Carlo Ancelotti has made an instant impression during his first six weeks at Goodison Park and victory over Crystal Palace today could lift Everton, mired in the relegation zone when Marco Silva was sacked at the start of December, into seventh place in the Premier League with the prospect of improvement to come.
Having collected 14 points from a possible 21, Ancelotti has imbued belief and stoked ambition in the short term by insisting Europa League qualification is the target for this season and beyond.
A glance at the 60-year-old’s CV shows a maximum of two years spent at each of his last five clubs but Ancelotti rejected the notion that he is a manager who only applies a layer of gloss to a team