Dyche: I can improve Everton without signings

Everton's new manager Sean Dyche says he is unconcerned by the club's lack of January signings and is focusing on improving the players and team that he inherited when he arrived.

The Toffees were unable to add any players in the winter transfer window, while they sold star winger Anthony Gordon to Newcastle United.

But, in his first press conference as Everton boss, Dyche said: "All I've seen is hard work, particularly in the recruitment area. It's fair to say there were loads of phone calls made, offers put in. They didn't get to the place we wanted them to be, for whatever reason.

"The thing that often gets overlooked is that [signings] have got to be better than what we’ve got here. I think we’ve got some very, very good players, some very talented players.

"Our job is to guide them hopefully to better days and polish them up a bit, maybe give them a different way of looking at the game and give them the freedom to go and play, amongst the framework to be strong as a unit.

"I've been reminding them of the players they are. I've looked at their histories and I've reminded them of that. I said, 'You don't get to be an Everton player without laying some markers down in your own careers, as individuals and as a team.'"

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Tough first test

Dyche has been eager to make an immediate impact as he prepares for his first match in charge, at home against leaders Arsenal on Saturday.

"I tested the players to see where they're at physically," he said. "I tested them in another way of profiling the players, looking at learning styles.

See: Can Dyche recreate Burnley magic?

"We've looked at what they've been doing, how they've been playing. We've looked at the best slots that players can fit in to be productive, and we've been trying to cram that into four days' work.

"A lot of information has been shared this week, a lot about the culture and environment that I expect. We've got to earn that over time and build it, but we've got to fast-track it. So far there’s been a good response to what we think."

The relegation fight

Position Pos	Club	Played Pl	GD	Points Pts
13	Wolves WOL	38	-27	41
14	West Ham WHU	38	-13	40
15	Bournemouth BOU	38	-34	39
16	Nott'm Forest NFO	38	-30	38
17	Everton EVE	38	-23	36
18	Leicester LEI	38	-17	34
19	Leeds LEE	38	-30	31
20	Southampton SOU	38	-37	25

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