So after reaching double figures in the home league defeats column for the first time in their history, Everton still have it all to do in their final two fixtures to secure their top flight status for another year having been beaten 3-0 by Manchester City.
For 37 minutes, Sean Dyche’s side held out in spirited fashion against a side in pole position to retain the Premier League title and on course to match neighbours United’s treble of 1999 but from the moment Ilkay Gundogan silenced the hosts with a ‘how did he do that?’ finish, their resistance collapsed.
Having had their bubble burst, the Blues then found themselves 2-0 down just a couple of minutes later when Jordan Pickford’s parry failed to keep Erling Haaland’s header out of the net with what was just one of only five touches for the Norwegian in the first half but such is his potency, that was more than enough.
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Unlike the previous home reversals against Fulham and Newcastle United when Everton appeared to throw in the towel in alarming fashion, the truth here was that City were just too good.
When the game had been in the balance during the first half an hour, one Press Box observer commented on how the contest resembled an FA Cup with a lower division outfit trying to get in the faces of a more polished Premier League opponent but after Gundogan’s sweetly-struck free-kick added a third after the break, the Blues still need to make sure that’s not the case come next season.
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