Schneiderlin excited by Everton's 'big ambitions'

Friday, 13 January, 2017 51comments  |  Jump to most recent
Morgan Schneiderlin says he was attracted by Everton's big history and grand ambitions as well as the chance to reunite with manager Ronald Koeman.

The France international addressed the media for the first time at USM Finch Farm today as he begins life at his new club following a £24m move from Manchester United, one that offers him a fresh start after a frustrating few months on the fringes of Jose Mourinho's squad at Old Trafford.

“Everton is a big team in the history of the English game and they have big ambition,” Schneiderlin said. “With the new owners, they have big ambitions and a big tradition and they want to get back to the top. That's what persuaded me to come to this football club.

“Of course, I know the manager and what he wants from me. I know how he is as a manager so that's a plus but the main thing for me is what the club wants to do and what it wants to achieve. I think this club wants to achieve a lot.”

“When I was with [Koeman] at Southampton, he always trusted me. He's a manager who likes to mix his game, he likes a high-tempo game and he likes his teams to keep the ball and to play attractive football.

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“That is very important for myself and it was clear from the start that I was one of his key players at Southampton and he will give me the freedom that I need to express myself.

“I'm looking forward to getting back together with him again at a big club and to achieve some great things and to play well again from my point of view.

Schneiderlin will go straight into the squad to face Manchester City on Sunday where it's likely he will see some action even if he doesn't have sufficient match fitness to start the game.

The 27-year-old is looking forward to playing at the Grand Old Lady again for the first time since October last year where he scored his one and only United goal.

“I love Goodison Park. It's a beautiful stadium, a typical English stadium, if I can say so. The people are close to the pitch, there's a big atmosphere. The fans are really a 12th man at this football club and that attracts me and I'm very happy.

“I think this football club has always had big expectations. Now they want to turn that into reality and give [the people] what they deserve, with the money they've spent and the players they've bought, with a new stadium maybe in a few years.

“It's a beautiful project, one that attracts me, and hopefully will be achievable in the next few years.”

Schneiderlin has been brought in by Koeman has part of his medium-term team-building efforts but, as his frustrated comments following last weekend's FA Cup defeat to Leicester showed, the manager felt his Everton side needed help now to bolster a flagging bid to qualify for Europe this season.

The midfielder acknowledged the gap that has opened up between the Blues and the top six but he pointed out that there is a long way to go and that things can change quickly for teams that can put a run of positive results together.

“You never know in football,” Schneiderlin said. “Of course, if you look at the league table the space is a bit big between seventh and sixth place but seventh can mean qualification for the Europa League.

“So we need to keep this place — at least get seventh place and then we see. Football goes quick. We need to get some results, you know maybe four or five wins in a row and then everything is possible in football and hopefully we can do it.”

 

Reader Comments (51)

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Mike Gaynes
1 Posted 13/01/2017 at 18:38:30
We're pretty excited too, mate!

Can't wait to see his debut this weekend.

Colin Glassar
2 Posted 13/01/2017 at 18:43:01
I'm liking what I hear. No more acceptance of mediocrity.
Liam Reilly
3 Posted 13/01/2017 at 18:58:06
"Maybe 4 or 5 wins in a row."

Let's do that!

Stan Schofield
4 Posted 13/01/2017 at 19:27:48
What he's said is similar to what Gana said when he came here. He's clearly going to enjoy playing for Everton, a breath of fresh air.

I'm looking forward to the midfield combo of him, Gana and Barkley, not forgetting the contribution Barry can make. I also like the positivity, not 'false positivity', but real positivity like saying winning four or five games in a row can make a difference.

I know some posts on TW have said, after the cup exit, that the season is over, but it isn't over, and Schneiderlin's comments underline this.

Daniel Lawrence
5 Posted 13/01/2017 at 19:31:44
“When I was with [Koeman] at Southampton, he always trusted me. He's a manager who likes to mix his game, he likes a high-tempo game and he likes his teams to keep the ball and to play attractive football."

