ADJUSTING TO THE VENUE
“No, you do have to adjust, I think. When you have a tight ground like that, you have no vantage point. So, you know, at Old Trafford and so on you can see, you can get your staff in vantage points to look at tactical innovation. When you’re pitchside-level it’s more difficult to see. So, we have to find strategy around that. What I’ve loved, as we’ve grown over the years at Walton Hall Park, we’ve got the end of the end that Man United usually takes; it gets bigger, and bigger, and bigger, so they literally end up being round by the dugout and round the other side. So, I’m hoping that continues, because that support is vital for us. Yeah, Everton can make it a real fortress, that tightknit ground. The pitch is beautiful, as it always has been, so it should be good to play on. So, yeah, there are those different slight challenges, but the reality is as a professional, as a footballer, you’ve got to get them out of your brain and just play what’s in front of you. So, use the pitch, use the fans, and then, yeah, try and put our game on Everton as best we can.”
ADDING ADAPTABILITY
“I’ve already spoken to the players about this. The reality is, when you have different options, you can find different solutions. For us though, just to project forward, next week we’ve got a three-game week. So, Everton starts it, we’ve got Liverpool, then we’ve got Chelsea, so the whole squad will be utilised throughout the week. So, I’m hoping then, that we see after the first five or six games where we need to get rhythm, then you can start to see where you can adapt and how you can adapt. I’ve still got new players, so they’re still going to take a bit of time. When everyone sees their skillset on the field, you’ve also got to realise they’re a human being trying to settle in. So, we’ve got those factors, but yes, to answer your question bluntly, yes I would like to do that, to adapt to games quicker based on the skillset that we have. And that’s also part and parcel of the players’ responsibility, right? Because they’ve got to be ready to come in and do the job. But the trust is there, now I’m just looking forward to what they can do in different ways, because the teams we’re playing now have different abilities.”
