Sean Dyche has been compelled to deliver “the truth” about Demarai Gray after the winger claimed the Everton manager does not respect him.

Gray has not played this season, with Dyche claiming the player did not want to train after being linked with moves to Saudi Arabia and Fulham.

However, nothing materialised before Friday’s European deadline – Saudi’s is Thursday – but after being left out of the squad again for the 2-2 draw at Sheffield United, Gray took to Instagram to air his grievance, writing: “It’s so difficult to play for someone who doesn’t show you respect as a person.”

Dyche has now taken the unusual step of addressing the issue in an interview with club media.

“It’s an unfortunate one because I try to keep our business in-house. I think on this occasion, it’s right to reply,” Dyche said.

“Demarai made it clear that he felt he was getting a move (away from Everton) and he told us a move was done, which was interesting to hear from a player.

“We reminded him of the truth of the fact that no moves are done without this club’s say so.

“We look after these players; we look at all the different ways of looking after them: mental and wellbeing is big, the tactics and technical, the physical.

“When it comes to a time like that then you go, ‘Well, hang on a minute. You made it clear you didn’t want to train, you didn’t want to be here, and you also said there was a move that was a done deal’.

“We said it’s not a done deal because this club is the most important. This club will make decisions on the future of you as players and not the other way around.

“I think it’s right to let our fans know that’s the truth.”

Sean Dyche praised debutant Beto after he came off the bench to inspire an Everton turnaround and prevent an embarrassing Carabao Cup exit to League Two’s bottom side Doncaster.

After losing their first three Premier League matches without scoring, the Toffees were staring down the barrel of a humiliating defeat in South Yorkshire.

Doncaster dominated the first half and took a deserved lead through a flicked header by Joe Ironside, who avoided an offside call and sparked wild scenes at the Eco-Power Stadium.

Everton held on and belatedly showed their quality, with half-time substitute Beto levelling intelligently a day after signing, before Arnaut Danjuma wrapped up a 2-1 second-round win.

“Fair play to Doncaster, they took it on in the right way,” boss Dyche said after the Toffees earned a third-round trip to Aston Villa.

“They know that there’s no pressure on them – a free hit at us and all the noise and all the rest of it and they used it wisely.

“We weren’t at the races first half but I must say the goal is three yards offside. I would expect that to be given (offside) but it didn’t.

“It’s a big learning curve for some of the younger players because that’s what it’s like to play for Everton Football Club.

“A lot of expectation regardless, no-one cares about injuries and stretched squads. I say it because I mean it and it’s true, but no one really cares, so that’s a big part of their development.

“It can’t always be rosy, it’s tough and they’re young and they’re learning.

“Second half we put more experienced players on who played very well, I thought, and made a big difference to the performance.

“I don’t think it was as good a performance as the weekend (in the loss to Wolves) but you win a game and that was important.”

Everton return to South Yorkshire on Saturday lunchtime to face Sheffield United, where towering striker Beto will surely lead the line after his man-of-the-match display.

“He’s only got here yesterday, so it’s a lot to ask, really,” Dyche said of the big-money signing from Udinese.

“We only got his clearance this morning, so we’d already set the team up. I had it in my mind to put him on at half-time regardless.

“He’s adapted very quickly, done very well tonight. With all due respect, the Premier League is different, but he’s shown the rawness, the pace and the effect that he can have on a team.

“It gives us something different, which is what we brought him here for.”

Doncaster boss Grant McCann was aggrieved his side did not get a penalty for a Vitaliy Mykolenko handball but his overriding emotion was pride after Rovers pushed Everton close.

“I’m pleased, proud of the boys’ performance,” the League Two strugglers’ manager said. “The levels were good against a top-class team.

“I thought particularly first half we were excellent in terms of what we did.

“The second half was difficult with the changes they made, they seemed to get a lot, lot stronger.

“I think we can see over the last couple of games that we’re definitely improving and we’re only going to get stronger.”

Beto and Arnaut Danjuma saved Everton from an embarrassing Carabao Cup exit to the Football League’s bottom side as Sean Dyche’s men came from behind to edge past dogged Doncaster.

