Romelu Luaku scored a 12-minute hat-trick as Everton demolished a sorry Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.
After both teams cancelled each other out in the first half, it was Everton who broke the deadlock on the hour mark after a blistering counter-attack.
Idrissa Gueye’s well-weighted cross to the back post found Romelu Lakaku who headed in from close range with aplomb.
Everton doubled their advantage on 68 minutes through their Belgian striker in similar fashion with Yannick Bolasie’s driving run from the left ending in an inch-perfect cross to the back post that Lukaku simply could not miss.
And just three minutes later, Lukaku completed his rout of the Black Cats when an inventive piece of thinking from Kevin Mirallas set him through one-one-one with the goalkeeper and the powerful frontman made no mistake.
Lukaku was on an 11-game scoring drought before this match but clearly showed why form is temporary and class is permanent.
Here are some of the best reactions from Twitter following Everton’s fine display:
Lukaku, scored a Hat trick in just under 12 minutes (11:37) , 12th quickest in #EPL History. #Everton.
— Nidal Sarras (@ChuckNidal) September 12, 2016
My man of the match @RonaldKoeman for making an early change and completely turning the game around when all I could see was a 1-0 loss #efc
— Debbie (@CarmellaBlue) September 12, 2016
Great to see Rom with a smile on his face. Unplayable second half. #EFC
— Rodger Armstrong (@rodgerarmstrong) September 12, 2016
Lukaku still gets quite a lot of stick, but has been great for us for a while now. We’d be far worse off without him, that’s for sure.
— Toby Robinson (@King_T_Dog) September 12, 2016
No doubt Lukaku will do his usual and ask for a transfer now he’s had a good night
— Dave Swarbrick (@Swabz10) September 12, 2016
Lukaku is the first hat-trick of the Premier League season. His first goal came after 40 unsuccessful shots for Everton. Persistence..#SAFC
— Joe Lee (@Joelee15) September 12, 2016
Gana just gets better and better. What a fantastic buy he was. We have done to Sunderland exactly what was expected. Good times #efc
— Everton Fans (@Everton_Fans) September 12, 2016
Everton look solid this season. A spine of Williams, Gueye and Lukaku is a very good one. #EFC
— TomMellor (@MellorFootball) September 12, 2016
Everton have made their best Premier League start since 2006/2007, when they also picked up 10 points from their opening 4 games. #EFC
— Jake Sanders (@JakeSanders92) September 12, 2016
A game of two halves indeed! The sleeping giant finally woke up with @RomeluLukaku9 scoring his Hat-Trick! What a second half that was! #efc
— Andrei Kanchelskis (@AAKanchelskis) September 12, 2016
Gana was an absolute joy to watch again. His first touch always takes him into space. Quick feet. Tiday. A gorgeous little player! #EFC
— Everton (@footyfeed_efc) September 12, 2016
Goals by the age of 23:
Lukaku – 122
Ronaldo – 110
Suarez – 107
Rooney – 100
Ibrahimovic – 65What a player! 🔵⚽️🔥 pic.twitter.com/hS1lggKChd
— Transfer Swoop (@SwoopTransfer) September 12, 2016
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