The goals in Everton’s hugely significant win at Leicester were scored by Mason Holgate and Vitaliy Mykolenko but the assist was provided by supporters who have totally changed the narrative in little under a fortnight at Goodison Park.
From the unforgettable coach welcome before Chelsea’s visit to the Finch Farm parade as Everton left for Leicester on Saturday, it is difficult to think of a more decisive intervention from a group of supporters in a relegation battle than this one.
Faced with a choice between protest and pulling together, Everton fans chose the latter and embraced it fully. The away support in the East Midlands was magnificent, the latest example of a set of fans pulling together to avert a potentially ruinous relegation.
“They’re amazing,” Frank Lampard said on Sunday. “What they did for us [at the training ground] I have never experienced anything like it.”
The result of all this has been more significant than the two wins that have pulled Lampard’s side away from the brink. This has been nothing less than a club rediscovering its identity after a few years when those in charge have lost sight of what makes Everton so unique.
Relegation battles are certainly not meant to be fun. And while it might be stretching credibility to describe this one like that, it has certainly helped supporters rediscover the point of their football club after a horrific couple of years.
The seeds of recovery have been planted on the pitch. Lampard has proved himself able to connect with the support better than his predecessor Rafa Benitez or Carlo Ancelotti, who said the right things but was aloof and seemed a reluctant participant in the Farhad Moshiri project.
Performances from the likes of Alex Iwobi show there is life in a group written off.
What happens next is fascinating. Those who led calls to protest say the truce will last only until the summer, when they will demand accountability for the failures that led them to this position.
So the onus is on the club to channel this energy into something positive, tapping into the emotion and unity to offer fans a real say in what comes next as they plot their way out of the ruins of this relegation fight.
Everton supporters deserve that. If they have pulled together to support their team, it is an illustration of what can be done if they are working in parallel.
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The club advertised for applicants for their advisory board on Monday afternoon – which is their antidote to the naked self interest that powered the European Super League, a development Everton spoke out against.
It needs to come with a promise that it will listen to those demanding change and ensure that they do not find themselves in this situation ever again.
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