Asmir Begovic has called for calm heads as Everton continue preparations for their first competitive fixture in over a month.
Frank Lampard's side headed into the World Cup break on a run of one win in eight matches, which culminated in a dreadful double defeat to Bournemouth in the space of four days in the Carabao Cup and Premier League. Confidence has been rebuilt during the club's tour of Australia but it is now a case of backing that up now domestic football has returned.
Both the Everton squad and their manager Lampard will require no reminding that vast improvement is required during the second half of the campaign if a second successive relegation battle is to be avoided. Bbut Begovic is adamant the team can turn the tide after a period of reflection and hard work on the training ground.
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"I think it's very important to not get too bogged down by the week heading into the World Cup break," the Blues' back-up goalkeeper told evertonfc.com. "Overall, I think we've been progressing alright. There's been a lot of change over the past 10 months since the manager came in and then a big summer, so we're definitely a work in progress.
"You're going to have setbacks at times and you're going to have to take your lumps - the week before we went to Australia was certainly less than ideal for us. But then I thought Australia was a good trip for us, especially when you look back on it now in terms of what it's given us. It was a good change of pace and these trips help with team spirit and bring everyone together even closer.
"We were able to get a couple of decent results and now looking ahead we're together and ready to attack this good block of games we have in front of us to really kick on and shoot up the table. There's a determination between us to get to the place where we want to be."
Opportunities in Australia were forthcoming for Begovic as Jordan Pickford competed for England at the World Cup, resulting in Lampard naming the Bosnian shot-stopper as captain for the matches against Celtic and Western Sydney Wanderers.
Addressing the honour of leading out the Toffees in the above games, the 35-year-old said: "Being given the captain's armband [in Australia] made me feel great. It's nice to get that recognition and to feel valued, for sure. I understand my role in the dressing room as well in terms of a leadership point of view. The manager has been first-class since he came in. He's been really good with me and every time he's given me opportunities."
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