A round-up of how the national media reported on Everton's 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park
Everton’s European qualification hopes have been left dangling by a thread after they twice surrendered leads against Crystal Palace to draw 2-2 at Selhurst Park.
Here is a round-up of how the national media reported on the game...
In the Daily Mail, Gethin Hicks insists David Moyes’ European dream for Everton is not yet over, but it seems likely that they will be left to rue missed chance.
It was a few miles north-west of Selhurst Park in February where David Moyes admitted European football was the target after a late Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall strike earned his side all three points against Fulham. That winter’s evening, he also joked in the old-fashioned media room at Craven Cottage that reporters may “laugh” at such a suggestion come the season’s end.
Yet, here we are a couple of weeks out from that point, and the Scotsman’s dream is still alive and kicking. If perhaps only just.
James Tarkowski put the visitors one-up early on against Palace when he tapped home a Dewsbury-Hall in-swinging corner. In the period that followed, Everton should have made it two or three.
Dewsbury-Hall, who was at the centre of much of Everton’s interplay, twice squandered big chances in front of goal. Later, Ndiaye saw a close-range header tipped around the post by Jordan Pickford.
Eventually Ismaila Sarr equalised for Palace, only for the endeavouring Beto to restore the visitors’ lead after the interval with a neat finish through the legs of Dean Henderson.
With the away end in raptures, it felt at that point as though Everton would be leaving the capital victorious against a Palace side still recovering from the euphoria of their victory over Shakhtar Donetsk. Yet, boosted by the introduction of Mateta, the hosts found a new lease of life – and it was the Frenchman who equalised on 77 minutes.
Both sides had chances to clinch it – and good ones at that. Bearing down on goal, Mateta chipped over in injury time after Adam Wharton, still searching for his maiden Eagles goal, struck the post from distance.
However the golden chance fell to the Toffees’ Iliman Ndiaye, who was characteristically eye-catching throughout. Having been slotted in by the impressive Tim Iroegbunam on 92 minutes, Ndiaye saw a side-footed effort tipped over by Dean Henderson to ensure this entertaining clash ended level.
The draw leaves Everton 10th, two points adrift of a European spot. Moyes may come to rue the opportunities his side missed this week both here and against Man City. But for now, he can keep dreaming.
Ed Aarons of the Guardian points out that while Everton remain unbeaten in the Premier League against Crystal Palace since Rafael Benitez was in charge of the Blues, the point is probably little help to their European aspirations.
David Moyes’ European dream is now hanging by a slender thread. Against a Crystal Palace side who have been distracted by their Conference League exploits, Everton were unable to take their opportunity to close the gap on their rivals as Jean-Philippe Mateta came off the bench to equalise after they had twice been ahead, through goals from James Tarkowski and Beto.
It could have been even worse for Moyes had Adam Wharton’s shot not struck the outside of a post in the 90th minute. In a frantic finish, Dean Henderson denied Iliman Ndiaye in stoppage time before Mateta missed a great chance to win it for Oliver Glasner’s side.
This result meant Everton stretched their unbeaten run against Palace to 11 matches. But they must now rely on other teams dropping points if they are to have a chance of qualifying for Europe next season after failing to win for a fourth game in a row when they have taken the lead.
The point – combined with West Ham’s defeat against Arsenal – ensured that Palace, whose last Premier League win against Everton came in December 2021 when Rafael Benítez was in charge of the visitors, have guaranteed they will be in the top flight for a 14th consecutive season. Four of Palace’s players have already played more than 4,000 minutes this season, with Maxence Lacroix starting for the 52nd time of a marathon campaign that could end with him being called up for France’s World Cup squad despite being culpable for Beto’s goal.
Everton fielded the same team from their thrilling draw against City on Monday, when they set an unwanted record of becoming the first team in the Premier League to concede stoppage-time goals in three successive matches. Moyes had lamented those missed opportunities and it didn’t take long for Everton’s players to show they were up for the challenge.
Palace’s Achilles heel this season has been an inability to defend from set pieces and there was no excuse for Tarkowski being unmarked at the back post when Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s ball deflected to him. It was the 18th set-piece goal Palace have conceded in the Premier League – more than any other team.
Jordan Pickford – up against his England rival Henderson and being watched by Thomas Tuchel in the stands – pulled off an excellent save to keep out Lacroix’s shot. Ndiaye broke downfield but could not take the chance to double Everton’s lead.
The Senegal forward was made to regret that when his compatriot Ismaïla Sarr slammed home his 20th goal of a brilliant season after his initial shot was blocked by Michael Keane.
A few words were exchanged between the benches after Tarkowski went unpunished for taking out Sarr off the ball before James Garner escaped what looked like a clear push on Jorgen Strand Larsen inside the area, even if Glasner felt it did not warrant a penalty.
There was a hint of fortune about the way Everton regained their lead. Tarkowski only intended to clear the ball from his own half, but it looped perfectly into the path of Beto, who was able to turn inside Lacroix before beating Henderson.
