James Tarkowski says the collective focus of Everton's changing room will not be detracted by off-field matters with rumours suggesting a verdict is imminent on the Club's appeal against a 10-point deduction.
The Blues came from behind to draw 1-1 with Crystal Palace at Goodison Park on Monday night, as Amadou Onana stepped off the bench to head home a late equaliser.
Everton, who enjoyed 63 per cent possession and registered 19 attempts on goal to Palace's 10, pushed for a winner in the closing stages but failed to breakdown a stubborn Eagles defence for a second time.
"I think after being 1-0 down we would have taken it but, obviously, before the game, we were looking for all three," reflected Tarkowski. "Their goal was a bit of a worldie but I just don't think we created loads on the night.
"Set pieces are important and we get the goal from it but I would have liked to see us create a bit more because we dominated a lot of the ball. It's disappointing but we take a point in the end.
"Palace obviously went with three at the back which puts numbers in the box and we struggled to break it down. We got the ball wide quite a few times - the delivery maybe wasn't always on point but they outnumbered us in the box quite a bit so every time the ball was delivered they seemed to get the first contact."
Tarkowski highlighted the impressive influence of manager Sean Dyche when asked about the impact of still not knowing the result of the Club's appeal against a Premier League Commission's decision to deduct 10 points in relation to Profit and Sustainability Rules.
"The manager has been excellent [with the way he has handled it], to be honest," said Tarkowski. "We were all off when it was announced and, obviously, it shocked us. We got a message maybe an hour before it was released publicly.
"When we got back in, the manager had a quick meeting and we parked it - there is nothing we can because our job is on the field, not off the field. We parked it very quickly and responded in that period really well.
"We don't want to preempt what may or may not happen with the appeal.
"The manager is very good at making us focus on the on-pitch matters rather than anything happening off it. Nobody knows what is going to happen [with the appeal] - the situation is what it is.
"We're in a bit of a difficult run now where we've not won for a while but we've been performing okay and picking up a few points but, obviously, we want to pick up wins soon.
"We've had some tough games. We've played Man City twice and Spurs twice in the past month and in all of those games we've played really well and didn't get as many points from those games as we would have hoped with the performances that we put in.
"We'll focus on where we are for now, we look forward to the next game and hopefully that win is on the way."
Only Arsenal (11) have netted more goals from corners than the Toffees (10) in the Premier League this season, and Everton again proved to be a threat from set pieces against Palace.
"We work on it a fair bit," added Tarkowski. "We're a big side, for one, so it's always an opportunity when we get it into the box [from set pieces].
"In terms of my role, I just try to read the flight of the ball. We've got lads who deliver the ball for us perfectly a lot of the time, so it's just about getting yourself in good areas and attacking it."
