TO prepare for the culture shock of visiting lower-league surrounds, David Moyes is not averse to taking his Everton players on a reconnaissance mission to help sidestep potential FA Cup banana skins.
Phil Jagielka, however, believes no special preparation will be necessary for when the first whistle blows at Boundary Park this evening.
Having already memorably hustled Liverpool out of the competition last month, npower League One strugglers Oldham Athletic aim to notch a notable double scalp when Everton journey down the M62 for their fifth round tie.
Not since Derby County in 1976 has a team eliminated both Mersey teams in the same FA Cup season before the final.
Liverpool’s mixture of youngsters and fringe players were frightened out of their stride by the physical approach of the Latics, led by towering two-goal striker Matt Smith.
But Jagielka is confident Oldham are wasting their time if they believe Everton will fall into the same trap.
“I have been around this squad long enough to know that I would put my mortgage on us not getting knocked over because nobody wanted to turn up,” says the centre-back.
“The manager takes his time picking players to come to this club. That is a main reason behind it.
“We probably played nicer football at the start of the season and the goals came a bit more readily than they have been lately.
“When the pitches have been getting worse, the points are meaning more and it gets a little bit nervy so we have had to mix it up. We’ve had to find goals from other areas.
“Playing Oldham is going to be a different game than what we faced at Old Trafford last week. But we can’t change it around that much in terms of personnel.”
That lack of options has contributed to Moyes fielding strong starting line-ups in the wins at Cheltenham Town and Bolton Wanderers earlier in this season’s competition.
Nevertheless, the Everton manager openly believes the FA Cup represents an excellent opportunity to fill the one notable gap on his Goodison cv by winning a trophy.
Jagielka is one of three players – Leighton Baines and Steven Pienaar the others – likely to play this evening that featured when Oldham secured a shock 1-0 third-round win at Goodison in 2008.
Along with the humbling at Shrewsbury Town in 2003, the game is regularly cited by Moyes as evidence of how cup competition can prove a great leveller for Premier League teams.
“When we lost those games, we did all the preparation as we usually would have done,” says the Everton manager. “But those experiences have made me even more determined to do everything possible to ever prevent it happening again.
“I have to makes sure there's nothing I've missed when it comes to doing that. That's why on some occasions I've taken the players to the ground before the game just so they know what to expect.”