Well, Morgan, you are in for a bit of a shock if you are expecting high tempo and attractive football!

Stan Schofield
6 Posted 13/01/2017 at 19:36:39
Daniel, yes, but he's here to expect it, is he? He's here to help make it happen.
Stan Schofield
7 Posted 13/01/2017 at 19:37:57
I meant he's not here to expect it!
Tony Hill
8 Posted 13/01/2017 at 19:48:10
Looks nice and sharp in training clips on Everton TV... as does Lookman.
Ian McDowell
10 Posted 13/01/2017 at 19:58:48
This is exactly the sort of signing we need. The EPL is about strength, power, pace and set pieces. Lets build a team of physical monsters.
Chris Gould
11 Posted 13/01/2017 at 19:58:55
Very positive that he's played for Koeman before and wanted to again.
Wishfully thinking that Van Dijk feels the same.
Mark Morrissey
13 Posted 13/01/2017 at 21:17:58
Van Dyke, Joe Hart and Saido Berahino... that would do for the time-being.
Bill Watson
14 Posted 13/01/2017 at 21:23:18
Barry is very much one of the causes of our chronic lack of pace and pressing.

I'd much rather a trio of Gueye, Schneiderlin and Davies with Ross playing a freer, forward, role.

Tony Abrahams
15 Posted 13/01/2017 at 21:33:05
Has Morgan's "S" given us something to be really excited about? He says new owners, not owner? Let's hope so!
Peter Morris
16 Posted 13/01/2017 at 22:07:27
Morgan, I hope that is the first and last time you call this unique club 'a project'.

Time for some proper classes over and above the media briefing given before the press conference.

Peter Laing
17 Posted 13/01/2017 at 22:19:25
Peter, get over yourself – for most of the squad, Barkley, Baines and Davies excluded – this is exactly what it is – a project. Hopefully the same type of project that Roman Abramovich and Sheikh Mansour embarked upon.

If the project delivers I'm sure that we will all be delighted!

Mike Gaynes
18 Posted 13/01/2017 at 22:31:12
Peter Morris (#16)... I hate to break it to you, but Koeman himself has publicly referred to Everton as a "project" at least two dozen times that I know of, starting from when he accepted the job and most recently a week ago. Just Google "Koeman Everton project" and watch the smoke plumes rise from your laptop.

Morgan already took his media classes. The professor was Dr Ronald.

Ian Jones
20 Posted 13/01/2017 at 23:39:33
Just looked to see why Schneiderlin left Southampton when he did as I get the impression he likes playing for Koeman. I appreciate he needs to say the right things to his new employers but was intrigued.

Various reports indicate he wanted to play in the Champions League. Here's hoping we can help him achieve this.

Victor Jones
21 Posted 13/01/2017 at 23:43:45
Schneiderlin will be our next captain, methinks...
Peter Laing
22 Posted 13/01/2017 at 23:44:49
Bit of a punt but I would be moving for Bojan from Stoke, available for £10 million, a bit like Geri there is a player in there.
Jonathan Miller
23 Posted 13/01/2017 at 23:55:46
Update on previous thread. Players that captained Everton and Arsenal:-
Alan Ball, Martin Keown, Arteta, Joe Mercer.

Kenny Samson, Kevin Campbell, Anders Limpar and Kevin Richardson (won league with AFC and EFC as did Ball and Mercer) played for both clubs but don't think captained both.

Anthony Dwyer
24 Posted 13/01/2017 at 23:56:28
Maybe Morgan has been told more than we know, maybe he's aware of what players are to follow him into the club.
Ian Hollingworth
26 Posted 14/01/2017 at 07:35:29
I like this project it is starting to have a feel of winners.

Let's hope it continues as good old plucky little Everton just along for the ride was pissing me off.

Bobby Thomas
27 Posted 14/01/2017 at 09:03:45
Jonathan (#23),

On Kevin Richardson, bearing in mind Peter Reids age and injury record, and the trouble Bracewell was having in the 85/-86 season as well, it was a big mistake by Kendall to let Kevin Richardson go.

