When we report what somebody said with a reporting verb in the past, the pronouns and the time phrase may all have to be changed to indicate the time shift to the past.
EXAMPLE:
He said, "We'll be coming soon."
He said that they would be coming soon.
Exceptions are the modals SHOULD, WOULD, COULD, OUGHT TO and MIGHT and Second and Third Conditionals.
If we want to be more precise it is advisable to use other reporting verbs apart from SAY, TELL and ASK. But we have to be careful when choosing the most appropriate verb and be aware of the whole meaning of the sentence or situation we want to report. Once we are sure we have chosen the right verb we have to pay attention to the structure that follows it because there are different structures used after them.
Good revision!
mbgo