Revenge is not Everton's aim in Benfica Europa League clash - David Moyes

05 November 2009 10:00
David Moyes 250[LNB]WHEN Benfica scored their fifth goal at the Estadio da Luz two weeks ago, it hurt one man more than most.[LNB]As Argentine forward Javier Saviola tapped in Angel di Maria's left wing cross in the 83rd minute, Tim Howard suffered a huge dent in his pride.[LNB]Everton's stopper is no different to any man serving as the last line of defence, but for a keeper who kept clean sheets seemingly for fun last season, the 5-0 drubbing in Lisbon was particularly tough to swallow.[LNB]With the Portuguese giants visiting Goodison Park tonight for the fourth round of Europa League Group I matches ,complete with World Cup Legend Eusebio in tow, Howard has issued a message of intent, determined Everton will show their mean streak once more.[LNB]And, victory over Benfica, would send David Moyes' men to the summit of their group and a long way towards qualification for the knock-out stages.[LNB]Howard said: 'Without giving too much headline fodder, they gave us a real pasting in Lisbon and that hurt.[LNB]'Any professional would say that, it is like getting hit on the chin, you lose a bit of your pride. But there is no revenge, we are just trying to advance out of this group and it is a big deal for us to get a result tonight - it wasn't nice walking off the field there. It felt like it wasn't us, more than revenge, we want to give a good showing of ourselves to them, but we are at home and that means a lot to us and our fans so hopefully we are going to put on a good performance.[LNB]'That is our focus, not revenge, it is not just about Benfica, it is trying to get out of this group and winning would go along way to doing that.'[LNB]Claiming 17 clean sheets in the Premier League last season, to surpass Neville Southall's best of 15, Howard's achievements in goal have etched him into club folklore.[LNB]Thus, Everton's recent generosity in defence is something not lost on their No 1, but as key personnel return and the side becomes settled, Howard is confident the Blues can be watertight once more - starting this evening in front of a packed home support.[LNB]Howard added: 'That would be another big plus, that would be ideal.[LNB]'It sucks to concede goals but for me it is about putting in consistently high level performances where you are stopping opposition from creating chances, dictating the tempo and keeping a high line, not letting teams in your box easily. When you are doing all that, you feel like you are on a high and it is tough to be beaten, but it is difficult as a defence. You can see it on peoples' faces when goals are going in, it is not nice but to our credit, no-one is pointing the finger at each other, we are just trying to find out why we have been conceding at certain times in games and trying to get better.

Source: Liverpool_Echo