Daniel Farke’s belief in how to play the game should not be mistaken as a stubborn refusal to change course to get Norwich City upwardly mobile in the Premier League.
Farke raised the prospect of a change of shape at Goodison Park on Friday, afforded by the return to fitness of centre back Christoph Zimmermann.
City have been easy to penetrate and lacking in a cutting edge during this seven-game winless run. Farke knows the numbers make gloomy reading and the onus is on him to come up with a template to keep high quality opponents off-balance.
"It's always important to be flexible, and believe me, we don't just have a plan A but also a plan B, C and D or whatever," said Farke. "Yes, we stick to our philosophy and our principles but within that you have to be flexible in order to adapt to each and every opponent. We are flexible in our base formation. We are not addicted to a four-man or a three-man or a five-man formation.
"The most important thing is you stick to your central principles because you can't be one day like this and then other day like that - like a flag in the wind. When everything is great after a win it can't be you don't need to change and then after a defeat you change everything.
"We have built the squad in a certain way and you can't expect us just to try to park the bus and put the ball in the stand or over the stand and into the river.
"No, we want to play football, we want to try and be the protagonists on the pitch. But for each and every game you have to create a special game plan."
Farke senses Everton may have harnessed that precious commodity after two wins and a draw the other side of the recent international break.
"The last results were more than decent, a draw against Tottenham and also two wins and you could say it might not be the best time to play them," said Farke. "They have had a boost of confidence and they know three points in this game can help them make an important step into the top half.
"For me, a great club with a group of players who are unlikely to be in a position where they have to fight for relegation. They have potential as a club to fight for European positions.
"I'm pretty confident that Marco (Silva) has all the right abilities. He is so experienced and a great guy and he can lead them to success, but although they deserve to be in a much better position than they are I hope they can start to climb the table after this weekend."
Farke is confident City have got the most out of the international shutdown, after shedding the frustration of a Watford defeat.
"Sometimes following a loss you want to immediately go back to the pitch to win some points," he said. "It was important for us because we had too many injury problems and it gave some players proper training weeks to get fit.
"It was an advantage for us to have this break, for the mood and to help calm everything down. We are full of energy again and I can't wait to go again.
"We are in a dry spell now and that is tough for experienced players, not just younger ones. It's quite normal sometimes you are not full of self confidence. This is a new situation for many of them.
"You can speak about a side who is used to a relegation battle and say they have the experience to handle this. A newly promoted side, especially such a young squad, you have to learn a little bit. This is just a process. It's not like you can press a button."
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