Duncan Ferguson makes honest admission on Everton manager’s job, tells fans what they can expect against Villa

Duncan Ferguson has revealed he will “only be in charge for the upcoming games” as Everton search for their new manager.

The fans’ favourite has been appointed caretaker boss after the sacking of Rafa Benitez last weekend.

It’s the second time Ferguson holds the reins at Goodison Park, having served in a similar role in December 201 which yielded one win and three draws.

The ex-striker, who scored 72 goals for the Toffees during his playing career, is the current favourite with the bookmakers to land the job permanently.

He’s currently assistant manager at Everton, having been part of the first-team coaching set-up since 2014.

But Ferguson insists he’s only focused on the short term after the Blues statement said he will be in charge for the ‘club’s upcoming games’ - starting against Aston Villa on Saturday (12.30).

He told Everton’s club website: “That is absolutely right. That is my brief.

“I’ll only be in charge for the upcoming games.

“The club are in a process of going through their candidates.

“They will go through that process and I am sure they will get the best man for the job.”

‘We love our club and fight as best as we can for it’

Everton have won just one of their previous 13 Premier League, dropping to 15th in the table.

The vast majority of supporters called for Benitez’s head and he was relieved of his duties just six-and-a-half months into the job.

Ferguson’s now set out his stall on what he expects from the Everton players against Villa.

He said: “I have to improve the tempo and aggression of the team, keep chipping away at the players about how important it is to get the victories.

“The result, of course, is massively important, but we need an improvement and that’s it.

“I have confidence in the players and the team and think they can win every game and that will be no different on Saturday.

“We have a lot of great players in there and they will step up, I am sure.

“We should always be going our best for Everton. We’re Evertonians, we love our club and fight as best as we can for it.”

On what fans can expect, Ferguson said: “The same again, what happened a couple of years ago.

“We played Chelsea at home and it was an electric atmosphere, one of the best I’ve experienced at Goodison.

“I’m sure they’ll be well up for it and we need them to push us across the line for the full game.

“I can’t emphasise how important they are to be with us for the 90 minutes and I know they will be with us for the 90 minutes.

He continued: “They (the players) should give everything, they should run themselves into the ground, roll up their sleeves and fight for the club in every single game.

“Imagine you asked a fan to put an Everton shirt on - what would they do for us? The players need to do that.”