Training ground switch key to unbeaten run, insists Moyes

Dec 22 2007 by Chris Beesley, Liverpool Daily Post

EVERTON’S move to their new Finch Farm training complex is already paying off according to manager David Moyes – who believes the switch has helped increase his players’ fitness levels.

With no defeats in their last 13 matches, Everton face the sternest test of what is now the longest current unbeaten run for a Premier League club when they travel to Old Trafford tomorrow to face champions Manchester United.

A key factor in Everton’s impressive run which has seen them win 11 of their last 13 games has been an ability to score late on with 13 of their 30 goals in this period coming in the final 15 minutes of matches.

Moyes, whose sides have always been noted for their high levels of stamina, believes that the move to the club’s new state-of-the-art Finch Farm training base in Halewood as helped improve his players’ fitness as they have taken advantage of the range of facilities now on offer and the results have been proven on the pitch.

He said: “The players are enjoying keeping busy and they’re enjoying the new training ground which has given everybody a big lift.

“With the facilities we’ve got at Finch Farm players are spending a long time here.”

Everton officially left previous training base Bellefield for Finch Farm on October 9, just a couple of weeks before their unbeaten run started and Moyes believes that the sharpness brought about by regularly playing midweek football has also helped to keep his side on form.

He said: “The fitness levels we’ve shown are down to playing more games.

“I think they’ve all benefited from the games and although at times we’ve tried to give people time off it’s mostly been a case of playing and then recovering ahead of the next game.”

Everton have not won at Old Trafford since a resounding 3-0 success in the inaugural Premier League season in 1992 so their recent free-scoring form will come as a welcome boost.

Despite resting Ayegbeni Yakubu in Alkmaar, Moyes was able to see his other strikers Andrew Johnson and James Vaughan both score while Victor Anichebe set up the winner.

Moyes said: “Andrew Johnson is beginning to get his goal meter turning over again and we need that.

“Coupled with that we’ve seen Victor score important goals in Europe, James McFadden got us a couple of goals early in the season and now James Vaughan is on his way back and starting to get goals.

“We’re beginning to get all our centre-forwards scoring goals and Tim Cahill has got us goals.

“We want to score from all areas but it’s always nice when your forwards are getting goals.”

Another big difference for Everton this season has been the strength in depth they now possess and Moyes is planning to use most of his players in a hectic period of four Premier League games in 10 days, starting at United.

He said: “The fact that we were able to make seven changes at AZ from the West Ham game but still field seven internationals shows what we’ve got.

“We may have made even more changes if Leighton Baines and Alan Stubbs had been fit.

“We were really pleased that those players came in and we’ll try and give them as many games as we can.

“They repaid me with their performance in Alkmaar and they played well.”

Everton will check on Phil Jagielka’s groin strain ahead of the game but both Joseph Yobo and Phil Neville have recovered from their knocks having trained yesterday and are expected to be available for selection along with Tim Howard, Mikel Arteta, Tim Cahill and Yakubu – all of whom did not travel to the Netherlands.