Southampton 1 – 0 Everton
Everton failed to create many real chances and allowed a rapid Southampton counter to win the game after Beto saw his close-range header smack the face of the bar, gifting the bottom side their first win.
Injury problems continue for Armando Broja, James Garner, Tim Iroegbunam and Youssef Chermiti, with Abdoulaye Doucoure added to the list of absentees. Dwight McNeil is declared fit but Branthwaite is only on the bench again.
The two changes are Jesper Lindstrom coming in for Jack Harrison and Orel Mangala replaces Abdoulaye Doucoure.
The standard start for Everton, kicking it back to Pickford for the mind-numbing hoof upfield that loses possession. But they won a free-kick that Lindstrom struck nicely for Ramsdale to collect.
But The Saints looked to play joined-up football, passing it around plenty until Walker-Peters was slow to get back onside. Then 38 Saints passes before Everton got the turnover and broke but Lindstrom messed it up. However, Gana forced a great turnover in the Saints’ penalty area but Calvert-Lewin wasn’t really interested despite the ball in direct to his feet.
Everton got forward quickly, Young to McNeil to Lindstrom but his cross evaded Calvert-Lewin. McNeil was fouled by Lallana but the ref saw an infringement when the ball went in.
Everton were taking more control and playing the ball fairly well until it was meant to find Calvert-Lewin. The Saints tried to get forward a bit quicker but this time Archer was offside. Gana went down after he was baulked.
Gana fed Ndiaye who cut in to somehow win a corner, which he then blasted high and wide (although it looked like a deflection, not given). A quick Saints free-kick saw a very strong sliding tackle on Archer by Tarkowski that was good value for the ensuing yellow card.
Gana looked to break quickly but stalled and then saw it turned over when McNeil was dispossessed. Saints tried to mount an attack but didn’t. Gana was called for a nothing foul. The free-kick was headed behind by Tarkowski for a Southampton corner, but it was played in too far back to threaten.
Still, after 30 minutes, the home side had tasted possession in the Everton area, and wanted more. But Evern got forward with Calvert-Lewin on the ball, crossing to the spot where he himself should have been.
Young was forced to take the 30-second treatment break for taking a drink on the touchline. But Everton were largely controlling the play without really threatening, both teams seemingly poor in that fundamental aspect of the game.
Mangala pushed the Blues forward, Mykolenko winning another corner, punched away by Ramsdale. Lindstrom tried to drive in on goal but Lallana surely impeded him? But no protest.
Everton forced a turnover but the ball was played in behind Calvert-Lewin as he set off to make space. Saints broke well with Archer but he screwed his shot beyond the far post under close attention from Young. A deep free-kick found Tarkowski ghosting around the back but he could not get the header on target.
McNeil powered forward with the ball but could not play in Calvert-Lewin. Then Ndiaye burst through but could not beat Ramsdale with his weak shot. At the other end, it needed a crucial touch from Pickford to keep the ball away from Manning as Saints had one of their better spells, winning a corner that Howard-Bellis headed down well a yard wide.
So ended a fairly even half, with few guilt-edged chances for either side.
The second half continued in much the same vein. Young did well to intercept and as Everton pushed up, Lindstom’s cross was ballooned… but it came back around and Young played a great low cross for Mangala to hammer goalward, Calvert-Lewin ducking with Ramsdale blocking it.
Ndiaye got to run in with he ball but he was well tackled by Harwood-Bellis.
Keane was forced to foul the faster Archer for a predictable yellow card. The free-kick was low but fell to Harwood-Belli, his shot deflected behind. The corner was cleared.
At the other end, Magala and Myko had shot blocked before Linsdtroom’s better cross was headed behind before it could reach Calvert-Lewin. The corner from McNeil curled around the far post and out.
The Saint came forward and Pickford had to make a theatrical diving punch. Some like-for-like subs by Dyche on the hour — very early from him! Saints seemed inspired and a deep cross proved too difficult for Armstrong to convert.
Lindstrom was cynically blocked by Stephens but no yellow card. The free-kick won a corner, but it did not reach Beto. In the workaround, Mykolenko’s deep cross saw a great diving header from Keane but Ramsdale palmed it onto the post and back onto his shoulder and onto the post again, as Keane tried to force it in but he was deemed to have fouled the Saints keeper.
Saints got forward but Walker-Peters’s cross was behind Armstrong who could not adjust his body position in time. Everton had to defend with depth and Young looked to relieve the pressure but his outball was not good enough to release Beto.
Fernades was getting forward repeatedly and one lovely ball was cut out just as it approached Archer? who may have strayed offside with EVertn dropping too deep. Beto struggled with Bednereck who was shown a yellow card. But deemed by VAR not denying a goal-coring opportunity.
The free-kick was tremendous from Lindstrom, pawed away by Ramsdale. The corner came out to Harrison and was completely wasted with a terrible shot well off target. A great cross was met perfectly by Harrison but he touched it a foot wide instead of on target. Then Mangala pounced on the ball and drove into space but his shot was also terrible.
Young was trying to take a free-kick with Fernandes hanging onto his shirt, so the Everton player tapped the ball in his face and Fernande went down as if shot at close range. Yellow card for being a dick!
Beto was impeded by Dibling, the free-kick sent deep to Tarkowski, whose fierce close -range cross smacked off Beto’s head and off the Saints bar! And of course, then Southampton went up the other end to see Armstrong score the simplest of goals off a straight-forward cross, completely unmarked.
Branthwaite on, Keane up front but a great ball forward from Young was taken well by Beto and converted superly,… offside? A long VAR wait before it was ultimately ruled out.
Only 4 minutes added after a 5-minute VAR delay and more Saints subs to make sure Everton could not equalize again. A scrappy 8 minutes were played out eventually without Everton getting close enough to threaten and the game was lost.
Everton: Pickford, Mykolenko, Keane [Y:56′], Tarkowski [Y:24′], Young, Ndiaye (62′ Harrison), Mangala, Gueye, Lindstrom (88′ Branthwaite), McNeil, Calvert-Lewin (62′ Beto).
Subs: Virginia, Begovic, Patterson, Coleman, O’Brien, Armstrong.