Koeman salutes Gors display as Rooney, Dowell lift Everton

Everton FC manager Ronald Koeman heaped glowing praise on Gor Mahia FC as his side turned on the style late on to claim a 2-1 victory over their East African rivals at the Tanzania National Stadium in Dar es Salaam.

Koeman saluted Gor for a spirited first half performance but admitted the record Kenyan champions simply couldn’t cope with the second half tempo as Kierran Dowell’s pile-driver in the 77th minute settled the tie.

Wayne Rooney had blasted the visiting English Premier League (EPL) heavyweights to the lead with a stunning curler from outside the box before Gor’s record signing Jacques Tuyisenge cancelled the former England captain’s strike three minutes later.

“I like the team because of their intensity and that’s exactly what we need during these pre-season matches. We had to work for our win and that’s really good.

“Maybe it was easier to play in the second half because the tempo dropped and so we made the pitch faster. The energy levels in the Kenyan team faded away. We were able to create more chances than the first half,” Koeman, who brought and fielded practically his entire first team squad said post-match.

Head Coach Dylan Kerr whose tenure at Gor has lasted barely a week held the same account as his Everton counterpart as he recognized the gulf in class between the two sides that played out clearer in the latter stages of the historic friendly clash.

“I’ve taken charge of only three practice sessions and it’s going to take some time before the team understands my style but I’d like to take my time over the next few days to pass on that philosophy over to Gor.

“When I came to Simba it took me a while to get the team to understand my way of thinking and it worked. I have to do the same at my new club and that has to be done quickly,” Kerr who coached the Tanzanian giants in 2015 said.

Tens of thousands of locals and visiting fans had thronged the 60,000-seater facility in Tanzania’s commercial capital to witness a football festival never before seen in East Africa and it lived up to the hype and fanfare it had created over the past few days.

An opening hour characterized in tense and sloppy play burst to action when Rooney produced a ‘did-you-see-that’ moment with a stunning strike that dipped beyond keeper Boniface Oluoch.

It gave the custodian no chance but Tuyisenge notched a worthy reply just three minutes later on the other end when the powered home an equalizing header with keeper Maarten Stekelenburg caught flat footed.

It stayed 1-1 at the break but the Toffees were all fired up at the  restart as they turned up the tone of the tone of the match in search of a winner that became a likelier event at each passing minute.

Midfielders Idrisa Gueye and Tom Davies – both who sat out in the opening half – proved a devastating cog for Koeman’s charges as they ripped apart their opponents at the center of the park.

Gueye had two efforts parried clear by substitute keeper Frederick Odhiambo with Dowell rattling an effort against the post after a neat layoff Kevin Mirallas.

Harun Shakava later put his body on the line to block a shot on goal by Davies as the nine-time English champions turned up the heat on Gor’s goal-mouth.

The Super Cup title winners could do nothing to prevent Dowell from earning his side the win when he peeled off his markers and unleashed a rocket of a strike into the roof off the net.

Odhiambo picked up the ball from the net slammed it disappointment knowing full well a fightback was all too unlikely.

Matthews Mutai is reporting from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.