Martinez not worried by lack of clean sheets

​Roberto Martinez insists he is not worried about Everton's lack of clean sheets this season and has backed Tim Howard to find his form.

The American goalkeeper conceded another three goals on Tuesday as Everton were dumped out of the League Cup by Martinez's former side Swansea City.

Everton have now let in 17 goals in their seven matches in all competitions and six in the last two, while there has been just one clean sheet, a 2-0 win over West Brom in the Premier League earlier this month.

Howard's performance against Crystal Palace on Sunday in the league gifted the visitors two goals but Martinez remains confident his side goalkeeper will bounce back.

"I'm not obsessed about it [the goals conceded]," said the Spaniard. "We kept 15 clean sheets last season and we are a team that can defend and keep clean sheets.

"I'm not concerned, even if you don't want the feeling you get when you lose football games.

"If he [Howard] had been a young goalkeeper maybe you think how he might be affected by those experiences.

"But he is in the best moment of his career and has got the control and experience [to deal with it)]

"Those moments happen but we win and score goals as a team and it's the same when we lose and let in goals."

Martinez will hope his men can record a second clean sheet of the season on Saturday when Everton meet fierce rivals Liverpool at Anfield.

Essien backs Inzaghi to succeed

Michael Essien is confident that Filippo Inzaghi has what it takes to succeed as Milan's head coach.

Milan fought back from two goals down to earn a 2-2 draw at Empoli on Tuesday, leaving them with seven points from their opening four Serie A matches.

The San Siro outfit are looking to banish memories of a disappointing campaign last time out which yielded only an eighth-placed finish.

And Essien has backed 41-year-old former striker Inzaghi, who took the reins in June, to deliver.

"He's a good person first and foremost and is doing a good job as a coach, too," the 31-year-old midfielder told FIFA.com "He's relatively young as a full-time Serie A coach but I have no doubt he'll do well if he carries on in this way.

"It's not easy to coach and manage football clubs, let alone a great club like Milan, so I have a lot of respect for him for taking up the challenge and he is giving it everything he has."

Essien, who is currently out injured, also believes that the club's absence from European competition will prove beneficial.

"I'm sure it will help us although we still would liked to have been in Europe," he said. "We have to look ahead but we mustn't forget we need to work hard to be able to do well in Serie A.

"Not being in Europe doesn't automatically mean you'll do well. It means fewer games and good recovery times compared to those in Europe but we still have to work hard and take our opportunities as they come throughout the season."

Fernando Torres, a former team-mate of Essien's at Chelsea, has re-united with the Ghanaian in Italy after joining Milan on loan and opened his account for the club against Empoli.

Essien described the Spain international as a "top striker" and added: "I am convinced we'll see lots of goals from Fernando.

Koeman excited by Mane prospect

​Ronald Koeman expects Sadio Mane to bring something new to Southampton's attack after impressing on his debut against Arsenal.

Mane, a deadline-day signing from Red Bull Salzburg, was forced to wait for his first appearance after work permit issues delayed his arrival in England.

He missed the Premier League matches against Newcastle United and Swansea City but, having been granted his permit on Thursday, was able to play 72 minutes in the 2-1 victory over Arsenal in the League Cup on Tuesday.

Koeman was impressed by the 22-year-old and believes he will provide a different attacking option to the Southampton forward line this season.

"It was very positive," said Koeman of Mane's debut. "I think he showed his qualities and he's very fast.

"He's a player who likes to play one-against-one.

"He likes to run in space behind the defence of the opponents and that's a great quality.

"That's one of the qualities we missed up front until now, and he brings that in, and that's very positive."

Mane scored 23 goals for Salzburg in all competitions last season and notched three this term before sealing his move to England.

Liverpool 2 Middlesbrough 2 (aet, 14-13 on penalties): Hosts progress after incredible shootout

A spluttering Liverpool required a remarkable penalty shootout to overcome Championship side Middlesbrough in the League Cup third round.

Brendan Rodgers' men, who have lost three of their opening five Premier League fixtures, were far from their best again as they drew 2-2 after extra time in a pulsating encounter at Anfield.

And the incredible action continued into the spot kicks, with some players required to take second penalties after 20 of the first 22 were converted.

A further seven would follow suit until Middlesbrough's Albert Adomah missed the target to secure the hosts' progress via a scarcely believable 14-13 scoreline.

It appeared a comfortable night was in the offing for Liverpool when teenage debutant Jordan Rossiter struck in the ninth minute.

But Middlesbrough were undeterred and enjoyed the better of proceedings thereafter, their reward coming midway through the second period when Adam Reach headed home to stun the home crowd.

Liverpool again took control during extra time, substitute Suso hitting his first goal of the club to seemingly seal their progression.

Patrick Bamford equalised from the spot in injury time of extra time following mistakes from Raheem Sterling and Kolo Toure, but Rodgers' side eventually booked their fourth-round berth in dramatic fashion.

