Everton boss Carlo Ancelotti admits his team have surprised him this season.
Everton have won their last three games in the Premier League and went up to second in the table following victory over Arsenal on Saturday evening.
When asked if he thought Everton would be firmly in the race for elite European football at this stage of the campaign, Ancelotti said: "No, I didn't think [so], honestly. That means the job the players are doing is a fantastic job.
"But we are able to adapt to all of these things. Honestly, we deserve to be there. The job my players are doing is really good."
The Italian added: "I think to arrive at the end of the season in the top four will be really difficult and really complicated.
"As I said, our target is to compete for the European positions. We are now in the European positions, in the top four, but the season is long.
"But we need to have the ambition, I think. The ambition will help us have more motivation."
