17/09/24
Goodison Park, Liverpool, UK
Goodison Park, Liverpool, UK
Category
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SportsTranscript
00:00Russell, it looked like one of those nights where you turn away quite a bit from the pitch
00:10in frustration at times, yet you found a way to get over the line. What impact does that
00:16or do you hope it has on the group and can you sum up the kind of feeling in the dressing
00:20room after that?
00:21I'm really proud of the players, so my frustration is never with their intention, it's just missing
00:28moments where I feel like we could maybe play forward and stuff like that, so it's never
00:35anything other than that really. I understand what we're asking the players to do is so
00:39tough and they do it with so much courage and conviction and intensity tonight, so I'm
00:44really proud of them. So I'm really happy, I don't feel frustrated, I feel really proud
00:48of the performance, we responded brilliantly to a setback, which is what hurt us on Saturday,
00:52we had a setback and missed the penalty and then the energy for 15 minutes was terrible
00:56and it cost us the game because nothing changed tactically in that game at all, it lifted
01:01one team in terms of energy and spirit and it drained the other. We had a lot of the
01:05young players on the pitch that will be better for that moment because sometimes you have
01:08to learn by feeling and having that bit of pain, but tonight we had a setback and they
01:14responded brilliantly, they stuck at it, they puffed the chest out, they were aggressive.
01:18The game looked how we wanted it to look, I wanted to play forward a little bit more
01:22at times but we're planning it's a team that make it really difficult, they press well,
01:24they're compact, but I saw a lot of stuff I liked and as I said I'm really proud of
01:30them tonight.
01:31Do you feel that does then for the mindset, it feels like it could be a big moment in
01:33the season with Ipswich to come at the weekend?
01:35Yeah, I hope so, we'll see on 5pm on Saturday, but I feel like all you can ever ask is analyse
01:41the performance from Saturday, try and learn from it, take something from it and what we
01:45learnt was actually for half an hour we were brilliant, the best performance of the season
01:49so far and looked very much like the team we want to look like and then we have a disappointing
01:55moment and it completely derails us, tonight we didn't, so we had a tough moment conceding
02:03and then they responded brilliantly, so I think that's the learning, right, and you
02:06analyse that and you improve and you grow from that and they did that tonight and in
02:10the four games, we haven't had a result yet but I feel better about the Premier League
02:13than I did at the start of the season because of the moments we've had in those games, we've
02:17hurt ourselves a lot in the first four games and a lot of that is down to a bit of anxiety
02:21and a bit of fear of the Premier League for some of the guys going into it for the first
02:24time, some of the guys being hurt by it last time, but I feel like we're going to grow
02:28through that and we just need that first result and once we get that I'm really excited about
02:32what the group is capable of achieving because we have a young, hungry group that are willing
02:37to do brilliant things and try and do the things we were asking them to do which is
02:43play with real aggression and courage all the time and live and die by the sword really
02:47and try and look how we want to look no matter who we play against.
02:50All things you take away, you've done that by making 10 changes and it's quite difficult
02:54to do that at times, we don't often see that.
02:56Yeah, the guys work hard together so we have a big group, a bit too big probably in an
03:01ideal world but we try and keep everyone motivated, we train in a certain way that reflects what
03:08we want to do on a Saturday, it's all related to them and what they're going to do and it's
03:12why a lot of the guys can step in tonight and play in the way they did and it'll be
03:15great for them.
03:16A lot of guys playing their first game for a start, Wee Man coming back and Max Corney,
03:19Adam Lallana, he's just a brilliant, beautiful footballer and he helps the team a lot with
03:24his voice so he'll be a big player for us and then more guys like Leslie and those guys,
03:29Charlie and Breezy, feeling it again and making sure they're ready to step in at any point
03:33and have to push each other, the guys have to stay really hungry and they get on so well
03:38but they really compete as well and they push each other and that's important.
03:42You're just on the shoe of having six penalties out of the top six, how happy are you with that?
