Tempers flare in centre circle and dugout as Everton sick of sight of Wolves boss

Tempers flared and frustration simmered as a December that started so well for Everton ended in disappointment.

Sean Dyche’s side were second best throughout against Wolves on Saturday, in an unusually passive display. This appeared to be a game too far for a small squad beset by injuries and challenged by a congested festive fixture list.

While Abdoulaye Doucoure and Idrissa Gueye were again absent, Sean Dyche went for a change of formation as well as personnel and further injuries undermined this display. Despite that, this was still a performance the Blues and those around him will be unhappy with.

Their emotions were clear as they boiled over in a temperamental second half during which Wolves made their dominance count. Some of those scenes make up this overview of moments beyond the headlines from Molineux.

ANALYSIS: What Sean Dyche did pre-match backfires as Dominic Calvert-Lewin wait goes on

VERDICT: Everton missed transfer comes back to haunt them as Wolves expose mistakes

‘Premier League, corrupt as f***’

The spirit of protest was alive and well at Molineux as two sets of supporters with grievances against the Premier League made their feelings clear. Everton fans turned the away end into a sea of pink once again as they held aloft the pink protest placards before kick-off in the latest demonstration against the 10-point deduction handed down for a breach of financial rules. When they did the same again in the 10th minute, the Wolves supporters joined them by singing “Premier League, corrupt as f***” - a chant that has also rung out at Goodison Park in recent weeks. Wolves are frustrated by the officiating this season and have been on the wrong end of some controversial penalty decisions in the opening months