Everton boss Frank Lampard has admitted crunch talks with his players ahead of their clash with West Ham.
Lampard has told his players that they cannot look to anyone else for excuses when it comes to the team's dire position in the Premier League table and admits the same applies to himself.
Lampard said: I know in difficult times, it's easy for a player to find another reason why results haven't gone our way. I've seen it in dressing rooms in bad form and my message was (to the players) that (making excuses) cannot be the thing that happens, everything has to be fought for and resolved by ourselves.
That's the way it has to be going forward. You have to fight for Everton, not think about whether you're starting, whether you're sub or coming on, any of those things.
It's not like I'm angry at anybody, I want to get results for this club and I understand the situation and I understand the feeling of the stadium and everything that's going on around the stadium. It just made me more determined to that day to try and get the right result because that would have been a big positive.
I can't talk about players or anyone else making excuses if I'm not the first one that doesn't. I was disappointed to lose the game and I was honest with the players.
It wasn't a hairdryer. I think the idea of a hairdryer is one that you get out very seldom in the modern day with players, I think you have to give them words that are about what's going to happen right now and it was more like that so while I wouldn't say I was angry, there were things that had to be said."