Date published: Friday 5th March 2021 9:19 – Lewis Oldham
Former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy has conceded that Everton “might sneak in” to the top four at the end of this season.
The Toffees have looked really strong this campaign, which has been helped massively by the appointment of Carlo Ancelotti. The ex-Real Madrid and AC Milan boss has done a great job since taking over.
They arguably did the best summer business out of any Premier League club. James Rodriguez, Allan Abdoulaye Doucoure and Ben Godrey were included in the new recruits.
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Everton currently sit fifth in the Premier League after 26 games. They are three points ahead of Liverpool with a game in hand.
Speaking to talkSPORT, Murphy admitted that he has not “seen enough” from Liverpool to make him think that they will recover:
“I would have said Liverpool would bounce back but I haven’t seen enough unfortunately and that’s hard to say coming from me.
“I think Everton might sneak in, and it pains me to say that, as they look really strong defensively at the moment.
“The looks of (Ben) Godfrey have been terrific, (Mason) Holgate, (Michael) Keane, they look really difficult to beat.
“Sometimes, at this stage of the season, it’s not about how good you look on the eye. It’s how you are getting over the line in games.”
“If he’d have walked into the team, sat in front of (Virgil) Van Dijk and (Joe) Gomez, alongside Fabinho and (Jordan) Henderson, for example, you’d be seeing a different player.
“He might not be the dynamic, box-to-box midfielder everyone thinks Liverpool need but when you are playing well, and back to playing well, you will see someone who can control tempo and do everything in midfield you need to do.
“I think he’ll be fine when they get everyone back.”