Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite was speaking after his starring role in the hard-fought 1-0 win over Burnley

Jarrad Branthwaite has urged his Everton team-mates to use the winning feeling experienced after Burnley as motivation between now and the end of the season.

Arijanet Muric’s howler gifted Dominic Calvert-Lewin the winning goal as Everton edged clear of relegation danger with a 1-0 win over the Clarets at Goodison Park on Saturday afternoon. It was the first time the Blues had tasted victory in the Premier League for 112 days.

Calvert-Lewin scored at the end of a poor first half when Muric’s attempted clearance struck the striker before looping into the unguarded net. The victory lifted Sean Dyche’s side up to 15th in the Premier League table, four points clear of the relegation places, and even though Branthwaite admits they were far from at their best, collecting three points was all that mattered.

“We got the three points and that is all that matters,” the defender said. “It wasn’t our best performance on the ball, but we dug deep and got the three points, which is what we needed.

“When you go on a long run without a win, you forget what that [winning feeling] feels like. We went into the changing room then, and we had that winning feeling back, and we need to keep that in there until the end of the season.”

Before Branthwaite added: “We have just won a game. It was a game of football that we needed to win. Don’t get too high and don’t get too low, just take it into the next game.

“It is a massive result, we know that, but in football, it can change so quickly. So we need to stay level-headed and focus on the next game.”

Calvert-Lewin made it two goals in two games after he ended a run of 23 matches without a goal in Tuesday’s 1-1 draw at Newcastle United. And Branthwaite believes the strikes could provide his team-mate with the confidence to go on a goalscoring run.

“It is massive for him and his confidence,” the centre-back said when asked about the England international. “Think we see as players every day the quality that he has got, hopefully now he has got the confidence to start scoring more goals.”

Branthwaite also admits the responsibility is on Everton’s players to positively affect the rest of their season, as the club is expected to discover this week what punishment it will receive for a second breach of the Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules. The Blues have already been docked six points (reduced from 10 on appeal) this season for breaking spending rules in 2021/22.

“I think once we find out what happens, we can put it to bed, but us as players can do our job on the pitch,” Branthwaite said.

“It is out of our hands what happens off the pitch now. We have just got to stay focused, train hard every day and put in performances on the pitch which bring wins.