Everton deservedly collected a monumental victory over fellow Premier League strugglers Leeds to climb out of the relegation zone and send their opponents into trouble.
Seamus Coleman scored the winning goal in the second half owing to an error from goalkeeper Illan Meslier, who failed to cover his front post, allowing the skipper’s effort to arrow in.
Victory was Everton’s second in three games under new manager Sean Dyche, lifting them up to 16th place, while Leeds drop to 19th and remain without a win under interim boss Michael Skubala.
In other matches,Manchester City missed the opportunity to return to the top of the Premier League as Chris Wood’s late goal earned Nottingham Forest a point at the City Ground.
Bernardo Silva’s rocket from 20 yars opened the scoring and the visitors missed chances in abundance to put the game to bed.
Morgan Gibbs-White’s fizzed cross was tapped in at the far post in the 84th minute for Wood’s first Forest goal.
The draw extended Forest’s unbeaten home run to eight games and dealt a blow to City’s title hopes after Arsenal returned to the top with a 4-2 comeback win against Aston Villa earlier on Saturday.
At Stamford Bridge,Chelsea’s poor form under manager Graham Potter continued as a trademark free-kick from James Ward-Prowse earned the Premier League’s bottom club Southampton a surprise victory at Stamford Bridge.
Ward-Prowse scored the game’s only goal in first-half stoppage time, sending a curling effort over the Chelsea wall and into the corner from the edge of the penalty area.
The result means Chelsea have now won just two games in their last 14 in all competitions.
Managerless Southampton will hope it can kick-start their attempts to escape the relegation zone.