The introduction of Mateta from the bench with 25 minutes to play gave Palace more impetus as they strived for an equaliser. Sarr was inches away from diverting Wharton’s floated ball past Pickford for his second of the afternoon before Tyrick Mitchell’s clever cross teed up the France striker to leave Everton ruing their mistakes.
James Gheerbrant of The Times believes that Everton’s winless run has come at just the wrong time for David Moyes’ side.
As Crystal Palace basked in the achievement of reaching the Conference League final, Everton’s hopes of reaching that competition, very much alive for most of this season, suffered a potentially decisive blow. A winless run has come at just the wrong time for David Moyes’ team, who probably needed to end it here to revitalise their European ambitions.
They had every chance to, twice taking the lead, but in the end had to settle for a share of the points, leaving them in tenth position, four adrift of seventh-placed Brighton and two behind Brentford in eighth. The mood was buoyant at Selhurst Park, where the England head coach, Thomas Tuchel, was among those in attendance to watch a game of plentiful chances.
He saw his top two goalkeepers acquit themselves impressively for the most part, with Jordan Pickford pulling off six saves and Dean Henderson five, and also a lively performance from Adam Wharton, who could have stolen the points for Palace at the death when his well-struck drive instead rattled the base of the post.
Barely five minutes had elapsed when Everton took the lead. They had already had one chance, Beto getting the ball stuck under his feet from Merlin Rohl’s cutback, and Palace still didn’t quite seem up to the speed of the game as they conceded from a subsequent corner. Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s delivery was flicked on at the front post, seemingly off a Palace head, and James Tarkowski, stealing in at the back post, had time to measure a side-footed finish, which beat Henderson before he even moved.
The first 20 minutes were end to end. Palace went close on three occasions, with Wharton involved in all three: first he smoked a rising drive over the bar, then his corner was nodded over by Chris Richards, then his curling cross bounced through to Maxence Lacroix, whose well-struck shot was saved by Pickford’s right leg.
But the home side also seemed to be constantly chasing back against Everton transition attacks. Moyes’ team bodged a couple, but they should probably have scored when Dewsbury-Hall got goal-side of a disoriented Jaydee Canvot. He had a clear shot at goal, but the advancing Henderson saved well.
The action then settled down a bit, but both teams continued to threaten. In the end, the second goal was an equaliser, which started with a long kick downfield by Henderson. Jorgen Strand Larsen out-jumped Michael Keane and Ismaila Sarr took over. He exchanged passes with the overlapping Daniel Munoz, and Keane could only prod the winger’s initial shot straight back to him, he made no mistake, firing past Pickford for his 20th goal of the season across all competitions.
But having seemed to begin the first half in “off” mode, Palace repeated the mistake at the beginning of the second. Tarkowski stuck his boot in and it turned into a long pass for Beto to run on to. Lacroix was chasing back but seemed to overrun the ball and was then turned inside-out again by Beto, who finished confidently through Henderson’s legs.
Both goalkeepers continued to be heavily involved. Henderson tipped over an excellent free kick from James Garner — another player presumably watched closely by Tuchel — then combined with Tyrick Mitchell to foil Dewsbury-Hall after Palace allowed another clear run at the keeper.
Pickford showed great agility to stop the ball sneaking in when a cross from Daichi Kamada was missed by both Sarr and Keane. The England No1 was there again when Canvot, six yards out, nodded on Munoz’s header.
Oliver Glasner, the Palace manager, brought on Jean-Philippe Mateta, who despite having lost his spot in the Palace XI recently is still in with a shout of a place in Didier Deschamps’s France squad for the World Cup. And he didn’t take long to record his tenth league goal of the season. It came from a good run and cutback from Mitchell, finding Mateta in the perfect position to lash the ball into the roof of the net.
It was Palace pushing harder for a winner in the closing minutes, with Mitchell’s downward bouncing header just evading Sarr at the back post. Mateta then beat Pickford, and the crossbar, with an overhit dink after Wharton had hit the post.
Everton also had a huge chance on the break, with Iliman Ndiaye given a clear sight of goal, but his shot, too central, was tipped over by Henderson. Palace have something to look forward to, but in truth both these teams are trudging towards the finish of the domestic season.
And in the ECHO, our own Joe Thomas observed what David Moyes and five Everton players did at full-time spoke volumes as harsh truth clear.
“I’m using the word disappointing again,” David Moyes said as he reflected on another game in which Everton proved unable to hold onto a valuable result.
The Blues boss' emotions were clear before he reached the press room at Crystal Palace. After walking over to applaud the away end he crossed the Selhurst Park pitch alone. He had the chance to catch up with Michael Keane and Vitalii Mykolenko as they reached the tunnel but opted to keep a step back.
This has been a good season but it is ending in frustration and his team’s failure - twice - to protect a priceless lead means any dream of Europe is now hanging by the finest of threads.
The players knew that, too. On the final whistle, Jake O’Brien and Tim Iroegbunam fell to their haunches. James Garner dropped to the ground. Beto and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall shared a glum-looking conversation in the back of the away dugout.