Having lost their opening three Premier League games without so much as scoring, a tie against the side 92nd in the standings looked just what the doctor ordered for Sean Dyche’s men.

But Everton’s start to the season threatened to go from bad to worse as League Two’s bottom side took a deserved lead through Joe Ironside’s header.

Doncaster were dreaming of a famous win, but the Premier League visitors belatedly showed signs of life as striker Beto – on as a substitute early in the second half – scored a day after signing from Udinese, before Danjuma secured a late 2-1 victory.

It was a gut punch for Grant McCann’s side but a morale-boosting win for the Toffees, although Dyche will be alarmed by much of his side’s display in South Yorkshire, where they return to take on Sheffield United on Saturday lunchtime.

They looked jittery from the outset and Joseph Olowu wasted a great chance from a corner that followed panicked play at the back.

Doncaster continued to unsettle careless Everton, with Tommy Rowe lashing over from a corner before Zain Westbrooke thrashed a 25-yard drive just wide.

“Premier League, you’re having a laugh” rang around the ground as Everton toiled, taking 41 minutes to manage a shot of any kind at the Eco-Power Stadium.

Danjuma slammed that effort across the face of goal and three minutes later the visitors fell behind.

A short corner routine ended with the ball being played to the edge of the box, where Rowe swung over a cross for Ironside to flick a header past Jordan Pickford from six yards.

Offside appeals were legitimate but there is no VAR at this point of the Carabao Cup.

There would have been an immediate Everton response had goalkeeper Ian Lawlor not smartly stopped Amadou Onana, before Pickford prevented Rowe scoring a second in stoppage time.

But Doncaster remained a threat after the break, with George Broadbent seeing a shot saved before Vitaliy Mykolenko blocked a Mo Faal effort with his hand from a Rowe cutback.

Olowu nearly turned a Mykolenko cross past his own goalkeeper and off balance Beto’s left-footed shot off target summed up their night.

But that chance also lit a fire under the new boy and moments later he had his first goal in blue.

Abdoulaye Doucoure played a hopeful ball down the left channel and Beto beat Olowu to smartly direct it home in the 73rd minute.

“We scored a goal” sung the dancing Everton fans, whose team were now in the ascendancy as Beto saw a header hit a post before Danjuma’s curling effort kissed the crossbar.

Play was scrappy as Doncaster attempted to hold on, with James Garner seeing a close-range attempt blocked before Danjuma broke Doncaster hearts.

Cutting in from the left and collecting a return pass, he made just enough space to get away a right-footed snapshot from just inside the box and beat Lawlor.

Doncaster pushed for a leveller but they had run out of gas, while the offside flag denied Beto his second in stoppage time.

Everton manager Sean Dyche is confident the goalscoring problem which has affected the team for a year will be solved soon.

Despite creating 19 chances against Fulham, the Toffees slipped to an opening game defeat at home – where the top-flight’s lowest scorers lost a record 10 league matches last season.

Central to the issue is the continuing unavailability of injury-plagued Dominic Calvert-Lewin, whose lack of minutes in pre-season means he is still possibly a couple of weeks short of being ready.

However, the arrivals of on-loan Arnaut Danjuma – who made his debut as a late substitute – and young Sporting striker Youssef Chermiti, watching from the stands, will hopefully help to ease the burden as current deputy Neal Maupay wasted a host of chances as he extended his woeful record to one goal in 30 appearances for the club.

“Dominic will get some football this week, amongst others,” said Dyche, who is still looking for reinforcements but knows he must get more out of the limited resources he has.

“He is at the end of his rehab period, so, in the next week or two, we’re going to be stronger, just by our own group and let’s see if we can get something in to help us as well.

“Arnie (Danjuma) is getting fit, properly fit – he knows he’s a bit behind the curve.

“I am confident we have to rely (on players) within the squad because this is what we are at the moment. If we can affect it, we will do.”

Everton had only 41 percent possession but made the most of it and with better finishing could have had the game won by half-time.

