Williams wants quicks Everton response to FA Cup exit

Ashley Williams has called on Everton to recover quickly from FA Cup heartache and focus on their Premier League campaign as they bid for a top-six finish.

The Toffees were dumped out in the third round by Leicester City – who they beat 2-0 in the Premier League during the Christmas period.

Ahmed Musa scored twice for the Premier League champions after Romelu Lukaku had initially given Everton the lead.

Photo by Jordan Mansfield/Getty Images

The Toffees sit seventh in the league table, nine points off sixth-placed Manchester United, and face Manchester City this weekend.

Williams admits the squad are frustrated to have been knocked out of both cup competitions earlier than they would have liked, following their 2-0 home defeat to Norwich City in the EFL Cup third round, but insists there is plenty still to play for.

“It’s disappointing obviously to be out of both the cups early on,” said the 32-year-old.

“It will be difficult to get into the top six because those six teams are very strong. We just have to concentrate on our league form and keep pushing and see how many points we can get.

“We have a lot of those teams above us to play still, we just have to try to at least stay where we are and see if we can close the gap a little bit.”