Gylfi Sigurdsson pinpointed Everton’s defensive resilience and passing fluidity as key factors behind their impressive form – as the midfielder vowed the improvements are “just the start” of what they can learn from respected manager Carlo Ancelotti.

The Blues made it two straight wins in the Ancelotti era courtesy of Saturday’s 2-1 victory at Newcastle United, which followed the 1-0 win at home to Burnley on Boxing Day.

Over those two matches, Everton have had 43 shots on goal – the most of any Premier League side – and have now gone five games unbeaten in the top-flight.

Added to their attacking threat, Sigurdsson believes the team’s defensive solidity and effective passing have been key to the turnaround, as the Iceland international revealed the huge respect the players have to “buy into" Ancelotti’s methods.

“We’ve conceded only one goal in the last two games and that’s helped us,” said Sigurdsson, who played the full 90 minutes against both Burnley and Newcastle. “I think we have been solid defensively. Passing-wise, we’ve been more effective and more of a threat in the last few games.

“[The mood in the dressing room] is fantastic. Obviously, with two wins in three days it can’t get any better than that. 

“All of the boys have a lot of respect for [Ancelotti]. He knows what he is talking about, he knows what he is doing. It’s easy to buy into what he wants.

“Even though it’s a difficult time to come in with two games in the space of five or six days since he has been in, it’s been fantastic for the confidence of the team. For him to get two wins straightaway, hopefully that is just the start and we can build on it now.”

Since recovering from a sickness bug which kept him out for clashes against Manchester United and Leicester, Sigurdsson has started Everton’s past three games as a central midfielder in a 4-4-2 formation.

The 30-year-old says he’s enjoying the role, which has demanded increased defensive focus, as he praised the all-round work of Dominic Calvert-Lewin after the striker followed up his winner against Burnley with both goals at St James’ Park.

“[My role] is something that’s completely different and I’m enjoying it. Obviously, it’s a different kind of system and the way we are playing at the moment. You can’t complain when you win two games on the spin the space of three days. I’m enjoying it. 

“We haven’t had loads of time with the new manager to work on things – it’s been mainly video clips. A little bit of work on the pitch but with the two games there hasn’t been a lot of training. I think we try to keep it pretty simple, stay together and keep the ball moving, and let the boys in front do the attacking. We’ve also got to keep our shape defensively.

“It’s obviously very important for Dom to be scoring goals. He’s doing the other things right, too, such as holding the ball up and running in behind. He’s playing with a lot of confidence at the moment.

“I think the most important thing for a striker is to get a run of games. You might not score in the first four or five games or so but if you have got the belief from the manager, that helps. Once you start scoring goals, it’s the best thing for a striker. But he’s not just scoring goals, he’s playing well for us.”