Everton defender Seamus Coleman feels modern-day footballers are ‘too precious’ over criticism
Coleman backs Toffees boss Ronald Koeman's public criticism of some of his teammates
EVERTON defender Seamus Coleman believes today's footballers are "too precious", when it comes to criticism.
His boss Ronald Koeman has publicly slated the performances of some of his players at times during the season, in particular midfielder Ross Barkley.
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"If you have a bad game and someone highlights it on the TV or in the papers then so be it because that's the job we're in.
"We get paid a lot of money to do what we do and if we can't take criticism then there's something wrong and I think it shows a weakness in a player.
"If I don't play will then, first and foremost, I know myself that I haven't played well.
"But if the manager highlights that I haven't played well then that's just the way it is, I've been used to that."
Everton have been in excellent form in the Premier League, winning three of their four games in 2017.
And Coleman says that with the Toffees' players rightly receiving praise at the moment, they can't shy away when they hit a dip in form and take some flak.
He said: "I know every player's different and I can only speak for myself, but I always feel that I have to impress people and try and prove people wrong.
"It's the game we're in, you're going to get criticised just like you're going to get praised when you do well.
"So you can't take all the good and not take any of the bad, you've just got to get the balance right."