Andy Johnson has a chance of making a rapid return from injury
in time for Saturday's Merseyside derby, according to reports on
Friday.
The England international had been expected to miss the clash with
Liverpool at Anfield after injuring his ankle in an incident with
Wigan goalkeeper Chris Kirkland on 21st January.
However, various reports in the English media claim that Everton
boss David Moyes will decide whether to gamble on Johnson's fitness
following a training session on Friday.
With James McFadden out with a broken metatarsal, Moyes will be
desperate to see Johnson given the green light to play after he
scored twice in the 3-0 win over Liverpool earlier in the
season.
However, if the striker fails to convince Everton's medical staff
of his fitness, goalkeeper Tim Howard admits it will be a crushing
blow for the club.
"We lose a different dimension to our game with AJ being out so we
have to hit them from another angle. Whatever that may be - we will
keep it close to our chest," Howard told the club's official
website.
"Anytime that you lose a couple of attacking players, your attack
is going to struggle a little bit.
"We have got Beats (James Beattie) and he is up for it, there's no
question about that.
"But at the same time it can demoralise you a little bit when you
lose players like we lost AJ and Faddy back-to-back.
"It's about rallying round each other and making sure that the guys
have each other's back."