Abdoulaye Doucoure has described an “unbelievable” Merseyside derby victory for Everton, labelling it the “perfect night”.
The Blues downed their title-chasing city rivals on Wednesday evening, recording a well-earned 2-0 victory at an atmospheric Goodison Park.
Jarrad Branthwaite struck Everton into a first-half lead after 27 minutes, becoming Everton’s youngest goalscorer in a Premier League Merseyside derby since Romelu Lukaku in November 2013.
A gritty Toffees display saw them hold the lead, fighting through a difficult spell towards the end of the half, before Dominic Calvert-Lewin doubled Everton’s advantage with a powerful header just 13 minutes into the second period.
Everton’s two goals both came from set-piece situations, with only Arsenal (20) netting more from such situations than the Blues (17) this season. That was a key factor in the victory, says Doucoure, who reviewed the memorable win after the final whistle.
“To win against Liverpool - one of the best teams in Europe, fighting for the tile - it gives us a big boost,” he told evertontv. “Everyone has worked so hard, so we deserved the win.
“The game against Nottingham Forest at the weekend was a big boost, and we came into the game with a big feeling that we could win. I think the first half was fantastic. We won every challenge and created more chances.
“We came out after half-time, knowing at 1-0 up, Liverpool were going to push. We score on a set piece, and tonight, we were very dangerous on every set piece. I’m very happy for the team and very happy for everyone.
“Today, it was all about trying to win the game for the fans. They deserve it. Obviously, we’ve had a tough season, but today we showed great effort and great resilience.
“We showed how Everton is important for us as players, and I think we delivered a fantastic performance.”
The superb organisation and work rate on the field was accompanied by unwavering support from Evertonians in the stands, who provided a memorable soundtrack to the derby win.
Keen to praise the fans for their terrific support throughout the 90 minutes, Doucoure said: “Tonight was unbelievable. The fans have been right behind us throughout all the season.
“They’ve shown the support we needed, and tonight was great. It was a perfect night for us.”
Attention will quickly turn to Saturday, when the Toffees welcome Brentford for a 5.30pm (BST) kick-off. The Blues - now eight points clear of the bottom three with four games remaining - could confirm their Premier League survival at the weekend.
Doucoure says the team’s mindset is clear, adding: “The message from the manager was: ‘Guys, let’s take it on, let’s win more games'.
“We have another game at home, and we can maybe secure our place in the Premier League this weekend. We need to be ready, to recover, and we’re going to fight again to have another win at home.”
