Match report
Thank you very much for joining me for this pulsating draw. Forest wull be happier with the point in the long term but Dyche has plenty of positives to take from the match. Peter Lansley’s report will be arriving soon for you all to gawp at.
Now this match is over, I would heartily recommend joining John Brewin for Liverpool v Manchester United. Surely, it will not be as good as Forest v Everton.
Just your eight bookings there. Forest improved once Gibbs-White was moved centrally. Everton really need Calvert-Lewin back soon because they are reliant on height in the box due to the wingers they have available.
Full-time: Forest 2-2 Everton
It was a hectic encounter at the City Ground and a draw is certainly fair enough. It keeps Forest four points clear of the relegation zone going into two tough games.
90+4 mins: Davies loses the ball to Dennis, so makes up for his error by pulling back the striker. Another yellow is shown on a busy day for the referee.
90+2 mins: Everton win a corner on the right. Tarkowski and Keane go up for it. McNeil swings it in, Keane heads it back but the referee blows up for something or other.
90 mins: Five minutes added on.
88 mins: Gueye and Lodi have a scrap, the Brazilian wins a free-kick and takes it quickly. For some reason, Gueye then pulls his opponent down anyway. Being feisty for the sake of it.
Iwobi marauds down the pitch and almost makes it through on Navas but Yates is there to clear up.
Maupay and Davies are ready to come on. Maupay almost joined Forest in the summer until they were talked out of it and they will be pleased they avoided it. Iwobi and Gray off.
86 mins: It is a probably not a great sign for those on the Everton bench that Dyche has not seen fit to bring any of them on. They are playing OK but you would think they had someone that could add impetus at this late stage.
Johnson gets Godfrey’s elbow in the back of his head but it is not a foul.
84 mins: Everton are upset that Dennis’ foul on Gueye is missed and become more annoyed when Doucoure is penalised for taking down Ayew.
Johnson gets down the right wing and pings a cross into the box, which creates some pinball until Tarkowski pumps clear.
82 mins: Forest break; Ayew makes it to the edge of the box and takes aim for the bottom corner. He fires his shot across Pickford who gets a strong wrist to the ball and he sees it go away from red shirts.
80 mins: Forest break but Johnson pulls back McNeil to take him out of the game. A good spot form the referee, although he should bring out a yellow for that.
79 mins: Forest have made their three subs. Is it time Everton think of some changes to freshen things up, otherwise they could be at risk here.
Felipe is the latest to go into the book for taking out Gray from behind. That is a bad challenge.
GOAL! Forest 2-2 Everton (Johnson, 77)
A poor pass from Doucoure is intercepted inside the Everton half. Johnson collects the ball, lays it to Yates who plays to straight back to the forward, allowing him to find the top corner from 16 yards.
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76 mins: Lodi sends in a ‘long’ throw from the left but Everton clear easily and break but it ends because there is no one in the box to cross to.
74 mins: Dennis seems to be operating on the left with Ayew down the middle with Johnson.
Down the other end, Iwobi darts past Worrall, who just about holds him up. Eventually, Everton win a corner. Gray swings it in from the left and Worrall clears.
72 mins: Shelvey has dropped deeper alongside Yates, allowing Gibbs-White to play in his preferred position behind the strikers. He makes a dynamic run and looks to find Johnson with a pass but Godfrey reads the danger and clears.
70 mins: Here come the subs for Forest. Yates, Dennis and Ayew are on. Colback, Freuler and Wood are off. It will be interesting to see how they set up.
67 mins: Felipe plays another bad backpass, which Worrall belatedly leaves for Navas, who reacts just in time to clear.
Down the other end, Aurier swings in another cross that is easy for Pickford to claim.
65 mins: Who will Cooper turn to first? Lingard, Surridge, Ayew, Dennis?
63 mins: Coleman bundles over Freuler in the corner and there is another split second of pushing. Lordy, this is becoming difficult to keep track of. Can’t everyone play nice?
61 mins: Gibbs-White, another on a booking, lunges in on Onana and gives away a free-kick, causing some damage to his opponent at the same time. The referee feels the award of the free-kick is punishment enough and so do I. Onana gets up gingerly.