While the outcome was disappointing, the manner of the performance was more encouraging than the majority of the relegation scraps they had when Dyche took over in January and guided them to safety on the final day.

“Some of the breakaways, some of the moments, some of the quality of chances were excellent,” the Toffees boss added.

“One of our analysts said about xG, which I’m not that big a believer in but it’s still a reference point, was around three, which is high in the Premier League.

“Inevitably, it’s only a measure but we’ve got to look at where we were and where we are now – and that, I thought, was a big shift.

“Now we’ve got to find those moments to go and score goals.

“But there’s a real strong sign there today, a strong sign of a good outfit there that is creating lots of chances and a lot of good things, so we’ve got to maintain the belief in that.”

Fulham were fortunate to leave Goodison Park with a third successive win and boss Marco Silva admits there is plenty of improvements to be made.

“We need more time to work, our pre-season was not at the level that it should be so we missed a bit of energy,” he said.

“But we were able to win a football match and that shows we have the quality to work.”

Everton manager Sean Dyche was frustrated by his side’s inability to convert their chances and disappointed by the lack of VAR intervention on Michael Keane’s disallowed goal in the 1-0 defeat to Fulham.

Despite an encouraging performance in which they created twice as many chances as the visitors, they were undone by a sucker-punch goal as two Cottagers substitutes Aleksandar Mitrovic and Andreas Pereira combined to provide the third, Bobby Decordova-Reid, with a 73rd-minute tap-in.

But it was the chalking off of Keane’s goal, when he turned the ball into an empty net after goalkeeper Bernd Leno had dropped it in a challenge with James Tarkowski, which was crucial to an Everton side who were the Premier League’s lowest scorers last season.

“Very frustrated with the outcome. We played well and a lot of the things we are looking for were there, especially first half,” said Dyche.

“We limited them to almost no chances or nothing clear while creating nine or 10 in the first half, five of which are high quality. We had one of the highest chance counts in my time. So the mix of the performance is right, but we have to score a goal.

“I am a big fan of VAR, I don’t know why (Keane’s goal was not referred) on this occasion, I get the idea they are promoting the idea the referee’s decision is first but they should step in on this one.

“I can’t really work it out. I have seen it back, Tarky does nothing really, minimal contact other than the keeper landing on him.

“The minimum should be that you go and look at the monitor. He didn’t do anything to put the keeper off and he drops it.”

Fulham boss Marco Silva – a former Everton manager – admitted his side got fortunate with the result.

“It was not a good performance from ourselves. Overall during the game we didn’t perform at our level,” he said.

“Even if we started the game well. after the first 15 minutes we started to lose too many balls in areas it is difficult to lose balls in.

“We gave Everton so many chances to punish us in counter-attacks. It was more our fault because we didn’t perform. Bernd keeps us in the game – a great performance.

“That we are able to win in such circumstances, it is a great feeling. It is not a problem for me to say Everton deserved better.

“It’s a great feeling when you don’t play at your level for 95 minutes and you are able to win away from home.”

Ashley Young has joined Everton on a one-year deal.

The 38-year-old winger turned full-back becomes the Toffees’ first summer signing, joining on a free transfer after his contract expired at Aston Villa.

Young has signed a one-year deal at Goodison Park to work under manager Sean Dyche, who was his captain when first breaking through at Watford.

“The manager was important in me signing,” the former England international and Manchester United captain said.

“I know him and know what his passion and desire is like. His honesty, will to work hard and his hunger for the game is second to none.

“I know things haven’t gone too well for Everton in the past couple of seasons but the manager’s ambition, speaking to him and hearing what he wants to do to change the club around, was a key factor in my decision.

“The other is the size of Everton. It’s a massive club and the fanbase is one of the best.

“Having them behind me is a fantastic opportunity. I’m delighted to get the opportunity to be here and I just want to get started now.”

Young won Serie A with Inter Milan before returning to Villa for a second spell in 2021 and Dyche says Everton are getting “a top-class professional”.

“I’ve known Ashley for many years, having been his captain when he first broke through at Watford, and his qualities both on and off the pitch will prove valuable,” he said.

