Sigurdsson double eases pressure on Silva

I hope they shock me even more than I'm shocked seeing that starting lineup

We don't really see them in training though, it's easy to guess at times but maybe Davies and Kenny etc aren't great trainers hence the fact they never seem to nail down a regular starting berth, it's various managers now after all?

Don't know why we continue to persist with Walcott at Bernard and Lookman's expense.

Finally, I think we need to just make a choice between Tosun and Calvert-Lewin and give him a run of games, rather than flip-flopping every match.

So much for Silva being the man to nurture a young team... two of our best players in recent weeks replaced by a 29 and 30 year old.

I fear for the midfield, Schniederlin and Gueye have proved countless times that they can't play as a midfield 2, I doubt Walcott and Richarlison will help out much defensively and Sigurdsson will play in that massive hole where he doesn't help Calvert Lewin or the midfield out.

I fear we need a very poor Cardiff side here to get a result.

Lose tonight and surely the hierarchy must question his appointment.

Lose heavily and he gets his cards. Really can't fathom out what he's trying to achieve with that team, it lacks width and creativity.

Can't fucking believe that team. How do Walcott and Schneiderlin get a game?

Win or lose, it feels like the manager is picking the team out of a hat.

He seems to be having problems that persist with this injury and I only hope in summer with no World Cup he can get a clean bill of health and these issues get cleared up.

Christ, that side seems quite pedestrian! A very brave (or idiotic) team selection. I can't remember a time when Schneiderlin hasn't let us down when reintroduced into the first team.

This manager's thought process is like no other! Maybe he's been told he is leaving at the end of the season!

I can't figure this out – Kenny has done well so why drop him? Davies was doing well and captain! Schneiderlin has never played well with Gueye and has been nowhere near the first team for weeks now.

Walcott playing wide again when he has been crap for months. Sigurdsson hasn't played well for weeks. The team is crammed with suspect players, players who don't always put in a shift, players who will down tools if the game goes badly.

As someone says above, if you were asked to name a team to get you sacked this would be close to it.

I hope to god I'm wrong but this looks a car crash about to happen. I can't quite believe what he has done. Imagine this lot taking the field on Sunday??

I am delighted that Jags is playing but if Mina is fit (and he is on the bench) why isn't he starting? What has Kenny done wrong to lose his place he has been one of our more consistent performers. Why Walcott? He has been consistently indifferent.

Gomes has had his much-needed rest and is one of our few players with genuine class, so why is he benched? Surely Silva isn't looking ahead to Sunday. Lose tonight and we will be battered on Sunday. Win tonight and Sunday could be an opportunity for at least one highlight this season.

I don't understand. Just hoping my bewilderment will be shown to be my own embarrassment and that we may actually win. Who knows?

You're absolutely right regarding Tosun and Calvert-Lewin.

The one argument for keeping Silva is that the team needs stability. That argument doesn't hold much weight when his match day selections are so haphazard.

Lookman is another one who, while he's not impressed me much, surely deserves a run ahead of the desperately poor Walcott.

Selection Bingo... I like it! Marco with one of those air-fired bingo boxes and all the squad numbers written on the balls inside.

"One and eight, 18 – hey, whadya know, Morgan, yer back in!

It's those beautiful legs 11 – get yer kit on, The, lad.

Either Silva's worked on a new game plan and Schneiderlin has been immense in training... or he's lost the plot.

All the players sitting around a table at Finch Farm... "Eyes down lads, here's the weekend's team".

I can imagine Bill putting in an invoice for bingo markers.

Well... It's no stranger than lawn mowers.

Some say Schneiderlin was better in his early games this season than he was last season; well, he didn't exactly set the bar high, did he? The fucking moggy that came on at the Wolves game was better than Schneiderlin last season!

This had better not be the team for the derby or else we're in trouble.

It's a disgrace that Kenny has been benched, he is the only one with a bit of passion.

Movement shit, aimless balls. Players looking at each other as if to say what do we do next. 35 min gone...

Decent but not yet top-notch for me, though I would give him some more time before stating that he'll never be quite as good as we should want. At the moment, I would still take a punt on Seamus over him if Seamus looked to be regaining some form in training.

Tom Davies is another who has got to find more in his locker to actually cement his place.

It is premature to write off Mina. We seem to have become accustomed to what used to be the exception, a player with no experience of the English game adjusting to it very quickly. That said, he's got to enjoy getting stuck in on a miserable day or night in the middle of winter or he'll never come good. Don't think there would be too much problem recouping the money spent on him selling him to a Spanish or Italian club.

Great performance by Sigurdsson. Bernard and Lookman really looked the part when they eventually came on. Digne had a good steady game.

Nuff said until 11.00

Look at the players scored less goals than Siggy.

