A ROD & Sheedy wants fight to go

EVERTON have shown they possess all the attacking skills needed to be the early pacesetters in the Premier League.

Now Toffees legend Kevin Sheedy wants them to back it up with some steel to stay there.

And he feels today’s trip to Southampton will be the ideal test of their credentials if they must cope without their new talisman, James Rodriguez.

Manager Carlo Ancelotti revealed the Colombian suffered an injury early in last weekend’s Merseyside derby following a late tackle from Virgil van Dijk.

While he managed to see out the 90 minutes at Goodison, James paid the price and only returned to partial training on Friday ahead of the clash at St Mary’s.

With three goals and three assists from his first five league games, Sheedy says the onus is now on his team-mates to step up and show they are not reliant on one man to make them tick should he not feature.

“James has shown he is the real deal,” the former Republic of Ireland international (right) said. “He has made an exceptional start to his career with Everton.

“He has settled in straight away and when you have a manager who you have worked with before and has total faith in you, that makes things much easier for you as a player.

“It gives you the freedom to go out and play your natural game. That is what James has done so far and it’s been a real treat to watch, even if it’s a shame the Everton fans aren’t there to see their team play with the confidence they have right now.

“There have been some false dawns with signings down the years but James is definitely the real deal. He isn’t the quickest but he finds space in pockets that make it so difficult to tackle him.

“Defenders don’t know whether to come out of their position to close him down and if they do he has the vision to dink passes or play passes through that can split the defence open.

“So far he has shown that he is not a luxury player who only turns up when things are going well. He is a worker in the team who helps out.

“The fact he might be out this weekend means there could be an opportunity for others around him to step up – and that’s what they have to do because what has let Everton down over the years has been a lack of strength in depth and real belief.

“Players have come in and not delivered what was required of them. We see now the likes of Dominic Calvert-Lewin growing in confidence and becoming a focal point who scores goals.

“But then beside him there is Richarlison who is improving. Even Alex Iwobi, who hasn’t been in the team, has come on in games and looked a lot more confident than he has in the past.”

Sheedy would know better than anyone what is required to deliver the sort of success Evertonians of a certain vintage became accustomed to in the 1980s. Like James, the Ireland star possessed a wand of a left foot that was instrumental in delivering two league titles in 1984-85 and

86-87, as well as the personal honour of being included in the PFA Team of the Year for both of those campaigns.

With a European Cup Winners’ Cup success against Rapid Vienna in

1985 also thrown in for good measure, Sheedy was part of a dynasty that the late Howard Kendall left as his legacy at the club.

It may be a much different footballing landscape that Ancelotti is negotiating at the moment, but Sheedy is adamant that the Italian has more about him than some of his predecessors. “Carlo is the man for the job, there is no doubt about it,” he added.

“He has the experience and the class as a manager and a person. Everton will definitely finish up the table with him this season.

“You’re looking at top six, possibly even after a spot in the top four and then it will be interesting to see where the club can go from there.”

‘James has shown he is the real deal. He has made an exceptional start to his career with Everton.’