Sam Allardyce looking to focus on mind over body as he bids to transform Everton

Sam Allardyce’s next move as Everton’s manager will be to appoint a therapist, as he attempts to encourage players to approach matches in a more positive manner. Having beaten Huddersfield Town on Saturday, his own mind trailed back to Wednesday’s victory over West Ham United, revealing that despite his appointment not being made official by then, he was inside Goodison Park’s dressing room, attempting to inspire belief.

“Small targets are set. I had a five-minute chat before the game, David [Unsworth] had done everything else, it was his game but I just had five minutes and talked about a few pointers about how you get better; nothing too elaborate, just to one or two,” he explained. “It was, ‘You are here’ and what you have to do to get there. Again, the last couple of days that progresses onto more information and delivering more beliefs and eventually there will not only be us who delivers psychologically in terms of wanting to make the players stronger mentally.”

Allardyce is busy sourcing a psychologist to back his messages up. It is likely to be someone he has worked with before.

“If the brain is clear and positive before the lads go out then they produce a positive performance. If the brain is clouded and doubtful you don’t see the player produce the abilities he has got,” he added. “That has obviously been seen on a couple of occasions here with the lack of confidence from the lack of results. You have to turn that round as quick as you can and build that confidence and let it grow. Hopefully we can do that as quick as we can.

“But there is nothing better than two wins on the trot. After all the work I might do, or a sports psychologist, what really brings the confidence back at the end as much as the work behind is being given the opportunity to go out and play to their strengths and give their all. Play to their best ability and you have got two back to back wins.”

Allardyce takes his squad to Cyprus on Thursday night for a Europa League dead-rubber against Apollon Limassol. The Merseyside derby follows on Sunday. Considering Everton haven’t won at Anfield since 1999, and considering there has been so many disappointments amongst players and supporters, this is a club that might benefit from some time in the shrink’s chair, talking through collective anxieties.

Everton’s goals on Saturday involved record signing Gylfi Sigurdsson and local hero Wayne Rooney. It was interesting listening to Allardyce talking about the contributions both players can make to his team. While he clearly wants more from Sigurdsson, he hopes that Rooney can process the changes that are happening to his body as the years pass in his 30s.

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Allardyce is prepared to make concessions for Sigurdsson's otherwise poor form because of the delay in his recruitment and what that meant for his preparation for the season.

“Gylfi came so late because of what I am told was the ongoing saga of how much will he be and will Swansea let him go - will they or won’t they? And I believe in that time he wasn’t really training with the first team and it wasn’t happening for him in terms of a full pre-season. So he is on catch up.”

Allardyce was asked whether Sigurdsson has been “mentally clouded” by Everton’s wretched start to the campaign.

“Absolutely and it is a big club you know. No disrespect to Swansea, you are playing on a bigger stage and arena so you have to have a greater mentality to come out and produce because the demand is higher. No disrespect to Swansea and the Swansea fans; these fans have greater demand for a player that comes to play for Everton.

“All fans want entertaining but they want to see a level of ability, too. It is big pressure and a lot of the other players who have come from abroad because of the start of the season, the Europa League, it has not given them a real opportunity to get settled in and be able to produce abroad at Everton so that is a disappointment.

“That is the feedback I have been gathering over the last few days, so hopefully those boys once they have had a bit more time if we give them an opportunity they can show that they are worth their place at the football club and get better and better and play more like they did at their clubs abroad.”

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“Wayne didn’t play that much at Man Utd as much as he wanted to do and that is why he left and came here,” Allardyce continued. “And then the adjustment of coming back to his old club and playing in a different role. Then there is the pressure Wayne is under all the time. I have every admiration for him because he never seems to be fazed by the criticism.

“He has had more criticism in the last couple of years than he has had praise and I think that he has handled that brilliantly. He produced a good performance today and a brilliant one on Wednesday, so we have to really make sure we get him ready for every game from a physical point of view because he is catching up in years. If we get the physical side of Wayne right then that ability never ever leaves you.”