“His impressive statistics from last season, which were among some of the best in Europe, highlight what he can bring to Everton.”

Sean Dyche is nothing if not realistic and within minutes of achieving his sole aim of saving Everton from relegation he delivered his verdict on the state of the club – and it will have made for difficult listening for his bosses.

The 51-year-old has built a career on plain speaking and pragmatism but until another season in the top flight – the club’s 70th in succession – was secured he had to keep his own counsel, at least in public, on the state of affairs he inherited from predecessor Frank Lampard.

But in the immediate aftermath of the 1-0 win over Bournemouth which safeguarded the Toffees’ future, Dyche laid bare the extent of the problems he feels have riddled the club and outlined what needs to be done to change.

Whether owner Farhad Moshiri, whose £600 million-plus spend on players in just over seven years has almost hastened rather than failed to prevent back-to-back relegation scraps, will listen remains to be seen.

But Dyche knows throwing money at the problem is not the answer, especially as it has now effectively run out with the club making losses of over £430m over four years and facing sanctions next season for breaching profit and sustainability rules.

“The fans have been amazing, they want the club to be in the top end of the market but the club currently is not at the top end of the market,” he said.

“We need solid thinking going forwards. We are not ready to be up there yet, that is quite evident.

“It is going to be building and progress and I need the Evertonians to understand that. I’ll be very surprised if they (the club’s board) say ‘Here’s another war chest, sign who you like’.

“It’s not going to happen so we have to be wise, recruit wisely and recruit players who, if possible, understand this club.

“They have to be able to handle what it is to be part of Everton. I’m learning that all the time and we have to be able to get that heartbeat and also talent as well.

“I’ve tried to be realistic since I’ve been here but the problem with realism is not many people want it because it sounds boring.

“But at the end of the day it is time for that. There was a time when this club went from ‘Let’s just do everything’ but there is a time for realism, that’s what I’ve learned.”

Dyche is already starting to sound like his old self during his decade-long stay at Burnley before his sacking last season in a relegation scrap from which they failed to escape.

He worked miracles on a small budget at Turf Moor, making the club a Premier League regular against the odds, and believes he can turn things around at Goodison Park.

But he needs the people in charge – Moshiri, chairman Bill Kenwright and chief executive Denise Barrett-Baxendale – to accept his version of what the future should look like and abandon lofty but unrealistic ambitions fuelled by influential agents, the owner’s inexperience and a lack of joined-up thinking on a club ethos and recruitment strategy.

This is a club which are on their eighth permanent manager and third director of football since the billionaire took over in 2016.

Dyche, who admitted managing up was as much a part of his job as leading those below him, said on him being the driving force: “Someone has got to. That’s usually the manager.

“Now at least I can bring some of it to the fore and I can say ‘OK, I’ve given you the first step and it’s a big step’ but I need a bit of reality from fans that they don’t think next season we win the first 10 on the trot.

“That’s highly unlikely from a club which has been edging downwards.

“There’s that beautiful stadium down the road (at Bramley-Moore Dock) which someone has to pay for.

“There has to be a reality (about money) because we are trying to build a stadium, they are doing things in the community, and you have to get a team to win.”

On transfers, he added: “Fans want development but really they want first-team footballers who can play and win and that usually implies money.

“But we know about the financial stuff, that has to be realigned, so not yet, I don’t know but I will know at some point.

“Evertonians remember when they had an ‘earthy’ team, a team that gave everything – they are good things even in modern times. Let’s applaud it.

“And of course we want to play good, attacking, pleasing football that can win games. Not easy.”

Sean Dyche fired a warning to Everton’s relegation rivals and vowed his side are alive and kicking ahead of ‘Survival Sunday’.

The Toffees’ last-gasp 1-1 draw at Wolves on Saturday saw them grab what could be a priceless point, with Yerry Mina equalising seconds from the end of nine minute of stoppage time.

Leeds’ 3-1 defeat at West Ham on Sunday left the Toffees two points clear of the Premier League’s bottom three, although if Leicester beat Newcastle on Monday the Foxes will go above Everton on goal difference.

