Everton are Premier League top four contenders, claims former boss Joe Royle

Former Everton manager Joe Royle believes Roberto Martinez can lead the Toffees to a fourth-placed Premier League finish this season.

Everton currently sit fifth in the table having beaten Manchester City and face arch-rivals Liverpool in the Merseyside derby on Sunday, live exclusively on talkSPORT.

And Royle thinks that if his former side can stay injury free and have a consistent starting XI, then Everton will be realistic challengers for the fourth Champions League place.

“If we can get a settled side - and I’m sure the manager has in mind what his best side is at the moment and what he would like to play - I think we have a great chance of challenging this year (for the top four),” Royle, who also played for Everton, told Drivetime.

“I looked at the start we had which included Southampton away, Man City, Spurs away, Chelsea - it looked a hard start.

“If you’d had told me at the start of the season that we were going to be fifth at this stage, I would gladly have accepted that.”