Good Joyce article on Morgs:
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/...nd-do-care-says-morgan-schneiderlin-jc9dlfgdw
I’ll show fans that I’m not lazy and do care, says Morgan Schneiderlin
The Everton midfielder says the criticism he received after missing a game has eaten away at him, writes Paul Joyce
The chorus of boos erupted as soon as Morgan Schneiderlin stepped on to the touchline at Goodison Park and, as he winced at the crescendo of catcalls, he knew that he had a choice to make. The midfielder was about to be introduced ten minutes from time to shore up Everton’s 3-1 victory over Crystal Palace in February last season and, while some later insisted that the acerbic soundtrack which had accompanied the raising of his number was born more of frustration at Sam Allardyce’s overcautious outlook, Schneiderlin always sensed that the issue ran deeper.
“I knew straight away,” he said. “I knew it was for me because of some notifications [on Twitter]. I am not paying too much attention to that, but I got messages saying, ‘You have a bad attitude’, ‘You are not fit to wear the shirt.’
“So I knew there were some people who were not happy. I am a human being and for any human being to have people turn against you is not good.
“But I had two ways to see it. I stay strong or I say, ‘Ok, f*** that. I am just going to come into training, work for myself but I don’t care anymore. I don’t play anymore until the end of the season and then I go.’
“That might have been the easier way. But the motivation for myself was to turn the minds of people. That people regret what they said and they have a different perception of me. That is what I want to do.”
A month into the new campaign and that task continues. Schneiderlin finds himself a trusted figure for the new Everton manager Marco Silva and is looking forward with enthusiasm to what the coming months can bring a club that is seeking stability after too much tumult. Firstly, however, he is prepared to look back to that sobering afternoon against Palace and the events that prompted the caustic outpouring from the stands. The trigger for some supporters had come in November when, three days after being sent off against Lyons during a disastrous Europa League campaign, Schneiderlin was overlooked for the home game with Watford by David Unsworth, the interim manager.
He trained with a small group of other players and a story subsequently emerged that Schneiderlin and Kevin Mirallas had walked off the training ground after being told by Duncan Ferguson, the first-team coach, that they should go inside if they were not going to apply themselves.
Schneiderlin disputed that version at the time on social media, but the mud stuck. Tensions built.
He has never spoken properly about that day — and says that this is the only time that he will do so in order to finally move on — and so, for the next three minutes, he barely pauses in outlining his version of events.
Schneiderlin believes that he can thrive under Silva’s tutelageReuters/Peter Powell
“The sending off was totally my fault. It was a stupid red card,” he said. “When we got drawn against Lyons, I thought it was a good way for me to show myself for the France national team and it didn’t happen. We got battered 3-0. I was frustrated. My mistake.
“On the Saturday [the day] before Watford, we did a warm-up of five minutes and David said his squad. I didn’t hear my name.
“There were four or five of us and he said, ‘You are going to train on the other side of the training ground.’ I had played 80 minutes against Lyons — I had run, I was not walking — and Duncan said, ‘I am going to put you as the man in the middle. You are tired. Don’t worry. I know it is frustrating.’
“As you can understand, the tempo was not crazy because everyone was a bit sad and maybe I didn’t touch the ball because it was two v two.
“Duncan said to me, ‘Morgan, I understand you are tired, you played two days ago. There is no problem, if you want to rest and go inside, you can rest and go inside.’ I said, ‘Thank you’ and I went inside.
“I was not happy, of course. But I was just like maybe 99.9 per cent of the guys are when they are not in the squad and they have to train away from the first team.
“When the story came out [after Watford], I spoke with David. He said, ‘Morgan, no problem.’ We spoke honestly. I said sorry for my red card, because that is the only thing I could say sorry about. We looked to turn things around and I started the next game.
“Maybe people wanted to see me because we had bad results and they had to find someone to pick and to say, ‘His fault, his fault, his fault.’ That is the life of a football player.”
It was the insinuation that he did not care that nagged away. Schneiderlin had not played well in the first half of the season — no one did — when Everton had no striker after selling but not replacing Romelu Lukaku, Ronald Koeman was sacked, Unsworth filled the breach and eventually Allardyce was appointed to stave off the faint threat of relegation.
Perhaps, after making such a good impression when signing from Manchester United in January 2017 for £20 million, the scrutiny fell on him because the fluctuation in form felt so confusing. On the drive home after the Palace game, Schneiderlin sat seething at the wheel. It was his wife, Camille, who helped to fuel the fightback.
“My wife is very supportive of me,” Schneiderlin said. “She said: ‘You have to show them who you are.’ Maybe it was a time to look at myself in the mirror and say, ‘Why? Why did this happen?’
“As well as my wife, I had a long chat with my best friends, my parents, my agent. They are not the type of guys who say, ‘Oh Morgan, you are the most beautiful. Oh Morgan, you are the best.’ They say [honest] things to me. I agreed with them. I didn’t have the best season.
“It eats me like crazy because the most frustrating thing is that image is not myself. I am an honest guy who works very, very hard. I can have a bad game, or a bad performance, but putting that on me that I don’t give a [Poor language removed], I don’t care — that is not who I am.”
The undercurrent at Goodison Park often simmers, yet Schneiderlin believes that he can thrive under Silva’s tutelage as he contemplates making good his rehabilitation. The Portuguese made keeping the player a priority when he was appointed Everton manager and a week into pre-season they spoke face-to-face candidly.
Silva outlined a fresh start, one in which he would be demanding of the player, and then Schneiderlin bared his soul. “I knew I had to work twice, maybe three times as hard as anyone else because I knew some people and some fans would see me in a different way,” he continued.
“That is what I said to the manager. I said I was prepared to do that and that was what I have done.
“He is challenging the players and training is great. The feeling is that, if an opponent has the ball, you don’t wait for them to come, you have to press them. Then, when we have the ball, we have to be clever.
“He always tells me about the second phase. If I make a pass, I have to understand where my position needs to be after that pass. The second step. Don’t just think about the pass.
“I know what I have to do when I have the ball and I know what I have to do when I don’t have the ball. It is a clear message and you can only improve like this.
“He [Silva] doesn’t say, ‘You have to do it.’ If you feel that is the moment to do it, do it. He gives you a line to follow and then, after, it is your instinct.”
It was Schneiderlin’s instinct that told him not to give up. There may be bumps in the road, but he is adamant that his commitment will not waver.
