Frank Lampard: Everton boss calls on squad to show ‘passion and fight’ as Premier League survival fight intensifies
/dnl.eurosport.com/sd/img/placeholder/eurosport_logo_1x1.png){kind=logo}
Updated 16/03/2022 at 16:06 GMT
Everton are one of just six clubs never to have suffered Premier League relegation since its creation in 1992. However, a poor run of results has seen the club embroiled in a relegation fight. Ahead of tomorrow’s game against Watford, they remain out of the bottom three on goal difference alone, and boss Frank Lampard has called on his side to show more passion in their remaining fixtures.
Everton boss Frank Lampard.
Image credit: Getty Images
Everton boss Frank Lampard insists he wants to see more fight and passion from his players as they look to stave off Premier League relegation.
A run of just one league win in 11 matches has seen the club thrown into a battle for survival, with 18th-placed Watford level on points with the Toffees, albeit with an inferior goal difference.
Everton are one of just six clubs to have never been relegated from the Premier League since its creation in 1992.
Sunday’s 1-0 defeat to Wolves drew much criticism from supporters and pundits, but Lampard has urged his players to ignore the noise and put their best foot forward on the pitch.
“The players have to play at a level of passion that engages the fans,” he said ahead of tomorrow’s game against Newcastle United at Goodison Park.
“Wolves wasn’t a terrible performance. It was easy to get painted in a negative light… a small detail lost us the game, which we have to look at.
“Tomorrow, I’m just expecting everyone to be together, fighting. Every game is so important because we have 12 of them left and they’re massive.
“I’ll ask the players to deliver on that, to start the game well and engage the fans, because we see that when we do that, they’re absolutely with us and we’re a force.”
The last time Everton suffered relegation came in the 1950-51 season, but Lampard insists his squad cannot afford to be fearful of what could happen in the weeks ahead.
Instead, he has called on his players to show their character against Newcastle, who themselves were in trouble before turning things around with a run of just one defeat in nine Premier League matches.
“I came into a club that was on a downward trajectory. We were heading towards the relegation zone for a long period of time,” Lampard said.
“Things don’t change overnight, and they also don’t change just by talking.
“We know where we’re at. We’ve also seen this club stay up on the last day of the season a couple of times, so it’s nothing that’s absolutely new.
“For us, it’s not about having fear of what might be. It’s ‘what can we action, what can we deal with’."
Ahead of tomorrow’s game, the Everton boss confirmed that England international Dominic Calvert-Lewin would be assessed after resuming light training following illness.
Jonjoe Kenny misses out through suspension, while Fabian Delph (thigh) will not be in contention until after the international break.
Meanwhile, Yerry Mina (quadriceps) and Tom Davies (hamstring) remain longer-term injury absentees.
Scan me
Related Topics
Share this article
Advertisement
Advertisement