Anthony Gordon proved to be the hero for relegation-haunted Everton in their crunch clash with Manchester United, and the home-grown star at Goodison Park is adamant the Toffees remain “too good” to go down.
Frank Lampard’s side remain just above the drop zone, but a weekend of positive results for them means a four-point gap has been opened up.
Gordon helped make that possible when netting a first-half match-winner against United and the England U21 international remains confident a club which has never slipped out of the Premier League can preserve its top-flight status.
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What has been said?
Gordon told reporters: “It was never my thoughts [we could go down], but as we got a few bad results it became the reality.
“I think we had to finally accept it: this is our reality now until we change it. It definitely has been a thought, but we are too good.
“It won’t happen. I am a winner. I am not going to accept that [we could be relegated], because of the size of the club, and just me as an individual. It is not going to happen. I’ve heard people say we don’t care. I can never understand that one.
“As footballers we do this every day, we give our lives to it and we do a lot that people don’t see. I get it if people think we are having bad days and we might be off it, but not caring? I don’t get it.”
The bigger picture
Everton have eight games remaining through which they need to try and steer a course to safety.
There are some testing challenges to come, including a derby date with Liverpool on April 24, a home tie with Chelsea a week after that and a final day showdown with top-four hopefuls Arsenal.
They also have two meetings with Leicester to take in, a trip to fellow strugglers Watford and clashes with Brentford and Crystal Palace at Goodison Park.
