Morgan Schneiderlin has spoken out about the rumours that he and Everton teammate Kevin Mirallas were guilty of giving less than the required effort in training last month.
Reports emerged in early November that then-caretaker boss David Unsworth had lost his patience with the pair and had sent them home from Finch Farm after both gave less than was expected of them.
Neither player was included in the matchday squad for the next game and fans began turning on Schneiderlin and Mirallas, after believing the media reports.
Schneiderlin, meanwhile, took to Twitter to rubbish the claims with a
sweary post.
https://twitter.com/SportsJOE_UK/status/932890148286664705
Schneiderlin has featured in every game since Sam Allardyce was appointed as the new Toffees manager but the Frenchman has admitted that he's still trying to rebuild the relationship with the club's supporters which became frayed in the midst of the rumour.
"Yeah, I'm trying to do [that], it was a thing coming out from nothing," Schneiderlin told
Sky Sports. "I was surprised that this story came out because I didn't really do anything.
"It was the choice of the manager not to put me in the squad, it was not because I behaved bad or something. It was just a choice for him [Unsworth].
"For myself I was surprised but there will always be some people who are going to believe what they read in the press.
"My only thing is to show them on the pitch that I'm 100 per cent focused. I can assure everyone that I am focused, that I'm just thinking about Everton and to improve the results and myself everyday."
