Amadou Onana has claimed Abdoulaye Doucoure was "disrespected" at times during the season and has spoken of his delight that the midfielder scored the goal to keep Everton up.
Doucoure has been rejuvenated since Sean Dyche arrived at Goodison Park in January. The 30-year-old was told to train on his own in the final week of Frank Lampard’s tenure as manager and was overlooked for a defeat by West Ham United after a dressing-room row.
The midfielder, it is claimed, stood up for his team-mate Idrissa Gana Gueye, who was at the centre of a heated confrontation with Lampard after the 2-1 loss to Southampton. However, under Dyche, Doucoure was an ever-present and was superb in the final month of the season.
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Everton have a number of players whose deals are up at the end of the campaign, but Doucoure is not one of them after the Goodison Park club activated the option to extend his contract by a further year last week.
The midfielder repaid the club by extending their residence in the top-flight of English football into their 70th year with the only goal in Sunday’s 1-0 win over Bournemouth. Doucoure’s second-half strike sent those inside Goodison wild, and Onana has now hit out at the treatment of his team-mate during the campaign.
Speaking to French publication L’Equipe, the midfielder said: "I was very happy that he was the saviour of this club. He's a friend, not just a teammate.
"He has seen all the colours this season. He went through ups and downs. At one point, he was sent to the reserve team. For me, he was disrespected at times.
"But I always knew the quality he had, the things he was capable of on a daily basis in training. He is a worker. He deserves it. This goal was also liberating for him."
With Premier League survival at stake, Everton’s fans filled the surrounding streets with noise and flares hours before kick-off. That level of support was matched inside the ground once Dyche’s side came out to warm up.
And reflecting on the atmosphere inside Goodison, Onana said: "It was exceptional. For me, [it was] a huge emotional lift.
"There was a lot of pressure, stress, and fatigue, given what was at stake. The club has never been relegated to the Championship.
"At half-time, we were told Leicester were leading on their home turf. Mathematically, we were temporarily relegated.
"We had to manage a lot of emotions while staying focused to try to score in 45 minutes. I have never run so much. It was the game of survival for this very big club. I'm glad we got the job done."
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