“This is the sort of game you have to feel sorry for the ref,” says Samuel Campbell. “It looks like he has lost control of it a bit but the players acting like little children is making it nearly impossible for him.”
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59 mins: Johnson goes past Godfrey, who has a tug at his shirt but the winger does not go down. With Godfrey on a booking, the referee would have had a decision to make. Dyche might need to make a change at left-back soon.
Down the other end, Felipe sends a dreadful looping backpass in the vague direction of Navas, who reads the danger and runs out to clear.
57 mins: Now Tarkowski is booked for an elite-level lunge on the touchline on Lodi in an attempt to stop a counter. It is not that bad and a yellow is the right decision, despite the anger in the stands.
55 mins: Forest are having a good spell. A Shelvey shot is deflected wide. Gibbs-White takes the corner short to Johnson, who drives for the byline but his cross is well overhit.
There is another melee. Lodi and Gray are booked for their involvement in the latest contretemps.
“Temper, Temper boys,” says Mary Waltz. “Who gets the first Red Card? This is Drunken Pub league stuff and someone is going to lose it.”
I’d be surprised if this ends 11 v 11.
53 mins: The aforementioned free-kick is cleared.
Eric Peterson emails: “Watching that first half was wonderful for a Toffee, but it also made me revert back to my frustration about the Everton that was so offensively inept under Frank Lampard. TV in the USA lauded, most properly, Doucoure and Onana for pushing up from midfield and fueling the attack today. Where was this for the first half of the season, when it was so clear how bare the cupboard was at Everton once Richarlison was sold and not replaced? And if anyone should have recognized the value of giving the midfielders a mandate to join and even force the attack, why not the guy who made his legendary name as a player doing just that?”
51 mins: It’s getting feisty. Tackles fly in from players on both sides. McNeil goes head-to-head with Gibbs-White and they both get a booking. More importantly, Forest get a free-kick in a dangerous position.
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49 mins: Wood is very much a man aiming to come deep to flick the ball on. He is a very different striker from Awoniyi. He seems a strange replacement in this specific system.
47 mins: Everton enjoy all the possession in the first minute of so to keep the City Ground quiet. A dangerous cross is whipped in from the left but Forest clear. The ball makes it out to the left where Gray and Aurier battle for it. Forest get the throw, causing some friction between the two players that needs calming.
Second half
Here we go again!
Forest have a few issues to sort out, mainly how to get Gibbs-White into the game more. Gibbs-White is their most dangerous player but Shelvey seems to be playing in the space he often occupies and he is more keen to play in behind sooner. Hmmmmm ….
Want some half time reading? The read me on Liverpool v United while I decide on having a cake or biscuit.
Half time: Forest 1-2 Everton
The visitors are edging proceedings in what has been a pulsating 45 minutes. As Dyche said before the match, it is all about putting together a full performance in a match. That is the real test for Everton.
45+1 mins: Everton break on Forest. Doucoure gets down the left and pulls it back for Gray to shoot from 12 yards but Gibbs-White blocks what is a tame effort.
45 mins: Two minutes added on.
44 mins: Could Dyche bring on Vinagre for his first appearance in the league since August? I am not sure Godfrey can play 90 minutes at left-back.
42 mins: Godfrey, who has had a tough time, goes into the book for taking down Johnson on the right touchline. An impressively needless foul. Johnson is down receiving treatment.
41 mins: “Dyche has the boys playing with maximum effort,” says Mary Waltz. “The game is chaos, a constant formless mess, which favors Everton. But I am keeping expectations suppressed. Since Sparks was mentioned earlier I think “Edith Piaf Said it Better” would be appropriate.”
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40 mins: McNeil, who is wandering all over the pitch, pops on the right wing. He receives a pass and cuts in onto his favoured left foot to let fly from 25 yards but Navas is able to tip it over.
39 mins: The City Ground is enduring a rare spell of quietness in the stands because Everton are once again on top. Their midfielders and forwards are playing with great fluidity, making it hard for Forest to pick them up.
37 mins: Whenever Everton get into crossing positions, Onana and Doucoure get into the box to provide some height. They are both a threat but if Forest win the first header, it leaves a big gap in midfield.
35 mins: Forest are looking to regroup after the sucker punch of the second goal. They keep looking long for Wood which Tarkowski and Keane will not mind at all.