Everton host Bournemouth in Sunday’s finale but boss Dyche believes their battling point at Molineux proves his side are up for the final fight.

“It sends another message that we’re alive and ready, we’re taking it on,” he said.

“We’ve had a few question marks over ourselves and things that have got away from us, but there’s been a lot of good.

“I’ve reminded the players, there are a lot of good players. They are seeing through the challenges, which I’ve spoken to them at length about.

“See through the noise, forget about that. Look at what’s around us, look at the players we’ve got. I was pleased with them on Saturday, not just for the bigger situation.

“A point doesn’t sound a lot – maybe at this stage it is – but also their performance, the will and demand.

“It’s not always about tactics. It can be, but it’s about the will and demand of a group. That was on show to get something out of a game which looked like it was going away from us.

“The consistency of my message to the players has been very similar. Generally there have been tactical and personnel tweaks but the underlying message has been very consistent. The mentality has got stronger and stronger, particularly away from home.

“I think there’s been an obvious shift, but it means nothing unless we take care of ourselves next week.”

Everton went into stoppage time trailing to Hwang Hee-Chan’s first-half opener, but Mina scored with six seconds left of the initial nine added.

It still means their fate is out of their hands until Leicester finish against Newcastle on Monday and Dyche knows it will be difficult to keep his players away from the distractions this week.

He added: “It’s not very easy nowadays because there’s media everywhere. Everyone’s a journo now, it’s not just you guys (the press).

“Everyone with their phone, everyone who wanders around the Trafford Centre. Everyone has an opinion on something, but it’s part of being a modern footballer, manager or coach. It’s the way it is, you adapt. We all know it’s there.”

Everton manager Sean Dyche insists he puts no significance on being outside the bottom three in the relegation battle until the final day of the season.

Rivals’ results meant even after a 3-0 defeat to Manchester City last weekend the team did not drop into the relegation zone.

A Saturday 3pm kick-off at Wolves means Dyche’s side have the chance to crank up the pressure on Leeds and Leicester, in 18th and 19th place, who play on Sunday and Monday respectively.

Only a third away victory of the season would take the Toffees five points clear and ensure they kept their destiny in their own hands.

It would also leave the Foxes needing to win their final two games while Leeds would require at least four points to survive.

But Dyche is not interested in doing the maths even at this late stage.

“I don’t stare at the league. I stare at the performances, I stare at the group, I stare at the prep, I stare at the strategy, I stare at all these things, the tactics, these are the things I’m obsessing with,” he said.

“It’s not about the league table at this stage. I’ve said it for weeks, the one at the end of the season is the most important.

“Of course we all debate it and look at it during a season, of course we do, but the one at the end of the season, that’s the most important, the one we’re looking to be above the line on.

“I think we’ve just stayed very clear-minded, trying to take away the layers of noise around our group to make sure we’re focused on the game.

“That’s all we look to do, others can do however they wish.”

The Everton manager also tried to play down the significance of playing ahead of their rivals on the penultimate weekend of the season.

“You can look at it either way, I’ve been on either side of it,” he said.

“Last club, this club, whether you feel the game is on the right day or wrong day, that’s just the way it goes. The schedule is what it is, you have to deal with it.

“You have to play regardless of what the challenge is. I’ve always looked at it that way so therefore I can’t change the goalposts from someone else’s point of view.

“From my point of view, whenever the game is, it’s about taking it on.”

Striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin has returned to training after a groin problem forced him off against City and is in contention for Saturday’s squad.

Everton manager Sean Dyche insists it would be wrong to think “everything is solved” following their resounding win over Brighton.

A 5-1 victory, only the club’s second away win in the Premier League this season, lifted the relegation-threatened Toffees out of the bottom three and two points clear of the drop zone.

However, despite the morale-boosting result prompting many pundits to now favour Everton escaping a first top-flight relegation since 1951, Dyche has cautioned against complacency – especially with treble-chasing Manchester City next up at Goodison Park.

“When I walked in here the thing that hit me instantly was a big result, big everything; tough result, low everything. That needed to change in-house,” he told the club’s website.

