David Brooks nets winner as Bournemouth sink toothless Everton

Everton’s goalscoring woes continued in a 1-0 defeat to Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium.

Sean Dyche’s team look increasingly like being drawn into a relegation fight as they failed to produce a shot on target in 90 minutes, as their poor run extended to one goal scored in their last five Premier League games.

Their inability to trouble their hosts was made to look almost comical by the ease with which Bournemouth cut through them again and again, and another assured display made it five wins in eight for Andoni Iraola’s side.

The winning goal 13 minutes from time encapsulated everything Everton were not. Milos Kerkez sent a finely-calibrated cross into the box where it arrived at the perfect height for David Brooks to skip into the air and, with the kind of confidence that his team’s brilliant season so far imbues, volleyed beyond Jordan Pickford into the far corner.

Goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga started on the bench having spent time at home in Spain after his partner had given birth to twins. Mark Travers deputised but Iraola need not have lost sleep over his selection in goal such was the absence of anything like a threat from Everton.

The team had doggedly earned goalless stalemates against Chelsea and Arsenal in December as well as a deserved draw against Manchester City, but this display had less of a heroic feel and more one from a side with little idea and even less ambition.

Bournemouth were the better team virtually throughout. Early on, Dean Huijsen’s flick-on helped a long throw to reach Dango Ouattara who scraped the ball goalwards, Pickford dropping smartly to his right to save.

Everton’s goalkeeper was relieved to see Antoine Semenyo’s deflected strike zip inches wide via Jarrad Branthwaite, then