JAKE BACK ON RIGHT TRACK AFTER START HE DIDN'T WANT

O'Brien looking to hit ground running whatever position he plays in

- By CHRIS BEESLEY ECHO Reporter [e-mail] @CBeesleyEcho

AKE O'BRIEN admits being frozen out of the action by Sean Dyche “wasn’t what I expected” after he became Everton's biggest buy of last summer, but he's looking to evolve as a right-back if deployed there again next season.

Completing a £16.43million transfer from Olympique Lyonnais on July 30, 2024, the Republic of Ireland international failed to start a Premier League game under Dyche and the defender was restricted to just 34 minutes of action in the competition in the shape of a couple of cameo appearances off the bench.

O'Brien told the ECHO: “I think since the new gaffer came in, it’s been a huge change. Not just in terms of me playing, but the results that came with it.

“We'd had a tough start to last season, and we hadn’t done very well.

“This season, we're looking to start better and push on.

“It was disappointing. It wasn’t what I was expecting but I still trained really hard every day and came in and knew once I got my chance, I’d grab it.

“I just came in every day and did my best, that’s all you can do in a situation like that.

“You've just got to train your best, do what you can do, and eventually your chance will come.”