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David Moyes has said Jarrad Branthwaite and Vitalii Mykolenko remain doubts ahead of Everton's trip to Anfield on Saturday.
The Toffees take on Liverpool in the first Merseyside derby of the season with just two known absentees. Branthwaite has not played this season due to thigh issue, while Mykolenko has managed just one appearance due to an ongoing groin issue, which has resulted in James Garner playing left-back.
Asked for an update on the pair on Friday, Moyes gave a vague response, while revealing there are a few other fitness issues among the squad. “They’re making progress. We’ll see. We have a couple of other knocks in the camp but we’ll see how they are.”
Everton has made a confident start to the new season, and is unbeaten in three since an opening-weekend loss to Leeds United. With a new-look attacking line-up that has been boosted by the summer arrivals of Jack Grealish and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, there's a greater sense of belief in the Everton ahead of this season's derby.
"I’ve told the players, we certainly want to get away from the position we have been in the last few years," said the Scotsman.
"It’s been difficult for the managers, the players and the club. We want to enjoy it, play better, we want to try and win more. We’re trying desperately to try and challenge all the big teams and we will try and do that this season.
"We have another game, we prepare for it, and we look forward to going to Anfield and seeing how we perform."
Preparing for his 28th Merseyside derby, Moyes was asked for his view on the nature of these titanic clashes against Liverpool.
"This has always been an incredibly difficult game for me personally because we've always come up against really good Liverpool teams who have had some really good players and made it really hard for us.
"But we've always been competitive, that will not change. We will do everything we can to try and get a victory.
"It's been hard. They've been such a successful club, winning trophies. We have had to live with that and get on with our own problems that we have had more recently.
"Right now, we are in a much better place and we look like we are heading towards a much better place as well."
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