Everton midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure says he wants to repay the trust shown in him by Frank Lampard as the Blues prepare to face Burnley tonight.
The French-born 29-year-old recently made his international debut, representing Mali, but has quickly turned his attention back to helping the Blues move away from the relegation zone as quickly as possible.
His side have the chance to do just that tonight, when they make the trip to Turf Moor to face a Burnley side sitting four points behind them in the table, and despite losing at West Ham on Sunday afternoon, Doucoure insists that the squad has a positive outlook on what they need to achieve.
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Speaking in an interview with Everton's official club website, he said: "We were all disappointed after the (West Ham) game. We thought we played a good game and felt we deserved more than to lose. The atmosphere is not too bad. I think we all have to concentrate on the next game. We have a huge game on Wednesday and I think this is the most important thing. We are all professional. Everything is in place at the club for us to recover, eat well and sleep well, it’s all fine. We are used to playing every three days and Wednesday is a massive game for us."
Doucoure and his teammates have had to quickly get used to the methods of another manager after Lampard replaced previous incumbent Rafa Benitez in the Goodison Park hot seat. But the former Watford player has only positive things to say about his new gaffer.
“I really enjoy it so far to be honest. The staff are great. Frank Lampard is a great manager. He has a lot of experience and is a very intelligent man. We understand everything that he says so we just want to fight for him and win games," Doucoure said.
“He knows the importance of the midfielder in the game. He used to play there before and was a great player. He has given me a lot of advice. I can feel his trust so I just want to repay it back."
The Blues evening fixture at Burnley could hardly be any bigger. An away win would give Lampard's team a seven-point cushion over their relegation rivals, leaving the Clarets with a mountain to climb, but defeat would cut the gap between the two sides to just a single point having played the same amount of games. Despite the pressure, Everton's experienced midfielder insists he is ready to step up to the mark and so are his teammates.
Doucoure said: “Against Burnley, the most important thing is to win the game. I don’t know how it is going to be physically or technically, but the most important thing is to get the three points at the end. I think every game is now a final for us. Like the manager said, we’ve got to take it game by game. The one after Burnley is going to be massive because we know the importance of the game. If Burnley is not a good result there are plenty of games after that. It is important to be ready and focused and compete and I think at the end we are going to have a result.
“All through the season we’ve had a lot of injuries and suspensions. We were unlucky with some injuries, including myself. It is disappointing when you are injured but at the moment I think that everyone is united. We all want the same for the club. We want to fight for Everton. Everyone is on it and we’re going to show that on Wednesday.
“I’m an important player. I know my role in the team, especially with less midfielders (available). We all need to stand up for this game. It could be me, it could be (Alex) Iwobi, it could be Andre Gomes, we are all ready to play and to fight. Some times you have to do the extra job. I know that I have that in my locker and I have to deliver now."
Doucoure concluded his interview with a special mention for Everton's loyal supporters. He added: “I want to thank them for their support. West Ham was full of Everton supporters, we are very happy with them. The season is hard, it is hard for us as well, but we want to thank them for their support. The next two games are going to be very important for us. We will have a little break after that. We have to take it game by game. We have nine or ten games. Even after Wednesday we have tough games where we have to take points and you have to believe in that.”