I know a lot of fans will say he played well, give him credit but did he play a forward pass to an Everton player? Did he track back and follow the man? If the answer is 'no' or 'yes once or twice' that's simply not good enough.

I ask because I haven't watched the game but I expect more from a seasoned professional midfielder.

IMO Schnides is a big let down who's happy to collect a ball when under no pressure and pass it backwards or sideways. In terms of getting around the pitch, being in the right place or creating chances he just doesn't do it.

People criticise Davies and Gana for loosing possession and I agree they do give the ball away cheaply at times but it's normally when playing a forward ball. They are ball winners, closing down and covering defensive lapses. If they played the simple 'Schnides pass' all game people would criticise them for it.

Gotta give that sulky lil' shit, Richarlison, a slap round the nut and tell him to sort his game out... then I reckon we're on a roll here. Nil Satis is what we expect and it paid dividends tonight. Much love, good night xx

No wider lessons to draw but you could see confidence returning and I still think this manager can do it for us.

Happy, happy days

3 goals.

Clean sheet.

Away win.

Back up to 9th.

What's not to like?

Gylfi [what-has-he-ever-done-for-us?] Sigurdson a beautiful pair of goals, hugely influential all over the park. MoTM.

Idrissa [can't-pass-water-touch-of-a-rapist] Gueye wonderful close control and superbly weighted pass for the 3rd goal.

Dominic [Championship-at-best] Calvert-Lewin clinical finish.

As predicted, a single win for Everton would see their odds for relegation double, now out to 500-1.

All the doomsayers predicting relegation who took a piece of 200-1 must be kicking themselves. I mean, if you were so convinced you must have backed your hunch with yer hard earned, 'cos it's just buying money, innit?

Cruised in.

Now torpedo that lot on Sunday.

I know Cardiff were dreadful, but we've lost to dreadful sides before this season, so I'll take the three points thank you very much

Don't get me wrong he was not amazing but he was more than competent. He closed down, tackled, intercepted and played neat and tidy all night and kept us ticking. The first goal also (in my opinion) made by his forward pass releasing Coleman inside the box who pulled it neatly back to Siggy who finished tidily.

Richarlison wasn't his usual self, but that's okay. Bernard was great when he came on. Better defending at set pieces than we've been used to. Hope we can repeat this on Sunday...

"...never saw tonight's match read it on live forum and got covered in chocolate for my trouble."

That can be seriously misinterpreted in many ways, fellah!!!

Give us a few examples?

Silva took stick over his team selection, but at last he can point to the three points and feel vindicated.

The only downside of tonight was reading Andy's posts #66 – I'd have bee gutted too, very unlucky.

Otherwise, We should all enjoy tonight.

3-0, always a very good result and away is even better.

Good finishing and hopefully the same on Sunday, and hopefully, the referee won't taking the pee, as he's done in the past against us.

Interesting to see who starts on Sunday.

No, no one was brilliant or outstanding, but he was no less useless than anyone else... oh and we won 3-0! Don't care how we did it, we did. How about less player bashing and getting behind the team?

Sunday coming, we will need to start the game like we finished tonight and get better again to have any chance of taking points from the game.

I thought Jagielka and Gana were different class to what we have witnessed recently. Both were calm and did the simple things very well. Jags started quite shakily but having not started since Wolves away in the Premier League it was to be expected.

Richy must make way for Bernard and Lookman surely for Wallcot.
I would keep the back four as per tonight but maybe just maybe we need Gomes in for Lazyboy in the middle. Calvert-Lewin frightens the RS so he must start up front.

Well done, Sigurdsson. Best performance for a long time and two very well taken goals.

We did the basics well, Schneiderlin was unspectacularly tidy, Gueye had a stormer, Calvert-Lewin worked and got his deserved reward, Sigurdsson did what he does regularly – he scored goals. Read that – scored goals. It's good to have someone in the team that scores goals. We haven't had that since the last goalscorer we criticised and let go.

Roll on Sunday!

Events over the last few decades have not been great for Evertonians, and we can be a negative and fickle bunch (sometimes). The way players change from heroes to villains so quickly, and when they do our incessant and relentless criticism may make it harder for players to regain their belief and form.

Much of performing at the highest levels in sport is getting in the zone, and as fans we can help or hinder this process.

Hard as it is when we think the players don't deserve it, over-paid and lacking passion as they may be, we can help bring and show them the passion. Slagging them off will not change their mindset. Make them believe they are part of something special and maybe they'll become special.

Lets make them believe on Sunday.
COYB !

Some of this squad could become heroes if we pull this off on Sunday. That would be a welcome relief for all of us, especially the manager.