Liverpool fielded something of an experimental starting XI, with the likes of Rossiter being complemented by Sterling, Adam Lallana and Lazar Markovic.

The hosts came out of the blocks with positivity, moving the ball quickly in the final third.

But it was Middlesbrough who had the first effort on target, ex-Liverpool defender Daniel Ayala heading straight at Simon Mignolet.

Any momentum gleaned from that was quickly extinguished when the hosts took the lead, however.

A dreadful mix-up between Kenneth Omeruo and debutant Jamal Blackman preceded the latter making a point-blank save to deny Rickie Lambert, who captained Liverpool on his first start for the club.

But Blackman's clearance fell to Rossiter, with the goalkeeper then somehow failing to keep out the 17-year-old's low 25-yard strike.

Middlesbrough responded well as Kike's goal-bound volley was deflected over by Lambert.

That heralded a spell of visiting pressure, Lee Tomlin forcing a solid save from Mignolet with a fizzing strike.

Picking up where they left off, Middlesbrough began strongly after the interval as Tomlin struck narrowly wide from distance.

Liverpool took control again well as they found a passing rhythm, although their final ball was leaving much to be desired.

Yet Aitor Karanka's team found a leveller in the 62nd minute, Reach capitalising on being unmarked to head Grant Leadbitter's free-kick home.

They continued to enjoy the better of the chances afterwards, too, with Mignolet having to be on high alert to keep out Adam Clayton's excellent strike.

And Clayton threatened again with five minutes remaining, hitting the outside of the post after being found by Tomlin's superb throughball.

An uneventful first half of extra time made way for chances afterwards, Blackman making solid saves to deny Jose Enrique and substitute Mario Balotelli in quick succession.

Suso appeared to have put Liverpool through, only for Bamford to score from the spot in the 123rd minute to force penalties.

He could not follow that up with Middlesbrough's first kick of the shootout, his saved strike one of only two missed in the first 27.

But despite Sterling missing the other when he had the chance to win it 5-4, Liverpool eventually sent their fans home happy.

Empoli 2 Milan 2: Inzaghi´s men show spirit to salvage a point

Milan recovered from two goals down to avoid a second defeat in four days and salvage a 2-2 draw at newly promoted Empoli on Tuesday.

Filippo Inzaghi's men were out to make amends after their 100 per cent start to the new Serie A season was halted by a 1-0 home defeat to champions Juventus on Saturday.



But Milan started poorly and found themselves 2-0 behind in the first quarter of the match thanks to goals from Lorenzo Tonelli and Manuel Pucciarelli.



Fernando Torres marked his full debut with a fine headed goal to bring Milan back into it before half-time, but, by contrast, fellow Chelsea loanee Marco van Ginkel's first start lasted just 31 minutes as he was withdrawn with yet another injury.



Keisuke Honda pulled Milan level with a smart strike in the second half, but Milan could not muster a winner, despite Empoli captain Mirko Valdifiori being shown a late red card.



As well as handing debuts to the Chelsea duo, Inzaghi recalled defender Daniele Bonera, in an attempt to revitalise his side after Saturday's setback.



But it was Empoli who made the more assured start, moving the ball well and controlling the tempo.



And they got their reward after 13 minutes when Tonelli took advantage of some flat-footed defending from Bonera to meet Valdifiori's inswinging corner with a powerful header to open the scoring.



It could have been much worse for Milan in the following five minutes, but Christian Abbiati twice got down smartly to deny Pucciarelli and Francesco Tavano after more slack defending.



But Abbiati was left helpless after 21 minutes as Pucciarelli doubled the lead. A well-worked Empoli free-kick from Valdifiori, flicked low into the box, caught Bonera and Milan on their heels once more and Pucciarelli was allowed to slot in from close range.



Milan improved marginally going forward, but remained limited to shots from distance with a low drive from Giacomo Bonaventura - who came on to replace the injured Van Ginkel - the only one to trouble goalkeeper Luigi Sepe.



That was until Torres made his mark with a wonderful flicked header into the far corner from Ignazio Abate's right-wing cross two minutes before the break.



Milan's defending continued to present Empoli with opportunities, however, and Tavano wasted the best of them 10 minutes into the second half as he scuffed wide when through one-on-one.



Tavano was made to pay for that in the 57th minute when Honda levelled. Abate was involved again, supplying the Japan international, who showed quick feet to engineer a shot from 20 yards that found the bottom corner.



The turnaround looked to be complete when Torres teed up Jeremy Menez in an almost identical position, but his shot crashed back off the crossbar.

Milan had the momentum, but when Torres tired and was replaced with 10 minutes to play, the visitors' energy dropped.



The game swung Milan's way once more when Valdifiori was sent off for a high challenge on Nigel de Jong that earned him a second yellow card in the space of less than 60 seconds on 86 minutes, but Inzaghi's men failed to take advantage.

