A WHOLE LOTTI LOVE

Whisper it quietly but confidence is growing at Everton under Ancelotti and a draw today would be enough to send them to the summit

WITH the opportunity for Everton to top the Premier League today, these are heady days for the Merseyside club.

There is a feel-good factor at Goodison that has not only inspired their supporters but infected the players too.

And manager Carlo Ancelotti has revealed he senses a real change in mood around the club since the dark days of his arrival last season.

A draw at Crystal Palace this afternoon would put the Blues top for at least a day. Remarkably, before this campaign got under way, it had been 13 years since Everton had experienced that.

Back in August 2007 they beat Spurs to climb to the summit with a team that included eight Englishmen. This time around, things are decidedly different.

There is a South American flair in the shape of Colombian superstar James Rodriguez. Add Allan and Brazilian team-mates Richarlison and Bernard to the mix, and another Colombian in Yerry Mina, along with Portuguese thoroughbred Andre Gomes, and the Latin influence is as unpredictable as it is exciting.

Ancelotti says that is one of the factors behind the turnaround he has seen in a squad that was in a desperate state when he arrived. A big factor, but by no means the only one.

“There is a sense of a good feeling around the squad,” said the manager.

“We started the season with more motivation and more ambition.

“The signings make a difference, of course. That can be one reason. But I don’t think that is the only reason – we started so well because of a number of reasons.

“But I do see different motivation, a different attitude, a different atmosphere on the training ground and on the pitch.”

Ancelotti didn’t spell it out but the transformation has been as much in mentality as in quality.

When he arrived, Everton were dangling dangerously close to the relegation zone with a squad lacking in confidence, and lacking also a clear understanding of what previous manager Marco Silva wanted.

There was no obvious philosophy in his approach, no obvious technical or tactical blueprint. Ancelotti recognised that, and addressed it immediately.

He knew he could not restore confidence right away, so instead he imposed structure and organisation, adopting his favoured 4-4-2 and allowing the players time to respond to his demands.

It wasn’t always pretty but, apart from a dip at the end of the campaign when there was nothing to play for, there was a real improvement in results...and attitude.

He said: “Last season was really difficult for us, really really difficult at the beginning when I arrived.

“Maybe the motivation now is because we don’t want to have the same difficulties as last season. We want a different feeling – and at the moment the sensations are good, the confidence is good, the momentum is good.”

The challenge, of course, is maintaining it.

In 2007 manager David Moyes did that with a fine endof-season run that took Everton up to fifth and so nearly delivered his second shot at the Champions League.

Ancelotti has been clear this season: they have to aim for the top, to deliver a European place at least.

It is early days but if there’s a manager who can deliver that at Goodison, then it will probably be Ancelotti.