Everton legend Gary Lineker will have been watching on in anguish on Saturday evening as the Toffees fell to a 4-1 defeat to Newcastle United at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Malick Thiaw’s goal after just 55 seconds really set the tone for Everton’s dismal day at the office, and when Lewis Miley breached Jordan Pickford in the Everton goal prior to Nick Woltemade’s deft lob making it three for Newcastle before the break, the boo boys were only going to be ringing more than ever.
It was a shocking performance, salvaged only somewhat by Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s sweet strike to give the Hill Dickinson Stadium faithful something to celebrate.
And Gary Lineker has admitted that he was taken aback by how poor David Moyes’ side were after performing so well as a unit against Manchester United just five days prior to the heavy loss.
Everton players against Newcastle United,
Photo by Ed Sykes/Sportsphoto/Allstar Via Getty Images
Gary Lineker admits ‘surprise’ at Everton amid Newcastle defeat
Speaking on The Rest is Football podcast, Lineker couldn’t hide how poor he thought Everton were, adding that it was just ‘one of those days’ for David Moyes to contend with.
Lineker said: “I was surprised by Everton, because they’d done so brilliantly to win at Manchester United with 10 men.
“They looked like they had one of those days. We’ve all had them where it’s not your day.”
Some interesting takeaways from Moyes’ presser…
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The statistics didn’t lie. Newcastle had five big chances in comparison to Everton’s one, amassing a further three shots, more passes and almost double the amount of expected goals.
The first half in particular was brutal, with Everton actually managing more passes but Newcastle’s deadly counter-attacking side putting them to the sword.
It will be back to the drawing board for David Moyes after two positive results either side of the international break.
Everton’s defeat to Newcastle was their heaviest at home under Moyes for 15 years
Everton have not been beaten so convincingly under David Moyes for quite some time on home soil.
A 3-0 loss to Tottenham Hotspur in October was of course a defeat by the same margin, though it’s the first time Moyes has lost a game so convincingly in the Everton dugout for 15 years.
Bellew backs Moyes to bring success!
Everton’s 3-0 loss to Wigan Athletic in the FA Cup in 2012-13 marked the last time that Everton conceded three in the first half at home under the Scot, and the last time Everton conceded four in the Premier League at home under Moyes was a 4-1 defeat to West Bromwich Albion in 2010, although Everton did have 10 men for over half an hour.
It’s something the Toffees will have to curtail moving into a busy festive fixture period and Moyes needs to find the golden ticket to winning once again.
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