Frank Lampard will be in charge of Everton for the FA Cup clash with Manchester United on Friday night.
Lampard is under huge pressure after a 4-1 home defeat to Brighton meant his side have lost eight of their last 11 fixtures in all competitions, collecting just one win in that run. And it is still possible owner Farhad Moshiri could replace the 44-year-old before Everton's next Premier League match, a home meeting with Southampton.
But Lampard was at the club’s Finch Farm training complex on Wednesday, conducting a review of the disastrous performance against Brighton and beginning preparations for tomorrow’s trip to Old Trafford. An unlikely victory over United could earn Lampard another reprieve and he is involved in the desperate search for striking firepower in this transfer window.
Aston Villa have turned down a loan request for Danny Ings and will only contemplate a permanent sale but Everton ’s Financial Fair Play concerns mean that any big-money moves would be problematic.
Ironically, that could hamper the search for a new manager if Moshiri does decide to end Lampard’s tenure after only a year in the post.
Sean Dyche is the bookmakers’ favourite to be the next permanent Everton manager but Roberto Martinez is available and still has some backing at the club even though he has already been sacked once by Moshiri.
For now, though, Lampard remains in charge and will put on a defiant face when he faces the media ahead of the United showdown.
Speaking after the loss to Brighton he insisted he still believed he could drag the Toffees out of the mire, declaring: "We're all in it together, so it's not a question of anger. We're disappointed, we want to win games.
"Since I've been here I've been in a relegation battle [both last season and this season]. I can't control the talk but I don't focus on it. I'm very confident in myself but I can't predict the future. It's Manchester United [in the FA Cup] next and that's all we can look at.
"I'm a Premier League football manager, there's pressure in the job wherever you are. There's always expectation, parameters, things that you want to get to. There's constant pressure."