And fair play to Silva, most of his decisions actually paid off. Schneiderlin wasn't amazing or anything (though his pass to Coleman that set up the opening goal was superb), but he did all that was required of him with a minimum of fuss. And while he probably should have been starting in the first place, Bernard provided exactly the sort of spark you're looking for from your first sub and came on at just the right moment.

If we can get him back to his best, then that would be wonderful though I know that he has a lot of ground to recover with the fans, and I'm also aware that he may be playing for a move. I thought it was a brave decision to play him tonight by Silva.

Definitely agree with leaving Richie on bench against the RS start Bernard on left.

As much as Walcott is dogshit, I expect Silva to leave him in on Sunday to use his pace to counter when Roberston is high up the pitch. If he does leave him in the team he has to play Kenny behind him because Coleman and Walcott do just not function together.

Depending on how the game is going, I would really like to see at some point Lookman playing in the No 10 role behind Calvert-Lewin they link up so well together and have a natural understanding from all the England games they've played.

That performance has left me with more questions than answers. I really have no idea who will start on Sunday. Were we more solid because of Jagielka and maybe Schneiderlin, or simply because Cardiff were poor? It felt like Jags brought a bit of steel to the defence.

I remember someone on here saying that he felt Gueye drives forward with the ball well, and that he should do it more often (I think it was Tony Abrahams). A couple people on the live forum mistook him for Lookman when he created the 3rd goal. He was excellent today and appears to be raising his levels (probably to keep the attention of PSG). That's great for Sunday. I'm expecting a huge performance from him.

It feels like Silva has gone back to basics. Everyone knows that he likes a holding midfielder who will sit. He hasn't had one and so decided to give Schneiderlin another shot. I think he deserves credit for a brave decision.

Honourable mentions to Seamus, Calvert-Lewin and Bernard when he came on.

Average performance by Jagielka (rusty), Keane (no excuse) and Schneiderlin (why was he on the pitch?).

Very poor performance by Richarlison. It makes you wonder whether he is on a timer that switches him off January to June.

For once, the luck and game went our way and we should enjoy these "moments" but we will need a much better performance against Satan's boys on Sunday.

Ya. Ya. Pretty much that same feeling. That's the one.

I was so wrong - today at least.

People saying Schneiderlin was "ok" or "did well enough" must have been watching a different game than I.

Morgan sat deep, did his job perfectly, and that first goal, his pass to spring Coleman was a thing of pure beauty.

I thought he played wonderfully.

He also freed Gana. Gana was everywhere and could chase, tackle, and run where ever he pleased because someone was sitting in behind him holding.

Maybe all this Steve Ferns analysis isn't very far off? That, to my eyes, seemed the prototypical "Silva game" based upon what I've read. There were mistakes to be sure. We weren't Barcelona. But I'd argue, based upon what I've read and especially Steve Ferns' commentary, that game was the closest we've seen to "Silva ball".

Give credit where it's due. I'm not a fan, but Schneiderlin was splendid this evening!

I know Cardiff is no great shakes. But tonight seemed more in keeping with the style Silva would prefer to ultimately employ.

Schizophrenically Yours -

Sir James Clinton Crowley IV

p.s. - My God it feels good to win.

I don't know why anyone would knock Schneiderlin tonight. He didn't do anything wrong and we won 3-0.

The confidence visibly grew as the 2nd half wore on, and the better players on the pitch stepped up.

Richarlison is all about dribbling & scoring, beyond that he doesn't link well with others, he is seriously out of form. A serious consideration must be given for him to be dropped.

Walcott is in the wilderness, looks bereft and lost. Again Lookman can rue not starting, he will come Sunday.

Sunday... it would be nice wouldn't it?

"It should be a requisite to be beating these kind of sides."

Er... we did.;-)

Wolves saw tonight that any team in this league is capable.

We are a mid table team that will beat decent teams one week and lose to a worst one the week after. We're inconsistent like all the other mid table teams. So enjoy a win and don't presume we are entitled to 3 points against anyone.

When you are in a slump, like Everton, you can be easy meat for any team with a bit of confidence.

They won today but could have easily been a goal down after 2 minutes, then how would things have panned out?

Everton hammered Burnley when Burnley were really playing poorly and then fell into a malaise. Struggling to beat Lincoln and losing to Millwall was as poor as it gets and one hopes that on Sunday they can play a competitive game without showing the defensive frailty they showed today in the first 20 minutes.

Gueye was excellent in midfield, hunting for the ball but, when he missed it, it often fell to Schneiderlin, who just happened to be in the right place.

Against a poor team we played some good football, dispatching them with 3 well-taken goals. Most of all, the defence was competent, surely it was no coincidence that Jagielka was at the heart of it, organising things.

