Thrown on late against United at the Hill Dickinson, the Deadline Day signing rescued a point with a stunning strike from distance six minutes into added time.
And afterwards, he admitted the 2-2 draw didn’t really feel like a draw at all.
Maitland-Niles: ‘It felt like a win’…
“It felt like a win,” Maitland-Niles told Sky Sports.
“We dug deep and managed to get a point in the end. The crowd were with us and we were fighting to the death and that’s how you get those type of results.”
As for the goal itself, Maitland-Niles kept that fairly simple.
“It’s amazing, everyone wants to start off like that, and thankfully I did,” he said.
“The ball fell to me on the edge of the box, I put my foot through it and it ended up in the top corner which I’m happy about.”
Hard to argue with.
The 29-year-old also offered a little glimpse of what Evertonians can expect from him beyond the occasional thunderbolt.
“I came in to work hard. It’s a team full of hard workers, so I fit right in.
“I’m going to show I can fit right in and pull my weight and give as much as everyone else, if not more.”
That last bit will go down well.
Maitland-Niles arrived during a Deadline Day that left plenty of Evertonians distinctly unimpressed.
Five days later, he’s scored a 96th-minute screamer in front of the Gwladys Street end.
Football, eh? (as someone famous once said).
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Everton 2-2 Man United: Maitland-Niles rocket earns Blues dramatic point
Everton 2-2 Man United: Maitland-Niles rocket earns Blues dramatic point
Moyes sends telling Everton message in programme notes after Deadline Day
Moyes sends telling Everton message in programme notes after Deadline Day