“The in-house feel here, the environment we work in, and the flow had to get more level and more consistent in our daily work and thinking.

“We’ve spoken to the players and staff about it. It’s important to handle good times in terms of not thinking everything is solved and right and proper.

“When I talk about seeing through the noise, that maybe implies when things aren’t going right but it very much applies to when things are going right as well.”

Everton boss Sean Dyche insisted his side never doubted themselves after a thumping 5-1 Premier League victory over Brighton lifted the Toffees two points clear of the relegation zone.

It was Everton’s first away league win in 14 attempts and could not have come at a more opportune time, with just three matches now remaining to secure their top-flight safety.

Abdoulaye Doucoure’s strike after 33 seconds laid down what retrospectively ultimately felt like an emphatic opening statement as both he and Dwight McNeil went on to scores braces on either side of the half.

Dyche said: “People will be out there thinking right, OK, there’s life in that team but we’ve never lost sight of that.

“It just reminds the players that their work ethic, their commitment to the cause, their commitment to the group is really important because I know there’s quality.

“I’ve always believed there’s quality. I’ve said it many times, but talking about it doesn’t win you a game. It’s the collective mentality to go and deliver everything you’ve got.

“We were very frustrated not to come away with all three points (against Leicester) but we got a reward for carrying on that mentality in their performances tonight.”

Doucoure netted his second when he volleyed the ball home after 29 minutes before McNeil’s cross further buried Brighton, with it deflecting off Jordan Steele, who had stooped to save but instead felt the ball bounce off the back of his leg and in.

Alexis Mac Allister clawed one back before McNeil’s first but the Brighton burial was not complete until McNeil fired home the visitors’ fifth in the embers of second-half stoppage-time.

Victory meant Dyche’s side are safe for the time being, with league leaders Manchester City up next followed by encounters with Wolves and Bournemouth.

“They’re very high feeling the feel-good factor,” he added. “But it’s only another step. I said that after Arsenal, and sometimes people forget that. There’s three more big steps we’ve got to take.”

Brighton head coach Roberto De Zerbi, meanwhile, suggested his side’s performance revealed they were not yet ready to go toe-to-toe with the best in the business, though he was unspecific about whether he was looking at England’s top four or more broadly to the other side of the Channel.

It could still be possible for Brighton to secure European football with a seventh-place finish, but De Zerbi’s men would feel more satisfied with a higher position.

He said: “Of course we can lose the game. We can lose against Everton, but I’m disappointed for the first half because it was tough.

“We showed we are not ready yet to compete and to achieve the big target.

“But I am speaking about mentality, not other things, not other parts of football.

“It’s not easy because playing in the last period, three games in a week is difficult if you are not used to playing so many games.

“But if we want to improve, if we want to fix our target higher, we have to improve very fast.”

Sean Dyche believes Everton’s performance in Monday’s 2-2 draw at Leicester has brought the “feel-good factor” back to the squad, even if it did not result in three badly-needed points in their fight against relegation.

Everton remain winless in their last seven games having come from behind to rescue a point at the King Power Stadium, but Dyche was keen to take the positives from a performance in which his side had 23 shots at goal, their most in a Premier League fixture for three and a half years.

As they prepare for another Monday away match – this time a much tougher looking fixture at high-flying Brighton – Dyche said the Leicester game had given his players a confidence boost.

“The Leicester performance was a mixture of what we want,” he said. “Good energy and good detail, apart from the mistakes from the goals. We looked a real threat constantly and I was pleased with the team performance.

“It reaffirms to them that we are on the right track. I know we aren’t in the league and the table, but in the performances we are.

“We didn’t get the full reward for it but we did get the reward of the feel-good factor and rightly so. It’s not easy going on the road in the Premier League.”

Everton won three of Dyche’s first seven games in charge but are now winless since the 1-0 victory over Brentford on March 11, since when they have taken four points from the last seven.

“It’s a quality of performance that we want to build,” Dyche said. “We have done that in certain games, particularly against Arsenal when we first got here. It shows it is in there – it’s the consistency I’ve been searching for.”