Gueye looked a lot more confident with the ball tonight, probably because we had more room than usual to play in, and probably because his confidence has been given a big boost with regards to a club like PSG wanting him.

Got to give this quiet little fella some credit though because he's just got on with his job these last two games when a lot of modern players would have found it a lot easier to kick up a fuss and then sulk.

Confidence is key, so let's now get behind these players on Sunday and hope they can give us something to really make us happy – and help stop Liverpool winning both the league and this new World Cup!

We still need to be more creative but one man we don't need is the wasteful Richarlison, who doesn't appear to know the basics of team play. Bernard put him to shame. Great to go to bed a happy man for a change.

I also thought Morgan had a very good game, his best for a long time. He dictated the tempo very well. It was a big call to drop a favourite in Gomes for a villain in Schneiderlin, and had we lost 3-0, I fear it would have been curtains. Maybe Silva can fix Morgan after all, Moshiri will be delighted as Schneiderlin is costing us 㿞m (transfer fee and wages).

All that said, it was only Cardiff, it was only one game, they need to play like that every game and find their consistency. I thought Gueye and Sigurdsson were fantastic too. I would say that's the best central midfield trio we've seen this season, and shockingly Gomes was on the bench.

I hope Brands doesn't shelve any plans to replace Morgan Schneiderlin, he'd need to score a hattrick in the derby to win the fans back round, and we need another player like him as it's ridiculous he's the only one we have.

Also, what a difference confidence makes as after 2-0 we relaxed and played some actual football. This is probably what Silva sees in training, day-in & day-out, and it must be so frustrating knowing what these players can do, and yet they fail to do it game after game.

Fingers crossed for Sunday now.

Schniederlin was the major talking point, imo he was very good, holding midfielder is a position that receives very little in the way of praise unless those around you help keep a clean sheet. Keane was roasted at 0-1 up, and it was Schniederlin who intercepted in our box to drag us out of the shit; a goal at that stage would have made for a very different game.

Jagielka seemed assured (apart from an early error of course), and Coleman looked refreshed.

The wide men were our biggest let downs, I don't know what Walcott does to get a game, both Lookman and Bernard carry a bigger threat for me.

Anyways, a big 3 points, stops us getting dragged into the mixer, a loss before the derby would have had fans expecting the worst and if we were to get a drubbing we would be screaming to see Silva's head of a spike outside of Goodison Park.

Brave selection paid off, let's hope he can win us the derby and stop them fuckers winning the league because that's all that we have left this season.

John G and Darren, love the "tackling machine" comments.

Peter #108, spot on. I've been a sharp critic of Silva in recent weeks, but today he got his lines just right, in defiance of those who thought Walcott, Coleman, Calvert-Lewin and Sigurdsson shouldn't play. His key sub, Bernard, was perfectly timed. And it was obvious that he's had the club working hard on defending set pieces during the layoff, because there were no coverage mistakes today. Credit where it's due.

Everyone expects us to blow it, including the players, but one of these days, we'll win. One of these days.

As I said above, the minute we lose one of them, I just wait for the next derby, because we will win one again at some point. We will. Won't we?!

The club found a gem in Digne; unfortunately, the vultures will be circling shortly unless I'm mistaken.

Now for the derby, which Everton team will turn up though?

Teams get back in defensive shape so fast nowadays. They try deft 1-2 passes to move forward and lose the ball at the 3rd quarter area, when everybody is in no-man's land and the counter-attack is deadly.

I think Keane is in above his head; Schniederlin was good but sloppy at times. I am amazed that the Coleman-Walcott combination is still not working. I remember Pienaar and Baines combo, they could find each other in the dark.

Siggy (who has beeb heavily criticised by many fans) scores a brace.

Morgan plays well (shock horror).

A striker scores a decent finish (outside the area?)

Boom!!! So great to win

Everton –please, please, PLEASE win on Sunday. I beg you!

If we can back this up with another win on Sunday, that could set us up for a really good end to the season, and leave us all with something to look forward to next term.

But worth remembering it was Cardiff and, as with Burnley and Huddersfield before, we have not used such games to 'inspire confidence' for future games.

Liverpool will be another story: no space, no time to run. Gana would never get the space to surge like he did today, and Bernard would have been pushed off the ball by a half-decent left-back.

But hopefully we can use this performance and break our beloved neighbours' hearts.

Richarlison is badly out of form, and should be dropped. I could see him losing his temper and getting a red... his general demeanour is of someone who is not quite right.

For me, Gomes in for Schneiderlin, who did okay but again, only really because Cardiff's midfield and attack asked no questions.

Also, play Lookman, Calvert-Lewin and Bernard as the front three.

Player one knuckled down and is doing the biz; player two is fannying around even worse than before. Player two throws himself on the floor if somebody looks in his direction, Player one gets stuck in.

