Everton boss Sean Dyche hailed the impact of Abdoulaye Doucoure on his side’s transformation as The Toffees moved out of the Premier League relegation zone, despite being hit by a 10-point deduction, by beating Newcastle 3-0 on Thursday.
Doucoure has scored more goals than any other player since Dyche took charge at Goodison Park and was on target once more, either side of strikes from Dwight McNeil and Beto, as Everton scored three times in the final 11 minutes.
The Frenchman had been discarded by Dyche’s predecessor Frank Lampard and forced to train on his own.
“Doucs has been a shining light,” said Dyche. “Different managers have different views on players; that’s the way it goes. He (Lampard) just had a different view. I wanted him in the side straight away and he’s been delivering ever since I got here.”
Bournemouth had been the only side to lose at Goodison in the Premier League since March.
But for once an electric atmosphere was rewarded with three points as Everton moved a point clear of the bottom three.
“This season, apart from the obvious with the 10 points, we’ve been in terrific form,” added Dyche.
“They (the fans) have had a knock, they’ve seen seven years of ups and downs and stories about everything, but they are seeing a group of people who are giving everything and that’s not a bad start. We’ve got some talent but you’ve got to give everything and there is that connection with the fans because they are seeing a group of people giving everything.”
Newcastle’s injury crisis was a factor as The Magpies tired in the latter stages and were made to pay for two unusual errors from Kieran Trippier.
The England international gifted possession to McNeil for the opening goal and gave the ball away again in the build-up to Doucoure’s second moments later.
Eddie Howe refused to apportion any blame on Trippier and said there is little time for his side to lament their injury woes ahead of a gruelling festive fixture calendar.
“He’s been absolutely magnificent – probably the catalyst behind what we’ve done as a football club,” said Howe on Trippier’s impact in just under two years since he joined from Atletico Madrid. “As a team today we weren’t where we need to be and that’s why we lost the game.”
Newcastle face AC Milan in the UEFA Champions League next week, live on TNT Sports, with a place in the last 16 on the line.
They also take on Chelsea in the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup and have five more Premier League games before January 1.
“We can’t look at it that way because we have more games to go,” added Howe on his side’s fatigue.
“When you don’t perform you have to take ownership of it as that’s the best way to improve. Certainly there is a lot to reflect on.“
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