Staff Reporter.
Everton manager Rafael Benitez has called it a “perfect” night after his side’s winless run came to an end in dramatic fashion with a 2-1 come-from-behind victory over Arsenal at Goodison Park.
“I think we saw character in the first games (of the season) and today it was even better, in terms of two goals disallowed and the reaction of the team, the fans behind the team, everybody delighted at the end because of the great goal Demarai scored, and three points after that bad run,” Benitez said in his post-match press conference.
“The frustration of the fans in some games, it’s because obviously they want to see the team winning. But nobody can complain about the commitment, the desire, the effort of the players,” Benitez added.
Asked if Marcel Brands exit would give him more control on transfers, the Everton boss said: “You can say it in this way.”
He added: “I was working for years with a director of football. It is not an issue. Now we have to think about the future and we have a situation where we must take responsibility.
“The club has changed managers in the past and now they want to do something long term with a clear idea of what we want to achieve. With my experience and the people we have in the club I think we can guide things in the direction that will hopefully be the right one.”
Asked further about Brands’ departure, Benitez added: “The reality is that the club was not progressing at the pace that maybe everybody was expecting and now it’s just really important to be positive about the future.”
The win, which lifted Everton to 12th in the Premier League, came after dozens of fans left their seats in the 27th minute to protest about the direction of the club under majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri.
It is approaching 27 years since Everton last won a trophy – the FA Cup in 1995 – with Moshiri spending close to £500m in the six years since he took over the club.
Goals from Richarlison, who also had two other efforts ruled out for offside, and Demarai Gray’s injury-time winner, came after Martin Odegaard opened the scoring for Arsenal.
But the much-needed result came without Lucas Digne, who was not in the squad and replaced at left-back by Ben Godfrey, while centre-back Yerry Mina went off with an injury on his first start since 2 October.
Benitez said the Colombian suffered a calf injury after 30 minutes rather than the hamstring problem which had kept him out for two months.
On Digne’s absence, Benitez added: “Sometimes you have to make a decision with your team selection. I decided Ben Godfrey was a good option for this game and I was really pleased with his performance.
“The main thing is to make sure the team is performing and has the right mentality.”
The result also vindicated Benitez’s insistence that the club would return to winning ways once injured players returned, even if Digne was left out as Mina returned to the side.