Crystal Palace boss Alan Pardew is delighted with the impact of August signing James Tomkins.

Pardew says he never felt vulnerable heading to Sunderland without Scott Dann last week and it doesn't look he'll feel any different at Everton on Friday night.

"I had James as a youth player at West Ham, so I know his personality," said Pardew.

"He was just breaking into the squad there and I took him to the FA Cup final in 2006 for the experience.

"He's very level-headed, and then he had all he attributes but no experience. He's gained that experience, and at 27 years old I think he has around 300 Premier League games.

"I think, if I'm honest, we got a bit of a bargain. His strengths are his passing quality, he's very calm in possession, and I think the modern centre-back needs to have that.

"He is powerful enough in the air to cope with the demands of Premier League and he's a winner.

"That winning mentality is something we must not lose here. The winning mentality or the never-say-die attitude that we have here, makes up for a lot of technical deficiencies, so when you're playing the top teams you have got to have that in your players.

"So when I'm bringing players to the club, I have to make sure that is high up on their criteria."