Kone treble inspires Everton, Southampton win

AROUNA KONE grabbed a hattrick as Everton piled on the Premier League relegation worries for Sam Allardyce’s Sunderland with a 6-2 demolition job at Goodison Park yesterday.

In the day’s other match, Ronald Koeman’s Southampton climbed to seventh in the table after first-half goals from Steven Davis and Graziano Pelle secured a 2-0 home win over south-coast rivals Bournemouth.

Everton were 2-0 up inside 31 minutes against Sunderland thanks to Kone and Spanish forward Gerard Deulofeu.

Kone sent a looping ball over the defence for Deulofeu to score the opener and the Ivory Coast international added a second goal following a onetwo with strike partner Romelu Lukaku on the edge of the box.

Jermain Defoe inspired a Sunderland rally, volleying their first goal in stoppage time before playing a part in Steven Fletcher’s headed equaliser five minutes after the break.

The visitors, however, were always vulnerable to the counter attack and Everton made it 3-2 when Sebastian Coates prodded a right-wing cross from Deulofeu into his own net.

Deulofeu also set up the fourth for Lukaku, with the Belgian rounding goalkeeper Costel Pantilimon to score.

Another Everton counter-attack led to Kone planting the ball into the net with his left foot in the 62nd minute before the Ivorian completed the rout with a close-range header following a centre with the outside of his left boot from Lukaku.

Everton’s victory lifted them to ninth with 16 points from 11 games while Sunderland remained second from bottom on six points. Southampton have 17 points, moving above Liverpool on goal difference. – Reuters