After a disastrous 4-1 loss to Brighton & Hove Albion, pressure mounted on the former Chelsea manager, but Frank Lampard is confident he can turn Everton around.
In their fourth loss in five Premier League games, Everton was no match for Brighton on Tuesday at Goodison Park.
Everton, who narrowly avoided relegation last season, is currently in 16th place with 15 points after 18 games.
By the time Everton plays fellow underachievers Southampton on January 14, they may very well be in the bottom three, but Lampard is confident he can turn things around.
“Since I have been in here we have been in this situation, so it’s not a case of fear, it’s a case of just keep working,” Lampard told reporters when asked if he feared for his future.
“I can’t control the talk or the decisions, when you are around this area of the table this is what happens.
“You lose a game like this, I absolutely understand any reaction. I don’t listen to too much of it because if you do then it becomes your focal point, so I don’t focus on it.
“I’m very confident in myself and will work to turn it around. I can’t predict the future. We have to try and win games — it’s all we can look at.”
Lampard was appointed as Rafael Benitez’s successor in January 2022. Of the 36 league games he has overseen, Everton have won just nine (25 per cent), losing 19.
Three days prior to Tuesday’s defeat, Everton had frustrated Manchester City to claim a 1-1 draw at the Etihad Stadium, and Alex Iwobi believes a lack of consistency is the main issue.
“I don’t think confidence is the issue,” Iwobi told Sky Sports. “We showed how we can play against Man City.
“We can’t be one minute good one minute bad. We’ve got to be consistent. The way we discussed in the changing room now is we all want to fix it.
“I’m confident we can get ourselves out of this.”
Everton’s hierarchy also faced ire from the fans that remained at Goodison Park on Tuesday, with chants of “sack the board” aimed at the directors’ box.