EVERTON manager David Moyes admitted that some of his players were not focused properly in Saturday’s 6-1 mauling at home to Arsenal but insisted this was not down to Manchester City’s pursuit of Joleon Lescott and the player’s transfer request.

He said: “They (the players) have still got to defend set pieces and challenge, head the ball and run with people. If they don’t do that then it’s very difficult.

“But it’s the team that I pick. I’m the man who picks them. But I do believe they are good players and I do believe that we are a good team.

“I think one or two are not focused correctly. I have to make sure I get them back focused.”

Moyes also dismissed suggestions that after successive fifth-place finishes with Everton, some of his players may have felt that they had reached the zenith of their ambitions with the club.

He said: “I think at the moment they have got to make sure that they achieve enough to do what they are good at – that’s to make sure we are in the division.

“If they’re getting carried away with themselves and thinking they’re better than that at the moment then they have got to look after themselves because otherwise we’ll be in trouble.

“I said on Friday that the first thing is to make sure we have enough points to avoid relegation and go on from there.”

The loss was Everton’s second heaviest during the Scot’s tenure – after the 7-0 thrashing in May 2005 also to Arsenal – and the worst ever opening day defeat in the club’s history.

Moyes said: “I don’t think there’s much point in me shouting and balling about that one.

“I think they know all round that it just wasn’t acceptable.

”There was a manager sacked for seven after one game so I’m not immune to that either. I’m the same.

I’ll need to pull my socks up and try and do better with the players that I have got.

“It’s my responsibility to make sure those players do perform on the pitch and they didn’t perform today so I take that responsibility.”

Moyes added: “I think it’s my job to get them correctly prepared and maybe I’ve not done that.

“I’ll need to have a look at things I’ve done over the last week or two.

“It’s been quite a difficult week with not having a few here. But overall it’s my job to improve that and I’ll see if I can do that.

“We lost two goals from set-pieces which had nothing to do with the going ons of this week, did it?”