Everton ride their luck then Sigurdsson shows his class
THE run continues. When Everton host Fulham, the outcome is a home win and so it proved again.
This is the 22nd time in a row the visitors have been sent packing without anything to show for their efforts.
But as they shook hands at the final whistle, both Marco Silva and Slavisa Jokanovic knew things could have been very different.
Everton’s head coach, who had seen two Gylfi Sigurdsson goals and a header from Cenk Tosun win it, was relieved; his Fulham counterpart perplexed.
Fulham had chances to fracture Everton’s brittle confidence but, as Jokanovic pointed out, they ‘paid an expensive price’ for failing to take their chances.
That won’t matter one jot to Silva, who was delighted to see his side win in the league for the first time since August 18.
‘I’m really happy — if I’m not happy when we win 3-0 when will I be?’ said Silva. ‘I told the boys my feelings in the dressing room. It’s an important result. But it’s just three points.’
Yet for long spells there was enough doubt to think Everton wouldn’t claim them.
They should have trailed at the interval and were fortunate when Ryan Sessegnon’s drive in the 42nd minute cannoned against the bar. There was murmuring from the stands as the team left the pitch and the atmosphere had the potential to become uncomfortable.
Winning was as much about soothing anxieties as it was collecting points.
Fortunately for Silva, Everton’s performance in the second period improved significantly.
The crowd got behind the team and it was the catalyst for a 20-minute spell that took the contest out of Fulham’s reach.
Everton were dynamic and got their reward. True, it looked briefly as if that might not be the case.
When Sigurdsson struck the crossbar from the penalty spot — assistant referee Andy Garratt spotted Denis Odoi’s push on Dominic Calvert-Lewin and awarded the kick — it appeared Everton would flounder. Silva didn’t watch the penalty and when he heard the moan that greeted the miss, he was bursting with frustration as he stuffed his hands in his pockets.
He need not have worried. Sigurdsson atoned five minutes later when sweeping in a leftfooter from 20 yards, the ball having landed at his feet after Odoi failed to clear a cross.
Fulham briefly threatened to make a game of it but a key moment arrived in the 61st minute when Jordan Pickford won a battle of wits with Luciano Vietto and raced from his goal to make a crucial clearance.
The England No 1, who punched the air, knew the significance.
‘They did not do something fantastic to win the game,’ said Jokanovic. ‘We were sleeping in important moments.
‘We must understand where we are and if you make mistakes you will be hurt. If we do not adapt it will be complicated for us.’
What could have been 1-1 soon became 2-0. Everton started to get plenty of joy down Fulham’s left and when Theo Walcott scuttled to the byline his cross to the back post demanded someone provide a finish. Tosun, only just on as a substitute, obliged with an emphatic header.
There was no way back for Fulham and the gloss was put on an excellent 45 minutes when Sigurdsson bent in another drive, this time with his right foot.
For a man who has endured travails since his £45million arrival 14 months ago, it was a rare moment in the sun.
‘He showed fantastic character,’ said Silva. ‘Not just him but our squad. It’s important as a team to show that character.’