Alex Dyer confident he hasn't lost Kilmarnock dressing room

The Rugby Park side have lost eight of their last nine Premiership matches

Published 28th Dec 2020

Kilmarnock boss Alex Dyer is confident he has not lost the changing room.

A stoppage-time winner for Livingston on Saturday made it five defeats in a row for Killie and eight losses in nine Scottish Premiership games.

Dyer admitted after Saturday's defeat that he would have no complaints if the Rugby Park board decided his time was up, although he believes he retains their backing, as well as his players'.

"The reality is if you don't win games then it's up to them to make a decision,'' he said ahead of Wednesday's trip to Motherwell.

"That's life, that's football, I am not naive to that situation. I have been in the game long enough. If you don't win enough games, or it don't look like you can win games, then obviously you are going to get moved on. That's facts.

"But it's not something I am concerned about because I know, while I am here, every day I come in and the players train well. We have still got each other's back, which is a good thing. I have not lost that changing room. So I am all right with that.

"I want to turn it round, I want to be given time to turn it round, but if the owner, Billy (Bowie), who is a good man, says 'time is time' then I will shake his hand and move on because he is not going to sack me because he wants to sack me, he is going to sack me because the results are not good enough.

"But I am giving it 100 per cent and the players are doing the same. On Saturday we sat in the changing room and no-one could believe it. They were hurting.

"But they came in today and trained and the atmosphere was good and we look forward to Wednesday's game. They still want to climb the league and have that ambition.''

Dyer is working hard to restore his team's confidence.

Most of Dyer's squad enjoyed successful seasons at Rugby Park in recent years and the manager admits the mental side of their preparations are crucial in turning around their form.

"If we get a win that might push them on a little bit and give them that little bit of arrogance that you need to be footballers,'' he said.

"We don't have that at the moment because we are low on confidence, but a win or a draw pushes you in the right direction.

"It's an important part of football, it's an important part of life in general, your mental state.

"And the players need it, when it's not going so well, you have to keep telling them that they are good players, that it will change, and keep telling them to believe in what we are doing.

"It's always hard when results are not going your way but you have to carry on and think about the times it has gone well when you have been doing the same thing, and you have to get that into your mindset.

"It's not like we are getting whooped every week, the games have been tight, we just need a little bit of fortune, but that comes from working hard and believing in what you are doing.''