However, I say that with hindsight and with the knowledge that there was no squad game culture like today, and it was one sub on the bench. So if you weren't playing, you weren't playing full stop. That's why he left, he wanted to play regular football. The thing was, at Everton he very soon would have been.

Kevin Richardson was a very, very good player. He had a cracking career and would have filled one of the massive Reid and Bracewell shaped holes that existed in our centre mid for years. We wasted millions of pounds trying to replace them. McCall and Milligan spring to mind. Both sub-standard. They were, for me, two of Colin Harvey's worst buys, although Beagrie was up there was well All, for the time, very expensive, and just not up to standard. You can throw Nevin in there for the money he cost as well. Anyway...

Strange one Kevin Richardson. You never hear him mentioned, but as well as being an important squad member in very successful Everton sides he was instrumental in excellent Arsenal and Villa sides, both trophy winning I think. But its almost as if he never existed.

Bobby Thomas
28 Posted 14/01/2017 at 10:06:52
Oh yeah, I forgot, and after selling Richardson in the summer of '86, Howard signed Ian Snodin as a long term replacement for Peter Reid in the spring of '87.

Snowy wasn't up to scratch, in mid anyway, until he was looking like a serious right back before hamstring trouble finished him as a top flight player. So there's 3 centre mids who cost a lot, around £25-30 million by today's standards, and came nowhere near being up to scratch.

Meanwhile Richardson did one year at Watford before Arsenal took him. Gah!!!!


Alan McGuffog
29 Posted 14/01/2017 at 10:22:03
Kevin Richardson circa 1985. Ditto Tommy Jackson 1970
Dave Abrahams
30 Posted 14/01/2017 at 10:24:50
Jonathan (23), you can add Trevor Ross to that list, don't think he captained either club though.
Peter McHugh
31 Posted 14/01/2017 at 10:32:29
Bojan's a very good shout actually... if available.
Brian Denton
32 Posted 14/01/2017 at 10:46:47
Geoff Barnet (who?) played for both, if my childhood memory isn't playing up.
Dave Abrahams
33 Posted 14/01/2017 at 10:53:59
Brian (32) your memory is spot on, a decent goalkeeper.
Anthony Davies
34 Posted 14/01/2017 at 11:55:34
The season is far from over. With some more new players coming in and others leaving, we can use the rest of this season to bed in the new players with the ones Koeman wants to keep.

Then add more in the summer... 3 more maybe; then onto preseason ready for the new season ahead, when we can have a go at top 4.

Charles Brewer
37 Posted 14/01/2017 at 13:48:55
A couple of seasons ago, we got Lukaku, a major goalscoring prospect, Deulofeu, a huge talent from Barcelona, Stones, quite probably the most stylish English defender of his generation.

This year we got a young lad from Charlton and a third string bench warmer reject from Man Utd. Oh yes, and unloaded a couple of crocks.

I hope none of this mild activity interrupted the manager's golf practice.

I am coming to the conclusion that the manager has decided that £6 million a year for doing next to nothing is a good deal and that, since the board has negotiated another brain dead contract, he is safe for a couple of years aiming for a position of 7th to 13th with a bog standard bunch of players and that, given the amount of money he can spend, he's pretty safe for this unambitious target.

I am also starting to regard Martinez' first season as the best thing since Howard Kendall, and regretting that he didn't have a fitness and defensive tactics coach to make sure the team had a proper balance.

John G Davies
38 Posted 14/01/2017 at 13:58:10
"John Stones quite probably the most stylish defender of his generation."

I stopped reading at that point.

Neil Cremin
39 Posted 14/01/2017 at 14:29:20
I am one of those who have grave reservations on Koeman's management style as he too easily blames the team and individual players and has publically criticised them in public.

However, I have said on these threads that I will hold my council until the January transfer window to see what calibre of player and what positions he is trying to fill.

