Willie Kirk Column: Everton Eager To Make Big Statement In Cup Quarter-Final

In his latest column for evertonfc.com, Willie Kirk previews Sunday's FA Cup quarter-final against Chelsea at Goodison Park (1pm kick-off) and reveals his confidence his team can deliver a performance that makes people "sit up and take notice" of the Blues' progress...

MAKING A STATEMENT

Sunday’s game is going to be a great occasion.

It’s a shame we can’t have our fans at the game, but that is life now. The next best thing is having the game going ahead at Goodison and putting on a performance.

The game is live on evertontv and we’ll hopefully have a big following watching us there.

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We know our fans will be supporting us from the comfort of their homes and we want to put on a performance that they’re proud of and give them a semi-final to look forward to.

All the feedback from people who have watched our first two WSL games [a 4-0 victory at Bristol City and a 1-0 home win over Tottenham Hotspur] is that they have been impressed.

That will hopefully continue after Sunday and people will be talking about us even more. I think we’ve gone slightly under the radar.

Hopefully, after Sunday, people will really sit up and take notice of this Everton team and what we could achieve this year.

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02:50

WATCH: CHRISTIANSEN HEADER DEFEATS SPURS

Joy against Tottenham for men's and women's teams.


PRIMED TO PERFORM

We’ve had the international break for the past week-and-a-half, and we’ll all get back together as a full squad on Friday.

It is a short turnaround in terms of playing the match on Sunday, but it won’t be different for Chelsea.

If we didn’t have that problem, it would mean we didn’t have players of an international standard. It’s a challenge we’re used to.

We have kept in touch with the players while they’ve been away, so it’s not like they’ve completely forgotten about Everton. I think two training sessions before the game is enough to get us where we need to be.

A lot of the players have had successful international matches – personal performances and team results.

They will come back in a good place, while the players that have been here at USM Finch Farm have trained really well.

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PERFECT RECORD – BUT WE CAN IMPROVE

We’ve won both our WSL games so far and produced two very good performances. The exciting thing is, in every area of our play, I think we can improve.

Our press can be better, our ball retention can be better. From the chances we’ve been creating, I think we can have a higher percentage of shots on target and a higher percentage of goals scored.

Our fitness levels have still got another 15 or 20 per cent to go, too, before they are at their very best.

Possibly by the next international break, in another month or so, we’ll be in a place where we feel performance levels have got to where they should be.

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03:31

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TOTAL BELIEF

We’ve got to go into Sunday’s game with confidence. Chelsea have got full international players – top, top players – but so have we. More now than ever.

We are wary of Chelsea’s strengths but we’re also aware of some of their weaknesses.

We’ll be looking to not just nullify their attacking threats but create chances and score goals of our own.

We go into the game in a confident place and the players absolutely believe they can win the game and get us into the semi-final.

Win or lose, it will give us a good gauge of where we are and what further improvements we need to make. As league champions, Chelsea are the yardstick for every team in the country and they have signed world-class players this summer.

In terms of our ambitions, if we win the game on Sunday, I think it can really be a springboard for the rest of the season.

I am confident we’re going to have a good season anyway, but by beating one of the top teams so early on in the campaign, I think it could be a real shot in the arm for us and give the players that extra bit of belief that they can compete with anyone.

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