Finding that consistency has been a key theme that Dyche has emphasised to his players this week.

“The thing is, it’s parked really quickly,” he added of the Leicester performance. “We have to use it wisely, but then you have to go and deliver it again.

“It can’t be once every few games, it has to be consistent. That is what I have been talking about on the training pitch and what I have been talking about through the media about our performances.”

Everton go into the weekend stuck in 19th position, albeit only one point behind the three teams above them. Leeds head to Manchester City on Saturday while Leicester and Nottingham Forest are, like Everton, both in action on Monday.

“Like everyone in the Premier League, when you’re down, looking up, everything seems different and we have to make sure we take away that feeling and focus on our performance like we did at Leicester,” Dyche said.

“That was about us, that wasn’t about Leicester. That is a thing we have been trying to get the players to really grasp – to grip hold of games, but it’s not easy when you’re playing against top sides.”

Everton manager Sean Dyche has given his backing to Michael Keane amid criticism of the defender’s performances.

Keane, 30, has displaced Conor Coady to become a regular again in Everton’s back four since Dyche – his former manager at Burnley – arrived at Goodison Park, but fans have not necessarily been happy with the result as the relegation-battling Toffees have shipped 20 goals in the 10 games Keane has started.

But Dyche said he retains full faith in a player capped 12 times by England.

“I have faith in all the players,” he said. “I can only pick 11 so I have faith in all of them. At the end of the day, it’s the ups and downs of a footballer, the ups and downs of teams, the ups and down of careers – it all goes into the melting pot.

“These are things the players have to work through, how to handle the goods, bads and indifferents.

“A lot of noise grew in the Newcastle game (a 4-1 defeat on April 27). I thought (Keane) was our best player until the second goal – that’s how it can change very quickly.

“He is a very good player amongst many good players here. Sorting the best 11 at any time, form related at any time, that’s the key to it.”

Coady, a loan signing from Wolves last summer, was a regular alongside James Tarkowski in the first half of the season, but has not featured since February 25, while fellow defender Yerry Mina is available again after injury but has not played since January.

“All the players need to keep doing what they are doing until we pick them, you can only pick 11,” Dyche said. “I make that clear to the players, you can question it and I am happy to speak about it, but you can only pick 11 players.

“Everyone has to stay fit, sharp and committed to the cause and that is what we are looking to do for when the team has to change or does change.”

Monday’s draw left Everton still 19th in the table, albeit only one point behind the three teams above them.

On another night they might have comfortably won at the King Power Stadium having taken 23 shots at goal, but they were equally indebted to Jordan Pickford saving James Maddison’s penalty late in the first half to avoid going 3-1 down.

Dyche said the performance gave his side confidence and reason to believe in what they were doing, saying “it reaffirms to them that we are on the right track”.

But with a trip to Europe-chasing Brighton on Monday to be followed by the visit of reigning champions and title favourites Manchester City, Everton cannot afford to play so openly.

“There’s a risk and reward,” Dyche said. “Defending correctly, attacking correctly, you have to find a balance somewhere. Some games just pan out like that.

“Palace (a 0-0 draw at Selhurst Park on April 22) was the complete opposite, that was a slow, methodical game.

“Maybe the intensity of it, the feel of it, the fact it was a big game, sometimes that can bring an openness to a game and sometimes it stays tight but you can’t define a game until it starts and you see it in front of your eyes.

“You want to control performances but Leicester wanted to win the game and we wanted to win the game. You have to balance it, I think we did that but we didn’t get the result we were looking for.”

Everton manager Sean Dyche admits nerves are having an inhibiting effect on his side’s hopes of escaping relegation.

The Toffees boss has spoken about correcting minor details and being encouraged by aspects of certain performances but his acceptance that the perilous situation the club are in, as they seek to safeguard their current 69-year top-flight existence, is impacting the squad does not bode well for Monday’s must-win game at fellow strugglers Leicester.

Asked why he thought results – now just one win in 10 matches – had declined, Dyche said: “Nerves, tension, focus, build-up to games.