So far so good but ever like Moyes, Martinez both have failed to reinforce an aging Central Defence pairing. Jagielka, Distin, Williams. Unless Koeman invest in a commanding (leader) centre-half I would have very grave doubts about him.

After all Schneiderlin has been telegraphed for months so this is what I would call convenient low hanging fruit for all parties. Let's see some real ambition.

Neil Cremin
40 Posted 14/01/2017 at 14:36:27
Charles,

In my opinion, Martinez's first season was a result of the tight good organised (but unadventurous) Moyes squad being given the freedom to play. It worked for the first season like a dog being left off a leash.

However he forgot that, as the team discipline instilled by Moyes began to fade, it was not replaced by any attention to details such as defending corners, who should take penalties.

We all know that any dog still need to be kept fully trained and fit.

Simon Cassidy
41 Posted 14/01/2017 at 14:51:07
Now we need a Number 10, and a decent goalkeeper, and a centre-half in this window.

Stan Schofield
42 Posted 14/01/2017 at 14:53:52
Charles & Neil:

When Koeman arrived, I envisaged more discipline, as you say, particularly defensively. Under Martinez, we had great attacking flair, but we're rubbish defensively, like on set-pieces.

So, with Koeman, I thought, great, better defensively, whilst maintaining the attacking flair we had under Martinez. I thought, Koeman will bring the Dutch total football way, which would fit our attacking flair nicely, provided we gel more from defence to attack.

In this respect, we might have expected the signings in defence and defensive midfield. We've got that up to a point, Gana being great, and Schneiderlin being the latest. In principle, we should be fine up front (imo), so long as we have the right discipline and organisation, the right tactics.

But it's not, apparently, working out like this, and I can't see much of a system developing. Maybe Koeman has something clever up his sleeve, but if he has, there's no sign of much yet. In this respect, the jury is out on him, for me. But time will tell.

Charles Brewer
43 Posted 14/01/2017 at 15:41:22
Neil and Stan, I am not in any way suggesting that Martinez didn't have some very serious failings and that it was, unfortunately, right to get rid of him. However, he did bring with him a very enjoyable transformation and was pretty good at getting talent in, at least initially.

John, do you really think Stones was not a stylish player and a worthy one for a reborn School of Science? Yes, he has, and had, serious shortcomings, but a first class coach worthy of Stones' talents should have been able to correct the faults.

I remember Didier Drogba's first couple of seasons at Chelsea, he dived or fell over as soon as anyone looked at him, but latterly was, presumably, coached out of that style of play and became very much more effective for it.

Neil, your diagnosis of Martinez's faults seem to be much the same as mine, I just think it was a pity that no-one at the club was able to coach him
out of them. If I were to look for a manager who had taken what looked like a bunch of dross and transformed them into an effective attacking team which has enough fitness and discipline I would, sadly, be looking at Klopp.

I stick to my view (which I'd be delighted to be completely refuted by events) that Koeman is uninspired, buys mediocre players and is satisfied with 7th- 13th position and £6 million a year.

Habib Erkan Jr
45 Posted 14/01/2017 at 16:01:40
Morgan, welcome to Everton – you will love it and you will love it more when Gana returns. Cheers, mate!
John Wilson
46 Posted 14/01/2017 at 16:29:03
Charles Brewer @ 43, John Stones the most stylish player of his generation, you say? Maybe in terms of defending his clothes in the fashion sense, but as for anything else remotely football related: he can't stay on the ball, or get the ball.
Denis Richardson
47 Posted 14/01/2017 at 17:17:28
Anyone think now Koeman might give him the captain's armband when match-fit?
Jim Hardin
48 Posted 14/01/2017 at 17:32:26
Hmmm,

Here I thought he was excited to come because he has been found out and has been an abject failure at Man Utd.

Hope he will do well but if he was that excited about Everton, then why didn't he say so publicly while at Southampton? Apparently Koeman's Dutch honesty didn't rub off in their previous time together.

