Friday 15 April 2016 11:04, UK
Roberto Martinez admits his side have not given Everton supporters enough to celebrate at Goodison Park this season.
Everton have suffered an underwhelming season in the Premier League which has left them sitting 12th in the table, having won just four games at home, and pressure has been building on Martinez in recent weeks.
Wednesday night saw them earn a goalless draw at Crystal Palace after playing the last 40 minutes with 10 men following James McCarthy's red card and capped three consecutive away games without a victory.
Their return to Merseyside on Saturday sees them host Southampton, who still harbour hopes of qualifying for Europe, and Martinez insists it is vital Everton finish the season strongly.
"Every season boils down to these final games and we can have a really strong ending," he said. "We are right in the middle of the most testing period.
"Five games in two weeks has always been an interesting period. We need to make sure we can display again the good attributes we had against Crystal Palace.
"With one man down it became more than a footballing exercise. It was about the togetherness, the resilience and all the aspects that help you as a team.
"It doesn't matter what level, everything is about working with a group and winning the next game. It could be promotion, like my time at Swansea, or relegation, like at Wigan. It's the pressure that you put yourself under. It's always the target to finish higher than last year.
"Southampton are really good at what they do. They rely on possession and have good quality. We need to bring the desire to play against them at Goodison and see how the squad can cope with that.
"We haven't been able to celebrate enough in front of our own fans this season. We are facing a very strong team and we need to replicate the level when we faced them earlier in the season."
