5 October 2024
Everton 0 Newcastle 0
Everton welcomed Newcastle to Goodison Park for a game which was guaranteed to be feisty. The Toffees’ fans are never ones to forget when a player leaves them on bad terms. That is how they still feel about Gordon’s move to The Magpies after his successful spell for the Merseyside outfit. Howe was looking for a win to take them into the international break pushing for the top four places.
Dyche’s side bagged their first win of the season in their last game at home and were coming into this match full of confidence. However, it was the visitors who made the better start. Even at this early stage of the game, Gordon was being abused by the home crowd. He managed to win his side a corner nonetheless.
As the cross came into the back post, Guimaraes was completely unmarked. He did everything right as he beat Pickford with his shot but it struck Ndiaye on the line and somehow went wide of the goal. The Everton player knew little about his goal-saving clearance as it struck the inside of his calf through more luck than judgement.
It was Calvert-Lewin’s flick at the near post that laid it on a plate for the Brazilian. Not the kind of assist he was hoping for in this game. Fortunately for the striker, his teammate saved his blushes. All of which stoked up the home crowd even more. If Dyche’s side could match their passion, his side would be a difficult team to beat.
The hosts thought they had taken the lead when Garner swung in an inch-perfect cross from the touchline. Doucoure rose for a free header in the box and beat Pope to see his effort nestle in the back of the net. Celebrations were cut short however as a VAR review ruled it out for offside. As the replay showed, the Everton midfielder had timed his run poorly.
Barnes was finding acres of space out wide as Dyche’s full backs were going missing all too often. He clipped the ball into the box and it was headed behind for a corner. As the resulting cross came in, it was easily dealt with by the home defence. The danger seemed to have gone until the referee heard a voice in his ear tell him otherwise. The VAR studio advised he go over to the monitor.
On closer inspection, Tarkowski had done the unthinkable. He had grabbed Tonali by the shirt and thrown him to the ground like he was manning the door of a Liverpool nightclub. Only the Everton defender will know what was going through his mind but it was a crazy reaction to whatever voices were speaking to him in his head. The referee on review pointed to the penalty spot.
That invited the ultimate pantomime villain scene at Goodison Park. Gordon picked the ball up and walked towards the box to take it. Cue the boos, cheers and barrage of abuse from the home fans. The Newcastle winger seemed to be in the zone and ignoring everything going on around him. What salt this would rub in the wound to see their former player score for The Magpies.
Previously the Newcastle winger had spoken about how he goes through his own process when taking penalties and shuts out the rest of the world. On this occasion that seemed to be channelling his inner Gareth Southgate as he saw his penalty saved by Pickford. It was a dreadful effort by the England winger.
Howe’s side continued to press and Murphy put a delightful cross into the back post. Gordon rose to head it back to Joelinton but Everton managed to clear their lines. The only wonder was why he even attempted that when he should have clearly looked to score himself. It seemed The Toffees’ fans were well and truly living in his head rent free at this point.
Despite this, he continued to cause problems for the hosts in the second half. He cut inside from the left and laid it off into the path of Guimaraes. The usually calm Brazilian lofted his shot over the bar causing no concerns for Pickford. The Magpies just seemed to be snatching at their chances and Eddie Howe’s face told the full story on the touchline.
Everton came forward in a rare attack and Calvert-Lewin thought he had scored as he drilled his shot into the bottom corner. Pope got down well to make a brilliant save to deny him. As the striker looked to get to the rebound and pull the trigger, he ended up in a heap on the floor expecting a penalty to be given for Burn’s involvement. The referee waved away their protests.
The replay showed that The Toffees’ striker had actually kicked Burn but it was blatantly obvious he had made sure he had got himself in between the striker and the ball. Depending on your allegiance will dictate how you saw this decision. Either way, VAR saw no reason to overturn the decision and send the referee to the monitor.
Almiron then slotted the ball into space for Gordon to run onto. As he got into the box, he only had the keeper to beat. He smashed his shot over the crossbar, much to the huge cheers from Everton faithful as they enjoyed another moment of ill-fortune for their former player. He will be glad to not have to play here again this season, that is for sure.
Both teams had to settle for a point, Newcastle will be the more disappointed by the result. They had plenty of chances to win this game but just did not show any composure in front of goal. The point ensured Everton stay clear of the bottom three, while The Magpies lost ground on the sides above in their challenge for European qualification.
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