On an afternoon in which Everton could have taken another step toward Premier League safety, what mattered most might have taken place just over 200 miles south of Goodison Park.
Everton fought hard against Manchester City but were ultimately outclassed by one of the best teams in world football. This was a defeat that was frustrating but it did not reveal much about the Blues’ chances in this relegation battle.
The event that did offer new insight unfolded not in L4 but in London, where Brentford played West Ham United and former Everton boss David Moyes, with eyes on his side’s Europa Conference League semi-final on Thursday, made seven changes and his reserves offered little opposition as they fell to defeat. West Ham’s final two games in the league are against Everton’s biggest rivals in the bid to avoid the drop - Leeds United and Leicester City.
READ MORE: DCL injury scare as Dyche admits Everton hope he went off 'before damage done'
RATINGS: Everton player ratings as one awful and five poor in Manchester City defeat
Should West Ham defeat AZ Alkmaar and reach the final, more of the same might follow and the survival fight would take on a different complexion: Put simply, a midweek fixture between two other clubs in a town in the north of the Netherlands is now among the biggest of Everton’s season.
What remains in Everton’s favour is that this historic institution largely remains in control of its own destiny. That was always going to be the case whatever happened against City - win against Wolverhampton Wanderers and Bournemouth and Everton will likely be safe. How difficult that will be will come down to the fitness of Dominic Calvert-Lewin, removed at half-time with a groin issue. Dyche said he hoped the substitution prevented any damage from being done but the emergence of a potential issue will come as a major concern such is his importance to the side.
In reality, the game had probably been lost by that point. Everton had played well in the first 45 minutes, initially matching City and conceding possession but not chances while posing a threat on the counter. This game could have been very different had Holgate, unmarked at the back post, been able to wrap his foot around the bouncing ball after James Tarkowski nodded a corner in his direction. It was a difficult chance and Holgate, just yards out, could not contort his body enough and hammered over.
It was the best opportunity of the game to that point but minutes later Everton were punished by a moment of brilliance. Ilkay Gundogan controlled a Riyad Mahrez cross on his thigh and, under pressure from Nathan Patterson, somehow flicked the ball behind him and beyond Jordan Pickford. Gundogan had achieved what Holgate was unable to and defied physics - that was the difference. Before Everton could regroup City doubled the lead. Erling Haaland - having finally escaped the attention of Yerry Mina, with whom he squabbled throughout much to the ire of Pep Guardiola - drifted between James Tarkowski and Holgate and headed in Gundogan’s cross. Any hope of Dyche rallying his troops at half-time disappeared first with the withdrawal of Calvert-Lewin and then with City’s third, Gundogan scoring a sublime free kick within minutes of the restart.
City did not inflict further damage - meaning Everton retained a slim goal difference advantage over Leeds - but the Blues showed little sign of forcing a comeback.
Everton were applauded off at half-time and again at full-time and the final minutes produced a rousing display from the home supporters in defiance of the result and ahead of a crucial trip to Wolves on Saturday. Attention now turns to Calvert-Lewin’s condition, Leicester City’s clash with Liverpool on Monday and, now, the Netherlands on Thursday.
READ NEXT:
- DCL injury scare as Dyche admits Everton hope he went off 'before damage done'
- Everton collapse but Man City truth is clear as Premier League fight goes on
- Everton player ratings as one awful and five poor in Manchester City defeat
- Everton new stadium can be 'transformative' as Farhad Moshiri edges closer to funding
- 'He's not' - Roy Keane delivers brutal Pickford verdict after Everton loss
