Carlo’s Euro hopes in balance IT’S MAKE OR BREAK Alan Stubbs

ALAN STUBBS believes that Everton’s away clash with Arsenal is the start of the defining period in their season under Carlo Ancelotti.

The former Toffees centre-back – a boyhood Evertonian – has heaped praise on the Italian manager for the way he has inspired a “confused” group of players.

Ancelotti has masterminded a stunning resurgence in form since taking charge, dragging the club from 15th place and four points off the relegation zone to sitting comfortably in the table ahead of this afternoon’s visit to The Emirates.

It is the beginning of a run of games that will make or break the spirit of resistance Ancelotti has instilled.

Victory over the Gunners could send Everton seventh, depending on today’s results of Manchester United and Wolves.

That will send Ancelotti into March where they will host United at Goodison Park, then travel to Stamford Bridge to face fourth-place Chelsea before welcoming Liverpool for the Merseyside derby.

“These next four games will define Everton’s season,” said Stubbs.

“The good thing now is that this is an Everton team that will approach these types of games in a completely different way to three months ago.

“They won’t go to Arsenal with any fear but I was fearing the worst going into December’s fixtures. The way they were playing under Marco Silva I thought there was a possibility they wouldn’t win any points and end up in the bottom two.

“But the club made the change. Duncan Ferguson got a response out of the team for a couple of games and under Carlo Ancelotti they have clawed themselves into a position where they have a fighting chance of getting into that top six.

“It starts against Arsenal but there are going to be some other really tough games after that.”

Their respective league positions tells a lot about how the two sides have fared since announcing their new managers at the same time.

Both Ancelotti and Mikel Arteta, who replaced Unai Emery in the Arsenal dugout, watched from the directors’ box when they played out a drab 0-0 draw last year. While the Italian has helped his charges move from four points off the drop zone to five off the Champions League places, Arsenal have only gone from 11th to 10th by taking 11 points, six fewer than Everton.

Arsenal can still leapfrog Everton with a win and it hasn’t all been plain sailing for Ancelotti. There may have been back-toback wins in his first two games but that was followed by FA Cup defeat at the hands of an unrecognisable Liverpool reserve team.

However, the 3-2 win over Watford earlier this month provided evidence of a stronger backbone within the team. After falling 2-0 behind, Everton rallied for a stunning comeback – the first time since December 2017 they had won having trailed in a Premier League game.

Stubbs, though, says there is no magic formula for what the new boss has been able to achieve.

“It is the sign of great manager when he doesn’t complicate things,” he said. “Everyone in that Everton dressing room knows what their jobs are. Under previous managers things were complicated and players went out on to the pitch confused.

“Ancelotti has won everything as a player and a manager. From what I gather one of his biggest strengths is that he’s a very, good man-manager. His style is coming through and the players are responding.

“This is not even his team yet. We won’t see the finished article for two or three transfer windows.”