Sam tames Terriers, but not the boo boys

Everton put Huddersfield in more trouble, but fans still not happy

THE latest expletive-laden, antiSam Allardyce chant had just ended when Idrissa Gana Gueye fired in Everton’s second of the afternoon to cap an efficient away performance which puts the hosts in real relegation trouble.

His manager responded by aiming a fist-pump at the bench. You would imagine had he directed it at the away end he may have prompted some hand gestures of a different kind in response.

And so it goes. Under former England boss Allardyce’s guidance, Everton roll on. They have now picked up 33 points — second to nobody outside the top five. Relegation? They are eighth.

Football’s equivalent of Ronseal is doing what he always does.

The problem is, Everton’s fans do not appear to want what it says on the tin. It is not pretty, but it works.

Here, Huddersfield became the latest victims thanks to Cenk Tosun’s first-half strike and Gueye’s second-half game-killer.

The Yorkshire club, with their wonderful support, have been a breath of fresh air this season. They remain three points above the drop. The dream is alive but the calendar is the stuff of nightmares. Trips to Manchester City and Chelsea lie ahead, before they host Arsenal in Ar se ne Wenger’ s Premier League finale.

Boss David Wagner thinks three defeats will send them down. ‘ Thirty five points will not be enough,’ he said. This felt like an opportunity lost.

On Friday, All ardycevo wed that he would be in charge of Everton next season following a summit in London with the club’s top brass.

It does not appear to have gone down well. Before the match a banner held up by those who had made the journey declared: ‘No need for surveys — get out of our club’. Less than 20 minutes had elapsed before the first of many chants of ‘F*** off, Sam Allardyce’ rang out. ‘ I can’t produce any more than I’m doing,’ said the man himself. ‘The fans don’t like it but we’re trying as hard as we can. What can I say when we’ve got 14 points from seven games when the club was in a very difficult position when I arrived? I can only say it’s one of those things. If we keep winning we might change it to love.’

It came as no surprise t hat Everton’s opener came from a Huddersfield attack. Perhaps trying to force the issue, Rajiv van La Parra tried an ambitious crossfield ball to Collin Quaner. But his pass was intercepted by an alert Theo Walcott. The former Arsenal man then turned on the pace, racing into the Huddersfield half, drawing three defenders and playing in Tosun as he lost his balance. The Turk had plenty to do but did it well, taking the ball into the area before firing across Jonas Lossl and into the net. Huddersfield’s goalkeeper may have gone down in instalments but it was a fine finish from a player who has adapted well to life in the Premier League. ‘We had to make an early foul to stop the counter,’ said Wagner, showing his German roots. ‘This shows inexperience.’

A stifled, subdued Huddersfield grew frustrated. So did the Everton fans. The removal of Tosun, who had picked up a knock moments earlier, prompted another chorus of the one which instructs the manager to depart before Gueye met Leighton Baines’ pull-back to double the lead. ‘When you go past that 40 point mark it’s very easy for players to start thinking about their holidays but we’ re pushing ourselves as high up as we possibly can,’ added Allardyce.

Much more of this from the terraces and he may start considering his own trip to the beach.