Senior figures at Villa see every window as an opportunity to augment the squad, but this month feels especially pressing

Adam: Positive signs against a very good Villa side. Moyes seems to have given us a bit of confidence, especially in the first half, and added some much needed width to our game. We have too many players wanting time on the ball and need to find the net of course. I'm mildly optimistic for the rest of the season.

David Moyes' return as Everton manager failed to muster a response from the toothless Toffees in a 1-0 home defeat to Aston Villa on Wednesday.But there was no new manager bounce as Villa took control inside the opening minutes.