Potter: We were closer to winning than Everton

Although pleased with his team's performance, Graham Potter didn’t think his side deserved to defeat Everton in Monday night.

After the game ended 0-0, the head coach said, “Unless you score one more goal than the opponent it’s hard to say you deserve anything, that’s the truth.  

“In terms of our performance and the intention of the team I was really happy and we were the closest to winning. 

“We had some good moments, they blocked and defended well when they had to. We missed the last pass or lacked a bit of quality in the final third. We’re happy with what we have done tonight, we have to accept that we have only taken a point, but it’s a hard-earned point.”

The stalemate against the Toffees lifts Albion up to 15th in the table, with the defensive display from the hosts a positive aspect to take from the evening.

Potter added, “It was a fairly even first half, both teams had spells and in the end we managed to drive them back. They had four centre-backs and two full-backs on the pitch so defensively they were setup well, they lost a couple of attacking players and made it difficult for us to create anything. The intent was there, but it wasn’t to be.

“We nullified them well. It was close to summarising our season with Alex Iwobi going so close at the end. But there wasn’t too much else, we defended and attacked well as a team. We need to be better in the final third, but credit to Everton for the way they defended.”

Despite moving seven points clear of 18th place Fulham, Potter insists it's still all to play for.

“The league table is tight. There's loads of football to play and everyone is fighting, there's lots of good teams down there. Nobody is going to give up. It's another important point for us.”