MX23RW : Friday, April 26 14:36:23| >> :120:4941:4941:

Everton defender Michael Keane "surprised himself" with Tottenham display

The Toffees face Salford in the Carabao Cup second round on Wednesday.

Everton defender Michael Keane admits consistency is key to his and the club's success this season.

Sunday's victory over Tottenham was their first over a 'big six' side since 2013 but, having won only one of their final six matches of last season, manager Carlo Ancelotti will be keen to ensure his players maintain a certain level of performance.

That has already been impressed on the Toffees squad and Keane is well aware they have to be more consistent.

"Performances and results like this mean nothing unless you go and back it up the week after and the week after that," he said.

"I am 27 now. The main thing for me is consistency. I have added that to my game recently and it's something I don't want to let slip.

"I don't want to be an up-and-down player. I want to be consistent and reliable in every game and that is what I will aim to do.

"I feel I started well. I have kept that confidence from after lockdown.

"I was a bit worried about my fitness coming in because I've not had much game time but I seemed to cope quite well and surprised myself.

"Me and Yerry (Mina) defended well together, communicated well but the whole team in general defended well and that makes it a lot easier for us."

While the Premier League and qualifying for Europe remains the priority for Ancelotti, fans would love nothing more than to have a decent cup run.

The club's last piece of silverware was the 1995 FA Cup but they have a chance to get the ball rolling with a second-round Carabao Cup home tie against League Two Salford on Wednesday.

In theory it should not present too much of a hurdle, even if Ancelotti does rotate some of his players, but Keane knows they cannot afford to ease up.

"On paper we should be winning but if your mentality is not right they become tough games," he added.

"We have to make sure we are on it, we have already spoken about that – and we will be.

"Every cup game and every league game is massive. We want to finish as high as possible in the Premier League but we also want to get on a good cup run and see if we can win something.

"It is a massive game for us. They are lower league opposition but it is still a huge game for us."

ID:414417: cacheID:414417:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:3598:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Charlton boss Lee Bowyer on February 8, 2020
Read Next:
The big talking points ahead of EFL Cup second round
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Arsenal34245582265677
2Manchester CityMan City33237380324876
3Liverpool34228475344174
4Aston Villa34206871502166
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs32186865491660
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd33165125150153
7Newcastle UnitedNewcastle331551369541550
8West Ham UnitedWest Ham34139125463-948
9Chelsea32138116157447
10Bournemouth34129134960-1145
11Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton331111115254-244
12Wolverhampton WanderersWolves34127154654-843
13Fulham34126165054-442
14Crystal Palace34109154456-1239
15Brentford3498175259-735
16Everton34118153648-1233
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3479184260-1826
18Luton TownLuton3467214775-2825
19Burnley3458213769-3223
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd3437243392-5916


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!