Everton manager Marco Silva has said the club “has to come first” as pressure grows on his position after a 2-0 loss at home to struggling Norwich City.
The Canaries condemned Silva’s side to their seventh defeat of the season through second-half goals from Todd Cantwell and Dennis Srbeny.
Everton lacked threat throughout and came closest to scoring when Cenk Tosun’s shot in the second half was turned away by Norwich goalkeeper Tim Krul.
“We started to be afraid and that was the problem,” Silva said. “You can never, ever, ever be afraid to play football.”
Everton’s third home loss of the current campaign saw them slip to 15th place, while Norwich, who were bottom of the Premier League at kick-off, moved up to 18th.
A number of fans sang “sacked in the morning” at the end of the game but Silva insists he can only focus on performances.
“I think it is not the main thing to talk about the situation. It is not the moment to talk about individual positions,” Silva said.
“We have to look at what is best for us as a club and for myself and the players as well – but always the club has to be at the top.
“If you are really disappointed with the afternoon I can imagine they [fans] are as well and they have the reaction to the manager and the players.
“When you lose a match, the first person they look to is the manager. Football is like that.
“The message is I respect what is their feeling, for sure. It is not the first time they felt the way they felt this afternoon.”
Gylfi Sigurdsson had several chances as the hosts improved for a spell in the second half, but Everton’s captain could only shoot straight at Krul with the best of them.
Sigurdsson also seemed well-placed for a chance from a free-kick late in the game, but Lucas Digne stepped up instead and could only fire in a weak effort that Krul saved comfortably.
Cantwell scored early in the second half, and substitute Srbeny sealed the Canaries’ first three points since they beat champions Manchester City on 14 September with a goal in stoppage time.
Oriel Hernandez had gone close for Norwich before the break when he forced Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford into an excellent low save.
Four points from a possible six just before the international break would have given Everton fans hope that a corner had been turned after an inconsistent start to the season.
Silva’s side looked confident in the opening stages against Norwich, but as the game wore on an edginess in the stands seemed to transfer to the pitch, and by full-time that frustration was evident for players and supporters.
Norwich sat deep, but Everton did not have enough ideas to open them up, either in open play or at any of their seven corners.
Of their 18 shots, Everton only managed seven on target, although Cantwell’s opener for Norwich roused them, with Sigurdsson trying his luck on three occasions within a few minutes.
But with their next three games against Leicester, Liverpool, and Chelsea coming inside the next two weeks, Silva admitted that this defeat against the side who were propping up the Premier League was a missed opportunity for progress.
He added: “We are trying to get consistency. We came from good results and we lost an opportunity today. The way we played this afternoon, we did not deserve to win.
“It was frustrating. We share the fans’ frustration.”
From the outset, Norwich did not play like a side on such a poor run, having more ideas and creativity than their hosts.
Hernandez posed problems on the left flank, and the Cuban was only denied a goal when Pickford dropped low to his right to thwart Norwich’s best chance of the first half.
Cantwell, who was so crucial to Norwich’s memorable win over Manchester City, had been recalled to the starting line-up and the 21-year-old gave Daniel Farke’s side a lift with an energetic display.
His goal came about thanks to an excellent knock-down from Kenny McLean that allowed Teemu Pukki to pick him out as he glided into the Everton area before placing the ball past Pickford.
The Canaries looked comfortable after the first goal, despite the expected surge from Everton, and Srbeny had been on the pitch for only a few seconds when the German latched onto a rebound from the unlucky Sigurdsson inside the Everton area.
Norwich now faces Arsenal, Southampton and Sheffield United in quick succession, but if they can ensure that this kind of performance becomes the norm rather than exception then Farke’s side could soon be out of the relegation zone.
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Source – BBC
