Frank Lampard believes the performance level his Everton players provided in Saturday's Merseyside derby was reflected by the positive response of the club's own fans.
The Blues fought out a goalless draw against rivals Liverpool but were only a marginal VAR decision away from clinching all three points, after Conor Coady's close range finished was ruled offside.
The result leaves the Toffees still winless in the Premier League but they have now drawn four matches on the spin and boss Lampard is confident that supporters can see the progress that is being made.
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When asked to sum up his players' effort by the club's official website, Lampard said: "I think that fans answered that question at the end of the game. The atmosphere was incredible from two hours before the game, but the way we played, the intensity, the effort, the quality at times, was really evident in the game.
"They're a top team (Liverpool), there's no doubt. A big rival but a top team, you've got to respect that. But what the players put into the game, I think you can see a lot of progression in what we're doing. We get a point, we move on, the wins will come if we play that way.
"We're going in the right direction from where we were last year. There were some tough moments, I came into that, we got through and they were amazing times. Now we're looking at can we improve. I think we worked hard in the window altogether. The club brought players in that are a mixture of experience and players that are going to develop here and get better."
A number of Everton's players were making their first appearance in a Merseyside derby, including young defender Nathan Patterson, new centre-backs Conor Coady and James Tarkowski, midfielder Amadou Onana and striker Neal Maupay. But former Chelsea great Lampard was more than satisfied with what he got in return from them.
He said: "We're looking at young players in the team that are delivering straight away and will get better and experienced players that will give us a harder spine I think and a tougher look about us defensively. (It's a) lovely base for us to keep working from.
"They're (Liverpool) a hard team to play against because they press and they're intense, so you need to have confidence to play and be brave on the ball. People like Conor and Tarky are from the back. Alex (Iwobi) is playing as Alex has been for me. He's been outstanding. Onana the same. Tom Davies comfortable to receive. So there's a lot of good things. We want to get better at the top end of the pitch. We've had a few chances to score a goal. It hasn't quite dropped for us but if we keep going in that way we'll be fine."
New striker Maupay had a glorious chance to give the Blues the lead but was kept out by Liverpool stopper Alisson Becker. "I thought he (Maupay) worked really hard," said Lampard. "It's not easy against Liverpool. He gets his chance. I know he'll be disappointed because he's a goalscorer and he's hungry, but I think Alisson does well to stand up. He gave us another feeling earlier in the game. He's making little diving runs in the box. Things that are natural for a striker to do, which we haven't quite had in reality. He'll be frustrated but if he plays like that, the goals will come here."
When asked what he thought the performance against Liverpool would do for his new recruits, he added: "Understand what it means to play for this club. I know it because I went through it last season and it was amazing.
"So when I speak to these players, I say 'do you want to be an Everton player and experience a unique club that has a passionate fanbase?'. As long as they see you give everything and show have they feel for the club on the pitch, they'll be with you and we felt that today."
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