Mangala: Blues’ Mentality Remains Positive

Orel Mangala says the mood and mentality in the Everton camp remains positive despite Tuesday evening’s Carabao Cup exit to Southampton.

Level at 1-1, the match headed to a penalty shootout and Southampton took the victory, winning 6-5 across the spot-kicks.

Belgium international Mangala, making his full debut for the Club and first appearance at Goodison Park, reviewed the action while speaking to evertonfc.com after the game.

“We fought very hard,” said the midfielder, who played the full 90 minutes. “We’ve been unlucky with the chances we’ve had, but there are still positives to take from the game.

“It was definitely a nice feeling to be at home in front our fans for the first time but it was unfortunate we weren't able to get the win.”

With unexpected injuries and illness in the squad, manager Sean Dyche was forced to field a much-changed starting 11.

Harrison Armstrong made his first senior start for the Club, with the 17-year-old midfielder featuring for 62 minutes on the night.

He played alongside Mangala, who, speaking about his young teammate, said: I’m happy for him and I think it’s a good start for him.

“I tried to speak a lot to him on the field so he could feel very comfortable to play with us.”

Everton’s next game sees them travel to take on Leicester City in the Premier League on Saturday (3pm BST).

Looking ahead to the weekend’s fixture, Mangala believes the Blues’ mentality is still strong, while revealing he hopes to earn more minutes to find his best form for the Club.

“I need some more games to get to my top level, but it felt good to be on the pitch today,” he added.

“I think the mentality of the team is positive right now and we want to take this into Saturday’s game against Leicester.”