James Rodriguez believes Everton can qualify for the Champions League next season.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side remain in contention for a spot in Europe’s elite club competition with only goal difference separating them from Tottenham in fourth.
Rodriguez won the tournament with Ancelotti in 2014, during their time at Real Madrid, and admits he is struggling with watching it from a distance.
But the Colombia international is adamant that the Blues have a blueprint to make their Champions League ambitions a reality over the next 12 months.
He said: “This is exactly what I want. This year I’m watching the Champions League from home, and that’s something that I don’t especially like doing!
“Yeah it’s hard [to achieve]. But I think we’ve got what it takes to be there next year.
“For qualifying, we need willingness to play, we have to be hungry to succeed in every game.
“I believe all players need to have that same feeling. We need to follow the same path.
“Serious people are collaborating in this project, people who want to win.
“The people in this club are sure about what they want. We have talented, top level players.
“I believe if we work together as a team, if we all follow the same path, I’m sure we will be able to achieve awesome things.
“This is a very humble club, they are eager to achieve success, and it has very kind people.
“When a club is eager to achieve success, that’s a very positive thing.
“It’s not only about players, but also about the people linked to the club, working every day for it.
“There are people who do small things, but they have a huge impact on the club.”
The prospect of linking up with Ancelotti at a third club proved instrumental in Rodriguez’s high-profile move to Goodison Park during the previous summer.
However the 29-year-old admits that he is also indebted to Everton for showing faith in him after a peripheral 2019/20 campaign at the Bernabeu.
“I spent a season without playing much, so I had to go to a team where I could be trusted,” he told evertontv.
“I needed to play under a coach who knows me, how I behave on and off the pitch.
“Carlo was exactly what I needed for coming to this club. That was really important in my decision to be part of the team.
“It was because of both reasons. Both [Ancelotti and the club] trusted me when nobody did. I’ll be forever grateful to the club and to Carlo.
“That’s why I try to show my best in every game, that’s why I try to play at my highest level. This is what I want to do for the club.
“He’s [Ancelotti] a very easy-going person, knows how to treat players and how to get the most out of us.
“That’s why he worked along with all those great clubs and now, with this new project, we expect him to do his best to achieve extraordinary things.
“All the players who have worked with Carlo have spoken highly of him. That means he does a great job in all senses. This is why he has achieved so many things.
“He’s given many things to different clubs, and we hope to achieve the same in this new project. This is a club which has hunger to accomplish big things.
“We’ll hopefully achieve something great within months or years.”