Boothroyd wants Northampton Town to emulate Everton

Boothroyd is a big fan of the multi-faceted game plan David Moyes has put in place at Goodison Park where the brute force of players like Marouane Fellaini is blended with the more technical qualities of those such as Stephen Pienaar.

Northampton’s emphasis has been on power for the majority of the season and it is a policy that has served them well - they are currently fourth in npower League Two and a point outside the automatic promotion places.

But they do have footballers of a purer nature on their books.

Chris Hackett is a player capable of generating excitement with the ball at his feet and Luke Guttridge is one of the best passers in the division.

Boothroyd also feels the ongoing improvement of striker Roy O’Donovan, who is getting sharper with each game, provides another dimension to his team’s play.

“We’ve got a little centre-forward there (O’Donovan) who we know will get in behind and stretch defences and that’s how I want us to play,” he said.

“You’ve got to have that variety of attacks to be strong enough to go direct and then to be able to play as well.

“I’d like us to be like Everton - they go long when they need to but they also have footballers in their team who can play short.

“That’s the holy grail for me, to get results by playing like that.”

One player for whom a dull moment is never likely to be associated is Ishmel Demontagnac, who showed several pieces of excellent skill in the weekend win over Accrington but failed to register a shot on target after being played in behind the visiting defence.

Demontagnac, whose best performance came in a free role in the FA Cup first-round replay defeat at Bradford City, has been a fringe player for the bulk of the campaign and remains something of an enigma,

“Ish is like a throwback player from the old days,” said Boothroyd, who fielded the 24-year-old on the left wing against Stanley after Adebayo Akinfenwa’s hip injury saw him withdraw from the starting line-up.

“He can do things that nobody else can do but he can frustrate you at times as well.

“He’ll either be a supporters’ favourite or he won’t be, and although his crosses were excellent on Saturday his shooting was not up to scratch.

“I think maybe at times he tries too hard to score but he put in a good shift of 90 minutes at the weekend and I was pleased with that.

“He’s got that X factor about him and on another day he might have got himself a couple of goals.”