David Moyes' assistant at Everton, Steve Round, believes the manager is leaving the club in a very strong position.
The Scottish tactician will take the reins at Manchester United this summer after ending a tenure of more than a decade at Goodison Park with Round suggesting things are in fine fettle on the blue half of Merseyside after finishing above arch rivals Liverpool for the second successive season.
"I think the team's confidence and ability to play at that level has shown through in those results," Round told evertontv.
"It's a very good record and it does show the direction that the club is going in, that the team is going in.
"We feel a lot more confident now and when we go on to the pitch against those teams, I think the players feel they're more on a level.
"I think over the last two to three years that belief has steadily come through at Everton.
"It's not necessarily a case of defending for your lives, hanging in there and nicking the odd result by fortune and great defending, we're actually going in there and taking the game to the opposition and playing as well as the opposition are playing against us.
"It's great for the team moving forward into next season that they know they can play at that level."
