Sean Dyche’s eyes wide open as Everton size up Leeds Premier League encounter without Dominic Calvert-Lewin | Football News

Everton manager Sean Dyche says he was fully aware of his new club’s predicament before taking up the reins at Goodison Park.

This weekend’s visitors Leeds are a point above third-from-bottom Everton, and Saturday’s meeting could prove to be a key fixture in the relegation battle.

Dyche was unable to strengthen his squad in January, in part due to the short period of time between his appointment and the transfer window closing, and the Everton manager also says it is unlikely a free agent will now be signed.

Everton’s lack of attacking options was exposed during the Merseyside derby defeat to Liverpool on Monday as academy graduate Ellis Simms deputised in the absence of Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

“I was certainly not deserving of any explanation before my time here,” Dyche said when asked if he could provide further clarity to supporters about the club’s transfer inactivity last month.

“That was a different regime with different people involved. In the time I was here, I was working some 48 hours – more or less all day and all night – with all the relevant people and they did everything they could.

“The one thing I will say to share a view on it is, you may have noticed how few strikers are out there in the market we’re looking in and how many are Premier League ready.

“In our current situation, we’re not looking at development players. Ellis Simms is still learning his trade but we’re looking for players who can affect things straightaway.

“That’s not an easy market for anyone and I spent hours on phone calls, searching, trawling, looking through angles and possibilities at options that could affect the group.

“I had to have the quality of the current group in mind. Sometimes, it is about a simple alignment. It’s not always about money. Everything has to align, and so it’s not an easy situation.”

The failure to bring in a striker in the January transfer window following the sale of Anthony Gordon to Newcastle was seen by disgruntled Everton fans as another black mark against those running the club.

A lack of goals is a major reason for Everton’s position in the bottom three, with the Toffees having found the net just 16 times in 22 league matches.

Dyche reiterated that the lack of new signings was not for the want of trying and urged patience as he tries to address the imbalances in the squad.

“I came in here with open eyes,” he said. “I know the squad, I know the situation. It’s going to be a big challenge, everyone knows that.

“The Arsenal game’s a reminder of the quality that is here. Of course the striking department has got less options that you would like in the Premier League, and especially for a club of this size and the expectation of its fans.

“The squad needs readjusting because there’s lots of players in certain positions. I’m trying to align a situation that is better going forwards. It does take time, we all know that. Within that time, the main focus at the moment is to fast-track that side into getting the points, winning games.

“Further down the road, of course I’m already talking about what can we do next, exploring many options, being in touch with the right people, getting our scouts working diligently across the board and covering as much of the situation as we can to try not to have this arise again.”

Dyche played down the magnitude of Saturday’s relegation encounter, believing its significance will only truly be known come the end of the season – but Everton will be without Calvert-Lewin once again due to a hamstring injury.

When asked if Calvert-Lewin’s latest injury setback has been hard to diagnose, Dyche added: “The root of the problem is pretty easy from a medical perspective so now it’s just a case of time to make sure his body is well.

“We’ve got other good players here so it’s important to focus on them at this stage because the fact is that Dom is not available.

“Until he is, my focus is going to be on the players we have got available and the team unit, which is always more important.

“[Neal Maupay, Ellis Simms and Demarai Gray] are the three most obvious options but the mentality has to be that you score as a team and you hope not to concede as a team.

“The framework of the team is important so it’s not just about individual players. The whole team has a responsibility to score, like we did against Arsenal from a good set-piece.

“You want to have players fit but it’s the mentality of the group that’s the most important thing.”

Is Simms equipped to replace Calvert-Lewin?

Sky Sports News reporter Vinny O’Connor:

“Ellis Simms has had experience in the Championship having been on loan at Blackpool and at Sunderland. He’s also been on loan at Hearts but it was a big ask of him to come into the side at 22 years of age in the Merseyside derby at Anfield.

“He had to up his levels in a game of that magnitude. Neal Maupay wouldn’t be a direct like-for-like replacement for Dominic Calvert-Lewin, while Demarai Gray also has a completely different skillset.

