How Everton manage possession is a key focus at Finch Farm this week as Frank Lampard looks to pick up his players from the defeat to Manchester United.
Both goals conceded by the Blues came from mistakes on the ball and similar errors also went unpunished in the opening 45 minutes. They came after Alex Iwobi had given the hosts an early lead with a sublime strike after just five minutes.
The loss ended a run of seven unbeaten in all competitions and Lampard accepted "sometimes a game can give you a little bit of a check". But he remains upbeat over the club's start to the season.
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Urgency and decision-making are among the key subjects being focused on in training this week as Everton prepare to visit Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday and Newcastle United in midweek. Antony's equaliser came after Idrissa Gueye lost the ball in the middle of the Goodison Park pitch in the game against Man Utd, while Cristiano Ronaldo's match winner followed Casemiro dispossessing Iwobi. The away side had a goal ruled out for offside after Vitalii Mykolenko was caught on the edge of the box while Jordan Pickford saved from Christian Eriksen after Gueye lost possession. In the previous game, in which Everton beat Southampton 2-1, the goal conceded by the Blues also came from a misplaced pass.
Highlighting the need to prevent such costly errors, Lampard said: “I won’t be soft about that, because we weren’t as good as we could be in the first half against United. We took too many touches and got ourselves in positions where we should have moved the ball quicker out of tight areas. Those are things we speak about a lot, and we train on a lot. We have got improvement to do there.
“If we had won this game, I wouldn’t be saying, ‘We’re where we want to be on the ball’. We can get a lot better and that is a work in progress. Within us, you can see the improvement, but I know there’s a lot more to be had. I can’t question the attitude of the boys, but sometimes a game can give you a little bit of a check, and I think that’s where we’re at.”
Everton improved in the second half on Sunday but only placed opposition goalkeeper David de Gea under sustained pressure in the final minutes. Lampard said he was pleased with the spirit shown as his players fought for an equaliser but added: "We have to have a bit more about us. Also, I want to go steps beyond that. It’s not bad for us to be self-critical to a degree, and that’s behind closed doors. This a tough league and if there are things that are clear that we don’t do so well, we just have to work. Our standards are now that we can go more toe-to-toe more with these type of teams – last season was maybe a different approach. These things come, but it’s important how we react.”
He acknowledged the next two fixtures would be difficult and added: "The bigger picture is we can all see we’re going in the right direction, but maybe it’s time for us to get a bit of test. I’ve no problem with that. This is the Premier League. The lads just need to stand up. We all do."
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