Sunderland 1 Stoke City 2: Muniesa at the double to put Stoke through

Marc Muniesa scored a brace as Stoke City came from behind to progress to the fourth round of the League Cup with a 2-1 win at Sunderland.

The defender fired home in each half to score his first goals for the club and give Mark Hughes' men their first victory at the Stadium of Light on Tuesday after Jozy Altidore had put Sunderland ahead.

Sunderland reached the final last year before losing to Manchester City, and they appeared set to continue their recent love affair with the competition when United States international Altidore broke the deadlock in the 16th minute.

Altidore's goal marked his first for Sunderland since December last year, but it came in a losing cause as Muniesa turned the game in Stoke's favour.

The 22-year-old found his scoring touch on Wearside to keep alive Stoke's hopes of winning a cup that provided their sole major trophy success back in 1972.

Sunderland, for whom defender Sebastian Coates made his debut as one of seven changes from the weekend’s Premier League draw with Burnley, made the brighter start and went close to opening the scoring in the first minute when Billy Jones' deep cross just evaded Altidore at the far post.

Jack Rodwell then fired over the crossbar as the hosts pushed for the opener, which finally arrived in the 16th minute through Altidore. The American produced a smart turn and finish into the bottom corner to end his long goal drought.

But instead of pressing home their advantage, Sunderland instead conceded the initiative as Stoke were rewarded for a good spell of pressure by Muniesa after half-an-hour.

The Spaniard collected a lay-off from Oussama Assaidi and surged into the box before unleashing a fierce low shot that went under Costel Pantilimon's legs and into the net.

Muniesa's leveller opened up the game further, with both teams seeing chances go begging in the immediate aftermath.

First, Adam Johnson had a curling free-kick turned away by Jack Butland while, at the other end, Assaidi shot wastefully wide following a quick Stoke counter-attack.

Patrick van Aanholt was brought on for Coates at the break, but chances proved few and far between in a second period that was played at a considerably slower tempo than the first.

Stoke would have fallen behind again had it not been for a wonderful diving save from Butland to keep out Will Buckley's close-range effort, with the 24-year-old then denied by the England shot-stopper for a second time as Sunderland began to reassume control.

But their failure to beat Butland was duly punished 71 minutes in when Muniesa thumped home an emphatic left-footed finish after the referee had allowed play to go on, despite the former Barcelona man appearing to have fouled Johnson in the build up.

Marko Arnautovic then spurned a glaring chance, missing the target from point-blank range, but it did not matter as the visitors held on to go through.

Swansea City 3 Everton 0: 2013 winners progress to fourth round

Nathan Dyer continued his early-season goalscoring form as Swansea City defeated Everton 3-0 in the League Cup third round on Tuesday.

The diminutive winger had netted three Premier League goals in five games coming into this clash at the Liberty Stadium, and he made it four for the campaign with a composed strike in the first half.

Gylfi Sigurdsson then added a second after the interval as he reacted first to Sylvain Distin's wayward header coming back off the crossbar before substitute Marvin Emnes fired in a third with three minutes remaining.

Roberto Martinez, a former player and manager at Swansea, was unable to inspire his Everton side to a second-half comeback as they fell to back-to-back defeats following Sunday's surprise 3-2 home reverse at the hands of Crystal Palace.

For the visitors, a third game in six days was perhaps just one too many after their UEFA Europa League exploits last Thursday.

Meanwhile for Swansea, winners of this competition under Michael Laudrup in 2013, victory was a welcome boost after successive defeats to Chelsea and Southampton in the Premier League as they secured their first ever win over Everton after 20 previous failed attempts.

Swansea manager Garry Monk made five changes from the 1-0 reverse to Southampton at the weekend, while Everton’s side included seven alterations from their loss to Palace.

Bryan Oviedo made his first appearance since breaking his leg in January, and there were full debuts for Luke Garbutt and Muhamed Besic.

Sigurdsson twice fired off-target in the opening four minutes, before Samuel Eto'o shot wide with Garbutt better placed to his left.

Antolin Alcaraz, making his first start of the campaign for the visitors, was denied at close range by Gerhard Tremmel after the hosts failed to clear Garbutt's free-kick from the left in the 18th minute.

Dyer put the hosts in front 10 minutes later with a low finish at the far post after excellent work down the left by Jefferson Montero.

Martinez introduced Romelu Lukaku off the bench to replace Eto'o at half-time, and the Belgium international lashed a shot over the bar within 40 seconds of the restart.

Aiden McGeady did likewise five minutes later, while Tim Howard palmed away Sigurdsson's header after yet more incisive play down the left flank by Montero.

The Iceland international was not to be denied in the 64th minute, however, as he stabbed home from close range after Distin had diverted Jonjo Shelvey's cross onto the woodwork.

Tremmel had to race from his goal to deny Lukaku 11 minutes from time, but it was Swansea who pulled further clear in the final stages as Emnes' low drive from 20 yards put the seal on their place in the fourth round.