Anthony Hughes
49 Posted 14/01/2017 at 17:39:48
Why would he give him the captain's armband ahead of Coleman or Williams or Baines?
Charles Brewer
50 Posted 14/01/2017 at 18:17:40
I regard myself (probably completely incorrectly) as a founder and leader of the "Coleman for Captain" insurrection. I have seen more of the right attitude from our £60,000 Irishman than anyone else on the pitch in a number of games.

Giving the captaincy to a Man Utd reject would not, I suspect, get the already uncertain dressing room on Koeman's side. I also think I'd rather have had the older, but better and almost certainly cheaper and more fired up Bastien Schweinsteiger from Man Utd.

Denis Richardson
51 Posted 14/01/2017 at 18:20:40
Williams I can understand, Anthony, but in time Koeman will likely chose a player as captain who he brought to the club.

He obviously rates Schneiderlin highly and has worked with him before so it wouldn't surprise me.

Neil Cremin
53 Posted 14/01/2017 at 19:43:08
Charles, once again I agree with you in that Coleman is the best possible candidate for captain. He drives the team forward (sometimes at his own expense) and is a loyal and committed Evertonian.

The idea of Schneiderlin becoming captain is ridiculous until he shows the type of committment another ex Man Utd signing, e.g Neville and that will take a couple of years.

Eugene Ruane
54 Posted 14/01/2017 at 19:59:35
Whether Coleman is great captain material or not, I've no idea, but on the strength of him having a hole just below his nose that appears capable of emitting sound, he would be my choice.

I'm also hoping at least one of our new signings is (also) capable of something other than the Pinball Wizard impression that seems so popular with most of our playing staff.

'MAN FUCKING ON!!!!'

Tony Hill
55 Posted 14/01/2017 at 20:15:18
I'm a big fan of Coleman and have suggested him for captain several times on here. I think he's a really good Evertonian whose heart is with us.

I'm starting to have doubts, though, because Seamus's defensive game now seems to me to be poor (and, in truth, his attacking game is not much better). He gets caught out positionally, he is out-headed and usually lets the cross get in (I could say the same of Baines over the last couple of years).

The wisdom is that this is all because the players in front of them aren't up to it and/or they were damaged by Martinez, but I think any honest appraisal would say that our two full backs have lost form over a long period now. I accept with Baines that injury has been a factor.

Seamus for captain, yes indeed, but the Seamus of 3 years ago please.

Eddie Dunn
56 Posted 14/01/2017 at 20:23:05
I like Seamus – he gives everything and seems a decent and honest player, at his best going forward. Probably due to his attacking responsibilities and poor cover from our right wingers, his positional play has often been left wanting. Mix-ups between him and Jags have been numerous.

I think he should just get on with his own game. I would give the captaincy to Williams. He is an organiser he Captains Wales, and is in a more central position, and therefore should be able to communicate with everyone.

I think Jags will remain club captain until the end of the season.

Mike Gaynes
57 Posted 14/01/2017 at 23:04:02
Tony (#55),

Seamus has always had some positional issues defensively. When he came back from his Blackpool loan spell, I wrote here that despite his terrific pace and tackling, he was probably hopeless at right-back – a ball-watcher with no positional sense, horrible man-marker, no ability to track opposition runners or use his body to win in the air.

I predicted he'd never make it.

Happily, he proved me wrong... Moyes worked with him tirelessly on his marking fundamentals and positional sense, and he grew into a competent Premier League defender. As you say, he still has issues marking tall forwards, and still doesn't track runners as well as Baines. But he is vastly improved, and his brilliance in other areas more than compensates.

I say he'd make a fine captain.

Peter Fearon
58 Posted 15/01/2017 at 01:09:51
Give us an 'M '
Sam Brennan
59 Posted 15/01/2017 at 13:06:42
What is all the negativity about Scheiderlin! French international far better than anything we have got and some people still moan.

Get Hart, Bojan, and Snodgrass plus a centre halve. I know many will laugh at Snodgrass but he is a good player plus he takes good set-pieces.


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