Danny Murphy’s one-word response to whether Everton will finish in top six

Photo by Tony McArdle/Everton FC via Getty Images

Danny Murphy believes Rafa Benitez will make Everton a far better side and is refusing to rule out the Toffees finishing in the Premier League’s top six under his former Liverpool manager, speaking to talkSPORT (5 July, 12.30pm). 

While many Tottenham Hotspur supporters were left underwhelmed by the appointment of Nuno Espirito Santo, that’s nothing compared with the reaction that accompanied Benitez’s unveiling at Goodison Park last week.

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Rarely has one manager found himself under such crushing pressure to hit the ground running at a new club. 

The fact Benitez guided Liverpool to Champions League glory in 2005 is bad enough.

But describing Everton as a “small club” was, in the eyes of many fans, the straw that gave the camel a nasty case of lumbago, even if Benitez has done his best to clarify the offending comments.  

Photo by Tony McArdle/Everton FC via Getty Images

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But according to a man who played under Benitez on the red side of Stanley Park, albeit briefly, the Spaniard’s Anfield past should matter little to Everton fans, especially if he can build on the foundations laid down by another Champions League-winning tactician, Carlo Ancelotti. 

Murphy: Benitez can make Everton ‘harder to play against’

“I see Everton being fitter, better organised, harder to play against, and they’ll finish higher than they did last season,” Murphy explains. 

You’d hope so too.

A tenth-place finish was nothing short of a disaster for a club that was sitting pretty in top spot in October, a side containing James Rodriguez, Richarlison, Allan and a free-scoring Dominic Calvert-Lewin blowing the division away while winning their first four games of 2020/21. 

Benitez will have a tough task trying to lead Everton into the top six, however, especially with Arsenal and Tottenham expected to come back stronger. Nevertheless, Murphy believes European football at Goodison Park shouldn’t be ruled out.  

“Chance,” he said when asked whether Everton could finish sixth or above under Benitez.  

“A good chance.” 

Photo by Paul Ellis – Pool/Getty Images

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