ALL OR NOTHING
Unsworth must win
DAVID UNSWORTH admits it is now or never if he is to land the Everton job after Sam Allardyce was sounded out.
The caretaker boss accepts that tonight’s Europa League game with Lyon and Sunday’s Premier League clash with Watford will decide his fate as major investor Farhad Moshiri ponders other alternatives.
One such name is Allardyce after preliminary discussions were held about him taking charge until the end of the season.
The club also remain interested in Burnley manager Sean Dyche, although no approach has yet been made and the Toffees are continuing with a wide-ranging search.
There are some within Goodison Park who still believe in Unsworth taking the job, despite ® from CHRIS McKENNA defeats against Chelsea (in the League Cup) and Leicester since he took over from Ronald Koeman. Unsworth insists he has not been distracted by the speculation about his position and refused to respond to Joey Barton’s “glorified PE teacher” jibe. He said: “I wouldn’t know who was in the running for the manager’s job. LYON (4-2-3-1): Lopes; Tete, Marcelo, Diakhaby, Marcal; Tousart, Aouar; Traore, Fekir, Depay; Maolida. EVERTON (4-2-3-1): Pickford; Kenny, Holgate, Williams, Martina; Schneiderlin, Gueye; Lookman, Sigurdsson, Klaassen; Calvert-Lewin. Probably. But that does not scare me, because I know the game and I know, in the end, you’ll be judged on performances.
“Performances have improved for a game and a half, but, within those performances, you’ve got to try and dig out some results.
Massive
“I want to win this game, I want to perform – and Sunday’s game is a massive game as well.”
Wayne Rooney, Phil Jagielka and Leighton Baines have been left at home, with the game with Watford in mind, but anything less than a win against Lyon will all but end their campaign with two games left.
Ashley Williams, who is set to start, said: “We have a point to prove.”