Everton were second best, says Koeman

Ronald Koeman has conceded that Everton were by far the poorer side in their 1-0 defeat to Bournemouth.

Junior Stanislas’ wonderfully despatched strike midway through the first half was enough to hand Eddie Howe’s side the points at the Vitality Stadium on Saturday, bringing an end to Everton’s unbeaten Premier League start under Koeman.

And the former Southampton manager, whose side slumped out of the EFL Cup in midweek with a 2-0 home reverse at the hands of Norwich City, believes Everton paid for a sluggish start.

“Bournemouth were the better team, the more aggressive team, and that was the problem in the first half,” Koeman told the BBC.

“You can’t win if you play like we did in the first half. We lost every second ball, we lost every battle.

“We showed what we needed to do in the second half, we didn’t have big opportunities but we were the more dominant team.

“But we needed to start [the game] like this. They dropped back, and we took a risk with four strikers on.

“But we know we will not win every game. Bournemouth are really a good team, they will not fight against relegation.”