This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…
Phil Hay, a journalist with an esteemed history of covering Leeds United for both the Yorkshire Evening Post and now The Athletic, has shed light on the solidarity in the dressing room at Everton, with a number of players learning foreign languages for better communication amongst the team.
What did he say?
Everton, like most modern day football clubs, are a multinational outfit.
In the dressing room, languages range from Italian with Moise Kean, Spanish with Yerry Mina, to Icelandic from Gylfi Sigurdsson.
Most players will naturally feel the urge to learn or fine-tune their English language skills after moving to a Premier League outfit, but it’s not only the foreign players who are taking time to learn a new language.
Hay wrote for The Athletic: “Everton and Silva want Richarlison to speak more English. The same goes for Yerry Mina, a Colombian who came from Barcelona last year with no great grasp of the language.”
Hay later went on to add: “What is interesting at Everton — and what underlines the value of being multilingual — is that a number of their British players are taking lessons in Spanish, to help the lines of communication on the pitch and away from it.
“One source spoken to by The Athletic described it as a ‘contra deal’ at Goodison Park, where footballers of different nationalities help each other to learn.”
A positive future
Everton are currently sat just two points above the relegation zone after a shocking start to this Premier League season. Plus, with Marco Silva under constant pressure right now, it all seems slightly doom and gloom on the blue side of Merseyside.
However, it does seem like there is a togetherness amongst the players, which is only going to benefit the club moving forward. It is a very smart touch from the players to agree to this “contra deal” because as times get tough at Goodison Park, positive communication will be more vital than ever.
The last thing Silva would want is animosity and a lack of understanding between his players, and the report from Hay can only be positive news for the Blues.
Right now, Everton need to rally together and this intriguing touch is one that should ultimately pay off in the long term.