this season?
02:03As you know, I don't speak about other people's players.
02:05There's a number of players that we've spoken about as a group.
02:10Yet again, being mindful of the situation with the PSI, make sure we're in the right place for that side of things.
02:16So, yes, we'll see what's available during this window.
02:18It's been very quiet at the moment, which everyone expected it to be.
02:21How are you, Sean, as well?
02:22Because, obviously, information has come out that the owners are looking at the situation.
02:26Your position has been supposedly questioned as well.
02:30What contact have you had from them?
02:32What is the situation as you understand it?
02:34Well, to be clear, it should be.
02:36You know, at the end of the day, if you're a business of this size and this club, succession planning surely should be part of their diligence.
02:42I've got no problem with that at all, and I think that should be ongoing at every football club.
02:46That's part of the business, surely.
02:47I'm sure it is in what we'd call normal business life.
02:50That is outside of football.
02:52So, I never really concern myself with that.
02:55Got to win games.
02:56We haven't won enough this season.
02:57Got to make sure the team's operating the right way.
02:59Got to try and please everyone all of the time, and that's the job.
03:02And we haven't done that often enough, and it comes down to me, without any shadow of a doubt.
03:06Have you had any conversations with the owners since then?
03:08Yes, just positive that, you know, they know some of the work that we've done.
03:12They want better outcomes from winning games, of course.
03:16I think there's a reality to the situation.
03:18That's all I know.
03:19And they've been very straight with me and very upfront about it.
03:22What do you say they've been straight with you?
03:23What indication, then, have they given you about your position?
03:25No indication on that.
03:27Just that, you know, we've got no reason to think other than you.
03:30I told you when I first met them that, you know, they're winning games.
03:33We all know that's the challenge of a manager.
03:35That doesn't change.
03:37You know, there are extenuating circumstances in some situations.
03:41I think we should win more games.
03:42I think we should have won more games by now, and I think we need to win more games.
03:47I don't think that's anything I've ever hidden from.
03:49I know the industry that I'm in.
03:50Ten years in the Premier League teaches that.
03:52Shaun, does it undermine your position when you're hearing information
03:55coming out that they've supposedly spoken to other candidates?
03:58No, like I say, I mean, whether they have or they haven't,
04:01they certainly have not told me that.
04:03If they have, I don't know how it works in the privacy world of it all,
04:06but if they have, it's succession planning.
04:08That's what, you know, clubs are these size.
04:10People sometimes forget it's a business as well.
04:11You know, I understand that totally, whoever it was.
04:14You know, I think that should be part of the way that any business operates.
04:19Certainly, if it was my business, I'd be operating like that.
04:21I'd be looking and going, right, what happens if?
04:23What happens if that happens?
04:24What happens, what's the next thing?
04:25We certainly have to do it from a player point of view,
04:27a player trading point of view.
04:29So why would it be any different with managers and staff members?
04:32At the same time, there's a human element to it,
04:33because we've spoken before about how much you put into the job
04:37in the first place and the potential to still be...
04:40Yeah, and we're still putting a lot in.
04:42I'm putting a lot of effort and trying different ways
04:44and trying to work and trying to look at all the different parameters
04:47on and off the pitch, different ways of working.
04:49That's part of being a manager, you know, so I'm well versed in it.
04:52And it's very difficult.
04:53And here has been extremely difficult.
04:55I spoke openly about that.
04:56There's a huge demand on me.
04:58There's a huge demand on the situation.
04:59And it's a constant.
05:00And that is part of Everton life.
05:02You know, I've adapted to it.
05:04I've taken it on.
05:04I've had my knocks and I'm getting them again now.
05:07And I've been through them before, you know that.
05:08And it's how you handle it and trying to always,
05:11you know, support the club.
05:12The club is always bigger than me.
05:14I've said that as soon as I got it.
05:15I see it as just I'm a custodian.
05:17So far, I've handled it pretty bloody well, I think.
05:20So now, can I go and win some games?
05:21Can we take it on another level?
05:23Can I change the narrative?
05:24Can I reinvent what we're trying to do to take it on another level?
05:28That's the biggest challenge at the moment.
05:29How do you reinvent what you want to do?
05:33Well, Windows are helpful if you can change,
05:36literally change things, of course, because it changes.
05:39It's not just the individual, it changes the feel in the group.
