Timely return of being relentless
Soon after his appointment, Sean Dyche called on his Everton team to be “relentless” and for a while they were but after losing their way in recent weeks, this was a timely return to such in-your-face determination.
Don’t be fooled, there was silk as well as steel in this display, from Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s graceful pirouette to Dwight McNeil’s twinkling toes – more on him to come – but the performance was a culmination of over three months’ hard graft since Dyche first came through the door. A new manager ‘bounce’ that saw three wins from his first seven games – the same total predecessor Frank Lampard had picked up in 20 – then gave way to one victory out of 11 and while there had been other hard-earned draws at Nottingham Forest, Chelsea, Crystal Palace and Leicester City, Everton knew they were going to have to get that monkey off their back and end their travel sickness with a win away from Goodison Park at some point.
Many must have had doubts it was going to come here though. This season has found the Blues at their lowest ebb but Brighton & Hove Albion have never had it so good and have already eclipsed their points total from last term when they recorded the highest-ever league position in their history.
VERDICT: Everton revenge could be the catalyst as hope and disbelief fuel beautiful chaos
RATINGS: Dwight McNeil perfect score and two others outstanding
Everton’s run of 15 games without an away win going into this fixture was their longest since a sequence of 24 matches from September 1979 to September 1980. While the high-flying Seagulls had won eight of their last 10 home games in all competitions, keeping seven clean sheets and they have also kept nine Premier League clean sheets at home this season and only Manchester United, with 10, have a better record.
The Blues though built emphatically on the encouraging signs they produced at the King Power Stadium last time out but this result wasn’t just timely in terms of themselves but their survival rivals who have now been served notice that Dyche’s men mean business in a run-in that has seen several others flounder.
Double D ensure plenty up top
Doucoure and Dwight both helped themselves to a double – either side of the break – and in less pedantic days gone by the latter might have been credited with a treble but that won’t be too much of a concern for the Everton winger who was imperious here.
As the Blues terrace anthem goes: “You make me feel” and McNeil’s brilliance ensured a riot of different positive emotions here. Quite simply, the former Burnley man earned his right to play here, putting in the hard graft which enabled him to finish decisive moves with aplomb.
Dyche has often preached his mantra of the ‘bliss to miss’, refusing to chastise players for getting shots in, even if they don’t hit the net – let’s remember Everton went into this fixture as the English professional football’s lowest scorers – and McNeil’s willingness to aim for goal whenever he gets a chance paid off handsomely here. You can never win the lottery if you don’t buy a ticket and that’s what he did when putting the ball across the six-yard box for it to hit Jason Steele and go in.
If that was sheer endeavour, McNeil’s twinkling toes took out two opponents to leave him with a schoolyard type tap-in for the Blues’ fourth goal while yet another aspect of his talents was displayed for the coup des grace as he slammed the ball into the roof of the net. Doucoure meanwhile combined composure with hard-running for both his goals, being Everton’s ‘Johnny on the spot’ for the early opener before starting and finishing the move for their second and still being sharp enough to score on the volley after his lung-busting burst upfield, displaying the kind of fighting spirit and quality that will be required to beat the drop.
Standing up to be counted
Everton turned defence into attack from start to finish here and for once, Brighton & Hove Albion could not cope.
A year to the day since their 2-1 win at Leicester City that helped give them the belief they could beat the drop – they’d triumphed on the road just once in the Premier League since at Southampton – the Blues ensured they secured back-to-back victories at the Amex Stadium some 619 days apart. Also, on a day that they could be thankful for former manager Marco Silva’s Fulham, it was Everton’s biggest success on their travels for almost five-and-a-half since they defeated Dyche’s Burnley by the same scoreline under the Portuguese boss on Boxing Day 2018.
The visitors’ lightning transitions were executed in devastating fashion in what was a master class in counter-attacking play and having built-up their lead, they were then equal to the task of the hosts throwing the kitchen sink at them in a desperate attempt to get back into the game after the break. It felt like a turning point but now Everton must ensure it is and finish the job over the next three weekends because it would be tragic if this proved a hollow victory.
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