Sean Dyche says he was disappointed by the manner in which Everton fell to a 2-1 defeat to Bournemouth on Saturday afternoon – and insists he and his players must take responsibility to improve results.
Goalless at half-time, the Cherries opened the scoring in the second half of the Premier League encounter at the Vitality Stadium.
Dominic Solanke’s headed goal was cancelled out by Beto’s equaliser on 87 minutes. However, the Toffees’ hopes of earning a point on the road were ended when an unfortunate Seamus Coleman own goal in stoppage time ensured the home side took all three points.
“I’m very disappointed with the end, without a shadow of a doubt, because it’s such a soft moment; such a soft goal to concede at that stage,” Dyche told evertontv after the game. "A hopeful ball goes in the box, and we don’t deal with it.
“We got a scruffy goal, which I’m delighted with. I said to the team, ‘We can’t always score perfect goals. It’s about time we found a way.’ And we did. So, you think you go away with a point, and you don’t. That’s incredibly frustrating over such simple moment in time, where it’s just a clear miscommunication, and that can’t happen of course. We know that.
“That’s very disappointing at the end of a very hard-working performance. It’s hard. The players have only just got back together. We had one day to prep them for this game, and a lot of the performances had energy, commitment, and belief in what we’re trying to achieve, but you can’t make mistakes like that.
“We’re the only ones who can change it. I can change it. The players can change it, and that’s our responsibility. That’s my responsibility. That’s our intention – without a doubt.”
The Everton manager felt his side were unfortunate to have not been awarded a penalty when, 10 minutes into the second half, Dominic Calvert-Lewin was caught by Bournemouth midfielder Tyler Adams inside the 18-yard box.
Discussing his disappointment at the decision, Dyche also urged his side to "guarantee" their own performance, before relying on calls from officials.
“You can’t have things like that,” he said on Everton’s penalty claim. “That’s just madness. We all wonder what’s going on with VAR. I’m a fan, but I’m wondering myself where it all lives. It’s a clear penalty – simple as that. He cuts in, there’s a kick on his shin, he goes down, and it’s not given.
“That’s unacceptable for me – in this level of the market, and with what’s happening to us. We’ve had one penalty all season. That just cannot be so.
“But the one thing we can’t do, we can’t guarantee [the referee’s] performance. We have to guarantee ours. There’s no excuse today. I need to make that clear. We didn’t deal with the situation to at least get a point, but it’s not helpful when something like that goes against you because it’s so obvious.”
Next up, Everton face a trip to Newcastle United on Tuesday evening (7.30pm BST).
