Everton’s Under-21 side managed to top Northern group A in EFL Trophy with six points and progressed to the knockout stages of the tournament.
Next Tait’s side will host League Two outfit Mansfield Town, who are looking to bounce back after their 2-1 FA Cup defeat at the hands of Sheffield Wednesday at the weekend.
Mansfield forward Oates pointed out that the Toffees’ Under-21 side have done well in the EFL Trophy as well as in the Premier League 2 Division One this season and believes that Wednesday’s encounter will be a tough game.
However, the Stags’ star believes that if Mansfield play like they did against League One side Sheffield Wednesday, they can get a positive result against a young Everton side.
“I think they’ve [Everton] won their group so they’ve obviously done well in the cup in the group stage”, Oates told Mansfield’s official site.
“I think they’re doing well in their league so I think it should be a tough game.
“We just need to play like we know we can and how we did on Saturday [against Sheffield Wednesday].”
Everton’s Under-21s side are seventh in the league table and will play for the first time this season at Goodison Park when they take on Mansfield.