“Well this is unexpected,” says Joe Pearson. “Both teams average less than a goal per game, and here they’ve already scored three! Maybe they just need to play each other all the time.”
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33 mins: Forest have Tottenham away and then Newcastle at home in their next two games, making it very important that they get something here. It could be one of the great relegation battles this season.
31 mins: This is all a bit relentless, isn’t it? Everton have scored twice to put them level of goals this season with Wolves and Forest at the bottom of the ‘for’ pile.
GOAL! Forest 1-2 Everton (Doucoure, 29)
Pickford lumps a free-kick forward, Tarkowski and Keane get their heads to the ball and it eventually goes into the six-yard box where Doucoure gets the wrong side of Freuler to nod home.
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29 mins: No one seems particularly happy with John Brooks at the moment. He doe not give a foul on Gibbs-White but gives a free-kick to Everton immediately after. Some red shirts surround the referee and he aims to calm tensions.
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27 mins: Aurier takes a dreadful touch in the middle of the pitch and then makes up for it by whacking Gueye in the knee. For some reason, the referee does not book the Forest right-back. How odd. Coleman has a word with Aurier and is told to shut up.
25 mins: Forest have had almost 70% of the ball in the past 10 minutes, a sign of their dominance.
23 mins: Coleman gets round the back and tries to pull the ball back from the byline but he goes down after being clipped by Colback. VAR have a look but do not deem it worthy of a penalty, despite Coleman’s annoyance.
21 mins: Lodi whips in a cross from the left for Wood to attack. The striker flicks the ball towards at goal but a defender deflects it over. Forest are now on top. Everton need to react.
GOAL! Forest 1-1 Everton (Johnson, 19)
The City Ground is alive. Gibbs-White finds space, receives the ball and then plays a one-two with Wood before taking a shot from the edge of the area. Pickford saves the original effort but Johnson is waiting to tap home while Everton sleep.
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18 mins: Forest have upped their tempo in the past couple of minutes and are pushing Everton back. The Toffees are absolutely committed, flying into challenges and defending as a unit.
16 mins: Shelvey lumps a deep free-kick into the box, Pickford comes to punch clear and Gibbs-White volleys the ball well wide. Pickford moans about the physicality of Forest but his complaints have little basis.
14 mins: Forest look to be feeling the early pressure from Everton and are making a few mistakes. They are not at the pace of the game. Can Everton score two in a match for the first time since beating Crystal Palace 3-0 in October?
12 mins: Maybe that challenge from Shelvey was a sign of his lack of match practice. He was slow to react and when he did, he brought down McNeil. The goal was Everton’s fourth shot of the game, albeit their first on target.
GOAL! Forest 0-1 Everton (Gray, pen, 10)
Gray steps up and sends Navas the wrong way. A huge moment.
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9 mins: PENALTY TO EVERTON! A cross goes into the box, it is headed down to Doucoure, he tries to get a shot away but Forest tackle him, McNeil collects the loose ball and is immediately tripped by Shelvey. VAR check for a handball but all is fine.
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8 mins: Everton are looking to go quite direct and put the Forest defence under pressure. The hosts have looked susceptible at the back at time season season and Dyche could be playing on that theory.
6 mins: It is all very even at the moment. Everton have looked quite bright, which is the good news for Dyche.
4 mins: Everton get a free-kick on the left thanks to a needless Johnson foul on McNeil. Gray deeps it to the back post where Doucoure is waiting for his header is cleared. The ball comes back into the box, Tarkowski gets a shot away and it rebounds out to McNeil but he can only whack a shot over.
There is a bit of a worry for Forest after Johnson gets whacked by Godfrey in a 50:50. He seems OK and eventually gets up.
“Not wanting to add to the angst, nor provide any false optimism, but I reckon that Everton aren’t going to go down,” says William Preston. “It’ll be tight, but there’s going to be a good run of results, they’ll get a stomp on and last day thrilling heroics will see them scrape by. Over summer they’ll get a striker and all will be slightly better, and then, against the odds, hot that mid table high for the next twenty years.”
2 mins: It looks like Gray is playing as a striker with McNeil on the left and Iwobi on the right.
Kick off!
Peep! Peep! Peep! Here we go!