03:48Yeah I'm really pleased for the guys, I think we did a lot of work on penalties at the end
03:51of last season because of the play-offs and did a lot of research on it, about the approach
03:56to it and just reminded them a bit of that work really when we spoke before the penalties
04:01and Dean done a lot of work with Al and we practised them yesterday in case it went to
04:05penalties because Gilly and Colin were in charge of that and made sure everyone took
04:10one and then you still have to have the courage to step up and do it in front of a crowd
04:14that is roaring. So I'm really, really proud of them and I'm grateful to them for staying
04:18brave and I think they did that all night.
04:21Alex McCarthy made his 150th appearance for the club today, you spoke quite a length about
04:25his contribution a couple of weeks ago, it's not just lip service, he's proved it again tonight.
04:29Yeah what a guy, he was brilliant tonight, he was amazing last season, at the end of
04:34last season, we wouldn't have done it without him for sure and then he's been an amazing
04:38team-mate, the way he's responded to losing his place to Rambo, who's come in and was
04:41excellent on Saturday. Al is first and foremost a brilliant human being and that helps and
04:48then he puts the team first so then he comes in tonight and can perform like that and I
04:52thought he was great. We have a really strong goalkeeping department with Joe Lumley, the
04:56way he's responded to being out of the squad the last few games. He played in the last
05:01cup game so he would have been disappointed not to play but brilliant and Dean's working
05:05him hard and pushing him hard and tonight he deserves, I'm really pleased for Al, he
05:09has a moment like that with the fans, cheering his name, the fans were amazing by the way,
05:11the amount of travel on a Tuesday night up here. So yeah, I'm pleased for Al and I'm
05:17pleased we won.
05:18In terms of a response coming back out of the team and back into the team, Taylor Ibanez
05:21with the armband today, could you have asked for much more than that?
05:24He was amazing, yeah. So I gave him the armband because I feel like he is a natural leader
05:30but he's played with too much tension in the first few games because it's what you do,
05:35I did the same when I got to the Premier League, you want it so badly for so long and you get
05:39there and it can hit you hard quickly. But he's going to be amazing and he had to come
05:46out of the team because he wasn't quite in the place he needs to be tonight, we'll help
05:50him massively. He was fantastic tonight, defensively, with the ball. Yeah, he's going to be top
05:56but sometimes it's not linear, right? The path is difficult and you have some tough
06:00moments and how you respond to them will always define what you do and he's had a tough start
06:04and then he can come in tonight and play like that because he's proper, he's a proper character,
06:08he's a natural-born leader with brilliant energy and brilliant talent. So tonight will
06:13be really good for him, as it will for a lot of the players.
06:15And Leroy came off after 45, could he start a Premier League game and if he could, would
06:18you like him to?
06:19He's very close to, yeah. I think tonight was the plan to get him 45 minutes and I think
06:24on Saturday he showed what he's going to bring against Brentford, he showed what he's going
06:27to bring tonight. I just love watching him play football, he is an amazing footballer.
06:31He's so graceful, elegant, aggressive, amazing mentality he has. So he's going to be massive
06:39for us. He is off the pitch already and on the pitch he's going to have a big, big say
06:42and I think he is ready to start. He's not ready to play 90 minutes but he's definitely
06:46ready to start an impact game for us.
06:48A good experience for Dean Thornton here at Goodison Park, I'm sure he enjoyed it. I noticed
06:51it was you and Gilly on the pitch at the end there, just having a little chat between yourselves.
06:55Just curious as to what you were talking about.
06:58I don't think I can tell you mate. It wasn't about football. No, we were chatting about
07:07a game, we were speaking about Saturday because of course that comes into your thinking straight
07:10away now about what's going to be important the next two days, what team, what did you
07:15think about tonight. So yeah, just the general, I guess, what most managers and assistant
07:21managers would discuss. And then, yeah, we spoke about your Tash.
07:26Just a couple more quick ones if I can. Just on Bela Kocsa, I've asked you about him a
07:30number of times, but did you consider picking him today and if you did, why didn't you?
