Lampard lauds players for giving him 'everything I wanted'

Good words from Frank for the whole team, excellent stuff.

It really is refreshing to have a manager who makes the effort to forge an emotional connection with the fans.

I like what Frank says about him coming in being ‘a restart for everybody' because players low on confidence can play their way back in. Can a fit Mykolenko expect to walk back in next week? Can Gomes? Does Iwobi keep his place? When Doucouré is fit, how do we line up?

Seven first-team players out and he treated it like an opportunity, not an excuse. I like that. It won't be plain sailing from here but at least there's something to work with, something to build on.

Momentum in football is a wonderful thing. Any kind of result at Southampton and we can start to breathe a little easier and look at the goal difference and games in hand rather than praying the likes of Watford drop points.

UTFT

Oh, hang on…

In the opening week of the Premier League Era, we played Man Utd away in a midweek match and Kendall played 2 right-footers on the left side. The reasoning was that Kendall knew how dangerous Andrei Kanchelskis was when he cut inside so he wanted his defenders on their strong side when confronting him in-field.

I wonder if that was part of the reasoning for Frank putting Kenny there yesterday, as we all know how deadly Raphina can be when he comes inside?

I understand the injuries are the main reason but he could easily have put Townsend, a left-footer, on that side of the pitch.

Just wondering...

I don't completely blame Benitez for the mess but it was doomed from day one wasn't it?

Lampard is in keeping with how the modern game should be played high intensity, tempo, gusto and hunger.

Frank also speaks clearly, communicates clearly, openly and honestly and you feel he knows what the club is all about and the fans, he's a footballing man from a footballing family.

The Newcastle game was poor on Tuesday but probably not helped by our gameplan bing torn up after 20 minutes with injuries to key men.

The important thing was to bounce back yesterday with bags of character and that's what we did, that's the measure of a team in harmony and togetherness.

Lampard has a very fluid attitude to teamwork, some players seem to pop up all over the field, and are covered to do so. Allan and Van de Beek complimented each other in midfield. Each player is individually coached in their role. This was particularly the case with Keane and Holgate. Just simple no-risk defending.

It all works and the players have bought into it. As Frank says, it is a restart, but you need to be able to be remotivated and have players buy into what you are doing. Frank and his team clearly have the ability to do that. It is an ongoing process of all-round learning and proving. Taking what it gets them.

He is a different type of manager than before and it suits Everton.

Have never had any issues at all with that lad defensively, even when Sam Allardyce first arrived, Kenny was sound defence wise.

I know Martina also got played over there as well and for longer during that period but have I dreamt that Kenny also played left-back?

RB Kenny; CBs Holgate and Williams, LB Martina.

Given that Kenny and Holgate were teenagers at the time, and the other two in the twilight of their careers, it was an impressive achievement, whatever you think of Allardyce.

Many fans have naturally focused on Coleman's apparent lack of leadership given he's the captain and others have come in for criticism too but the way Coleman played yesterday with a fire in his belly suggests he perhaps read articles and took them to heart.

Of the highlights I've seen, Van de Beek seems to have been rallying the players during the game and people have suggested Holgate was too. This is great to see. We need more talkers, more people willing to push players on during the game.

The way Frank Lampard has been talking, suggests this "fight for each other and drag each other over the line" type approach comes from him. Winners don't accept mediocrity.

It's early days but Everton might have just rediscovered their fighting spirit at last.

But I went to a few games home and away following that and seem to recall JK getting switched into that position because Martina got injured.

I can never give Allardyce credit after sitting in the home end at Watford on a freezing night in February to suffer a cowardly 1-0 defeat. Awful stuff.

That last paragraph is so true it could have been written by any of us lunatics on ToffeeWeb.

Good man-management, that… and helps him bond with the players better. Makes them want to play for him too.