“Everton’s search for attacking options has been longstanding and it’s a situation the club have been in before. They’ve looked to bring in reinforcements in a certain position and it has taken numerous transfer windows for it to be addressed. It is a problem they’ve had long before Sean Dyche and director of football Kevin Thelwell arrived.”

Everton’s next Premier League fixtures

February 18: Leeds (H) – kick-off 3pm

February 25: Aston Villa (H) – kick-off 3pm

March 1: Arsenal (A) – kick-off 7.45pm

March 5: Nottingham Forest (A) – kick-off 2pm

March 11: Brentford (H) – kick-off 3pm

Skubala’s man-management impresses Bamford

Patrick Bamford has revealed how impressed he has been with the man-management of Leeds’ caretaker manager Michael Skubala.

The striker was unhappy after being subbed in the 58th minute during Leeds’ 2-0 defeat to Manchester United, but a conversation with the stand-in boss clarified the situation.

“My face probably gave it away!” Bamford told Sky Sports. “I just felt it was quite early and obviously I wanted to play. I wasn’t tired yet, I knew there would come a point in the game where he would have to take me off because it was the first three games in a week that I’d done in a long time.

“I spoke to him after and said to him, ‘Why did you take me off?’ He said he would have taken me off later and probably did it too soon. He pulled me to the side and had a chat with me and reassured his trust and confidence in me.

“I said to him, of all the managers I’ve had, never lose that wherever you go because that honesty, transparency, and calmness in that conversation – I wasn’t angry at the time – but if someone was heated it diffused the whole thing. It was brilliant man-management and in our chat I said well done because I thought it was fantastic.”

Skubala: It’s a big opportunity

Michael Skubala will remain in charge for the club’s “upcoming fixtures”, but he is focused solely on gaining positive results rather than his future in the role.

“I’ve just looked at it is as supporting the club,” he said. “It’s an opportunity to try to get another three points, that’s all I’m focused on. I’m focused on Everton and if we do well, focused on the next game. I’m not seeing it so much as an opportunity [for me] but I job I have to do to support the club.

“I didn’t expect to be here, that’s honest, but I’ve been coaching for many years in the background and in different ways.

“Overwhelming? I don’t think so, I’m ok. I’ve got a great support network around me with the staff, the board and the club itself and for me the fans have been brilliant as well.

“Hopefully they can see I’m just trying to do the best job I can do, so I wouldn’t say overwhelming, I’d say exciting really.”

Leeds face two of their relegation rivals – Everton and Southampton – in their next two games although Skubala believes they won’t be season-defining.

“There’s still a lot of games to go, we need to pick up points so they’re important games as always but I do think there are enough games to pick up points,” said Skubala.

“They’re huge games, every game in the Premier League is a huge game and it’s a big opportunity. The players are excited to go to Goodison and try to get three points.”

Leeds’ next Premier League fixtures

February 18: Everton (A) – kick-off 3pm

February 25: Southampton (H) – kick-off 3pm

March 4: Chelsea (A) – kick-off 3pm

March 11: Brighton (H) – kick-off 3pm

March 18: Wolves (A) – kick-off 3pm

Opta stats

• Everton have lost just one of their last 10 Premier League games against Leeds (W5 D4), going down 1-0 at home in November 2020.
• Leeds have won just one of their last 15 away league games against Everton (D7 L7), a 1-0 victory in November 2020.
• Leeds have failed to win any of their last three Premier League games against sides in the relegation zone, drawing two and losing one. The Whites had only failed to win three of their previous 14 such games following their return to the division in 2020 (W11 D2 L1).
• One of Leeds United’s four league wins this season came at Anfield against Liverpool in October. The Whites haven’t won away from home against both Liverpool and Everton in a league season since the 1932-33 campaign.
• Following their 1-0 win against Arsenal in Sean Dyche’s first game in charge, Everton are looking to win consecutive Premier League home games for the first time since March/April last season. Both of those victories back then were by a 1-0 scoreline.

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