Cristiano Ronaldo says his two goals which secured victory over Everton were the ideal Christmas present.

The Portuguese winger put the Reds in front on 22 minutes with a superb strike, and held his nerve to fire the winner from the penalty spot with two minutes to go.

"I'm very happy with Christmas coming up. I think Father Christmas gave me my present early," he joked during a post-match interview.

"The most important thing is the team. The game was very tough, Everton played very well and created a few difficult moments for us.

"But I think the team played very well. In the first half it was not too good but second half I think we played better, created more chances and I think we deserved to win.

"We've got many games coming up now and it's important always to win. At home you need to win. With the next few games, there is not too much time to rest, so it was important to win to stay near the top."