LESCOTT: LESSONS LEARNED

Joleon Lescott hopes Everton have learnt some Uefa Cup lessons.

Joleon Lescott hopes Everton have learnt lessons from their first encounter with Metalist Kharkiv.

The Blues have the vital second leg of the Uefa Cup tie in the Ukraine on Thursday, when a win or scoring draw of two goals or more is required to avoid exiting the competition at the first hurdle.

Lescott, Everton's leading scorer this season, says the Toffees may have underestimated Kharkiv in the opening tie.

"I think we didn't show them enough respect in the home leg and pushed a lot of men forward," he told evertonTV.

"It will be a different game out there, we are going to have to sit back and look for the counter."

The former Wolves man acknowledged that the defence may have to step up their performances, despite keeping clean sheets in their last two games.

"We kept a clean sheet in midweek (against Sheffield Wednesday) and that provided a boost for Sunday but we rode our luck a bit and if we iron out a few mistakes hopefully we can continue," he explained.

"We have created a lot of chances in the last couple of games so if we can continue that into Thursday then who knows."

And Lescott knows plenty about finishing off those chances, having scored four times so far this term.

"It is always nice to get on the scoresheet," he said.

"I think the ball is just falling to me in the right places at the minute. To score another one (on Sunday) was great.

"It is important not just as individuals but as a unit. I think our defensive unit has scored a few goals this season so we will be looking to continue."

See the interview in full on evertonTV.