Brutal & Simple

“This is the league, it’s a brutal league.

“The fans from a personal point of view have been very supportive of the team and myself in the short period of time I’ve been here.

“I also respect that they’re not happy with the start of the season that we have made. I’m someone who will also look outside of that and look at the big picture and other things and the reality is we played 27 league games last year and we finished 9th in that period.

Gerrard delivered 32 points from a possible 81 at a rate of 1.22 points per game.

“I think that’s a really good return considering we took over a team that was 16th on the back of five defeats and two points above relegation.

Dean Smith delivered 10 points from a possible 33 at a rate of 0.91 points per game.

A team that was suffering a lot and yes we were patchy by doing that but the results in the last four games haven’t been good enough and I have to accept that and take full responsibility and try and put it right.

“‘[The players] train really well but it’s very much different. You’ve got to take those performances into the main arenas. Take those game plans and challenges and win football matches in this league. It’s very much brutal and simple.

“I need to do everything we can to focus on every individual and get our main players back in the form I need them in to turn these results around so that’s the challenge for me and that’s what I’m focusing every minute of every day on.

“We have shown we can put runs together. These players have shown they can go on runs and win two or three games on the spin and if that happens you move in this table ever so fast and the feeling amongst supporters can improve and change.

Steven Gerrard has won three consecutive games on one occasion, and two consecutive games twice.

“I’ve got to balance expectation to reality and right now the reality is that we haven’t been good enough in the last four games and expectation outside is greater than that and it should be. I’m very much aware of that. I can assure these fans me and my staff are doing everything we can to get these players in a better place and get results better.

“Listen, it’s 2022. I am very much aware that reactions happen certainly if you have been in a run of results like we have in the last four in the league. I don’t control decisions at any other club or with me in this situation, I just focus on my job and try and be the best version of myself. Hopefully that’s enough to help the players be in the best prepared place going into Arsenal. That’s all my focus is on.”