It was an unfortunate homecoming for Ellis Simms at Everton last night as the Toffees were thrashed 4-1 by Premier League high fliers Brighton. The former Sunderland loanee was recalled by Frank Lampard on New Year's Eve in a disappointing blow to the Black Cats.
The frontman scored seven times in 17 appearances during his stint at the Stadium of Light, an impressive return given he missed a chunk of the season with injury. Simms had struck up an impressive partnership with Ross Stewart with the duo spearheading the Black Cats promotion push.
The former red and white loanee was a second-half substitute for Lampard's side, replacing Dominic Calvert-Lewin in the 83rd minute. The damage had already been done to the struggling Blues, who were 4-0 down at the time of the substitution.
READ MORE: Sunderland's recruitment model now set for first real test after Ellis Simms' departure
The Goodison Park faithful made their feelings clear at full-time in a raucous atmosphere. When asked about conceding three goals in six minutes, Lampard told the Liverpool Echo: “You can’t come back from that in the game apart from show resilience and keep playing until the end of the game.
“Try and make things happen as you should do. Other than that, the reality is that in the Premier League at 4-0 it is going to be very tough to turn that around in half-an-hour.”
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