05:43Keep working with the players.
05:44Keep reassuring.
05:45You know, some players get hit a bit by confidence and the noise outside.
05:49Keep reassuring the quality that we do have.
05:52It's how many times we can reinvent it.
05:54The players need to take responsibility as well.
05:56You've often said that the book stops with you, but at the same time...
05:59No, I think it does.
06:00Look, the players haven't lacked effort for me.
06:02The stats, I get all the stats.
06:04I know the physical outputs.
06:06The quality moments that define games, or often define games,
06:09they're the hardest thing.
06:10They're the hardest challenge for a player.
06:11And when it gets tight and everything comes on top,
06:14then that's for me to take that the best I can and allow them more freedom.
06:18And it's obviously affecting the players,
06:20because you can see it in their performances.
06:22And I think down at Bournemouth,
06:24fantastic turnout from our fans once again.
06:27But we looked tight.
06:28We couldn't really find anything that meant anything in the game,
06:30you know, in the forward department.
06:31So it does get players restricted a bit.
06:34So trying to open that up, give them the freedom to play,
06:36give them the freedom in training, different ways, different operating,
06:40different ways of trying to do that is a massive challenge.
06:42Is that a key element that you're seeing, a nervousness almost, a lack of confidence?
06:46No, I think the noise has grown very powerful here.
06:50It does do. We've had it before.
06:52We've had to push that away and move forward again.
06:54And the obvious last one was Chelsea game after that, when it was really powerful
06:58and we managed to change things around and reaffect ourselves as a group
07:02and move forward again.
07:03So, you know, we keep working with the group.
07:06We keep reassuring, not just as people,
07:08but as players and showing the good side of what they can do,
07:11the good side of what we can do, working on the training pitch.
07:13And the diligence is there for everything.
07:16It's the performance.
07:17And that's the hardest thing.
07:18Once that whistle blows, when they're out there,
07:19that's when you're hoping all the work and all the stuff that you put into them comes out.
07:24So what is the FA Cup in the season?
07:25Is that a welcome break from the Premier League?
07:27It's just another game that's very important and it grows with importance.
07:29If you're not winning here, every game becomes massive.
07:32So it's just another really, really big game.
07:36Darren's someone I know, I value his work.
07:38He's been in and out of Peterborough on a number of occasions,
07:40but virtually every time he goes in there, he does a great job.
07:44They'll come here, you know, looking for that scalp, banana skin, all the rest of it.
07:47So, yeah, again, we've got to handle that situation, deal with it and go and perform.
07:50Clearly, you want the opportunity to stay here as long as possible.
07:55Absolutely. I've worn this badge with as much pride as I can.
07:57I continue to do so.
08:00Thanks, Vinny. We'll go to Julia.
08:02Apart from that, maybe the last game that you've had some pretty positive defensive performances
08:10against some of the bigger teams in the Premier League,
08:13given this is a lower league side in the FA Cup,
08:16can you allow yourself to maybe play in a more attacking style?
08:19No, we've not been trying not to play in an attacking style, I can assure you.
08:22But when you're playing the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Man City, it's not that easy.
08:27We didn't get to Christie at all at Bournemouth, we know that.
08:30I don't take any team for granted, I've played in all the levels,
08:33I've managed to run certainly the top two.
08:36You can't take anyone for granted, but it still comes down to us finding the right way to work
08:40with and without the ball.
08:41You know, the demands of the game stay the same.
08:43There's only three things that happen in a game.
08:45You've got it, they've got it and no one's got it.
08:47So you've got to get them right, no matter who you're playing against.
08:49I spoke to you last week about the goals and that's been an issue.
08:52I'm not sure if you watched TV last night,
08:54but there was analysis looking across the Premier League at goal scoring since,
08:58open play goals since the start of last season,
09:01and Everton were considerably trailing in that by more than 20 goals.
09:06Who takes the accountability for that?
09:09I take accountability for everything.
09:11And again then, I ask you, how can that be fixed, that situation?
09:17Well, like I said, you're working with players, they're human beings.
09:19How can we be in different ways of remodelling?
09:21Now you get to the final third, find the right pass, find the final moment.
09:25Practice, you know, consistent practice, consistent backing of the players.
09:30You know, these are the things that have been a trend here for a long time.
09:33You know that, certainly for four or five,
09:34certainly four seasons, where that open play start has been low.
