Everton are still alive in the race for Europe after their 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace last weekend, but Pat Nevin says the club is not ready to make that jump. The former Scotland winger said Everton need to win their two remaining games to keep their hopes alive, while also needing other results to fall their way if they are to finish in the top eight.
That makes tomorrow afternoon’s meeting with Sunderland at Hill Dickinson Stadium a test with a wider meaning than the table alone. David Moyes wants to take Everton into continental competition, and the path is still open, but Nevin was blunt about what he thinks comes next: “Not ready.”
Everton’s recent form has left them with a shot at European qualification, a position that would have sounded far-fetched when the club was trying to steady itself against relegation. Moyes has pushed the team toward a more ambitious horizon, and the draw with Palace kept that possibility alive for now. Next season, if the points and the outside results line up, Everton could be back on a continental stage.
Nevin’s warning is rooted less in doubt about the manager than in the size of the squad around him. He said Everton have “not got a big enough squad” for the demands of European football and argued that the schedule would hit them hard. “European football will destroy them the way it’s destroyed Newcastle. They need to build up the squad before they can do that,” he said. He added that Newcastle is the clearest example of what happens when a thin squad is asked to handle too much, saying the problem can unravel quickly if injuries start to mount.
“You just need two or three or four injuries and that’s it,” Nevin said. That was the sharp edge of his argument, and it is the one Everton must confront if they do sneak into the top eight. A club that has spent years looking over its shoulder at relegation is now being asked to think about Europe, but a faster rise can expose the gaps that patience had covered.
Nevin also said Moyes has changed the mood around the club, describing Everton as a side that used to be fighting “against relegation by their fingertips every season” and is now one that can “actually see flourish.” He pointed to the new stadium as part of that progress, saying Everton’s ground is up there with Spurs as a watching experience. He also singled out Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, saying he was wasted at Chelsea and is being used better by Everton.
So the picture is clear enough. Everton can still reach the top eight, and they can still keep the door to Europe open, but the next step is not just about results. It is about whether the squad can survive the climb once it gets there.
For Everton, Sunderland tomorrow is more than a fixture. It is the start of the stretch that will decide whether this becomes a season of promise or one that proved Nevin right too soon.
