David Moyes insists Everton's battle for fourth will continue

Mar 31 2008 by Nick Smith, Liverpool Daily Post

DAVID MOYES vowed to keep fighting for fourth place despite the deficit left by Everton’s defeat in the Merseyside derby.

Liverpool’s 1-0 win opened up a five-point gap with only six games of the season left.

But with Rafael Benitez taking his side to Arsenal on Saturday in the middle of a two-legged Champions League quarter-final with the same opposition, failure to get three points could let Everton back in the race.

Moyes’s men take on already-relegated Derby County at home on Sunday and he insists there is enough time left in the campaign to keep putting the pressure on his Merseyside rivals for that final Champions League qualifying spot.

“The fight definitely goes on,” said Moyes. “It’s great that Everton are involved in games where we have a chance of making the Champions League so we have to keep going.

“If you’ve got a five-point advantage at this time of the season it’s a great advantage but I’ve got teams four of five points behind me and I’m looking over my shoulder and hope we do well enough to keep them away.

“So if I feel like that, I’m sure teams only four or five points above us will stay the same.”

Moyes bemoaned the nature of the goal Everton conceded in the seventh minute, that proved to be the winner that enabled Liverpool to complete a league derby double.

Yakubu dispossessed Xabi Alonso on the edge of the penalty area following a Liverpool corner in the seventh minute but as Everton sensed a counter-attack, the Spaniard won the ball back.

It broke to Dirk Kuyt, who found Fernando Torres racing clear of an advancing backline and he swept his 28th goal of the season past Tim Howard.

“It was a disappointing goal to give away,” said Moyes. “Not just getting caught on the ball when we could have cleared it, we were a wee bit naive running out so quickly to counter-attack from the corner when we haven’t secured possession.

“So we left Torres with acres to score.

“I don’t think you can have a special plan for him – he is a very good player and occupied our centre-backs in the first half.

“We did a much better job in the second but you can see why they can get away with playing that one player there because he does the job of two men sometimes.”

MOYES’S INJURY WOE – SEE POST MATCH