Everton will return to Goodison Park where they will host defending champions Manchester City for the final time on Saturday. Ahead of the clash, David Moyes spoke to the media in the pre-match press conference.
Heading into the final stage of the season, Moyes’ arrival has completely changed the situation at the club. The Toffees were one point away from the dreaded relegation zone when Sean Dyche was sacked. They now sit in 13th place and are 17 points clear of the red line.
With 11 teams possibly qualifying for Europe next season, Moyes was asked about whether Everton stand a chance. “If [when I joined] you said we were avoiding relegation, I’d say thanks very much – that’s the job I’m here to do. But I want to look up and make the club feel better. We’d probably have to win as many games as possible and go unbeaten,” said Moyes.
The Scot also added that if the club ends up qualifying for Europe, he would get a squad of necessary quality ready for the challenge. The Blues are five points away from Brentford in 11th place and although it is theoretically possible, it is highly improbable for the Premier League to have 11 teams playing European football next season.
In order to do so, Arsenal need to win the Champions League, Manchester United or Tottenham to win the Europa League, Chelsea to win the Conference League, and all three sides to finish outside the top six.
On a more realistic note, Everton could mathematically confirm their place in the Premier League next season by picking up a point against Pep Guardiola’s side this weekend. The Toffees will look to their reverse fixture for inspiration given that they already held City to a 1-1 draw this season away from home.
David Moyes also said that although Dwight McNeil has been training for a couple of weeks, he’s not ready to start just yet. “He’s getting more ready, he’s had a couple of weeks’ training and short periods in games – he’s getting up to the intensity, but he was out for a long time. We need him and he’s really important, but I don’t know if he’s quite ready yet.”
Asked about the pending players’ contracts which had been held off until Everton were mathematically safe from relegation, the Scot added, “We’ve got a few coming out of contract but we want to keep everybody right, we won’t leave it until the last minute, but we’ll do it when we’re ready and won’t be dictated by the players.”