Jamie O’Hara says Everton don’t have players who can fight for Lampard
Jamie O’Hara has suggested on talkSPORT that Everton don’t have players who can take responsibilities and turn things around.
The Toffees lost 4-0 against Crystal Palace in the FA Cup at Selhurst Park on Sunday (20 March), and Frank Lampard minced no words when he criticised his players for showing no resilience at all.
O’Hara has suggested that it was a “shocking” result for the Toffees, before adding Lampard was right to criticise.
“Everton got it right tactically at the start of the game. It’s a shocking result for them off the back of a great result against Newcastle,” O’Hara said on talkSPORT.
“There’s only so much you can put your around and say ‘C’mon lads, let’s fight’ come on, you’re professional footballers, make things happen, turn up for your team.
“Basically he is trying to say that there are too many players in the team that go missing, there are too many players that are hiding.
“When you’re in poor situation, you really find out players you can rely on. The players who got the balls to get on the ball in pressurized situations when you’re back against the wall and you need someone to say ‘I will get on it, I’ll make something happen’, they are the players you need in a dogfight, I don’t think they have them.”
Shocking
It’s easy to put blame on the manager for the mess the club is in, but the players must take a hard look at themselves.
There are so many players who didn’t show the desire to fight despite going 2-0 down at the break.
Instead, it’s been a meek surrender. In a FA Cup game, where pride and passion take control, the players have shown a lack of belief in themselves.
The mentality of the players needs to change, but whether Lampard is the man to take them to the next level remains to be seen.
After a fantastic win against Newcastle, everybody expected that the Toffees will put up a fight and carry the confidence forward. They stuck to their plans in the opening 15-20 minutes and played with real gusto.
But, once they conceded the opening goal, they fell apart. The middle was non-existent while the defence was all over the place.
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