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Moyes considers desperate defensive measures

Sylvain Distin's injury added to David Moyes' problems © Getty Images

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Everton's defensive injury crisis is so bad that manager David Moyes is even considering picking himself at the back this weekend.

Everton were already short of a number of first-team options before Wednesday's Premier League game against Tottenham - which they lost 2-0 thanks to goals from Aaron Lennon and Benoit Assou-Ekotto.

But Moyes was left to rue a double blow after one of his few remaining fit central defenders, Sylvain Distin, picked up a leg injury near the end of the game and was forced off.

With Phil Jagielka, Jack Rodwell and Tony Hibbert already on the sidelines, Moyes has very few defensive options ahead of the weekend visit to Villa Park.

"It's his hamstring but I'm not too sure," Moyes said of Distin's injury, before joking: "I'm going to play at centre-half against Aston Villa on Saturday."

Despite the problems at the back, it was a lack of a cutting edge in front of goal that Moyes blamed for the defeat to Spurs, who moved level on points with Manchester United in the title race.

"We had played okay and had made a few chances ourselves, but we needed to try and be clinical when we got chances here," Moyes added. "But we weren't clinical, though I don't think we played that badly.

"We tried to give Tottenham a game and for most of it, I think we did. Tottenham are doing well and so is the manager with the team they've got.

"They are title contenders, they are a really good team but that doesn't take away from the fact that we did okay tonight and we played quite well. We tried to give them a game as much as we could.

"We really needed something, someone to strike a ball cleanly and the ball to go in but we never had that."

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