JAN 22 — Everton’s interim manager Duncan Ferguson said the Merseyside club suffered a case of stage fright in today’s 1-0 Premier League loss to Aston Villa but credited his players for the fight they put up at a tense Goodison Park.
Villa’s Emiliano Buendia scored from a corner late in a first half during which Everton were found wanting in attack but the hosts nearly scored in the second half after substitutions allowed them to create more chances.
The result leaves Everton in 16th place, five points above the relegation zone, and Ferguson said they must pick themselves up soon.
“In the first half we were a wee bit off it, maybe a wee bit of stage fright. We weren’t creating many chances in the first half,” Ferguson said in a post-match interview.
“I thought in the second half the boys gave everything, we just lacked a bit of quality in the final third.”
However, Ferguson said he could not fault the team’s effort as they searched for an equaliser in the second half.
“The training has been brilliant, they have really put a shift in and they put in a shift today,” he added. — Reuters
