Former Everton midfielder Olivier Dacourt has revealed how he ‘killed’ a former teammate in training after a prank was played on him upon his arrival at the club.
Dacourt arrived at Everton from Strasbourg in a £5.4m deal back in July 1998 but would only last a year on Merseyside before returning to France with Lens the following year.
He was a regular for Everton in his sole year at the club, managing 31 appearances and two goals that season but never truly settling in away from his homeland.
Despite that, he has often talked fondly of his time with the club, labelling it a ‘great experience’ earlier this year and discussing how he bonded with Marco Materazzi, who he later played alongside at Inter Milan.
Like all new players, it appears he was treated to something of a hazing ritual upon his arrival, although unlike in the modern game, it was far from a rendition of his favourite song in front of his new teammates, as he explained to RMC Sport.
“I arrived very late. We are at the hotel; I realise at check-out that they put everything on my room,” he told them.
“I didn’t go to the bar once, and they put everything on my room. I knew who it was and I didn’t say anything.
🗣️ L'anecdote hilarante de @dacourtolivier lors de son arrivée à Everton (1998) 😂
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“I went to see coach Walter Smith and told him there was a problem because I hadn’t had anything to drink, not having been to the bar once. They put everything on my room.
“I’m not kidding. Whoever did that to me, the day after training, I sent him to the other end. I killed him; it was Don Hutchison.”