09:38It's not like we don't get the stats, by the way.
09:40I don't really need to watch TV to get them.
09:42We have a department here.
09:43Just more of the debate last night.
09:44Yeah, of course. Yeah.
09:46No, someone sent me, actually. I thought Caro was very fair.
09:48He said we were like a team of the 90s and he played in that era.
09:50And I think everyone from that era knows that that was probably,
09:53arguably, the best era in the current Premier League because of the dynamic,
09:57the force in the play to score goals, but also the resistance,
10:00not playing 300 passes at the back, playing 300 passes if you could.
10:04Certainly the teams that them guys played in.
10:05So, but the fact is that we know the stats and facts.
10:09We know they need correcting.
10:11It's a strange sort of situation.
10:12You don't think I sit there and go, no, everything's all right.
10:15It's very rare I've done that here. Trust me.
10:17So it's a constant work in progress.
10:19We know the stats. We know the facts.
10:21We endlessly look at the players we've got, how we can use them in different roles,
10:25which we've got to do again, of course, because it's still not working.
10:28Slightly different against Man City, Arsenal and Chelsea.
10:30You know, it's fair to say there's a different style of games.
10:32It's different. You're not going to dominate.
10:34Very few teams are going to dominate the ball against them.
10:36So you do have to be defensively resilient.
10:40When it's a team that we think we can open up more.
10:41Well, what can we do then?
10:43Who are we playing?
10:43You know, how are they working?
10:44What's the dynamic of the group?
10:46And it's obviously not where we want it to be.
10:48So, of course, we're looking at changes and how we can make it better.
10:51You say you wear the Everton badge with pride and you want to stay in this role.
10:54Is this FA Cup game important for you personally then?
10:58Every game's important here.
11:00I've said it all along.
11:01That was something, it's so apparent when you get to this football club.
11:05Every game is massive.
11:06Hero and zero is just the ultimate thing here.
11:09Win, wouldn't sound like a hero at the minute, but you win and you sort of know what you're doing.
11:12You lose and you don't.
11:13It's really, really simple.
11:15Every game is important.
11:16I've never taken any game lightly.
11:18What is that like to manage in then?
11:20Because the expectation is here then.
11:23So if you're saying it's literally game to game and has been since day one,
11:26what is that like in that?
11:28Can you explain that?
11:28I think you just adapt to the realities of each club.
11:31You know, you come in, I was well aware of, well, I wasn't actually.
11:35I've told you before, I considered the state the club might be in.
11:39And when I got here, it was considerably different and not in a positive way.
11:43So there was a lot more challenges, which obviously became quite apparent.
11:46They were unbeknown to me when I got here.
11:47So you quickly learn, right, OK, there's a bigger picture to manage.
11:51And I said, it's not a coach's role.
11:53Now it's beginning to be a coach's role, but it's been a management role.
11:56Because I've been managing virtually everything on and off the pitch,
11:58the best of my ability, with other people as well.
12:00But I support, but I'm the front of it.
12:02So I must make that clear.
12:03There's other people involved working very hard, just like I am, to make it right.
12:08Now it's another, it's gone up a level because we've got stability off the pitch.
12:12Can we move on again on the pitch and not with massive resources?
12:16With the group we've got, if we can work in the market, I'm sure we will.
12:20These Niners will, if we can, and try and move it forward again.
12:24So the challenge just keeps moving forwards.
12:26But I've never lost sight of the week-to-week.
12:27I've never lost sight of winning games,
12:29even though I've been managing all sorts of other stuff.
12:31I know my job and my responsibility,
12:33and we haven't been winning enough games, and it's got to change.
12:36Can I just ask you some claims about Beto?
12:38Is he still around at Finchfield?
12:40There is all kinds of claims about all sorts of things at the moment.
12:43He was here today, training, as usual.
12:46And I just want to ask you as well,
12:48what do you think the fans make of the situation right now?
12:50Do you feel the fans are still with you as the Everton manager?
12:53They can decide that. I've never questioned our fans.
12:55I won't be doing. I've learnt that.
12:57I learnt the care for the club, as I do.
13:00I've never questioned the fans here, and I certainly won't be doing.
13:02If they choose to back me and the team, that would be obviously helpful.
13:05If they choose not to, they have freedom to make their choices.