Now which one do you think we 'should' keep and which one do you think we 'will' keep?

Let's go into the derby now and let's give these dogs a game.

You could see the confidence levels rise when we scored the second and played some very good football at that point. Hopefully we can take that belief into Sunday's game.

The support tonight was back to near its vocal best. A good night all round, albeit against poor opposition. However, you can only beat what is put in front of you, and tonight we did that with ease.

My favorite aspects of the first two goals were that they were both created from negative space! Top teams score a plethora of goals simply by having the creativity, speed, and determination to get the ball to the other end of the field quickly with purpose and skill, but not to always just to drive straight at goal. Of course it takes top finishers and players bombing on to finalize the deed. Sigurdsson was a monster at that today!

Subs today...on point and highlight we have more depth of talent than the average team. Cardiff fans must have drooled at our subs of Bernard, Lookman, and Gomes. Is Schneiderlin the evidence of man management and coaching promise we want to see more of? Silva did well today.

The mentality on the field was on point too. Two goals was not enough. Sublime nutmeg followed by a classy pass and clinical finish at the end shows the winning mentality we can wield. Thank goodness Gana isn't at PSG! It appears there may yet be yet another dimension being added to his game!

Up the Blues!

I never felt more like singing the blues when Everton win and ----------------.

Still, let's enjoy the parade while the sun's shining. Sorry, what dark cloud on the horizon no, just a test of the wet weather gear, squad, squad, Preesent umbrellas.

Playing Schneiderlin to free up Gueye was a great call. I thought Gueye had his best game of the season. The one major concern is the form of Richarilson, maybe the win will help his confidence, but he needs to improve. I also still think Coleman is still quite away off his best.

Put a world class striker in that team and it would help Richarlison and also Bernard who looked very sharp when he came on. A new striker has to be top priority next window.

I'd stick with Bernard for Richarlison for the derby and bring in Zouma for Jags.

Gylfi, Digne and Gueye the stand out performers. Richarlison and Walcott on the naughty step although I can only see one of them making way for Bernard and it looks like Walcott has a clause in his contract for a percentage of games when fit. Well done Marco and the team, any confidence boost is welcome with the victims up next.

We managed to get Lukaku to come on loan, why not a similar quality of player at a similar stage of his career, maybe initially on loan. There are options out there. I think it will happen in the summer, let's face it it has to happen if the team is to live up to our CEO's ambitions.

IT'S GOING TO HAPPEN ON SUNDAY!!!!!!

BELIEVE!!!!!!!

Lukaku was in a unique situation in that Chelsea had been buying everyone and also had Costa up front so were willing to let him go on loan.

Most teams with a decent striker either keep them and play them or will want big money for a transfer not a loan.

That's the motivation mate. A dream come true for me if we put a big dent in their title hopes. Imagine the whinging twats if we can get one over them and City form a gap.

I hope the homegrown lads are smashing the importance of Sunday's result into the foreign lads. They all get out of gaol with a win on Sunday.

Marco Silva may well look back on Lucas Digne's brilliant piece of defending in the 2nd minute, as the “moment” that saved his Everton career.

Bernard is fast becoming one of my all time favourites. I was hoping Silva would swap him for Richarlison and he did. You could see the difference in the team dynamic as soon as he came on. A real footballer who works his socks off for his team that lad.

Richarlison will have to fight for the spot on the other wing with Lookman and Walcott.

Sigurdssonn answered any criticisms in that game – two fantastic strikes.

Well done to Calvert-Lewin also – he stuck at it and scored a smashing goal. He showed us he can strike a football.

I thought Seamus had a decent game but he will be black and blue tomorrow – he took a couple of really bad challenges. I was really worried about his leg when he stayed down after the first one.

Looking forward to the derby. What a difference a win makes and this was a very very important one.

That said, we improved markedly with the introduction of Bernard for an awful Richarlison (what is wrong with this lad at the moment?)

Sigurdsson took his goals really well and pleased that Calvert-Lewin got on the score sheet. Guye was excellent tonight and so pleased we had him, despite me being one of the people who wanted to take the PSG shilling in January.

I didn't see last nights game, just read live forum, no one was impressed with Charlie, in fact every one was “Up to here” with him, he's a young lad, a very, very young lad who wants to grow up as quick as he can, Everton are a man down every game he has started in the last couple of months.

Sorry to have wasted time talking about him but it needed to be said.

Well done to the manager and the team for last night's result and performance, hope it takes us into Sunday's game with a lot more confidence and after Liverpool draw with Watford tonight (hopefully) their nerves will be shredded and I hope we shred them a lot more.

