£20m Everton star now suffers ‘another’ injury setback in big blow to Sean Dyche

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Although it was far from an inspiring display, Everton scraped through last night to claim their place in the next round of the FA Cup.

In a clash that was wholly devoid of quality throughout, the Toffees enjoyed a sole moment of magic to claim the win over Crystal Palace and set up a fourth-round home tie with Luton Town.

A tantalising clash that could move them one step closer to Wembley, it feels like things might actually be looking up on Merseyside after what had previously been the week from hell beforehand.

They have now kept three successive clean sheets, having brushed aside the off-pitch distractions to focus on the job at hand.

However, as is always the case with Everton, any brief positives must always be balanced out. 

That was made abundantly clear with the news that broke just after the win, outlining a fresh injury setback.

What Everton players are injured?

Whilst Ashley Young, Seamus Coleman and Abdoulaye Doucoure all missed last night’s match, largely for what was thought to be precautionary reasons, journalist Paul Joyce would reveal a terrible truth.

The latter, who has arguably grown into Sean Dyche’s most important player, would be facing far longer out of the side than just one match.

Having played the full 90 minutes on Sunday, fatigue was to be expected.

However, Joyce would reveal that his comeback had incurred an adverse effect, as he wrote on X: ‘Sean Dyche has said Abdoulaye Doucoure has suffered another hamstring injury and faces a spell out.’

How important is Abdoulaye Doucoure to Everton?

It is no surprise that the recent absence of Doucoure has coincided with Everton’s slump after such a rich vein of form.

With the Mali international in the side, Dyche had his side flying, with four straight Premier League wins at the start of December nullifying November’s point deduction.

However, with fresh reports suggesting a new sanction could be just around the corner, they are set to be without their talisman to bail them out.

After all, the 31-year-old, who joined under Carlo Ancelotti for just £20m, remains the club’s top scorer this campaign with six strikes.

Already he has surpassed last season’s tally of five, which he garnered across just half a term.

His goalscoring prowess is pivotal, but so too is the relentless pressing he brings too.

It marks an almighty blow for Dyche and his squad, but one he must deal with to navigate the Toffees to safety once again.