Everton defender Joseph Yobo has bouncebackability

He was desperately unlucky with the opening goal in the derby.

It was just an instinctive reaction to a fierce shot and the ball could have rebounded anywhere.

It was typical of Everton's luck on the day that it span into the one area of the goal where Tim Howard couldn't reach it.

But while Joseph was unfortunate with that strike, he will admit himself that he switched off for the second goal and we were caught out.

There might have been a few eyebrows raised when the manager then decided to haul him off.

We are not exactly blessed with centre-halfs and to undermine the confidence of one of our only two fit specialists for that position may seem a risky tactic. But I can understand the manager's thinking.

He has to get his point across. He has to make it clear that mistakes cannot be tolerated.

And you can bet that if Joseph puts in a terrific performance in Athens tomorrow, David will be the first person to put an arm around his shoulder and say 'Well done.'

Joseph is a really good defender. He's good in the air, quick, reads the game well and is a confident lad.

And the quicker he puts the last few weeks behind him the better.

We now have a run of what you would call big games coming up.

There's the vital Europa League game tomorrow, followed by the visit of Spurs to Goodison on Sunday and then a trip to face the league leaders Chelsea.

In some respects that's a good thing. We've struggled to get ourselves up for games against what you would call lesser sides on occasions this season.

But we showed on Sunday how we can raise our game.

We'll have to do that in our next three matches, but we're capable of it.

Sunday's defeat was tough to take, but it can still be a springboard.

My respect for Pepe Reina

I HAVE to admit to a grudging appreciation of Pepe Reina's stunning save on Sunday.

Don't get me wrong. Goalkeepers' union or not, there's no other place I'd rather the ball had ended up than in the back of the Gwladys Street net.

But when Reina made such a good save to stop Tim's header, and then got up so quickly to spread himself for Fellaini's follow-up, I said to myself 'Yeah, you earned that.'

The first save was superb, but the follow up block was something else.

But the fact that we created chances meant that I am confident we can soon start winning matches again.

I heard Graeme Sharp on the radio say that it was possibly the worst Liverpool team he's seen at Goodison for years. I'd go the other way and say that's a testament to how well Everton played.

We have to take encouragement from that and look to bounce back tomorrow night.

Pienaar shows just what Everton have been missing

STEVEN PIENAAR'S sparkling return to form was one of the most positive aspects of Sunday's derby.

The way he has hit the ground running it's difficult to believe he's been out injured for more than two months.

We have clearly missed him, and it's reassuring that he has come back playing as well as he has before the injury.

The more serious the injury, the longer it can take for a player to learn to trust his body again.

That's probably why Steven has come back flying while Yakubu is still feeling his way back into form,

Obviously missing two months of the season is bad enough, but Yak was out for almost a year.

It's not just the strength and flexibility in his Achilles that he needs to rediscover, it's learning to trust that body part again so he can put total faith in it.

For a striker who relies on explosive pace off the mark or the ability to leap above a defender, that is crucial.

I'm sure Yak will get there, but he will have to be patient.

In the meantime we can be thankful that Pienaar has come flying back into the fold.

His performance showed just what we've been missing.