Saturday 31 December 2016 14:59, UK
Everton manager Ronald Koeman has praised Ross Barkley after his equalising goal at Hull rescued a point for the Toffees.
The England midfielder headed home on 84 minutes to earn Everton a 2-2 draw at the KCOM Stadium on Friday.
Barkley had been criticised by Koeman and intermittently dropped from the team in recent months, but Koeman hopes the goal "really gives Ross a boost".
"I think he was the player we expect him to be in his position. We spoke about being more dangerous in front of goal, to have better offensive movements," Koeman said.
"He was really important in the final part of our attacking and he scored an important goal and he was dangerous. He was that player that we need, to have better support for our strikers."
Koeman's players were seen arguing with each other during a difficult start to the game but they improved in the second half despite Koeman remaining unsure of his best starting line-up.
"I always try to start with the best 11. Sometimes there can be a tactical question or reason for why somebody's not starting," he said.
"But we need productivity and normally we don't create a lot of opportunities, but here we created a lot and that is one of the positives that we take out of it."
