Everton came back from a goal down to win 2-1 at the Goodison Park in a high-octane encounter against Bournemouth. The Toffees were in severe pressure coming into the game, having failed to register a win in their last four Premier League matches.
Joshua King’s early second half striker drove fear among the Evertonians and of course, Ronald Koeman but super-sub Oumar Niasse saved the day for the Dutchman, as his second-half cameo steered the home side to a sensational 2:1 against the Cherries.
Here are the Everton player ratings in their fantastic victory over Eddie Howe’s men.
Jordan Pickford (7.5/10): Once again failed to preserve his clean sheet. However, the former Sunderland made some important saves to keep Everton in the game. Particularly in the 51st minute where he denied Jermaine Defoe with a brilliant save.
Cuco Martina (7.5/10): Worked hard on the right flank throughout the game. His marauding runs into the opposition half caused a few troubles for the Bournemouth defence.
Mason Holgate (8.5/10): A brilliant display from the England youngster. Holgate was by far Everton’s best defender on the afternoon and looked likely to score on many occasions. He was blatantly denied by the bar post in the 73rd minute, partly thanks to Andrew Surman’s incredible goal-line clearance.
Ashley Williams (7/10): Partnered alongside the young Holgate in the central defence. One would expect better performances from the veteran defender. He struggled at times against an industrious Joshua King but was overall decent in defence.
Leighton Baines (7/10): Not exactly a flashy performance from the highly rated fullback. Baines didn’t make any noticeable errors but he wasn’t making any good runs on the flank either.
Morgan Schneiderlin (8.5/10): Was solid in covering the defence throughout the match. Schneiderlin also looked composed in possession and offered a lot of spite going forward. Things would have been lot different without the presence of French midfielder in the middle of the park.
Idrissa Gueye (8/10): Looked very composed on the ball but made a few awful passes, which ultimately cost possession for the home side. But he sat as a midfield hub and pulled the strings for Everton for the entirety of the game.
Davy Klaassen (6.5/10): Not the best of outings for the Dutch midfielder, who rarely had the sight of the ball in the first half. He was rightly subbed off even before the hour mark, after failing to provide creativity upfront.
Wayne Rooney (6.5/10): Struggled a lot in front of the sturdy Bournemouth defence in the first half. The high-octane pressing was proving too much for the former Man United striker. Rooney lost possession twice in dangerous areas, one of which was initiated into a Bournemouth counter attack.
Gylfi Sigurdsson (7/10): Not exactly a perfect outing for the Iceland midfielder. Sigurdsson struggled to provide the much needed attacking flair for Everton in the offensive third. Better performances are expected from the record signing for Everton.
Dominic-Calvert Lewin (8/10): Put in a great shift, playing as the lone striker for most period of the game. He didn’t find much joy in the first half but was aided by Oumar Niasse joining him in the attack in the second half. He was a constant threat for the Bournemouth backline, especially with his tireless runs in behind the defence. He was unlucky not to score his first Premier League goal.
Subs
Oumar Niasse (9/10): Man of the match performance from the somewhat forgotten Everton striker. Niasse came on for Wayne Rooney in the 55th minute and single-handedly changed the complexion of the game with two well-taken goals. The striker will now look to capitalize on his good form in the midweek fixture against Apollon Limassol.
Tom Davies (8/10): Made a telling impact after being subbed on for an ineffective Davy Klaassen. His clever balls into the front line were proving to be quite dangerous for the opposition defence.
Jonjoe Kenny (NA): The Everton youth product replaced Cuco Martina for the final fifteen minutes of the game. It was his first ever Premier League appearance, and the youngster did well to see out Everton’s lead for the rest of the match.
