EVERTON midfielder Manuel Fernandes believes that his side were denied a “valid goal” for Andrew Johnson in Saturday’s goalless draw at Blackburn Rovers but reckons the team are still on course for securing a top four finish.

Despite dropping points for the second time in four days with a second consecutive stalemate, David Moyes’s side still occupy the final Champions League qualification spot.

Everton felt that they were denied a perfectly good winner at Ewood Park though, when a Johnson ‘goal’ just five minutes from the end was denied by a linesman’s flag for offside.

Johnson looked to be onside when he received the ball from substitute James Vaughan to score but had looked to be offside earlier in the sequence of play, although the linesman did not originally flag.

Fernandes said: “I think it was a valid goal for AJ but there’s no reason to complain now and say it’s a goal, it’s over and the game finished 0-0. The linesman said it was offside because there was just one player and AJ but I think there were three or four players in front of him – it’s a clean goal anyway but we cannot do anything now, we should just leave it.”

Everton dominated a typically robust contest against Mark Hughes’s side but despite carving out the better chances they were unable to secure the victory and Fernandes, who twice could have secured the three points, felt they should have taken more from the game.

Firstly, the Portuguese midfielder was guilty of a tame effort straight at Brad Friedel when left with time and space at the back post but he almost redeemed himself with a curling free-kick which struck the American goalkeeper’s left-hand post.

Fernandes said: “I was disappointed not to win against Blackburn, I thought we played really well.

“I played against Blackburn last year at Goodison Park but I knew it would be difficult here, I wasn’t surprised by the physicality of the game.

“We were playing away from home and created some good chances but we needed to score and it didn’t happen, we just need to improve on that bit and we’ll be okay.

“I had the free-kick and another chance also so for myself I need to improve that final touch.”

However, the on-loan Valencia man reveals that his integration back into Everton’s midfield has been smooth as all of his team-mates carry out their individual duties within the side so well.

He said: “I knew it would be easy fitting back into the side and that my biggest problem would be match fitness but the more I play the better I’m going to get.

“I wasn’t really worried with that, everything is going along nicely .

“It’s easy to play alongside the likes of Mikel Arteta, Leon Osman, Tim Cahill and Lee Carsley. Because they all know their jobs they make it easy for me to do mine.”

With a current total of 44 points, Everton are three points lower than their total after 25 games in 2004/05 when they last finished fourth but Fernandes feels that they can only improve as the stars start to return from the African Cup of Nations.

He said: “It’s still looking good for the rest of the season. Even though we’ve not won the past two games, we’ve been playing well.

“The squad can only improve as we’ve got Steven Pienaar coming back now plus Joseph Yobo and Yakbu also so I think it’s looking really good for us.”

David Moyes’s post-derby comments charge has been dropped by the FA.

The Everton manager was charged with two breaches of FA Rule E3 in respect of comments he made after the game.

However, the FA has reviewed the evidence and cleared Moyes of any wrong-doing regarding his conduct that afternoon.

The first charge related to comments he allegedly made about referee Mark Clattenberg following the controversial 2-1 defeat against Liverpool at Goodison Park on October 20.

The second charge related to further comments made prior to Everton’s Uefa Cup game against Larissa five days later is still on-going and will be reviewed by the FA in due course.

Meanwhile, Everton should have Joseph Yobo and Ayegbeni Yakubu back for Reading’s visit to Goodison Park on Saturday after Nigeria were eliminated from the African Cup of Nations yesterday.

The Super Eagles had taken the lead through a Yakubu penalty after the Everton striker had been fouled, but 10-man Ghana triumphed in the quarter-final clash thanks to a winner from Nottingham Forest’s Junior Agogo.