Benitez paid the price for a poor run of form and losing the faith of the fans while in charge at Goodison Park and has been replaced by former Chelsea boss Frank Lampard.
Everton beat Brentford 4-1 in the FA Cup at the weekend under Lampard and former Sky Sports anchor Keys thinks that the Toffees have been revitalised by sacking Benitez, someone he maintained was a poor fit for the job.
“What a difference in the attitude and atmosphere around Goodison for the tie against Brentford”, Keys wrote on his blog.
“It was as if a stiff breeze off the Mersey had blown the stench of the Benitez era away.
“I’ve spoken to people who suffered the pain of the Spaniard’s time with Everton.
“Three words keep coming up – distanced, difficult and destructive. Three ‘d’s. Here’s another – dunce.”
Everton face a key Premier League game on Tuesday night at fellow strugglers Newcastle United, who made a raft of signings in the January transfer window.
Keys though believes an Everton full of new life will go to the north east and come away with all three points.
“I’m not suggesting it’s going to be easy for them – quite the opposite – but it was a great start and I think they’ll win at Newcastle this week.
“Everybody at Goodison looked refreshed“, he added.
Everton boast a four-point advantage over Newcastle in the league standings and also have a game in hand on the Magpies.
