Europa League can restore "feel-good factor" at Everton FC

LEIGHTON BAINES hopes Everton’s Europa League campaign can restore a “feel-good factor” at Goodison Park as their league form continues to underwhelm.


The Blues were left frustrated once more on Sunday as they were held to a 2-2 draw at home to Leicester City, the Premier League’s bottom club.

It means Roberto Martinez’s side have won just one of their last 10 league matches, and have not tasted success at Goodison Park since December 15.

In Europe, however, it has been a different story. Having topped their Europa League group in style before Christmas, they now have one foot in the last-16 having beaten Young Boys 4-1 in their first-leg clash last week.

And with the second leg to come at Goodison this Thursday, Baines has called on the Blues to give their supporters something to shout about.

He said: “That’s been kind of a theme this season; the Europa League is where we’ve had some success and some joy so far.

“Hopefully, we can get a win, get into the next round and get a bit of a feel-good factor. We need to get through that and go into the next league game (against Arsenal) with a bit of confidence.

“It’s not done yet, so you can’t take your eye off it. We couldn’t have asked for a much better position to be in, but we’ve still got to make sure we go out there and do the job.”

With Everton marooned in 12th place in the Premier League table, Baines admits there is frustration among the players, and says they have to be better in terms of breaking down stubborn opposition.

He said: “Once again, it is a game that we should be winning, and we’ve ended up having to battle our way back just to get a point. It’s frustrating and disappointing.

“For the most part, we obviously haven’t been able to (break teams down). Try as we might, we’ve tried hard to figure it out, but what we’ve been doing hasn’t been good enough the majority of the time.

“There have been numerous games here that we’d expect to win, that we’ve either come away with a point from, or even nothing. We’re fully aware that that’s not good enough.”

Asked if the Europa League may have had an effect on league results, the full-back added: “You don’t look for excuses. The real answer is that you just don’t know (if it has an effect). Sometimes you feel fine, and sometimes it catches up with you.

“I think the lads who played the other night felt alright before the game. The real issue is that the quality of what we’re producing isn’t good enough.”


By Neil Jones, Liverpool Echo