Seamus Coleman insists he has not played as badly as some of his most recent critics have signalled this season.
The 30-year-old Killybegs man was reinstated back into Marco Silva’s plans for their midweek fixture against Cardiff City, a game he earned an assist from, and for Everton’s impressive Merseyside derby display on Sunday evening.
With Euro 2020 qualifiers on the horizon with Mick McCarthy’s Republic of Ireland this month, Coleman said he was looking forward to joining up with the squad.
Speaking to Off The Ball, Coleman said: “He (Mick McCarthy) will get us together quite quickly and a few lads I know have spoken to him.
“He is really ready for the job and we need to be equally as ready and there is not a while long time to gather before the game but, any time you go play for your country you’ve got be ready,” he added.
“It’s the start of a new campaign, I’m sure everybody is looking forward to it.”
With speculation suggesting Wolves defender Matt Doherty could replace Coleman at right-back under McCarthy, the Everton full-back insisted he was only thinking about his own performance.
“When you stop thinking about yourself and start thinking about other things, that’s when things start to go wrong.
“I’ve just got to look at myself, if I am not playing well I understand that, but I have definitely not played as badly as some people might say at times.
“It’s not been to my standards but there have been games where I have been good. I have been here quite a long time but for my own standards, it is not where I want to be.
Whether Doherty and the Killybegs man would work well on the right-side together, Coleman was keen not to add fuel to the fire, opting to leave those decisions up to the new man in charge.
“That is not up to me, that is up to the manager,’ Coleman said. “Matt (Doherty) is having a brilliant season in a right-wing-back position, which is something I haven’t played as much as Matt but, he is doing great in that position.
“For me, it is me against me, not against anyone else.”
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