PHIL NEVILLE admits Everton’s lack of big-game experience cost them dearly at Wembley – as the Blues skipper insisted defeat will only fuel their desire to win a trophy.
The Toffees took the lead during Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final, but wilted in the second half as two defensive errors allowed Liverpool to triumph.
It was Everton’s first appearance in the last four of a cup competition in three years, and Neville, 35, said that was a factor behind their inability to make next month’s final ahead of their rivals.
He said: “We need to make sure we keep getting back to these type of occasions. You’re only going to get better by coming back to these games.
“When you look at the Liverpool team, they have the experience of playing on these type of stages. We haven’t. And that is something, as a club, we need to keep striving for.
“In the first half we did play on the front foot and thought we had Liverpool where we wanted them. But that is when the best teams go for a second goal and kill the opposition off.
“But at 1-0 Liverpool were still in the game and we sat too much off them in the second half. We allowed them to dictate the play. We knew they were going to throw the kitchen sink at us but we just couldn’t defend.”
Neville believes the Blues must channel their hurt on achieving a strong finish in the Premier League, and chasing an unlikely Europa League spot.
“I think back to the October and the state of the club at the time. Everyone had written us off, said the club was on its knees and that this team was finished,” he said.
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