Next few days are critical for Frank Lampard and Everton – David Ornstein
Both Frank Lampard and Everton face a critical next few days following their heavy Brighton & Hove Albion defeat, according to The Athletic journalist David Ornstein.
Lampard will certainly be sweating over his job security at Goodison Park following their damaging 4-1 defeat to Brighton on Tuesday evening, a result which made it just one win in 11 games for the former Derby County and Chelsea boss.
Despite several reports [Telegraph, 3 January] stating that Lampard’s job is “on the brink”, there have been no major developments suggesting that Farhad Moshiri is ready to pull the trigger just yet, giving Lampard the time to turn things around.
The players were largely booed off after Tuesday evening’s horror show which has led to several journalists questioning the manager’s future at the helm. Following the match Ornstein took to Sky Sports News to explain the club’s position and that it’s a ‘critical’ few days at Goodison Park.
Speaking on Sky Sports News, as shown on YouTube, he said: “There seemed to be hope when they got that draw at Manchester City just a few days away, but now they face a defining few days. They go to Manchester United on Friday in the FA Cup. I suspect Frank Lampard will get that match – I certainly think he should.
“But beyond that, there’s a Premier League game against Southampton [at] bottom of the table and then West Ham too in the same region, so these are critical days for Frank Lampard, of course, in his managerial career.”
Under mounting pressure
There’s no doubt that Lampard is under mounting pressure to keep his job at Everton.
Whilst many are calling for him to be given time to rebuild the club, there will always be noises around his future following results and performances on the football pitch, and that’s where managers are most judged on.
Have Everton progressed under his stewardship? It’s certainly arguably that they haven’t. His side are still struggling to score goals to push them up the table, and still conceding critical goals which leave them in perilous positions to turn things around. The three goals conceded in seven minutes against Brighton is a telling example.
There’s the argument that it may be impossible for Lampard to improve things because of the lack of quality at his disposal, but on the flip side, a good manager is one who can get the best out of the players he has available to him.
Everton have some real talent in their squad but they are unfortunately misfiring, that’s certainly on Lampard’s head to fix.