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James McCarthy has revealed his satisfaction after convincing those who doubted whether him and Antolin Alcaraz were good enough for Everton.

The duo were team-mates in the Wigan Athletic team that lost its Premier League status last season, but swiftly accompanied manager Roberto Martinez to Goodison.

Some initially questioned the £13m fee Martinez paid his former club for the services of the Republic of Ireland midfielder, and also doubted whether free transfer Alcaraz would overcome the injury problems which plagued the start to his career on Merseyside.

However, both have quickly delighted the Goodison faithful with their contributions, more recently Alcaraz who has shone since returning to fitness in time to deputise for injured skipper Phil Jagielka.

And McCarthy admits he is thrilled with how the Paraguayan has responded to the same question marks he also faced at the start of the season.

He said: “Antolin’s different class. When he first signed it was exactly the same as me with people wondering 'Is he good enough?’ and ‘could he adapt?’

“But fair play to him he had a bad injury and he's come back so well when we've needed him. He's a great lad to have around the changing room and I'm delighted to see him doing so well.

“It'll make it difficult for the gaffer now if Jags comes back soon then Sylv does. It's brilliant because it's real competition in the squad and it's what we want.”

That competition in the Toffees squad has allowed Martinez to send a large contingent of young players out on loan recently, and U21s manager Alan Stubbs is optimistic that gaining first-team experience at various levels in England’s domestic divisions will be a valuable step forward.

Republic of Ireland Under-21 international Shane Duffy and midfielder John Lundstram recently had their stays at Championship outfit Yeovil Town extended until the end of the season, while it was also confirmed on Tuesday that left-back Luke Garbutt is to remain in League One with Colchester United for a further month.

Defender Matthew Pennington and striker Hallam Hope joined Tranmere Rovers and Northampton Town respectively on one-month deals at the start of the year and forward Chris Long yesterday headed to MK Dons on similar terms.

Portuguese midfielder Francisco Junior is also due to remain with Dutch top division side Vitesse Arnhem until the end of the season.

“From our point of view, it’s great that we have got that many out at this moment time in time and I’m expecting a few more to go out in this month,” Stubbs said. “It’s great that the managers from these clubs deem them worthy to help.

“From the players’ point of view, it’s another step in their development and to edge closer to our first team by gaining valuable experience in someone else’s first team.

“We’ve seen a real positive influence from them going out on loan in the past. They come back different players, mainly mentally with the fact that they are playing on a Saturday, it is real and means something. There is a real prominence on not making mistakes, doing things well and it can really turn a corner (for the players). Yes, there is a little bit of anticipation and nervousness when they go out because it’s something they haven’t experienced before but once they get over that and settle in their ability comes through and you can see a different player.”

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