Frank Lampard was left recoiling in frustration at much of what he saw in Everton's nightmare defeat to Bournemouth.
The Blues boss made 11 changes and adopted a new formation for the Carabao Cup tie but could only grimace as a number of squad players failed their auditions for greater involvement in the first team. The manager retreated to his dugout more often than normal, and typically after poor passages of play from his side - including a botched corner that made little sense to those looking on.
It was one of the most obvious signs of unhappiness at the display and his frustration was mirrored by some of his players - Nathan Patterson among those wound up by the hosts' antics as they sought to protect their lead. What could have been a positive night based on the return from injury of senior players and young starlets being handed their chances instead turned into 90 minutes of self-destruction in which the Blues heaped further pressure on themselves. Lampard's frustration on the sideline and how he showed it is one of a host of 'moments spotted' from Tuesday's game. Others include the inspirational fan feature that was unable to spark success and the actions of the player who appeared keenest to show he understood what unfolded was not good enough.
MATCH VERDICT: What Bournemouth fans chanted during Everton win should embarrass players and Frank Lampard
REACTION: Frank Lampard gives scathing verdict on Everton fringe players after Bournemouth loss
'Everton The Gear'
After the team news was announced, Everton shared a picture from the dressing room that showed the players' kits lined up around a blue flag, upon which was written: 'Everton the Gear'. The flag has been a constant in the Blues crowd and features in the newly-decorated tunnel at Goodison Park, where players walking out to Z-Cars pass walls plastered with crowd scenes from the relegation escape at the end of last season.
Its use in the dressing room, like the tunnel revamp, is a nice touch to reflect the importance of the supporters in keeping the Blues in the Premier League. It proved unable to inspire the players into a performance to remember, however.
Jaidon Anthony plays the villain and winds up Patterson and Lampard - only to get the last laugh
With Everton back in the game at 2-1 there was a new-found sense of urgency to the performance. The tension ramped up and amid it Patterson was involved in a tussle on the sideline with Jaidon Anthony as the Bournemouth player refused to hand the ball back for an Everton throw-in.
Anthony grabbed the ball and allowed himself to be spun around by Patterson but still did not return it - earning him a yellow card as Lampard looked on in frustration. Agonisingly for Patterson, Anthony had the last laugh through scoring goal number four in a move that started when Patterson lost possession. The fraught nature of Everton's position was increasingly clear as the night went on with even Alex Iwobi getting dragged into the time-wasting antics of the opposition.
Botched corner a fitting end to frustrating half
Everton responded well to going behind, creating two glorious opportunities to equalise - one for Tom Davies and one for Anthony Gordon. Gordon then nearly got onto the end of a Patterson cross as the Blues sought to pull level. That initial response then faded, however, and the first half became increasingly attritional.
Perhaps the best indication of the visitors' decreasing threat was a corner just before stoppage time. Armed with the aerial prowess of Michael Keane and Yerry Mina, and the dead ball ability of James Garner, the obvious thing was to try and swing the ball into the Bournemouth box. Instead Tom Davies took a short corner to Gordon in what looked like an attempt at a training ground routine that backfired as Everton squandered possession without creating a chance.
Lampard turns to the dugout amid desperate scenes in front of him
Lampard spends most of most matches on the edge of his technical area, rarely sitting in his dugout as a game plays out. At Goodison Park this is partly because the view isn't particularly good from the seats, which are lower than pitch level. But he stands enough for it to be notable when he disappears to his seat and at Bournemouth he spent more time than usual among his backroom staff. Often he returned as he recoiled from poor passages of play.
Vocal on the touchline, throughout the first half he could be heard bellowing "find Ruben" as he called for the ball to be spread to Ruben Vinagre down the left. He kicked every ball but was left turning away in despair far more often than he would have liked, including after that bungled corner kick routine in the first half and a moment when Mina fired the ball out of play when trying to pass across the defence to Mason Holgate.
Gray first to the supporters as he offers apology - and his shirt
Demarai Gray produced the one moment the away fans had to cheer as he curled in from the edge of the box to give Everton a lifeline with 20 minutes to go. That chance to get back into the game was gone 11 minutes later, when Bournemouth grabbed a third - then a fourth shortly after.
At the end of the game a number of Blues supporters had already left but, for those who did stay, it was Gray who went to them with most intent. The winger went up to the stands and clasped his hands in a manner that looked like he was offering an apology. He then gave his match shirt to one of the supporters still there to witness his efforts.
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