The darkest hour for James McCarthy came at Christmas when he felt the familiar , sickening tear all footballers dread . As one of the most influential players in Everton ’ s squad , McCarthy was aiming to starting afresh in the New Year . December had been a write-off due to a hamstring problem but he had put the hard yards in to ensure 2015 began brightly . Then his world fell in . ‘ It was so frustrating , ’ said McCarthy . ‘ You come back and then you break down . You come back again and then you break down again . The lowest moment was having done all the work and it happened again . Everton 's influential midfielder James McCarthy suffered a frustrating injury setback at the turn of the year . McCarthy admits the lowest moment came was breaking down having worked so hard to regain his fitness . ‘ I ’ d been delighted to get back . It was Christmas and I was looking to get going but then I played a couple of games over a few days ( against Stoke and Newcastle ) and it went . Mentally it was tough . It ’ s never nice sitting in the stands . You want to get out there and help . ‘ We have changed a few things and the manager has looked into every detail , such as my training load . I ’ ve changed my boots , the inner soles of my shoes . They looked at my car but that was okay . I am just delighted to be back . Now it is about putting things right. ’ There is an unmistakable sense that the Republic of Ireland midfielder is eager to make up for lost time . Everton ’ s season was ticking along nicely before he was injured in Wolfsburg in November . Since then , the collapse has been bewildering . How much has been down to his absence ? He has missed 14 games so far and Everton have won just two ; with him in the team the win percentage jumps from 14.3 to 36 and they are also more potent in front of goal . McCarthy is all smiles with Everton team-mate Seamus Coleman during training at Finch Farm on Wednesday . They will hope that proves to be the case on Thursday night in the Europa League last-16 clash at Goodison with Dynamo Kiev . Everton manager Roberto Martinez is at his most gushing when talking about McCarthy . He has been a huge influence , dating back to when he signed him for Wigan from Hamilton Academicals in June 2009 , shortly after he was Scotland ’ s Young Player of the Year . Growing up in the Castlemilk area of Glasgow , McCarthy was a gifted footballer and both Reading and Liverpool wanted to sign him . ‘ I didn ’ t want to be away from home when I was that age , ’ McCarthy explains . ‘ I was only 15 . Liverpool and Reading both looked after me really well but I was happy to stay at Hamilton . I made the right decision . I wanted to play as many games as I could. ’ Something with Martinez clicked when they met and the education he received in Wigan has accelerated his development . McCarthy and Everton take on Dynamo Kiev at Goodison Park on Thursday night in the Europa League . Martinez is under scrutiny , with some Evertonians having gone cold at his unrelentingly optimistic appraisals , but few are better placed than McCarthy to give an insight into what makes his manager tick . Is he too positive ? ‘ I don ’ t think so , ’ McCarthy replies . ‘ You need to be positive . If he was permanently negative , the club would be a depressing place to be . He has got the right attitude . I have worked with him for five , six seasons now and I know him down to a tee . Everton manager Roberto Martinez has been a huge influence on McCarthy having coached him at Wigan . ‘ He is positive and that is what we need . He wants it to rub off on the boys . We know things haven ’ t been good enough and we need to pick up the standards. ’ McCarthy has not long turned 24 but he speaks with maturity and it is easy to see why he is being regarded as a potential captain for club and country . ‘ From the outside looking in , you can hear people starting to panic , saying “ Everton this ” and “ Everton that ” , ’ says McCarthy . ‘ We have got 10 games left to put it right . We need to stick together and we will only get up the table by doing that . ’
Everton star James McCarthy has suffered injury problems this season . The Toffees midfielder suffered a steback after facing Stoke and Newcastle . He was substituted in the second half of Everton's 1-0 win at home to West Ham on Saturday but is expected to be fit for Sunday's trip to Manchester United.