Steven Gerrard believes Liverpool must reproduce their derby display on a weekly basis if they are to be crowned Barclays Premier League champions.
The inspirational midfielder admits his side have failed to hit top gear in the opening weeks of the 2008-09 campaign but feels the second-half performance in the 2-0 victory at Goodison Park has seen them edge closer to their best form.
"So far it's probably our best performance," Gerrard told reporters at Goodison Park.
"We were winning games but stumbling early on in the season, but I think the derby performance has set the standard now and if we can continue that level then we will certainly be there or thereabouts come the end of the season.
"I think we controlled the game all the way through, though obviously there were bits of pressure from Everton. They are a good side here and they've got good support behind them but it was a statement of our intentions.
"We were together, played some terrific football and the performance showed how frustrated we were not to take maximum points from Stoke."
The Reds eased to a comfortable win in the 208th Merseyside derby following Fernando Torres' sublime second-half brace.
The Spaniard's double blast saw him notch his first goals since the opening day of the season success at Sunderland and Gerrard claims it was inevitable the striker would recapture his form sooner rather than later.
"It was only a matter of time," he said.
"You can't keep strikers with his talent down for long because they aren't going to go long without a goal. It was only a matter of time. He was a bit frustrated first-half, but then Keane's put one on a plate for him and the second one was typical Torres.
"He made a lot of space for himself in the box and the finish was deadly."
Ahead of the match Gerrard had been tipped to notch his 100th goal for the club and although he went close on a number of occasions, he was happy to sacrifice his own hopes of personal glory for the good of the team.
"The manager wanted a disciplined performance from me," he said. "When we play a 4-4-2 he wants me to pick the right time to go forward and I'm really happy with how I performed on the day.
"The 100th goal will come. I'm confident of that. I had a couple of half chances today. The keeper's made a couple of good saves but I'll keep going. The most important thing, as I said before the game, was the win and it was all about the team."
"As a local lad these are the most difficult games to prepare for. The nerves start the week before and you can't wait for the game to come about, so the fear of losing these games takes up a lot of energy beforehand. So I'm pleased we've won it and delighted with the lads' performance.
"It obviously settles you down to get the opening goal because these games are so frantic. You've got to earn the right to play and win the battle first.
"I thought we matched them physically and outplayed them and we knew the goal would come, with the quality we've got and the six front players we have in the side we knew it was only a matter of time before the goal came."
Three points at Goodison Park coupled with Arsenal's shock defeat at home to Hull City means Liverpool are now second in the table, just behind Chelsea on goal difference.
It is the Reds' best start to a league campaign since 1996-97 but the skipper is refusing to look too far beyond their next match against PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League on Wednesday.
"It's important to be humble now and not get carried away by the performance," he added.
"We've got a big game on Wednesday and then another important game against Manchester City. We've got to take each game as it comes and it's important no one gets carried away.
"There's a long way to go and we realise how tough it's going to be to still be in the hat come the end of the Premier League, so we need to keep going. But I think we set a standard today that we need to match week in week out."
The inspirational midfielder admits his side have failed to hit top gear in the opening weeks of the 2008-09 campaign but feels the second-half performance in the 2-0 victory at Goodison Park has seen them edge closer to their best form.
"So far it's probably our best performance," Gerrard told reporters at Goodison Park.
"We were winning games but stumbling early on in the season, but I think the derby performance has set the standard now and if we can continue that level then we will certainly be there or thereabouts come the end of the season.
"I think we controlled the game all the way through, though obviously there were bits of pressure from Everton. They are a good side here and they've got good support behind them but it was a statement of our intentions.
"We were together, played some terrific football and the performance showed how frustrated we were not to take maximum points from Stoke."
The Reds eased to a comfortable win in the 208th Merseyside derby following Fernando Torres' sublime second-half brace.
The Spaniard's double blast saw him notch his first goals since the opening day of the season success at Sunderland and Gerrard claims it was inevitable the striker would recapture his form sooner rather than later.
"It was only a matter of time," he said.
"You can't keep strikers with his talent down for long because they aren't going to go long without a goal. It was only a matter of time. He was a bit frustrated first-half, but then Keane's put one on a plate for him and the second one was typical Torres.
"He made a lot of space for himself in the box and the finish was deadly."
Ahead of the match Gerrard had been tipped to notch his 100th goal for the club and although he went close on a number of occasions, he was happy to sacrifice his own hopes of personal glory for the good of the team.
"The manager wanted a disciplined performance from me," he said. "When we play a 4-4-2 he wants me to pick the right time to go forward and I'm really happy with how I performed on the day.
"The 100th goal will come. I'm confident of that. I had a couple of half chances today. The keeper's made a couple of good saves but I'll keep going. The most important thing, as I said before the game, was the win and it was all about the team."
"As a local lad these are the most difficult games to prepare for. The nerves start the week before and you can't wait for the game to come about, so the fear of losing these games takes up a lot of energy beforehand. So I'm pleased we've won it and delighted with the lads' performance.
"It obviously settles you down to get the opening goal because these games are so frantic. You've got to earn the right to play and win the battle first.
"I thought we matched them physically and outplayed them and we knew the goal would come, with the quality we've got and the six front players we have in the side we knew it was only a matter of time before the goal came."
Three points at Goodison Park coupled with Arsenal's shock defeat at home to Hull City means Liverpool are now second in the table, just behind Chelsea on goal difference.
It is the Reds' best start to a league campaign since 1996-97 but the skipper is refusing to look too far beyond their next match against PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League on Wednesday.
"It's important to be humble now and not get carried away by the performance," he added.
"We've got a big game on Wednesday and then another important game against Manchester City. We've got to take each game as it comes and it's important no one gets carried away.
"There's a long way to go and we realise how tough it's going to be to still be in the hat come the end of the Premier League, so we need to keep going. But I think we set a standard today that we need to match week in week out."
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