Despite the shaky start I thought Jagileka added some much-needed experience to the back four. The fact he had been absent since the first day of the season was worrying but he came through it. I know the start for Schneiderlin raised some eyebrows, but when you look at how Man Utd set up they play Herrera and Matic holding. Now I'm not saying Gylfi is Pogba but it just shows how a solid foundation can help more expressive players play to their strengths.

Maybe André Gomes can be seen as an alternative to Glyfi when we want to play a deeper 3 in midfield. It's evident he's had a loss of form of late and with less defensive responsibility we know what he's capable of. Richie had a disappointing night last night but good to see we weren't solely relying on him creating something.

I'm really hoping this is a turning point for our season. Maybe it was tiredness, maybe Silva made far too many changes this season at once with some more experience (and a better transition) needed? Either way, I'm glad we have something positive to go into the derby with. Onwards and upwards! 7th still in the crosshairs. COYB

Funnily enough, it was in the loss away to Arsenal that I was most impressed with him; the things he did and the problems he caused them made me think that we really had a forward with decent promise. Arsenal looked very uncomfortable with him and he rolled their defenders more than a few times.

That all seems like a long time ago.

Silva used the squad to rest Gomes and Davies who have looked tired in the past month. He clearly has his eyes on the derby as the biggest game of the season which given where we are is our best chance salvaging some pride and improvement out of the season.

I think he now needs to drop Richarlison to the bench along with Walcot. Both are a shadow of what they were. Bernard has now assisted more goals than anyone else in the squad so surely must start for the derby. Digne also has the most crosses into the box of any player in the Premier League. Christ, we need a proper striker!!!!

I also think it is no co-incidence that we kept a clean sheet and played better with Jags and Seamus in defence. As in the past, the old guard from the defence Moyes built just know how to keep it solid for us to build from in a game.

Thankfully, this does pretty much ease relegation worries for the season – which was a perfectly valid worry before this game. If we had lost we would have been right in the mix down there so those now saying 'I told you so' about it should calm down a bit. No team ever thinks they are going down until it happens or they are far adrift at the foot of the table.

I clearly don't have a clue about football and will keep my opinions to myself in future!

Boy did we need that!!

Another scruffy, shapeless, aimless performance against a team that's not top level. Sure our new worldwide audience just lapped it up.

We've got to be more ruthless in deciding that players are not good enough and get rid quick. As it is, players are ejected from the side after constant dismal performances, only to return when their replacements prove to be just as bad. It's scattergun madness that will never work by a whole regime earning a living under false pretences.

I do agree that the power of confidence is immeasurable in sport but that alone will never turn the basket case that is the present Everton FC into anything other than making up the numbers and I'm absolutely certain that normal disgraceful service will be resumed pretty soon.

If Gana plays like that again no midfield will fancy it and fair play to him as most of these so-called professionals would have sulked for the whole run in. Silva has obviously got respect of squad as he would have had to mend this fence quickly after refusing to let him go and seems to have done it well and anyone in management of any discipline can appreciate that it is joy always easy.

Regarding Silva, I was very happy and excited when he came but by the end of January, I had enough. If they stay playing like this and not conceding stupid goals, then great, but this must remain a constant till season's end and then I think we will be good.

Let's not get too far ahead of ourselves though. We're still a less than bang average side under poor management.

I'll be watching on Sunday, more in hope than expectation.

He's very wasteful at times, but we don't get that many players ahead of the ball, and this is something that must also frustrate him at times? I see him most games break forward but very rarely can he do anything but try to go it alone because most of our players are usually behind the play.

He then loses the ball, mainly because he's not a great dribbler, but he should be doing better than this. I'd stick with him now he's back playing wider, because he's very strong for a winger, and he also makes very clever runs inside the fullback, towards the goal.

Bernard, has got to get game time though, because he's a proper little footballer, who takes up better and more natural positions for his fullback, and I think this kid is going to turn out to be a really top player, who might eventually be better just getting left to roam?

COYB

Like others have said, I'll be watching on Sunday with everything crossed but am expecting very little. We've had far better Everton sides than this one get a hiding from that lot and last night's result doesn't mask the gulf in class between the two sides at the moment. The one thing I'm holding onto is that we've often fared better against the RS when expectations are low. They need a win more than we do.

It would be very sweet to win and maybe see Silva or Big Dunc run on the pitch to celebrate. I'd give my back teeth for that to happen. I wouldn't be heartbroken if we could get a draw.

Let's hope we can build on the result and play well to win on Sunday.

Sunday is a great opportunity for Silva to convince the fans, that he is the man for the job and bring some much needed cheer to our beleaguered fans.

