It may have been a throwaway remark to try and temper expectations ahead of next season, but Evertonians have once again been left perplexed by something Sam Allardyce has said.
The Blues boss spoke to the media ahead of his team's final home match of the 2017/18 campaign and opened up about acquiring new signings in the summer.
"I think where we are - seventh last year, eighth at the moment - we want to try to maintain that position, but it all depends on the recruitment in the summer," the 63-year-old replied to the query.
Playing devil's advocate for the moment, it could well be that Allardyce was just talking about the end of this term.