07:33Well, I obviously didn't because he's not in the squad. So, I'll just answer the same
07:40to Adam. It's never personal. I'm paid to do the best job I can for Southampton Football
07:46Club and if it doesn't go very well, I will lose my job. So, I then pick a team that I
07:51think is best to win. I pick a squad that I think is the best to win and it really is
07:55that simple. So, there's no personal fallout. I'm out. We have an honest conversation before
08:01the transfer window closes, after the transfer window closes. It's not ideal for him. We
08:07had a couple of moves fall through and now he trains with the rest of them. He trains
08:10really well, the same as Paul, the same as the other guys. Ronnie Edwards has not been
08:14in the squad. He's been really frustrated. Ryan Manning's left at home and played 40-odd
08:16games for us last year. It's not easy to do that. So, we could talk about all them
08:21guys but I feel like when we're here, we should be talking about the guys that are here. It
08:28really is that. It's about who I feel is best for the team and who I trust the most to put
08:33in a performance on the pitch and to help the group. Tonight, I decided that it wasn't
08:38those guys.
08:39Last one then, just someone who is here, Sam Amo, played in the last round, not involved
08:42today but how do you convince him that he still has a big part to play this season?
08:46By giving him every bit of energy he possibly can every single day in training. I think
08:52it's difficult for him because Tyler played so well, Max Cornay's come in, Adam Armstrong
08:56played 40-odd games at right wing last season. He's 18, he's already played a fair amount
09:02of minutes for us over the last season and a bit. For his age, I think it's a lot compared
09:07to others. He trains with us every single day and he has to keep improving. He's a real
09:13talented player but he's physically not where Tyler is yet, he's not where Maxi is yet.
09:21So we just have to be a bit patient with him. He's a supreme talent and we love working
09:26with him, really excited. He'll be disappointed not to get on the pitch tonight. But again,
09:32I get paid to try and win a game of football and tonight felt like it was a game for Tyler
09:37to come on with his physicality. We're planning it's a team that are big, strong, physical
09:43and hopefully it was the right decision tonight. Sam will be fine, we've spent a lot of time
09:47working with him, a lot of conversation. I actually get on really well with his agent
09:52which is not like me because I don't really get on well with him. But I've had a long
09:55relationship with him so he understands it's a long-term plan with Sam. We'll just keep
10:02assessing his role and his situation.
10:07It's hard not to get excited about the potential of Tyler Dibbling, he's been absolutely fantastic.
10:19He was against Manchester United and he was against Nutmeg, that little dribble and he
10:24even scored a winning goal in front of a Pax Algerdessen park. Is it hard to get too excited
10:28about the fact that you've got such a potential superstar on your hands?
10:35Yeah, I just want to be cautious of it because in this country we have an amazing habit of
10:38building people up so early and then really enjoying the fact that they don't quite reach
10:43their potential. I think the biggest thing I can say is if he's playing it tells you
10:50what we feel about him at 18 years old, the stuff that he can do that we trust him. Tyler
10:55now to even three months ago is a very different person and the growth in him has been huge.
11:01Like I said about Taylor, Taylor is the England under-21s captain and he's had a tough start
11:05and at some point Taylor's progression will not just be linear, there will be some tough
11:10moments and we'll have to help him, nurture him and help him grow. We're really demanding
11:15of Tyler but we also give him a lot of love because he is supremely talented and if he
11:21wants to at some point to keep listening and to keep growing and to keep improving he will
11:28in my opinion play at the very, very top level. But that's a long journey to that point. So
11:36he has to keep listening, he has to keep learning, he has to keep working, he has to keep building
11:39trust with his teammates. But yeah, of course it's exciting to work with a player like that
11:45and to see the growth in him in this last year. It's been amazing so he has to continue
11:51doing that and I feel it's one of the reasons we were brought to this football club is because
11:55of our ability to develop young talent at our previous clubs and to create assets for
12:00the club on the pitch and financially and Tyler could be one of the biggest assets they've
12:05ever had for sure, we've ever had.