“There have been injuries, suspensions, different players coming in and out the side, all those things go into that.

“You are looking to work through those periods when the challenges come. Like we did at Chelsea and Tottenham, we got good points.

“The two (occasions) that stick in my craw a bit are the second half against Fulham (losing 3-1 having equalised) and the second half on Thursday (when they conceded three goals in 10 minutes in the 4-1 defeat to Newcastle) without a shadow of doubt.

“It is tough when the games are quick because there is only so much you can do to prep a team, usually it is rest, recuperation, some tactical planning and some tactical work.

“This (Newcastle defeat) has to be shut down quickly because we have to be ready to go on Monday.

“I spoke to the players in the week about the ongoing mentality about performing. At this stage of the season it comes down to will, demand and mentality to take games on.”

Dyche hopes captain Seamus Coleman’s return will help bring some much-needed leadership to his relegation-threatened side.

The Republic of Ireland international has missed the last three matches with a hamstring problem and during that time the Toffees have picked up just one point, conceded seven times and even in the goalless draw at Crystal Palace looked over-exposed at right-back.

Coleman is expected to be fit to regain his place in the team and bolster a flank on which stand-ins Mason Holgate, who was sent off for two yellow cards at Selhurst Park, and Ben Godfrey look out of their depth.

The 34-year-old is also the most progressive option of the three when it comes to being confident enough to overlap in attack but it is his experience which may be most needed as they head into a must-win game against fellow strugglers Leicester.

“He’s a very important player with his history and understanding of the club,” said Dyche.

“He has been a loss for us so we do look forward to him being back. Until the second goal (in Thursday’s 4-1 home defeat by Newcastle) it was a very good performance but after the second goal that’s the big challenge for me.

“Where did the mentality go? How quickly did that change? Who re-grips it? Who in our team goes ‘right, OK, let’s re-grip what we’re doing here’ because we weren’t a million miles away? You can’t wait for it to happen.”

The Newcastle defeat was hugely damaging, not only because it left them with just two more home matches – one of which is against Manchester City – to extend their 69-year top-flight stay, but because of the effect it had on morale.

Players looked shot at the final whistle, at which time Goodison Park was half-empty as the supporters who had lined the streets to greet the team coach with their pyrotechnics and flags had headed for the exits after Newcastle’s third went in.

Asked whether he thought the team had lost the fans, Dyche added: “I don’t think so. I think they will be backing the club to the end.”

Everton manager Sean Dyche hopes captain Seamus Coleman’s return will help bring some much-needed leadership to his relegation-threatened side.

The Republic of Ireland international has missed the last three matches with a hamstring problem and during that time the Toffees have picked up just one point, conceded seven times and even in the goalless draw at Crystal Palace looked over-exposed at right-back.

Coleman is expected to be fit to regain his place in the team and bolster a flank on which has seen stand-ins Mason Holgate, who was sent off for two yellow cards at Selhurst Park, and Ben Godfrey look out of their depth.

The 34-year-old is also the most progressive option of the three when it comes to being confident enough to overlap in attack but it is his experience which may be most needed as they head into a must-win game against fellow strugglers Leicester.

“He’s a very important player with his history and understanding of the club,” said Dyche.

“He has been a loss for us so we do look forward to him being back. Until the second goal (in Thursday’s 4-1 home defeat by Newcastle) it was a very good performance but after the second goal that’s the big challenge for me.

“Where did the mentality go? How quickly did that change? Who re-grips it? Who in our team goes ‘right, OK, let’s re-grip what we’re doing here’ because we weren’t a million miles away? You can’t wait for it to happen.”

The Newcastle defeat was hugely-damaging, not only because it left them with just two more home matches – one of which is against Manchester City – to extend their 69-year top-flight stay, but because of the effect it had on morale.

Players looked shot at the final whistle, at which time Goodison Park was half-empty as the supporters who had lined the streets to greet the team coach with their pyrotechnics and flags had headed for the exits after Newcastle’s third went in.

Asked whether he thought the team had lost the fans, Dyche added: “I don’t think so. I think they will be backing the club to the end.”