Anybody who has watched Everton this season will testify that the Toffees have improved immensely this season. However, in the last few games, the Merseysiders form has dipped.
A 2-2 home draw with Watford on Monday night means that the Toffees have failed to win in three Premier League game. A last-gasp 1-0 defeat at arch-rivals Liverpool was followed by a lacklustre 1-1 home draw with Newcastle.
Everton have not looked like the same team that came so close to garnering a draw at Anfield in their last two matches. In fact, the Toffees have looked distinctively lacklustre in both their seemingly winnable games on home soil.
Even their standout stars of the season such as Andre Gomes and Richarlison have struggled to produce their best in the last two games. Richarlison has scored twice since the derby defeat, but otherwise, he has not played that well.
Gomes endured a rare off night against Watford, as most of his teammate did against an admittedly impressive Watford side.
The whole team looked lacklustre and maybe that derby defeat has harmed morale, despite their strong performance.
Everton aspires to be a top six side, but if they are to achieve that desired result the Merseysiders cannot afford the sort of results they have produced in recent games, especially at home.
The results and performances have both been poor in the home matches against Newcastle and Watford. Everton's boss Marco Silva needs to find a solution to turn things around, otherwise the season could drift.
The Toffees face a trip to reigning champions Manchester City this weekend, which is not exactly the ideal match to bounce back from two poor performances.
However, the Merseysiders have produced good displays at the so-called big six, without getting the results so far this season. Maybe the Etihad Stadium will be the venue for the Toffees to finally produce a big performance and result.