£120k-a-week Everton star was Dyche’s real-match winner in 3-2 win over Palace

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Yesterday’s win marked an important one for Everton to propel them even further away from the relegation zone, as they showcased all the hallmarks of the side their fanbase has been craving for so long.

Hard-working, relentless in the tackle and determined even in the face of persisting disappointment, they led twice before grabbing the winner, and yet were pegged back on two occasions too.

The newfound mentality instilled by Sean Dyche proved pivotal, as the Toffees dusted themselves off every time to keep putting themselves back in front.

Whilst there were some fine goals scored, the pick of the bunch had to be the winner, as a well-worked move that came after nearly 20 minutes of consistent pressure from Crystal Palace.

Idrissa Gana Gueye, starting the move, continued his run only to receive a perfect return pass and slot home with five minutes to go. The away support was sent into raptures, as the Senegalese star had won it with his first goal since re-joining the Merseyside outfit.

And yet, it could be argued that there was another within the team who was the true match-winner for Everton. After all, both their second and third goals saw Abdoulaye Doucoure play a crucial role.

How did Abdoulaye Doucoure play vs Crystal Palace?

Having been lauded earlier in the week as a ‘symbol’ of Dyche’s reborn Toffees, the attacking midfielder would only prove that further with a clinical display in which he was decisive without being consistently involved.

The Mali international, who actually revealed he would be snubbing his country’s African Cup of Nations campaign for his club, would only manage 37 touches all game yesterday.

In fact, on paper it would be easy to suggest the £120k-per-week star struggled, given he could only manage a 79% pass accuracy, and actually lost ten of the 11 duels he competed in.

However, when it truly mattered, Doucoure stepped up to play a key role in the win.

Reacting quickest from Vitaliy Mykolenko’s volleyed effort, he would show immense composure to tap into an empty net after the initial strike had come back off the post.

Then, having received that aforementioned pass from Gueye, he took the time to wait for the right option, slipping in the perfect left-footed pass to allow his teammate to score the winner.

Whilst the former Paris Saint-Germain ace will therefore earn the bulk of the plaudits, it was the 30-year-old who truly engineered the turnaround, and therefore should be regarded as the true match-winner for Dyche.