James Candy of the Torygraph decided he wanted to spin a line about Jag's age and readiness for the Premier League, so he says he had ‘only registered two league starts for Everton all season' (factually true) and ‘the 36-year-old defender was well off the pace in the opening two minutes when he was robbed of possession by Kenneth Zahore' (wholly untrue).

Quite the opposite happened, in fact. Jagielka outpaced Zahore to gain possession of the ball, and it was only his underhit back pass to Pickford that handed possession to his opponent.

What a complete berk Candy is, and what a depressing insult to the model professional that Jags is. Zahore has just turned 25, and was out-sprinted by a guy 11 years his senior and who is renowned for his professionalism, including his attitude to not playing and keeping in condition. That's the fucking story, Mr Candy!
Candy should apologise to Jags, who must be mightily pissed off by this fabrication.

Sadly that is very true, Craig. However, I've also seen far worse teams get a result (Danny Cadamarteri springs to mind) so you never know.

Nevertheless, with a league title on the line for them, I fear any max effort from our players will still not be enough and the most likely result will be heroic failure followed by the slew of post-match press releases from the players bemoaning hard luck and how they are evolving as a team etc. But you can't knock anyone for dreaming!

If Gana can maintain his current level of performance then we at least have a shout. I take back what I said about not being bothered if he goes to PSG, I don't know what we'd do without him.

Steve Ferns nails it above when he says "that must be what Silva sees in training", though not for the reasons he thinks. If we can only play like that in training and when a relegation bound team like Cardiff gives us all the space in the world, then we are truly doomed under this manager. If we play like that against the Shite, Chelsea, Manure and Arse in our next series of home games, then Silva might be worthy of keeping his job until Christmas.

Otherwise, all last night means is that we are safe in the Premier League for another season, and possibly that the players aren't as shit as they've looked so far. The manager – that's a different story IMO.

We can never complain about an away win but Silva was very lucky with his ludicrous selections. Dropping Kenny... Why?? Coleman, Walcott, Schneiderlin — all anonymous. Poor Seamus is now totally shot as age and horrific injuries have cut short his shelf life.

Last night's game was a defining moment in the season. A loss would surely have been the end for Silva. Now, our season hinges on trying to help Man City win the Premier League title by beating Liverpool on Sunday. Klopp is right: this is our World Cup Final. I don't have a problem with that statement as it might fire up our players to put in a shift in the derby. Anything less than 100% from our lot and we will get slaughtered.

Everton's season now all comes down to Sunday. It's all we have left. Nothing to play for but beating Liverpool. Sad but true.

Very happy with the score and the goals... but it was Cardiff and they are shite.

Let's see them get up the Redshite and start arguing with the ref after each Salah dive... get the cheating fucker sent off for diving — now that would be a story worthy of the back page.

Definitely a much needed boost before the derby game, as that will be a test of Marco Silva's character, will determine as to whether or not he can steer us in the right direction and handle the managerial pressures.

In the last derby game we came so close to winning and we should have come away with at least a draw, but disappointingly we lost because of Jordan Pickford's goalkeeping error.

We need to gain consistency and a winning momentum and if we approach this game with the right team strategy and if the players show hunger, determination and give it their all, then I really think we have a chance of winning this game.

Depends upon the team selection, the formation and how we perform of course, but if we get this right collectively then we stand a good chance of pulling it off. Marco Silva has a lot to prove to the fans and if we won the game, I wonder if this will be a turning point.

I think on Sunday, time will tell.

I can't see us ever putting up 㿷m+ for a player, the club suffered a collective nose bleed when we bought Sigurdsson at half that price.

Our best bet is to keep our eyes out for a (sad to say) Salah or (even more sad to say) a Rat Boy type (without the teeth), the dark side seem to find these type of players all too easy to come by.

Or raise one of our own babies from the start.

It's amazing how a goal can change things; in the second half we looked a lot better, but not getting too carried away, they (Cardiff) didn't put up much of a fight in terms of trying to level the score. After our second goal went in they more or less folded.

I did think Bernard, who comes in for a lot of criticism on here, was the catalyst to our improvement, he certainly has a good footballing brain, and can see things before most of the others.

I hope the confidence gained from last night's result, galvanises our fortitude and resolution for Sunday, and we buck the trend and give the fans something to be proud of as well as derailing their title ambitions, from which we would never have heard the end of for years to come.

Cardiff may well be shite but so are Brighton and Southampton and we lost to both of those.

Credit where credit's due; it was a difficult fixture, given our form, and the fixture was a six pointer. Lose and they would have been within striking distance of us.

We didn't and there were a few good performances in there, too!

Had we drew, would have had should have won that 3-0.

I do not care who they were, we got a much needed three points, win and it is always the same, it was only such a team.

No pressure Sunday, all the pressure is on them, hopefully the crowd will get right behind the team.

