Everton signing says Liverpool is ‘a bit of a sad town’
Djibril Sidibe says life at Everton is “going well” but has labelled Liverpool “a bit of a… sad town”.
The France defender signed on a season-long loan from Monaco, with the Toffees holding an option to buy the 27-year-old on a permanent deal at the end of the season.
Sidibe has made seven appearances so far this season, but has seen his path blocked to the first team by Seamus Coleman.
Everton boss Marco Silva also wants more from his new recruit, who missed the majority of pre-season training.
“I believe every time we will see Djibril playing we will see him integrate and know better the Premier League because he is an experienced player but the competition is new to him,” said Silva
“He did well in the last game. I am 100% sure he can do more because I will demand from him. He had good moments, the assist for the first goal, but he will improve that because of the conditions he has.
“I will demand more like I am demanding from the others, like I am demanding from Seamus as well.”
That led to suggestions that Sidibe was unhappy with life on the Everton bench and Calciomercato claimed AC Milan were hoping to snap him up in January.
Sidibe though insists he is settled, albeit in Manchester.
He told L’Est Eclair via Sport Witness: “It’s going well, I’m acclimatising bit by bit. I needed a bit of time, which is completely normal, especially since the Premier League is different. It’s an excellent league, probably the best in the world, with a lot of intensity.
“I live near Manchester, like the majority of players at Liverpool and Everton. Why? Let’s say Liverpool is a bit of a… sad town, that went through some suffering in the past. My kids go to an international school. They’re getting used to it too. As for my English, the club have a teacher there that we can go see every day, so when I have time, I go to class to get up to date.”
The Monaco man though says he was happy to follow in the footsteps of Fabinho, Bernardo Silva and Benjamin Mendy swap the Mediterranean for Merseyside.
He added: “There’s a reason they’re there. But you’re right, when you leave the Mediterranean sun for Liverpool’s rain, it hits you hard. It’s not easy everyday, but you make do with it. I already got a taste of it when I was at Lille.
“Here, in the north of England, it really rains all the time. From morning to evening. It’s part of my new life, even if I wouldn’t mind a ray of sunshine from time to time. I don’t mind it. As I said, I know why I crossed the Channel. It’s for other reasons in England. I’ll have other life pleasures. The career of a footballer is short, so you need to know when to take good challenges.”