Everton’s first set of three points in 112 days could be taken away from them this coming week but the impact of a most fortuitous victory may survive nonetheless. Sean Dyche’s team avoided equalling a club record 14 matches without a win thanks to a gift from the Burnley goalkeeper Arijanet Muric and pushed Vincent Kompany’s side closer to the Championship in the process. It was ugly by design, according to the Everton manager. No one knew whether he was joking.
Everton’s taste of a first Premier League win since visiting Burnley in December owed plenty to luck and the visitors’ tendency to aim both barrels at their own feet. Dominic Calvert-Lewin deflected Muric’s delayed clearance into the Burnley net for a crucial match-winner while Dara O’Shea received a straight red card for a foul on Dwight McNeil, puncturing their chances of a recovery in an instant. Kompany’s strugglers still managed to make life fraught for Everton, who are expected to suffer a second points deduction of the season for breaching Premier League profitability and sustainability rules, but a defence guided superbly by Jarrad Branthwaite held on to a precious result.
