Your morning Everton headlines on Thursday, July 14.
Frank Lampard told what he must do to get best out of 'warrior' James Tarkowski at Everton
Long-suffering Evertonians have endured many sleepless nights in recent times but new signing James Tarkowski has been hailed as being “a warrior” who enables a manager to rest easy in his bed. That’s the verdict of Lee Johnson, the 29-year-old’s manager at his first club Oldham Athletic.
The last 42 of Tarkowski’s 89 appearances for the Latics came under the stewardship of Johnson before he sealed a transfer to Brentford on January 31, 2014. His ex-boss looks back on the defender’s formative years with him at Boundary Park fondly after the player’s big move to Goodison Park was announced this month. Taking time out from his pre-season preparations for a first campaign in the Scottish Premiership in charge of Hibernian, Johnson – who has also had spells at the helm of Barnsley, Bristol City and Sunderland – told the ECHO: “James was the golden boy of the Oldham Athletic academy at the time and our academy manager Tony Philiskirk believed in him massively.
“He took to being in the first team straight away, especially with the way I played, allowing centre-halves to take the space and being very comfortable on the ball and he was a good decision-maker with his passing. He had flaws, his feet were a bit heavy and he was a bit club-footed at times in terms of his movement but he wasn’t a man at that stage and your athletic profile changes over the years.
Chris Beesley has more, here.
Inside Everton's USA tour as Frank Lampard demands grow and Nathan Patterson fitness noted
It was hotter in Wavertree than Washington DC on Wednesday but the heat in the US capital was still stifling.
Neither the shade nor the breeze that tickled the trees on the wide open avenues offered much respite from the humidity - but that did not stop the coaches from testing the players. The squad was worked hard in the morning session and this was clear as they returned to their hotel for lunch, several walking through the reception with bright red faces. There were plenty of smiles too though, spirits clearly high as the second week of pre-season continues.
Training was split into two sessions on Wednesday to avoid the worst of the heat. After work in the morning the squad made the 20-minute trip from their training to base to their hotel for a lunch served at 1pm and overseen by the club's head chef, who has travelled with the players. Then it was back out for more work on fitness and tactics.
The club is keeping it low key in Washington DC on the early days of this journey but is far from in hiding. They are staying close to the city centre and while there is no obvious sign of the presence of the Premier League outfit, it does not take long for evidence to appear in the shape of a staff member in a club-crested shirt going for a walk or a vehicle pulling from the drive with the famous Everton badge placed in the windscreen.
Joe Thomas has more, here.
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