Everton keep run going against Chelsea
Everton 2 Chelsea 0
ABDOULAYE Doucoure continued his and Everton’s renaissance with the first goal of a win that continued the Toffees’ climb away from relegation trouble.
And substitute Lewis Dobbin wrapped up the points with an injury-time second that adds to Mauricio Pochettino’s mounting problems.
Since the Premier League handed Sean Dyche’s side a 10-point deduction for breaching their financial sustainability rules, his team has responded impressively.
The first game, post-deduction, ended in a heavy home defeat to Manchester United but victory over Pochettino’s struggling side made it three wins out of three and continued their surge up the table.
Indeed, but for those lost 10 points, the win would have left Everton four points above Chelsea and comfortably in the top 10 of the league table.
Doucoure struck after 54 minutes of a game which had generated little in the way of chances at either end to that point.
With the two teams low on quality in the final third and cancelling each other out, the chance finally came from Dwight McNeil, who surged past Conor Gallagher and played Dominic Calvert-Lewin clean through on the Chelsea goal.
Robert Sanchez blocked the Everton striker’s progress but the ball broke to Doucoure who finished well from a wide angle.
It was the sixth of the season for top scorer Doucoure who was axed from the first team by former manager Frank Lampard but has now scored 11 of his 16 Everton career goals under Dyche.
There were some anxious moments to come for the hosts but, finally in the 92 minute, James Garner’s corner was only half punched clear by substitute keeper Djordje Petrovic, on for the injured Sanchez.
Dobbin met the ball with a superb strike from just inside the area which flew
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