Everton 1 – 1 Fulham
Everton took on former boss Marco Silva and his half-decent Fulham under the lights, with Beto stealing a very late goal after Alex Iwobi had given them the lead.
Branthwaite returns but is only on the bench as Sean Dyche names an unchanged starting XI. Garner, Chermiti, Iroegbunam and Broja are all out injured.
Fulham got the game underway, Tarkowski and Mykolenko both having to defend stoutly early on. Robinson had the measure of Calvert-Lewin as Ndiaye played the ball out on the other side of the pitch. Good challenging by McNeil was punished as a foul.
Traore got in a good cross that Jiminez was able to direct toward Pickford. McNeil did well to put a deep ball up for Calvert-Lewin who collapsed pathetically as soon as Bassey came near him. Absolutely not a penalty!
Everton had settled into their normal pattern of looking to thwart the opposition and perhaps play forward on the break, with Fulham dominating possession. Pereira almost got a chance to shoot but the ball was taken off him.
Everton were struggling to contain the visitors and couldn’t really get forward, Doucoure easily giving up the ball. When it did go forward quickly from Pickford, Calvert-Lewin was flagged offside. Ndiaye did win a foul, McNeil’s ball headed back to Leno by Iwobi.
Fulham came even closer: first, Traore was thwarted by Pickford, then Smith Rowe volleyed over from close range. Everton finally got forward after 29 minutes, Harrison forcing their first corner that was easily defended at the near post. Another long ball was held up by Calvert-Lewin until Bassey easily stalled him.
Everton got forward again and the ball back out to Gana was struck well, bouncing down off the bar, and turned in by Calvert-Lewin… but immediately flagged offside – although it was tight.
Everton built another decent attack, Harrison looping over a cross a little too high for Calvert-Lewin to put any power on the header but it won a corner. Everton worked it around well, Keane winning another corner. But this one didn’t get above waist height.
Fulham broke at pace and, after some turnovers, Jiminez had another chance to shoot but Keane was back to help clear. It was a much more frenetic and even game now, each team threatening. Ndiaye put in a strong cross but it did not reach Calvert-Lewin.
A brilliant Everton move, Mykolenko’s fantastic cross was headed strongly but straight at Leno. Quick transition to the other end and Traore’s tricky cross won Fulham a corner, headed away powerfully by Keane. Fulham recycled the ball and Diop’s header looped across and over Pickford’s goal.
Another great cross from Traore, who was getting acres of pace, fell off Jimenez to Iwobi who thankfully wellied it high and wide from close range. At the other end, a ball looped in toward Calvert-Lewin but a defender scoped it away off his toe to end what had become quite a lively spell of half-decent football.
It was a slow start to the second half with sloppy play by both sides and a lot of turnovers. A long ball forward was just far enough ahead of Jiminez for Pockford to collect.
But Fulham attacked again and Traore won a corner off Mykolenko. However, Gana nipped in brilliantly to stall the short corner routine and eventually dribbled his way smartly out of trouble.
Traore advanced again but Mykolenko and Doucoure worked well to take the ball off him. Fulham attacked from the left side but Mykolenko was in the right place to clear. But The Cottagers kept up the pressure, Pereria screwing his shot across goal and wide.
A brilliant cameo dribble by Ndiaye led to nothing as the pendulum kept swinging, the game on something of a knife-edge, with either side capable of but so far eschewing a real scoring move, and both surrendering precious possession at will.
Ndiaye fed Mykolenko well but his cross was too close to and gobbled up by Leno. At the other end, Alex Iwobi drove goalward unchallenged and simply struck the ball well, beating Pickford low to his right to give Fulham the lead.
At the other end, a ball looked like falling nicely for Harrison but he sliced it dreadfully. Ndiaye tried his dribbling tricks again, the ball just going out of play.
Iwobi started a great Fulham move, Pickford parrying Robinson’s low cross that was too close to the Everton keeper. Pereira was called for a strong tackle on Gana that won the ball as both sides make a change each.
Nelson did well to cross to Iwobi who crossed back in very dangerously and Doucoure somehow got his heel to flick the ball away from Smith Rowe. Everton tried to build an attack in response but they had rarely got close to Leno’s goal.
Pickford punted the ball up to Ndiaye who was criminally offside, with Fulham’s back line to look along. Everton were huffing and puffing but the requisite quality was sadly lacking. Young’s punt up the line was shockingly poor, and it set up Nelson to turn him again and scamper back into the Everton area, Gana tackling him brilliantly.
Smith Rowe looked to have fouled Gana but it wasn’t called and Tarkowski was livid, fouling his man and getting a needless yellow card. Everton attacked but it broke down and Fulham surged forward again, one shot hitting Keane, the next screwing wide from Jiminez.
Dyche made an almost unprecedented two late changes. Lindstrom saw the goal open up before him but his shot lacked any power and was grabbed by Leno, McNeil going down and needing treatment, Branthwaite finally coming on with less than 5 minutes left, with Keane moving to striker alongside Beto.
Beto put Bassey and Leno under pressure. He then battled forward to win a corner but it was utterly and absolutely iniquitous from Lindstrom.
Mykolenko put in a decent cross but Beto could not get a clean header on it and Leno saved it easily. 6 minutes added on and Everton now desperate to avoid defeat. But the repeated turnovers were shockingly poor.
A ball up to Keane but his headed cross was met by nobody. But a Mykolenko cross was sent back into the mix by Ashley Young and there was Beto to nod it down and in — a superb goal… finally!!!
A late free-kick put pressure on Everton, Reed lashing the final kick of the game over Pickford’s goal, as Everton stole a point at the death.
Everton: Pickford; Mykolenko, Keane, Tarkowski [Y:76′], Young; Ndiaye, Doucoure (80′ Mangala), Gueye, Harrison (68′ Lindstrom); McNeil (85′ Branthwaite); Calvert-Lewin (81′ Beto).
Subs not Used:: Virginia, N Patterson, O’Brien, Coleman, Armstrong.
Fulham: Leno, Tete, Bassey, Diop, Robinson, Berge, Pereira (79′ Wilson), Traore (68′ Nelson), Smith Rowe (79′ Reed), Iwobi (90+2′ Cuenca), Jimenez (90+2′ Muniz).
Subs not Used: Benda, King, Cairney, Sessegnon.
Referee: John Brook
VAR: Stuart Atwell
Attendance: 38,742