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I have my peppermint tea and the players are on the pitch. This is going to be MASSIVE.
Sky have just shown some footage of the last time Everton played at City Ground in 1998. The quality of the video makes me think I might have cataracts.
Sean Dyche on Everton’s poor away form: “The biggest thing is shaking that off, building a new mentality. We have to be consistent throughout 90 minutes.”
Do not worry, Mary Waltz has plenty of angst for us: “Good morning from pitch dark California. Angst? Any left? Of course! I have no way to know if it is true but when the alarm went off this morning it must be similar to someone on death row waiting for a call from the governor knowing it isn’t going to happen. Why get up? To see it through of course. Carry on.”
I spent yesterday at Wolves v Spurs. There was limited angst but plenty of disappointment in how Spurs played. I also did their match at Sheffield United on Wednesday. A bad week all round for them. It did mean Wolves pulled further away from the relegation zone, which is bad news for Forest and Everton.
“I spent the day yesterday in anxiety and dread, in anticipation of Everton’s latest relegation showdown,” says Eric Peterson. “Then, I went to see Spongebob: The Musical last night, and everything changed. Spongebob is right: today is the Best Day Ever! And, tomorrow will be too! And, the next day! And, the day Everton is relegated, and the day it’s found guilty of Financial Fair Play violations, and when it free-falls into League Two, and is forced to fold, and sells the new Bramley-Moore stadium at wholesale to Tranmere Rovers in time for their push for promotion out of the Championship! (Or, maybe Everton will clinch Premier League survival one day in May after all. But, that will be the Best Day Ever!)“
Surely Spongebob has enough money to buy Everton. That would cheer everyone up.
Joe Pearson feels the world needs to listen to this song: “Never one to let a musical cue go unfulfilled.”
“The Everton MBMers were so full of angst during yesterday’s MBM that I wonder whether they will have any left for today?” asks Richard Hirst.
There is no shortage of angst for football fans.
There is some good news for Forest in the shape of Ryan Yates’ return to the matchday squad. He has missed the past five games through illness. It took a bit of time to get to the bottom of the issue, so it is good to see him back.
Forest have gone from their summer plan of being a young, relentless one to being packed full of experience. The important thing for Forest is to stay up and that will be the proof of whether the chance in strategy has worked.
A big loss for the Toffees.
Vitalii Mykolenko misses today's game due to illness. #NFOEVE pic.twitter.com/bQKa7XhwGC
— Everton (@Everton) March 5, 2023
In order to solve Everton’s striking problems, Sean Dyche has decided to go without a recognised striker. I’ve guessed they will play with a 4-3-3, utilising Iwobi in an attacking role of some sort but I am almost certainly wrong.
Starting lineups
Forest (4-3-1-2): Navas; Aurier, Worrall, Felipe, Lodi; Shelvey, Clock, Freuler; Gibbs-White; Johnson, Wood
Subs: Hennessey, Mangala, Williams, Lingard, Toffolo, Surridge, Yates, Dennis, Ayew
Everton 4-3-3): Pickford; Coleman, Keane, Tarkowski, Godfrey; Gueye, Onana, Doucoure; McNeil, Iwobi, Gray
Subs: Begovic, Holgate, Coady, Maupay, Mina, Garner, Davies, Vinagre, Simms
Preamble
Sean Dyche returns to where it all began. The former defender came through the ranks at the City Ground under the watchful eye of Brian Clough. Admittedly, he did not actually play a game for Nottingham Forest’s first team but he has such fond memories of the club he owns a flat overlooking the ground (or so I am told).
There is, unfortunately, no room for sentimentality in the Premier League, especially when survival is at stake. Dyche’s Everton find themselves in the relegation zone and Southampton’s win yesterday will do nothing to cheer them up. A victory today would take the Toffees into the black and up to 16th place, a point behind opponents Forest.
Steve Cooper has made the City Ground a bit of a fortress for Forest, an important trait when aiming to maintain Premier League status. They have not lost at home since September and picked up a valuable point against Manchester City in their most recent match next to the Trent. Last weekend, however, they were shellacked by West Ham 4-0 and will be desperate to bounce back because in such a tight race for the drop, any team that puts together a run of defeats will be in serious trouble.
Here’s a fun game!
Kick-off: 2pm GMT
