The development of the current Everton squad has been a long and laborious one for David Moyes, the board and the fans.

David Moyes with the backing of all concerned has built up a squad of players that can play football, battle in games when needed and are capable of matching most teams. This has all been done on a shoestring budget in comparism to other teams in the league.

With the recent acquisition of Steven Piennar for £2m our current midfield of Mikel Arteta (£2.25m), Tim Cahill(£1.75m), and Leon Osman (Academy) has cost the club less than Joey Barton's move to Newcastle United.

'Jagielka has been quoted as saying when he first arrived he felt that he may have overstepped his ability level'


So in all honesty it is hard to say when a player under the current manager is a surprise package, I have come to expect the unexpected with his buys.

That said there have been players this season who have come on leaps and bounds. The obvious one would be Joleon Lescott who since his arrival two years ago has missed only a handful of games, has been capped for England, and has played in several positions and has even added goal scoring to his feats.

Lescott is not the only player to improve hugely this season. Osman has looked superb for us this year and could be counted to many other Premier League club supporters as a surprise package, as has Piennar who in all honesty looks worth at least three times what we have just paid for him. His energy and skill levels have certainly surprised many an Evertonian.

Lee Carsley is another player who deserves to be mentioned in the surprise package bracket. His commitment, energy and passion for the cause has shown no signs of slowing down as he reaches the final throws of his career and during our stint in Europe this season he shone for us.

But even with so many of the fringe players stepping it up a gear and surprising most of us on their ability, the one player who stands out for me this season as a surprise package has to be Phil Jagielka.

Moyes signed him for £4.5m from Sheffield Utd at the end of last season and he took some tie to settle into the club despite the fact that he had already been at Everton as a youth player but was released when he reached 16.

He has been quoted as saying when he first arrived he felt that he may have overstepped his ability level by signing for us but Moyes would have none of it.  He tried him at right back, centre midfield and eventually fell upon playing him at the left of the centre half when we were desperate for numbers.

It was a master stroke by Moyes; Jagielka has been an ever present in that position since and has looked England class on many occasions. The biggest compliment I can pay Phil is that he has kept Lescott (one of the best centre backs in England) out of position for the latter half of the season.