Everton coach David Moyes labelled Dominic Calvert-Lewin a “proper number nine” after the England striker inspired his side to a vital 3-2 Premier League victory over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.
In front of England manager Thomas Tuchel watching on from the Goodison Park stands, Calvert-Lewin ran sorry Spurs ragged all afternoon, scoring the opener, his first in 17 matches in all competitions.
The strike moved the 27-year-old to third in Everton’s Premier League all-time top goalscorers list, behind Romelu Lukaku and Duncan Ferguson, finding form at the right time as Moyes, starting his second spell in charge of the Merseyside club, attempts to stave off relegation.
“If we use Dominic as an example, I think he had three chances in midweek,” Moyes said. “Today he had the same, got his goal and could have had more. If a striker is getting his chances then it is a good thing. The goal will give him great confidence.
“People keep telling me he has not been getting many chances. Well, he has had his chances in the last two games, he has his goal.
“The biggest thing today is he played like a proper number nine at times today. He made the centre halves worried, he was a threat, he was challenging, winning a good percentage of his aerial duels. He got involved in everything, a lot of really good things today.”
The victory almost turned sour in the second half, as two late Spurs goals threatened to deny Moyes his first win since returning to Goodison, but the hosts held out for a vital three points.
“The whole team looked a different outfit today,” Moyes added. “We played really well, passed it around very well. We gave it away a lot, which we need to eradicate.
“I am just really pleased we could give everyone something to shout about. They nearly weren’t going home with anything. We scored three and we could have added a fourth with the opportunities we had.
“It did not matter how we played today as long as we won.”
