Everton's Koeman believes unity key to title challenge

Liverpool (AFP) – New manager Ronald Koeman says unity and not the bumper transfer kitty he has been promised will be key to turning Everton into English Premier League title contenders.

The 53-year-old Dutchman, who left Southampton on Tuesday, has reportedly been handed £100 million ($141m, 126m euros) as he attempts to make up for two years of underachievement under former Everton boss Roberto Martinez.

“Of course we have a budget to make the team strong but we will do this with all the people who are at Everton,” Koeman told everton.tv.

“You can’t do it by yourself, you need everybody pulling in the same direction — the fans, the players, the board, the staff — to get a very good family feeling and to reach something special.”

Koeman, who guided Southampton to seventh and then sixth — their highest finish in the Premier League — faces a sizeable task to turn Everton into title challengers, even with the huge funds promised by the club’s major shareholder, the billionaire Farhad Moshiri.

Their last silverware was the 1995 FA Cup and the last league title in 1987 in the old First Division, as the Premier League was known then.

“It’s a competition, which as we saw last year, is very unpredictable,” Koeman said.

“We will do everything to have a really good season and if there is a really good understanding between the players and the fans then we can do something really nice for next season.”