Steven Naismith was just about to head for home when Roberto Martinez felt the need to have a quiet word with the Everton striker.

Naismith featured in only 27 minutes of Everton’s hard-fought 3-1 win over Swansea City but his influence – he scored the crucial second goal and was brought down for the penalty that led to the decisive third – had been huge.

There was only problem, though. Naismith didn’t know a thing about what he had done. Having been flattened in a collision with Jordi Amat, the Scotland international could not finish his cameo because of concussion and oblivious to his role in maintaining Everton’s push for honours.

‘I told him that he scored from 40 yards,’ Martinez said with a telling smile. ‘Seriously, we had him checked out and we will look after him. He is an incredible footballer, a real dedicated boy and I am just delighted for him. He is enjoying his football now.

‘When he plays through the middle, he is at his very best. He is instinctive and a real threat. He is a player who is in a good moment and I want him to carry on doing that. I’m very satisfied. All you are looking for is a win to get into the next round.’

Until Naismith was introduced, the prospect of Everton reaching the last eight was under a cloud but within 12 minutes, his scurrying, scampering presence had unnerved Swansea to such an extent that a tie which was evenly poised at 1-1 had swung emphatically in the home side’s favour.

They were, undoubtedly, aided by Swansea’s ambivalence in the final 30 minutes. Never once in the second half did Garry Monk’s side look like they wanted to win and they rarely looked capable of testing Everton keeper Joel Robles. The Spaniard never had a save to make in the second period.

Yet, for a period, Everton were nervy. The Goodison Park crowd had become increasingly irritable Everton had failed to add to Lacina Traore’s back-heeled goal four minutes into his debut and had Swansea – who made eight changes – shown any ambition, they could have profited.

Instead, Naismith replaced Traore, who had begun to flounder, and the picture was transformed. First he capitalised on a woeful back pass from Neil Taylor to give Everton the advantage and was then chopped down by Jazz Richards, leaving Leighton Baines to secure their place in the last eight.

‘Swansea came in with a very good approach and they had players with points to prove; it made for a very good game of football,’ said Martinez. ‘I thought we were anxious and we were not feeling the role of playing at home. We were a little bit too cagey with our possession.

‘The second half was much different and we were better. We controlled the game, created good opportunities and I was very pleased for many reasons. Traore playing 60 minutes was a bonus and then seeing Steven Naismith carry on his good form was also very pleasing.’

If the transition from playing for Glasgow Rangers to cutting it in the Barclays Premier League was initially difficult for Naismith, his second season has been better and four goals in his last five games have helped Everton at a time when they have lacked bodies up front.

Martinez had been concerned about this assignment, anxious that the burden of expectation may lead to them buckling as had been the case 12 months ago when his Wigan side took advantage of nerves to dump Everton out of the quarter-finals.

Ultimately, though, Everton had far too much class. Swansea had some good moments in the first 15 minutes, with Jonathon De Guzman’s header cancelling out Traore’s opener, but afterwards they were one dimensional and looked like they had Thursday’s Europa League date with Napoli in mind.

Roy Keane was fiercely critical on ITV, saying “shame on them” and accusing Swansea of having no adventure in this tie but Monk defended his decision to rotate so heavily. He maintained individual errors, nothing else, were to blame for their downfall.

‘When you got seven games in 21 days it is impossible to play the same team in every game,’ Monk argued. ‘I can only judge the boys on the week they have had with them. They have been magnificent in training; their attitude has been spot on. They deserved their chance.

‘Everyone seems amazed when there is rotation but with Europe you have to have that rotation. It’s a squad game. That is the way football is.’

—Daily Mail