Loads of Everton supporters have been praising former Manchester City midfielder Fabian Delph for his role in the Blues' Carabao Cup win over Lincoln City.

After missing the start of the season through injury, he earned his Everton debut on Wednesday night in his preferred central midfield role as the stand-in for Andre Gomes.

The Portuguese ace, acquired permanently from FC Barcelona in the summer for a reported £22million (BBC), was the natural choice to sit out the encounter with the lower league opposition, as he had not missed a Premier League line-up following his transfer and left many supporters underwhelmed by his efforts in the loss to Aston Villa (via HITC).

Fans are now suggesting that Delph is looking like a bargain signing after his debut appearance against Lincoln, having moved to Goodison Park in a deal worth up to £10million (BBC) this summer, and signed a three-year, £80,000-a-week (Spotrac) contract on Merseyside.

The aforementioned blow kept Delph on the sidelines for Everton's opening three Premier League games, but was passed fit to play (Liverpool Echo) during the week, and lined-up alongside Morgan Schneiderlin in the holding midfield roles at the Sincil Bank Stadium.

From there, he impressed parts of the Goodison Park faithful with his passing range and desire to take possession of the ball to dictate proceedings, with WhoScored noting that Delph played 75 passes in total on Wednesday night - including 18 long balls and 13 chipped passes.

More than a third of Delph's balls were also deemed to be in the final third of the pitch against the Imps, while 49 were considered to be forward passes. He also achieved an 80% dribble success rate, two successful tackles, and made three interceptions (the most of any Everton player).

The 20-cap Three Lions star still left some supporters suggesting his fitness may not yet be where it needs to be in order to start a top-flight encounter, but it may not be long before he is offering serious competition to Gomes for further minutes in Royal Blue.

Here's how these fans judged his competitive Everton debut…