O'Neill backs Toffees challenge

Villa boss thinks Merseysiders will come good

By Elliot Ball   Last updated: 30th October 2009   Subscribe to RSS Feed

O'Neill backs Toffees challenge

O'Neill: backing Toffees revival

I've got empathy for the situation but I wouldn't start feeling too sorry for them and they will be up there challenging again

Martin O'Neill
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Martin O'Neill expects Everton to be amongst the UEFA Champions League pack come the end of the season, despite another uninspiring start.

The Toffees are quickly becoming known as slow starters after reluctantly replicating last season's stuttering start to the league which currently sees them placed 14th in the table.

A large reason for their poor opening was the on-and-off the field troubles relating to the future of star defender Joleon Lescott, who eventually left Merseyside to join mega-rich Manchester City in a £24million move.

Last term David Moyes' men managed to claw back an indifferent start, not only to pip Saturday's competition Aston Villa to fifth spot, but also to reach the final of the FA Cup where they succumbed to Chelsea.

But the 2009/2010 campaign looks set to be an entirely different challenge for Everton with City, Tottenham and Sunderland demonstrating their credentials with vast improvements in personnel and results this term.

With Villa also going strong, some critics suggest the Merseysiders are the likeliest to fall down the pecking order.

But O'Neill has revealed he is not one of those critics and the Northern Irishman fully expects his weekend opponents to be involved in the business end of things come May.

Upheaval

The Villa boss said: "It's been a really tough start for them. They were involved in the Uefa Cup and the last thing you want to do is have upheaval (with Lescott) particularly at that stage of the season.

"But I would say that they have shown a great resilience in the last couple of seasons.

"I thought by their own standards last season they got off to a stodgy start and I don't think that they could win at home for a while.

"But they fought back and ended up finishing fifth in the league and reaching the FA Cup final.

"I've got empathy for the situation (with Lescott) but I wouldn't start feeling too sorry for them and they will be up there challenging again.

"Yes, it is a stodgy period for them but my view is that, if any side is capable of pulling out of it, outside the top four, it is Everton."

O'Neill added: "You have to get over the loss of players. We've lost Gareth Barry (to City) and Martin Laursen (retirement). It's been mentioned that losing Laursen is comparable to losing Lescott and they're definite losses.

"But once they're gone, you've got to get over it - although I would say Laursen's loss to us in the latter half of the season was particularly damaging."

Midfield goals

Villa striker Gabriel Agbonlahor will look to continue the hot streak of form which has brought him six goals in the last eight games.

But O'Neill is demanding a greater scoring contribution from his midfield players.

He said: "I think if you are going to be successful you have to have a goalscoring midfield. You would have to be exceptionally lucky to go through and not have someone scoring from midfield and yet still be really successful.

"There are more goals in this team and in terms of goals scored in matches at the moment, it is not up there, so we should be sharing goals around more.

"We should be getting more from midfield. That is something we haven't really had here. In my time here Gareth Barry scored, although a lot of his were penalty kicks.

"It is vitally important that you have a goalscoring midfield."