MOYES: ENVY OF BRITAIN

Saturday 10 April 2004, 10:27

David Moyes believes that Everton have the best young players from Scotland and England in their first-team squad, as he continues to build a side for the future.

Much has already been said of Wayne Rooney, who was serving the final game of his two match ban during the 3-1 win over Spurs, but it was James McFadden who hit the headlines following the Good Friday win for his impressive performance.

The September signing from Motherwell played his first game upfront for the Blues and won all three of the set pieces that led to each of Everton's goals at Goodison on Friday night.

McFadden got a standing ovation from the 38,000-strong crowd when he was replaced for Francis Jeffers with 11 minutes to go, and Moyes was not surprised with the acclaim he received.

He said: "We scored three and did everything you could ask. It was rip-roaring stuff. The two front lads were magnificent. McFadden and (Tomasz) Radzinski were outstanding and gave them a very tough ride.

"McFadden deserved his ovation when he came off. I thought he did very well. He's a teriffic prospect and I think we've got two of the best prospects here in James and Wayne."

Moyes hinted that he could be ready to add more youngsters to the squad in the summer as he seeks to establish the Blues as one of the best sides in the country in the coming years.

He continued: "They're both very young - James is 20 and Wayne is only 18, so I think we've got some players for the future here. What we need to do is add some more to that and hopefully move on.

"But against Spurs I thought James was terrific, because he can play wide, he can play upfront and I think that in the last 20-30 minutes, he just tired a little bit, but did very well nevertheless."