Duncan Ferguson ‘buys Everton fans a pint’ before taking charge of Aston Villa match

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Duncan Ferguson made sure the first round was on him as he treated Everton fans to a free pint before taking charge of the team’s Premier League match against Aston Villa on Saturday, according to reports.

The former Everton striker has replaced Rafael Benitez in the Everton dugout after the former Liverpool boss was sacked after just six months, with the club on a miserable run of form and 16th in the Premier League table.

Ferguson has been appointed caretaker manager “for the club’s upcoming games” and has urged his players to fight for the Goodison Park crowd.

And before Saturday’s fixture against Aston Villa, Ferguson further endeared himself to the home faithful by reportedly putting money behind the bar at several pubs around Goodison Park, telling staff to inform fans that their first pint was on the house.

BT Sport reported that Ferguson had called the pubs ahead of the game on Saturday morning and fans on social media commented that they had been treated to a free pint in both The Brick and The Winslow Hotel.

A tweet from The Winslow Hotel Twitter account on Saturday morning said: “Massive big thanks to the legend that is Duncan Ferguson for buying all our customers their first drink this morning. Amazing generous gesture, that’s a measure of the man.”

Ferguson’s previous spell as caretaker manager began in a memorable win over Chelsea at Goodison Park following the sacking of Marco Silva in December 2019 and the 50-year-old has urged Everton show similar fight as they host Steven Gerrard’s side.

“They [Everton players] should give everything. They should run themselves into the ground,” Ferguson said in his pre-match press conference.

“They should roll up their sleeves and fight for the club in every single game. Imagine if you asked a fan to put a shirt on and get on the pitch, what would they do? Well they need to do that.

“I have confidence in the players and the team and think they can win every game and that will be no different on Saturday. We have a lot of great players in there and they will step up, I am sure.”