We have been on the receiving end of endless stick by our neighbours, what better time than to get a result on Sunday, will be a lot more than 3 points, we could finally mess it up for our neighbours.

Will never have a better chance of sticking the boot in than Sunday.

For once let's hope the devil calls in his hand and we get the rub of the Green.

We are mid-table with little to lose. Let this be, petty as it sounds, our cup final. Imagine the joy this team and coach can bring to Evertonians on Sunday.

We won well last night and it is churlish to blame our win on how poor Cardiff are. Cardiff have won games and they will win more. I enjoy our victories, some don't.

We should be able to find 3 points from the next 10 games (fingers crossed). So the relegation pressure has subsided.

If they play like they did or anywhere near like they did in the last derby, I'll be happy. Hopefully Pickford won't be making the same kind of wonder save late on this time.

I think I would go for a pragmatic approach. And, now that I have written that phrase... I don't know what the fuck it means.

We played better but the old flaws were still there: wayward passing, going back when players were making good runs into space ahead of them, defensive panics and stupid fouls.

Liverpool's current form leaves me hopeful we might get a draw but a win still seems a long way away. That said, never say die and my fingers will be crossed on Sunday, along with my toes.

We don't really know what the psychology of the team is at the moment, do we? After that win, they're no longer worried about relegation. It might be best to let them attack, when we are playing well as in the last derby, we seem to attack better than we defend.

Attack this time might be the best form of defence this time around?

Sigurdsson is so vital because he's the only one in the squad who consistently finishes those types of goals.

Digne was the main reason we kept a clean sheet, as well as Pickford commanding his area for the first time this season.

Bernard is a magician, and I think we probably have Silva to thank for him being at the club, as I think having a Portuguese speaking manager may have had something to do with his decision.

Calvert Lewin showed that he can finish on the run - hopefully a decent run of matches will help him get a bit more consistent. I still didn't rate his contribution up until that goal, but I'm happy that he pulled that one out.

Gueye - total class player and at his price three years ago, he is right up there with the likes of Cahill, Arteta and Lescott for bargain buys.

The negatives:

Richarlison was poor, although to be fair to him, the few times he looked like going on a run Cardiff blatantly fouled him to curb his impact. They did their homework there.

Coleman still has the talent, like we saw with his cut-back to Siggy, but it's just getting so rare.

Jagielka just doesn't wash with me. People point to him coming in and solidifying that defensive line, but he's got some bad habits that he's never dropped - his backward trap attempts that have never paid dividends and his midfield blasts that come off the side of the boot. And that attempted back-pass early on is unacceptable. A player of nearly 700 senior games, being paid very good money to be on standby, should be able to come in when needed and not be rusty. He honestly owes part of his weekly wage to Digne for saving his arse.

Everton has become one of those clubs where you wonder where the real quality is coming from with so much quantity of various decreasing qualities abound.

Gana was superb albeit against a weak Cardiff.

It is easy to say he should not be rusty but that is just not reality. Anyone in football knows that coming into the team when you have not been playing regularly requires a little settling in period to get going again in a game.

Yes, it was a poor pass that could have gone very wrong but for Digne but understandable. It is no coincidence that we kept a clean sheet and played better with him there. If Silva has any sense, he will leave Jagielka in there to keep it solid for the rest of the season.

I can't wait for the derby and our chance to ruin the other lot's title dreams! The performance is important but, in truth, as long as we win or at least draw to hinder their push, I don't care how it happens.

The team selection against Cardiff was car crash stuff. The fear now is that Silva may believe this team selection should start on Sunday! If this happens we will be slaughtered. The likes of Schneiderlin and Walcott are not cut out for the dogfight that should be the game on Sunday.

McCarthy, having been on the bench for the last 3 games, didn't make the bench against Cardiff. Surely this was a game to make his return for 20 minutes at least. Silva's team selections of late are worrying. I'm very afraid for Everton for next season under Silva. Very afraid!

If Cardiff had have scored first that might have been a completely different result to what we got. One thing is for sure, that team is just like a boxer with a glass jaw that shatters every time they take a punch. We only started to control Cardiff with 10 mins to go, the result flattered us.

As far as the derby goes it's a "Damned if you do, damned if you don't" deal, they can't defend and against the more organised teams they can't attack, we might as well have ago; sitting back we'll concede, going forward we might just get lucky.

McCarthy situation is a bit of strange one. I don't think he's Silva's kind of player, but I'm sure if he was fit Silva would have him on the bench, he's made for the Derby.

Silva doesn't have to worry about relegation anymore and I want to see how he motivates them from now to the end of the season. None of the team are playing to their best or anywhere near. We're moving towards player power like Chelsea: if they like him, they'll play for him; if not? Let's see if they'll play for him.