'We are glad it's over' - Demarai Gray makes Everton form admission after survival

Demarai Gray believes Everton will return to pre-season determined for an improved campaign and insisted there is ‘work to be done’ to ensure the Toffees don’t experience another relegation battle.

Gray, who signed from Bayer Leverkusen last summer for £1.7m, scored six goals and provided five assists across 39 appearances in all competitions. One of these assists included the delightful cross for Dominic Calvert-Lewin to head home the winner in last Thursday’s dramatic 3-2 win over Crystal Palace which secured Premier League survival for the club. Everton finished in 16th place after a 5-1 defeat at Arsenal on the final day where Gray was part of a much-changed team. Gray was frustrated at the club’s end to the season but reflected on an intense final month.

“We were disappointed to lose how we did against Arsenal,” Gray told evertonfc.com. “But Thursday was a big night for the club and we needed that result. The past month has been a lot mentally for us all and a lot for the club. The most important thing was survival and we achieved that.

“We have a lot of improving to do, we are not just going to come back in and think we’ll automatically have a better season. There is work to be done, the manager has made that clear. It was not the best way to finish, but the lads worked really hard over the past month to stay in the league.

“We will have a break and come back fresh minded, ready to make sure we’re not in that position [fighting to avoid drop] again.”

Everton have struggled with injuries and absentees throughout the campaign. This was again the case on Sunday as Richarlison missed out, along with injury prone pair Fabian Delph and Yerry Mina. Furthermore, senior figures such as Seamus Coleman and Jordan Pickford