Kone earns Everton contract extension

Sky Sports understands that Everton’s hat-trick hero Arouna Kone has earned a new one-year deal at Goodison Park.

The Ivory Coast international moved from Wigan Athletic in the summer of 2013, shortly after his manager Roberto Martinez made the same switch.

His man-of-the-match performance in Sunday’s 6-2 win over Sunderland was his thirty-fifth in an Everton shirt, and that tally has triggered a clause which extends his contract by twelve months.

Before the weekend the thirty-one year old had scored just three goals, and he has largely played second fiddle to Romelu Lukaku since arriving on Merseyside.

Prior to moving to England, Kone had spells in Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain and Germany, having begun his career in his home country.

He also has been capped thirty-nine times for The Elephants, scoring nine goals and he was part of the squad that attended the 2006 World Cup finals in Germany.