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Everton Goal of the Month: October

Which was the best of the Blues’ six strikes last month?

Dominic Calvert-Lewin scored his second league goal of the season in the 2-0 home win over Crystal Palace
Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images

October brought both ecstatic highs and head-scratching lows for Everton.

A somewhat unexpected EFL Cup exit to Southampton at Goodison Park opened the month on a sour note, with the Toffees falling to defeat on penalties after Theo Walcott had hit a late equaliser.

But the following victories away to Leicester City and at home to Crystal Palace ensured the Blues recorded three consecutive league wins for the first time since January 2017.

They fell back down to earth at Old Trafford on Sunday, though, when Manchester United inflicted a 2-1 defeat in a game which the Blues could hardly complain about the outcome.

Everton at least managed to find the net in all of their games in October - unlike in September - so which of the six goals topped the lot?

Honourable Mention

Cenk Tosun v Crystal Palace- A finish which will never be considering the most aesthetically pleasing Everton goal, but in the context of the season so far, this was a massive moment for player and club.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin had sent Evertonians into raptures moments earlier when his late header put the Blues 1-0 up, before Tosun met a Michael Keane clearance, escaped the advances of defenders James Tomkins and Mamadou Sakho and hammered the ball through the legs of Eagles keeper Wayne Hennessey.

It has been an arduous start to the campaign for Tosun, with only one goal before this strike, so for a player supposedly looking confidence, he showed remarkable composure to finish with such authority here, thus creating a cacophonous Goodison atmosphere.

Whatever the circumstances, nothing will compare to a late goal.

Runner-up: Richarlison v Leicester City

In the September goal of the month piece, the second Gylfi Sigurðsson strike against Fulham won runner-up, more for the brilliance of assist-maker Bernard.

Likewise, second place for October has much more to do with the wizardry of the Brazilian than his compatriot Richarlison, who scored the goal itself.

In his first league start for the club, the former Shakhtar Donetsk man showed the sort of trickery so patently eluding Everton last season, dancing past the helpless duo of Ricardo Pereira and Daniel Amartey, before delivering an inch-perfect cross for Richarlison to fire home.

The experiment of Bernard on the wing and Richarlison up front has not yielded quite as successful results in matches since, but against the Foxes, it worked a treat.

Winner: Gylfi Sigurðsson v Leicester City

Normally I would avoid writing in the first person, but here I will make an exception, because I have a confession to make.

I was stood next to my two cousins in a packed, raucous away end, and even as Sigurðsson left James Maddison in his wake with an exquisite turn, I turned to them and said, foolishly: “He’d better not shoot here.”

Even after this fantastic piece of individual play, a shot simply did not look feasible, never mind a goal. He was surely too far out. A simple pass wide to Theo Walcott, arms aloft in anticipation of receiving the ball, looked the most sensible move.

But how Sigurðsson proved me wrong, as he unleashed a rocket of a strike from at least 25 yards past the diving, despairing Kasper Schmeichel, to regain the lead for the Blues on 77 minutes.

It is a moment that will live with me for a long time, as not only did Sigurðsson score the best Everton goal of the season, but also sparked one of the most memorable celebrations in at least the past two campaigns.

Within a flash, my glasses flew off my face and landed in the row in front. Random strangers all around me were hugging, and a deafening chorus of the Icelandic’s name drowned out the home crowd for the remainder of the match.

For that, more than anything, Sigurðsson is a worthy winner.

Sigurðsson is now on for a hat-trick of goal of the month accolades in November, a month in which Everton have only three fixtures.

The visit of Brighton & Hove Albion and a trip to Chelsea await before another international break, which is followed by a Goodison meeting with struggling Cardiff City.

Here’s hoping the goals - and, more importantly, the points - keep coming.